Staff Profile

Dr Katharina Peters is a Research Associate for the Institute for Cell & Molecular Biochemistry at University of Newcastle with areas of expertise in microbiology and biochemistry.

Current position: since April 2014

Postdoctoral Research Associate in the lab of Prof. Waldemar Vollmer (Bacterial Biochemistry, Centre for Bacterial Cell Biology, Newcastle, UK).

Education and work experience:

04.2013 – 12.2013 - Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Kaiserslautern (Germany)

07.2009 – 04.2013 - Research Scientist at the University of Kaiserslautern, Ph.D. in Microbiology

Thesis Title: Degradation of the essential penicillin-binding protein 2x of S. pneumoniae through the serine protease HtrA“

06.2008 – 05.2009 - Diploma Thesis in Microbiology, University of Kaiserslautern

Thesis Title: Promoter identification and expression analysis of penicillin-binding protein genes in S. pneumoniae R6“

Google scholar: Click here.

• Le NG, Peters K, Espaillat A, Sheldon JR, Gray J, DiVenanzio G, Lopez J, Djahanschiri B, Mueller EA, Hennon SW, Levin PA, Ebersberger I, Skaar EP, Cava F, Vollmer W, Feldman MF. Peptidoglycan editing provides immunity to Acinetobacter baumannii during bacterial warfare. Science Advances 2020, 6(30), eabb5614.
• Pazos M, Peters K, Casanova M, Palacios P, VanNieuwenhze M, Breukink E, Vicente M, Vollmer W. Correction to: Z-ring membrane anchors associate with cell wall synthases to initiate bacterial cell division (Nature Communications, (2018), 9, 1, (5090), 10.1038/s41467-018-07559-2). Nature Communications 2019, 10(1), 591.
• Peters K, Pazos M, VanNieuwenhze MS, Vollmer W. Optimized Protocol for the Incorporation of FDAA (HADA Labeling) for in situ Labeling of Peptidoglycan. Bio-protocol 2019, 9(15), e3316.
• Pazos M, Peters K. Peptidoglycan. In: Andreas Kuhn, ed. Bacterial Cell Walls and Membranes. New York: Springer, 2019, pp.127-168.
• Peters K, Pazos M, Edoo Z, Hugonnet JE, Martorana A, Polissi A, VanNieuwenhze MS, Arthur M, Vollmer W. Copper inhibits peptidoglycan LD-transpeptidases suppressing β-lactam resistance due to by-pass of Penicillin-binding proteins. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (USA) 2018, 115(42), 10786-10791.
• Morlot C, Straume D, Peters K, Hegnar OA, Simon N, Villard AM, Contreras-Martel C, Leisico F, Breukink E, Gravier-Pelletier C, LeCorre L, Vollmer W, Pietrancosta N, Håvarstein LS, Zapun A. Structure of the essential peptidoglycan amidotranferase MurT/GatD complex from Streptococcus pneumoniae. Nature Communications 2018, 9, 3180.
• Jacq M, Arthaud C, Manuse S, Mercy C, Bellard L, Peters K, Gallet B, Galindo J, Doan T, Vollmer W, Brun YV, VanNieuwenhze MS, DiGuilmi AM, Vernet T, Grangeasse C, Morlot C. The cell wall hydrolase Pmp23 is important for assembly and stability of the division ring in Streptococcus pneumoniae. Scientific Reports 2018, 8, 7591.
• Crépin S, Ottosen EN, Peters K, Smith SN, Himpsl SD, Vollmer W, Mobley HLT. The lytic transglycosylase MltB connects membrane homeostasis and in vivo fitness of Acinetobacter baumannii. Molecular Microbiology 2018, 109(6), 745-762.
• Pazos M, Peters K, Casanova M, Palacios P, VanNieuwenhze MS, Breukink E, Vicente M, Vollmer W. Z-ring membrane anchors associate with cell wall synthases to initiate bacterial cell division. Nature Communications 2018, 9, 5090.
• Schweizer I, Blättner S, Maurer P, Peters K, Vollmer D, Vollmer W, Hakenbeck R, Denapaite D. New aspects of the interplay between penicillin binding proteins, murM and two component system CiaRH of penicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 19A isolates from Hungary. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 2017, 61(7), e00414-17.
• Egan AJF, Cleverley RM, Peters K, Lewis RJ, Vollmer W. Regulation of bacterial cell wall growth. FEBS Journal 2017, 284(6), 851-867.
• Pazos M, Peters K, Vollmer W. Robust peptidoglycan growth by dynamic and variable multi-protein complexes. Current Opinion in Microbiology 2017, 36, 55–61.
• Boll JM, Crofts AA, Peters K, Cattoir V, Vollmer W, Davies BW, Trent MS. A penicillin-binding protein inhibits selection of colistin-resistant, lipooligosaccharide-deficient Acinetobacter baumannii. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2016, 113(41), E6228–E6237.
• Peters K, Pipo J, Schweizer I, Hakenbeck R, Denapaite D. Promoter identification and transcription analysis of penicillin-binding protein genes in Streptococcus pneumoniae. Microbial Drug Resistance 2016, 22(6), 487-498.
• Peters K, Kannan S, Rao VA, Biboy J, Vollmer D, Erickson SW, Lewis RJ, Young KD, Vollmer W. The redundancy of peptidoglycan carboxypeptidases ensures robust cell shape maintenance in Escherichia coli. mBio 2016, 7(3), e00819-16.
• Gisch N, Peters K, Zähringer U, Vollmer W. The Pneumococcal Cell Wall. In: Streptococcus Pneumoniae: Molecular Mechanisms of Host-Pathogen Interactions. Elsevier, 2015, pp.145-167.
• Peters K, Schweizer I, Beilharz K, Stahlmann C, Veening JW, Hakenbeck R, Denapaite D. Streptococcus pneumoniae PBP2x mid-cell localization requires the C-terminal PASTA domains and is essential for cell shape maintenance. Molecular Microbiology 2014, 92(4), 733-755.
• Schweizer I, Peters K, Stahlmann C, Hakenbeck R, Denapaite D. Penicillin-binding protein 2x of Streptococcus pneumoniae: the mutation Ala707Asp within the C-terminal PASTA2 domain leads to destabilization. Microbial Drug Resistance 2014, 20(3), 250-257.