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.
R E C E N T N E W S
August 2026: Congrats to the labs on their new R21, designed to study alternative splicing modulation as a potential Mtb therapeutic.
April 2026: Welcome to three new Vanderbilt University graduate students: Lianna Zhou (Watson lab), Daniela Alvarado (Watson lab), and Andrew Livingston (Patrick lab).
March 2026: Congrats to MD/Ph.D. student Morgan Chapman for successfully defending his dissertation. Good luck in Medical School!
April 2025: Welcome to our two new Vanderbilt University graduate students! Kayla Carmichael (Watson lab), and Jessie Huskey (Patrick lab)
March 2025: Congrats to Cory Mabry on his first first-author paper on Mtb susceptibility in Polg mutator mice
August 2024: Hello Music City! Our labs relocated to Vanderbilt University Medical Center
