Kyle Cunningham is a Professor in the Department of Biology.  As an undergraduate at Johns Hopkins University, he developed an enthusiasm for research under the guidance of Christian B. Anfinsen.  He then trained under William T. Wickner in the area of membrane biochemistry and earned a PhD from UCLA.  Postdoctoral training in mitochondrial membrane biogenesis under Jeff Schatz (University of Basel) and in yeast genetics under Gerry Fink (Whitehead Institute at MIT) further shaped his research interests.  He rejoined the Department of Biology at Johns Hopkins as an assistant professor in 1994 and has unraveled the molecular mechanisms governing calcium signaling and fungal cell death ever since.

Fungal pathogens inflict enormous burdens on human health, with over 1 billion serious infections and 1 million deaths each year.  The economic burdens of fungi on agriculture are also immense.  The Cunningham Laboratory focuses on understanding the processes by which a particular pathogenic yeast (termed Candida glabrata) acquired its ability to infect humans, cause disease, and resist our efforts to contain it.

C. glabrata infections have been increasing in recent decades partly due to its intrinsic resistance to some common antifungals and easily acquired resistance to others. Like many other species that cause candidiasis, a dearth of genetic tools has hindered our progress in understanding this species. The Cunningham Lab has recently overcome that limitation by adapting Tn-seq (transposon mutagenesis coupled to next-generation DNA sequencing) to the organism and performing the first genome-wide screens for genes that mediate resistance to antifungals.  The same approach is providing the first insights into the genes that regulate colonization of the gastrointestinal tract, invasion of the bloodstream, survival within cells of the immune system, and virulence in the host. 

Tn-seq is now poised to revolutionize studies of eukaryotic pathogens, including other species of Candida, other fungal pathogens such as Cryptococcus, and even parasites such as Plasmodium that causes malaria.  The Cunningham Laboratory actively advances the Tn-seq methodology by developing exciting new computational tools, laboratory methods, and biological applications. 

A complete list of publications from the Cunningham Laboratory can be found at the following URL:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/myncbi/1La-cuYe5nlQ6/bibliography/47694483/public/?sort=date&direction=descending

PhD Students

Timothy J. Nickels

Abigail A. Harrington

Joshua Schultz

MA Students

Anna Zaeske

BS Students

Bertina Lin