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Contact Details

Email
daniel.pletzer@otago.ac.nz
Position
Senior Lecturer
Department
Department of Microbiology and Immunology
Qualifications
PhD
Research summary
Using nanomedicines to combat multidrug resistant WHO-priority pathogens

Research

Our research is focused on recalcitrant ESKAPE (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter species) pathogens; especially hard-to-treat clinical isolates involved in multidrug resistance, biofilm infections and persistence.

We are especially interested in bacteria that have been categorized as 'critical' priority pathogens by the World Health Organization. This includes multidrug resistant organisms that cause severe and often deadly infections and therefore pose an enormous threat in hospitals.

To address this issue, research in the Pletzer Lab focuses on fighting infectious diseases and tackling antimicrobial resistance using innovative and interdisciplinary approaches.

Our lab seeks to:

  1. Understand how microbes cause disease
  2. Fight antimicrobial resistance with novel nanomedicines
  3. Develop new antimicrobial strategies

Visit www.pletzerlab.com for more information

Visit Daniel Pletzer’s profile in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology.

Scholarly networking websites

Publications

Shein, A. M. S., Hongsing, P., Smith, O. K., Phattharapornjaroen, P., Miyanaga, K., Cui, L., … Pletzer, D., … Wannigama, D. L. (2024). Current and novel therapies for management of Acinetobacter baumannii-associated pneumonia [Review]. Critical Reviews in Microbiology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1080/1040841x.2024.2369948 Journal - Research Article

Na, T. U., Sander, V., Davidson, A. J., Lin, R., Hermant, Y. O., Hardie Boys, M. T., Pletzer, D., Campbell, G., Ferguson, S. A., Cook, G. M., … Cameron, A. J. (2024). Allenamides as a powerful tool to incorporate diversity: Thia-Michael lipidation of semisynthetic peptides and access to β-ketoamides. Angewandte Chemie International Edition. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1002/anie.202407764 Journal - Research Article

Ross, C. L., Lawer, A., Sircombe, K. J., Pletzer, D., Gamble, A. B., & Hook, S. (2024). Site-specific antimicrobial activity of a dual-responsive ciprofloxacin prodrug. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c00724 Journal - Research Article

Esposito, T. V. F., Blackadar, C., Wu, L., Rodríguez-Rodríguez, C., Haney, E. F., Pletzer, D., … Häfeli, U. O. (2024). Biodistribution of native and nanoformulated innate defense regulator peptide 1002. Molecular Pharmaceutics. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.3c01169 Journal - Research Article

Lyons, N., Wu, W., Jin, Y., Lamont, I. L., & Pletzer, D. (2024). Using host-mimicking conditions and a murine cutaneous abscess model to identify synergistic antibiotic combinations effective against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Frontiers in Cellular & Infection Microbiology, 14, 1352339. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1352339 Journal - Research Article

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