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Molly A. Hughes

Molly A. Hughes

Professor, Medicine- Infectious Diseases and International Health

Primary Location
PO Box 800513
MR-6, Room 1525
Charlottesville, VA 22908
Primary Phone Number
Fax Number
434.924.0075

Bio & Overview

The goal of the primary research project in the Hughes laboratory is to investigate a select family of host interferon-inducible CXC chemokines known as CXCL9, CXCL10, and CXCL11 as novel antimicrobial agents to combat bacterial pathogens that cause infections. For our ongoing project, we study the lung pathogen, Bacillus anthracis, based on our work demonstrating that CXCL9, CXCL10, and CXCL11 exhibit antimicrobial effects against both the spore and vegetative bacillus form of B. anthracis. This work has led to exciting new findings of putative bacterial targets applicable to the development of potential new therapeutic strategies against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogens, including multi-drug resistant bacterial strains. Another area of research of the Hughes laboratory has resulted from an ongoing, international collaboration with Infectious Diseases colleagues at the Aga Khan University in Karachi, Pakistan. Studies include a focus on 1) etiologies of respiratory infections in adults and children, 2) identification of biomarkers of gut health, and 3) mechanisms of multi-drug antibiotic resistance in bacterial pathogens.

Academic Information

Department
Medicine- Infectious Diseases and International Health
Academic Title
Associate Professor

Primary Education

  • BS, Chemistry, summa cum laude, Bucknell University, 1986
  • MD/PhD, Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, 1996

Other Appointments

  • Associate Professor, Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology
  • Assistant Professor, MII

Other Affiliations

  • BIMS

Research Interests

Biodefense and emerging pathogens

Research Disciplines

  • Microbiology

Research Opportunities

  • Infectious Diseases
  • Microbiology

PhD Programs

  • Microbiology

Selected Publications

2023

Cui, Z., Crawford, M. A., Rumble, B. A., Krogh, M. M., Hughes, M. A., & Letteri, R. A. (2023). Antimicrobial Peptide-Poly(ethylene glycol) Conjugates: Connecting Molecular Architecture, Solution Properties, and Functional Performance. ACS POLYMERS AU, 4(1), 45-55. doi:10.1021/acspolymersau.3c00026

Crawford, M. A., Lascols, C., Lomonaco, S., Timme, R. E., Fisher, D. J., Anderson, K., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2023). Enterobacterales draft genome sequences: 15 historical (1998-2004) and 30 contemporary (2015-2016) clinical isolates from Pakistan. MICROBIOLOGY RESOURCE ANNOUNCEMENTS. doi:10.1128/MRA.00163-23

Lascols, C., Cherney, B., Conley, A. B., Rishishwar, L., Crawford, M. A., Morse, S. A., . . . Sue, D. (2023). Investigation of multidrug-resistant plasmids from carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates from Pakistan. FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY, 14. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2023.1192097

2022

Crawford, M. A., Ward, A. E., Gray, V., Bailer, P., Fisher, D. J., Kubicka, E., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2022). Disparate Regions of the Human Chemokine CXCL10 Exhibit Broad-Spectrum Antimicrobial Activity against Biodefense and Antibiotic-Resistant Bacterial Pathogens. ACS INFECTIOUS DISEASES. doi:10.1021/acsinfecdis.2c00456

2021

Dunphy, L. J., Kolling, G. L., Jenior, M. L., Carroll, J., Attai, A. E., Farnoud, F., . . . Papin, J. A. (2021). Multidimensional Clinical Surveillance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Reveals Complex Relationships between Isolate Source, Morphology, and Antimicrobial Resistance. MSPHERE, 6(4). doi:10.1128/mSphere.00393-21

Cui, Z., Luo, Q., Bannon, M. S., Gray, V. P., Bloom, T. G., Clore, M. F., . . . Letteri, R. A. (2021). Molecular engineering of antimicrobial peptide (AMP)-polymer conjugates. BIOMATERIALS SCIENCE, 9(15), 5069-5091. doi:10.1039/d1bm00423a

Callahan, V., Hawks, S., Crawford, M. A., Lehman, C. W., Morrison, H. A., Ivester, H. M., . . . Kehn-Hall, K. (2021). The Pro-Inflammatory Chemokines CXCL9, CXCL10 and CXCL11 Are Upregulated Following SARS-CoV-2 Infection in an AKT-Dependent Manner. VIRUSES-BASEL, 13(6). doi:10.3390/v13061062

2020

Lomonaco, S., Crawford, M. A., Lascols, C., Fisher, D. J., Anderson, K., Hodge, D. R., . . . Sharma, S. K. (2020). Draft Genome Sequences of Two Extensively Drug-Resistant Strains of Acinetobacter baumannii Isolated from Clinical Samples in Pakistan. MICROBIOLOGY RESOURCE ANNOUNCEMENTS, 9(20). doi:10.1128/MRA.00026-20

2019

Lomonaco, S., Lascols, C., Crawford, M. A., Anderson, K., Hodge, D. R., Fisher, D. J., . . . Sharma, S. K. (2019). Draft Genome Sequences of Antimicrobial-Resistant Shigella Clinical Isolates from Pakistan. MICROBIOLOGY RESOURCE ANNOUNCEMENTS, 8(30). doi:10.1128/MRA.00500-19

Iqbal, N. T., Syed, S., Kabir, F., Jamil, Z., Akhund, T., Qureshi, S., . . . Ali, A. (2019). Pathobiome driven gut inflammation in Pakistani children with Environmental Enteric Dysfunction. PLOS ONE, 14(8). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0221095

2018

Crawford, M. A., Margulieux, K. R., Singh, A., Nakamoto, R. K., & Hughes, M. A. (2019). Mechanistic insights and therapeutic opportunities of antimicrobial chemokines. SEMINARS IN CELL & DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY, 88, 119-128. doi:10.1016/j.semcdb.2018.02.003

Iqbal, N. T., Sadiq, K., Syed, S., Akhund, T., Umrani, F., Ahmed, S., . . . Ali, S. A. (2018). Promising Biomarkers of Environmental Enteric Dysfunction: A Prospective Cohort study in Pakistani Children. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 8. doi:10.1038/s41598-018-21319-8

Dunbar, J., Pillai, S., Wunschel, D., Dickens, M., Morse, S. A., Franz, D., . . . Hodge, D. (2018). Perspective on Improving Environmental Monitoring of Biothreats. FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY, 6. doi:10.3389/fbioe.2018.00147

Lomonaco, S., Crawford, M. A., Lascols, C., Timme, R. E., Anderson, K., Hodge, D. R., . . . Sharma, S. K. (2018). Resistome of carbapenem-and colistin-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates. PLOS ONE, 13(6). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0198526

2017

Crawford, M. A., Fisher, D. J., Leung, L. M., Lomonaco, S., Lascols, C., Cannatelli, A., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2017). CXC Chemokines Exhibit Bactericidal Activity against Multidrug-Resistant Gram-Negative Pathogens. MBIO, 8(6). doi:10.1128/mBio.01549-17

Ali, A., Zaman, U., Mahmud, S., Zahid, G. -E. -S., Kazi, M., Petri, W. A., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2017). Impact of maternal respiratory infections on low birth weight - a community based longitudinal study in an urban setting in Pakistan. BMC PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH, 17. doi:10.1186/s12884-017-1275-y

Tucker, J. D., Hughes, M. A., Durvasula, R. V., Vinetz, J. M., McGovern, V. P., Schultz, R., . . . Taylor, T. E. (2017). Measuring Success in Global Health Training: Data From 14 Years of a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine. CLINICAL INFECTIOUS DISEASES, 64(12), 1768-1772. doi:10.1093/cid/cix242

Margulieux, K. R., Liebov, B. K., Tirumala, V. S. K. K. S., Singh, A., Bushweller, J. H., Nakamoto, R. K., & Hughes, M. A. (2017). Bacillus anthracis Peptidoglycan Integrity Is Disrupted by the Chemokine CXCL10 through the FtsE/X Complex. FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY, 8. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2017.00740

2016

Crawford, M. A., Timme, R., Lomonaco, S., Lascols, C., Fisher, D. J., Sharma, S. K., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2016). Genome Sequences of Multidrug-Resistant, Colistin-Susceptible and-Resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae Clinical Isolates from Pakistan. GENOME ANNOUNCEMENTS, 4(6). doi:10.1128/genomeA.01419-16

Margulieux, K. R., Fox, J. W., Nakamoto, R. K., & Hughes, M. A. (2016). CXCL10 Acts as a Bifunctional Antimicrobial Molecule against Bacillus anthracis. MBIO, 7(3). doi:10.1128/mBio.00334-16

Ali, A., Akhund, T., Warraich, G. J., Aziz, F., Rahman, N., Umrani, F. A., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2016). Respiratory Viruses Associated With Severe Pneumonia in Children Under 2 Years Old in a Rural Community in Pakistan. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY, 88(11), 1882-1890. doi:10.1002/jmv.24557

Shakoor, S., Shafaq, H., Hasan, R., Qureshi, S. M., Dojki, M., Hughes, M. A., . . . Khan, E. (2016). BARRIERS TO IMPLEMENTATION OF OPTIMAL LABORATORY BIOSAFETY PRACTICES IN PAKISTAN. HEALTH SECURITY, 14(4), 214-219. doi:10.1089/hs.2016.0031

Mal, P. B., Farooqi, J., Irfan, S., Hughes, M. A., & Khan, E. (2016). Reduced susceptibility to chlorhexidine disinfectant among New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase-1 positive Enterobacteriaceae and other multidrug-resistant organisms: Report from a tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan. INDIAN JOURNAL OF MEDICAL MICROBIOLOGY, 34(3), 346-349. doi:10.4103/0255-0857.188338

2015

Heysell, S. K., & Hughes, M. A. (2016). Listeria monocytogenes Endovascular Graft Infection. OPEN FORUM INFECTIOUS DISEASES, 3(1). doi:10.1093/ofid/ofv203

Schutte, K. M., Fisher, D. J., Burdick, M. D., Mehrad, B., Mathers, A. J., Mann, B. J., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2016). Escherichia coli Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex Is an Important Component of CXCL10-Mediated Antimicrobial Activity. INFECTION AND IMMUNITY, 84(1), 320-328. doi:10.1128/IAI.00552-15

Cincotta, M. C., Coffey, K. C., Moonah, S. N., Uppal, D., & Hughes, M. A. (2015). Case Report of Granulicatella adiacens as a Cause of Bacterascites. CASE REPORTS IN INFECTIOUS DISEASES, 2015. doi:10.1155/2015/132317

Wang, J., Bartelt, L., Yu, D., Joshi, A., Weinbaum, B., Pierson, T., . . . Donowitz, G. (2015). Primary Cutaneous Cryptococcosis Treated with Debridement and Fluconazole Monotherapy in an Immunosuppressed Patient: A Case Report and Review of the Literature. CASE REPORTS IN INFECTIOUS DISEASES, 2015. doi:10.1155/2015/131356

2014

Ghanchi, N. K., Khan, E., Farooqi, J. Q., Fasih, N., Dojki, M., & Hughes, M. A. (2014). Knowledge and practices of laboratory workers on standardized antimicrobial susceptibility testing and biosafety practices to prevent the spread of superbugs in Pakistan. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INFECTION CONTROL, 42(9), 1022-1024. doi:10.1016/j.ajic.2014.06.006

2013

Barua, S., Iyer, J. K., Larabee, J. L., Raisley, B., Hughes, M. A., Coggeshall, K. M., & Ballard, J. D. (2013). Toxin Inhibition of Antimicrobial Factors Induced by Bacillus anthracis Peptidoglycan in Human Blood. INFECTION AND IMMUNITY, 81(10), 3693-3702. doi:10.1128/IAI.00709-13

2011

Crawford, M. A., Lowe, D. E., Fisher, D. J., Stibitz, S., Plaut, R. D., Beaber, J. W., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2011). Identification of the bacterial protein FtsX as a unique target of chemokine-mediated antimicrobial activity against Bacillus anthracis. PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 108(41), 17159-17164. doi:10.1073/pnas.1108495108

2010

Crawford, M. A., Burdick, M. D., Glomski, I. J., Boyer, A. E., Barr, J. R., Mehrad, B., . . . Hughes, M. A. (2010). Interferon-Inducible CXC Chemokines Directly Contribute to Host Defense against Inhalational Anthrax in a Murine Model of Infection. PLOS PATHOGENS, 6(11). doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1001199