SCOTT KACHLANY, PH.D. kachlasc@umdnj.edu Phone: 973-972-3057

Dr. Scott Kachlany is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Oral Biology. He received his B.S. from Cornell University in Microbiology and Molecular and Cellular Biology in 1997. He received his Ph.D. in Microbiology from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 2001. He continued at Columbia as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow until 2003.

Studies in my laboratory focus on the human pathogen Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans. A. actinomycetemcomitans is the etiologic agent of localized aggressive periodontitis (LAP), a very rapid and destructive disease of the oral cavity affecting predominantly adolescents. A. actinomycetemcomitans is also part of the HACEK (Haemophilus aphrophilus, A. actinomycetemcomitans, Cardiobacterium hominis, Eikenella corrodens, Kingella kingae) group of bacteria that cause infective endocarditis. We are specifically interested in an important toxin produced by the pathogen, leukotoxin. Leukotoxin is part of the RTX (repeat in toxin) family of toxins, typified by E. coli a-hemolysin and Bordetella pertussis adenylate cyclase. In contrast to the less specific a-hemolysin, leukotoxin specifically destroys human and Old World primate leukocytes. Leukotoxin likely plays a significant role in pathogenesis by helping A. actinomycetemcomitans evade host immune defenses. Our overall goals are to better understand how leukotoxin functions as a virulence factor and how it contributes to disease caused by A. actinomycetemcomitans. Ultimately, we hope that our work will lead to the identification of novel ways to prevent toxin function and combat disease.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Kachlany, S. C., D. H. Fine, and D. H. Figurski. 2002. Purification of secreted leukotoxin (LtxA) from Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans. Protein Expr Purif 25:465-71.

Schreiner, H. C., K. Sinatra, J. B. Kaplan, D. Furgang, S. C. Kachlany, P. J. Planet, B. A. Perez, D. H. Figurski, and D. H. Fine. 2003. Tight-adherence genes of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans are required for virulence in a rat model. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 100:7295-300.

Planet, P. J., S. C. Kachlany, D. H. Fine, R. DeSalle, and D. H. Figurski. 2003. The Widespread Colonization Island of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans. Nat Genet 34:193-8.

Diaz, R., L. Al Ghofaily, J. Patel, N. V. Balashova, A. C. Freitas, I. Labib, and S. C. Kachlany. 2006. Characterization of leukotoxin from a clinical strain of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans. Microbial Pathogenesis. 40:48-55.

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