Diving into the world of bacteriophages with Dr. Anna Dragos

Anna Dragos is an Assistant Professor at the Biotechnical Faculty, the University of Ljubljana who studies the impact of prophages (viruses that integrate into bacterial genomes) on bacterial behavior and evolution. Her lab was recently funded by the European Research Council to study bacterial host manipulation by bacteriophages. 

Here, she talks about her research, scientific journey, and fitting into her new role as an independent principal investigator in Slovenia. 

While studying Biotechnology at the University of Wroclaw (Poland), her first acquaintance with phages was at the Phage Therapy Unit in the  Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy. Later during her postdoctoral research, she noticed her bacterial strains alter their behaviors after acquiring multiple mutations in a prophage region. This discovery of cryptic viruses influencing bacterial interactions enticed her to study bacteria-phage associations further.

 “ At the start, the biofilm-producing bacteria was clearly outcompeting the non-producer, but then the situation changed dramatically.  I got really hooked on the project and after months of digging, we realized it was the phages. Specifically, a foreign phage that had invaded the bacterial culture multiplied, and recombined with a native prophage resulting in new phage variants - this course of events changed the relationship between the interacting bacteria. “  More on this story here.

Explaining more on how phage integrations bring about changes in bacterial hosts she adds, “Phages bring in new genes, encode new proteins, and potentially introduce new traits in bacterial hosts. The best-known examples are toxins e.g. Shiga toxin in Escherichia coli bacterium, where phage changes harmless commensal bacteria into a pathogen. But there is more! Phages can integrate into functional genes, and inactivate them, this may result in bacteria losing a trait.  Moreover, phages carry genes for communication systems, regulators, bacteriocins, or phage-defense systems; but even today the  majority of phage genes remain a black box.”

 Dr. Dragos worked on biofilm formation in a soil bacterium, Bacillus subtilis as a doctoral and post-doctoral researcher. Therefore, it was quite challenging to start her own team with a new system. From acquiring methods and molecular tools to establishing a network with other bacteriophage researchers, she acknowledges the help of her mentors and peers. Pointing out the other major hurdle- acquiring research funding, she says, “Applying for starting grants was challenging at first as I didn’t have research papers in the topic, I was new to the field,  I lacked focus and  an outlook on how to place my idea (or fascination with a specific group of phages, targeting a specific bacterial species)  into a broader perspective.” 

Now starting out with an ERC funding, she is navigating her way around her new role as a group leader at the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia. “It is my second homeland (I did my Ph.D. here, and I am married to a Slovenian). I speak the language fluently, but I am not a Slovenian citizen. Getting a residence permit is a challenging process and there are no ‘shortcuts’ for university researchers  - something that worked very well at DTU (Denmark), my previous university.” 

Recognizing the difficulties involved while transitioning to a new role in research, she also points out the differences between Slovenia and other European nations stating, “ The local funding system is different, e.g. grants are divided into categories from A-F with fixed percentages of budget allocated to salaries and material costs. Depending on the category you chose, you receive a fixed number of research hours, which determine how many researchers you can hire/for how long - something I still can’t get my head around. Further, salaries are lower - especially compared to the rental costs in Ljubljana. Despite these challenges, there is a lot of freedom and flexibility- collaborators are within reach (Slovenia is a small country), and importantly, you work in one of the most beautiful places in Europe.”

“I joined the faculty in the middle of a pandemic and just prior to a major transition in HR and finances - due to these, the administration was loaded with extra tasks, but they were patient with me. Colleagues in the department were very supportive, helping me with the bureaucracy, introducing my student into the lab, supporting some initiatives I started, and also helping me to prepare for the big grant interview.” 

Studies on bacteria-phage interactions are gaining momentum in recent years and new findings such as treating bacterial infections using bacteriophages are coming to light. Therefore, it is critical to understand the effect of phages on bacteria, bacterial defense strategies, and mechanisms in phages to evade these defenses. 

You can read more on Dr. Dragos’s research here and also reach her on Twitter.