Our labs are run jointly by Drs. Robert Watson and Kristin Patrick. Together, we are interested how the macrophage innate immune response is regulated during bacterial infection. By leveraging training in diverse fields and combining our toolboxes, our collaborative lab is able to study all aspects of innate immunity and the host-pathogen interface—from molecules to mice!
The Watson lab studies the Mycobacterium tuberculosis host-pathogen interface, and is particularly focused how Mtb cytosolic access and mitochondrial homeostasis impact bacterial pathogenesis in macrophages ex vivo and in mouse models of infection.
The Patrick lab studies the contributions of RNA binding proteins to macrophage activation and how post-transcriptional regulation of innate immune gene expression (mostly at the level of pre-mRNA splicing) impacts infection outcomes.
The patrick and watson labs are moving!
We are thrilled to announce that we have accepted positions at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN. We will join VI4 (Vanderbilt Institute for Infection, Immunology, and Inflammation) in the Departments of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology (Kristin) and Medicine (Robbie) starting August 1, 2024. Interested technicians and postdocs; please reach out by email if you are interested in joining our group up in Music City!
R E C E N T N E W S
June 2024: Welcome to our two newest lab members: Dr. Xinwei Geng, who will postdoc in the Watson lab, and Stacy Hahn, research assistant and lab manager.
February 2024: Big congrats to Dr. Kristin Patrick who received tenure at Texas A&M College of Medicine!
February 2024: Check out the labs’ new foray into biomolecular condensates in immune sensing
February 2024: Check out the labs’ newest publication on the role of SRSF7 on promoting Irf7 transcription
November 2023: Congratulations to Dr. Kristin Patrick on winning the Texas A&M COM Distinguished Teaching Award for Graduate Student Training.
November 2023: Congratulations to Mackenzie Smith who presented her findings on how the splicing inhibitor pladienolide B impacts inflammatory gene expression in macrophages at the FASEB RNA Processing in Cancer conference in Houston, TX.
