Arto Pulliainen
principal investigator, PhD
bacteriology; cell biology; bacterial toxins; protein chemistry; drug development
Principal investigator (2015-, University of Turku, Turku, Finland)
Docent / Adjunct professor (2012-, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland)
Post doc (2006-2014, University of Turku, Turku, Finland and Biozentrum, Basel, Switzerland)
PhD (2006, University of Turku, Turku, Finland)
Doctoral student (2001-2006, University of Turku, Turku, Finland)
MSc (2001, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland)
Turku Cellular Microbiology Laboratory (TCML) studies the interaction of bacterial pathogens with their host cells at molecular level. Our research is focused on proteins, in particular on enzymes, of the bacterial pathogen and of the host cell that are key molecular players shaping the development and severity of an infectious disease. Our goal is to gain detailed molecular knowledge of the protein functions allowing development of targeted pharmaceuticals to prevent and treat infectious diseases.
Funding sources:
Academy of Finland, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation, Sigrid Jusélius Foundation, Finnish Cultural Foundation, The Finnish Society of Sciences and Letters, Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation, Emil Aaltonen Foundation, Turku University Foundation, Turku Doctoral Programme of Molecular Medicine (TuDMM), Erasmus+
bacteriology; cell biology; protein chemistry; molecular biology
- ADP-ribosyltransferase-based biocatalysis of non-hydrolyzable NAD+ analogs (2025)
- Journal of Biological Chemistry
- Pathogenic bacterial taxa constitute a substantial portion of fecal microbiota in common migratory bats and birds in Europe (2025)
- Microbiology spectrum
- Alpha-1 antitrypsin inhibits pertussis toxin (2024)
- Journal of Biological Chemistry
- Body-wide genetic deficiency of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 14 sensitizes mice to colitis (2024)
- FASEB Journal
- Identification and characterization of an endogenous human protein, α1-antitrypsin, as a novel inhibitor of the Bordetella Pertussis toxin (2024)
- Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Archives of Pharmacology
- Slow-lived birds and bats carry higher pathogen loads (2024)
- One Earth
- The Chaperonin TRiC/CCT Inhibitor HSF1A Protects Cells from Intoxication with Pertussis Toxin (2024)
- Toxins
- Continental-scale climatic gradients of pathogenic microbial taxa in birds and bats (2023)
- Ecography
- DNA Nanoflower Eye Drops with Antibiotic-Resistant Gene Regulation Ability for MRSA Keratitis Target Treatment (2023)
- Small
- Domperidone Inhibits Clostridium botulinum C2 Toxin and Bordetella pertussis Toxin (2023)
- Toxins
- Inhibition of Pertussis Toxin by Human α-Defensins-1 and -5: Differential Mechanisms of Action (2023)
- International Journal of Molecular Sciences
- Reference genome for the Northern bat (Eptesicus nilssonii), a most northern bat species (2023)
- Journal of Heredity
- Crystal structures of pertussis toxin with NAD(+) and analogs provide structural insights into the mechanism of its cytosolic ADP-ribosylation activity (2022)
- Journal of Biological Chemistry
- Exotoxin-Targeted Drug Modalities as Antibiotic Alternatives (2022)
- ACS Infectious Diseases
- Human Peptides α-Defensin-1 and -5 Inhibit Pertussis Toxin (2021)
- Toxins
- Pharmacological targeting of host chaperones protects from pertussis toxin in vitro and in vivo (2021)
- Scientific Reports
- Discovery of Compounds Inhibiting the ADP-Ribosyltransferase Activity of Pertussis Toxin (2020)
- ACS Infectious Diseases
- Homogeneous Dual-Parametric-Coupled Assay for Simultaneous Nucleotide Exchange and KRAS/RAF-RBD Interaction Monitoring (2020)
- Analytical Chemistry
- IGIST - A Kinetic Bioassay for Pertussis Toxin Based on Its Effect on Inhibitory GPCR Signaling (2020)
- ACS Sensors
- Single-Peptide TR-FRET Detection Platform for Cysteine-Specific Post-Translational Modifications (2020)
- Analytical Chemistry