William R. Jacobs Jr.
Bill Jacobs | |
---|---|
Born | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | March 13, 1955
Nationality | American |
Citizenship | United States |
Alma mater | Edinboro University of Pennsylvania University of Alabama at Birmingham |
Known for | Developing genetics for Mycobacterium tuberculosis |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Microbiology |
Institutions | Albert Einstein College of Medicine |
Doctoral advisor | Roy Curtiss III |
William R. Jacobs Jr., is a professor of Microbiology and Immunology and Professor of Genetics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in The Bronx, New York, where he is also a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator. Jacobs is a specialist in the molecular genetics of Mycobacteria.[1] His research efforts are aimed at discovering genes associated with virulence and pathogenicity in M. tuberculosis and developing attenuated strains for use as vaccines. He is a Founding Scientist at the KwaZulu-Natal Research Institute for Tuberculosis and HIV.[2]
Early career[]
In 1985, Jacobs joined Barry Bloom's lab at Albert Einstein College of Medicine as a post-doctoral fellow[3] to work on the resurgent problem of tuberculosis. In 1987, the two co-authored a ground-breaking[4] paper published in Nature describing a novel system for the genetic manipulation of mycobacteria, "Introduction of Foreign DNA into Mycobacteria Using a Shuttle Phasmid".[5] By demonstrating the utility of shuttle phasmids as DNA transporters between E. coli plasmids and mycobacteriophages, this paved the way for recombinant DNA research for mycobacteria.[6]
Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator (1990-present)[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/WilliamRJacobsEsquire.jpg/220px-WilliamRJacobsEsquire.jpg)
Jacobs has been profiled several times in many media publications including The New York Times, Esquire Magazine and Discovery.[7]
References[]
- ^ Hatfull, Graham F., and William R. Jacobs. Molecular Genetics of Mycobacteria. Washington, D.C.: ASM, 2000. Print.
- ^ "Founding Scientists." K-RITH. HHMI/UKZN, 2012. Web. <http://www.k-rith.org/founding-scientists>
- ^ "Barry R. Bloom." Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor. Harvard University, n.d. Web. <https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/faculty/barry-bloom/>.
- ^ Vijaya, S. "The Genetics O fMycobacterium Tuberculosis." Journal of Genetics 77.2-3 (1998): 123-28. Print.
- ^ Jacobs, William R., Margareta Tuckman, and Barry R. Bloom. "Introduction of Foreign DNA into Mycobacteria Using a Shuttle Phasmid." Nature 327.6122 (1987): 532-35
- ^ Caldwell, Mark. "Health & Medicine / Infectious Diseases." Resurrection of a Killer. Discover Magazine, n.d. Web. <http://discovermagazine.com/1992/dec/resurrectionofak164>.
- ^ see: Mechanism Explained for Drug Resistance in Some TB Strains
- 1955 births
- Living people
- Scientists from Pittsburgh
- American geneticists
- American microbiologists
- Edinboro University of Pennsylvania alumni
- University of Alabama at Birmingham alumni
- Albert Einstein College of Medicine faculty
- Howard Hughes Medical Investigators