Ana Duran-Pinedo

Ana Duran-Pinedo, PhD

Research Assistant Professor

Department: DN-ORAL BIOLOGY
Business Email: apinedo@ufl.edu

Research Profile

My research main interest is to understand the role of Tannerella forsythia on the development of periodontal disease with particular focus on the study of new putative virulence factors. T. forsythia is a major periodontal pathogen strongly associated with periodontitis and a member of the Red complex (Tannerella forsythia, Porphyromonas gingivalis and Treponema denticola). It was first isolated at Forsyth Institute by Anne Tanner and Sig Socransky, and named in recognition to its discoverers and the Institute. As standpoint, I have studied the gene expression profiles of oral communities on progressing and stablished periodontitis using Metatranscriptomic analysis. I have focused my research on understanding what is happening to T.forsythia, in the real context of the complex oral microbial communities and the host. We have found that during disease progression T.Forsythia is expressing at high level a protein causing collagen destruction in the tooth supporting structures. Collagen is the main component on the periodontium and its degradation lead to the loss of tooth, decreasing the quality of life of the patient. For the last 14 years I have been working on the biology of the anaerobes. As a postdoctoral fellow at University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, I carried out research on in vivo recombination of Bacteroides conjugative transposon CtnDOT, a genetic element involved in the spread of erythromycin resistance. Later on, I moved to The Forsyth Institute, where I started my research on the study of the genes controlled by Two Component Systems most in P.gingivalis. As mentioned above, currently, the main focus of my research is understanding the contribution of Tannerella forsythia to the progression and development of periodontitis

Areas of Interest
  • Education
  • Microbiology
  • Microbiome

Publications

2024
A Porphyromonas gingivalis hypothetical protein controlled by the type I-C CRISPR-Cas system is a novel adhesin important in virulence.
mSystems. 9(3) [DOI] 10.1128/msystems.01231-23. [PMID] 38323815.
2023
Subgingival host-microbiome metatranscriptomic changes following scaling and root planing in grade II/III periodontitis.
Journal of clinical periodontology. 50(3):316-330 [DOI] 10.1111/jcpe.13737. [PMID] 36281629.
2021
Genetic and Biochemical Characterization of the Na+/H+ Antiporters of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Journal of bacteriology. 203(18) [DOI] 10.1128/JB.00284-21. [PMID] 34280000.
2021
Long-term dynamics of the human oral microbiome during clinical disease progression.
BMC biology. 19(1) [DOI] 10.1186/s12915-021-01169-z. [PMID] 34742306.
2021
Metatranscriptomic analyses of the oral microbiome.
Periodontology 2000. 85(1):28-45 [DOI] 10.1111/prd.12350. [PMID] 33226688.
2021
The three NADH dehydrogenases of Pseudomonas aeruginosa: Their roles in energy metabolism and links to virulence.
PloS one. 16(2) [DOI] 10.1371/journal.pone.0244142. [PMID] 33534802.
2020
Virulence of the Pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis Is Controlled by the CRISPR-Cas Protein Cas3.
mSystems. 5(5) [DOI] 10.1128/mSystems.00852-20. [PMID] 32994292.
2018
The contribution of Tannerella forsythia dipeptidyl aminopeptidase IV in the breakdown of collagen.
Molecular oral microbiology. 33(6):407-419 [DOI] 10.1111/omi.12244. [PMID] 30171738.
2018
The effect of the stress hormone cortisol on the metatranscriptome of the oral microbiome.
NPJ biofilms and microbiomes. 4 [DOI] 10.1038/s41522-018-0068-z. [PMID] 30345066.
2017
Potassium is a key signal in host-microbiome dysbiosis in periodontitis.
PLoS pathogens. 13(6) [DOI] 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006457. [PMID] 28632755.
2015
Beyond microbial community composition: functional activities of the oral microbiome in health and disease.
Microbes and infection. 17(7):505-16 [DOI] 10.1016/j.micinf.2015.03.014. [PMID] 25862077.
2015
Erratum to: Functional signatures of oral dysbiosis during periodontitis progression revealed by microbial metatranscriptome analysis.
Genome medicine. 7(1) [DOI] 10.1186/s13073-015-0231-6. [PMID] 26507874.
2015
Functional signatures of oral dysbiosis during periodontitis progression revealed by microbial metatranscriptome analysis.
Genome medicine. 7(1) [DOI] 10.1186/s13073-015-0153-3. [PMID] 25918553.
2015
Small RNA Transcriptome of the Oral Microbiome during Periodontitis Progression.
Applied and environmental microbiology. 81(19):6688-99 [DOI] 10.1128/AEM.01782-15. [PMID] 26187962.
2014
Community-wide transcriptome of the oral microbiome in subjects with and without periodontitis.
The ISME journal. 8(8):1659-72 [DOI] 10.1038/ismej.2014.23. [PMID] 24599074.
2014
The periodontal pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis induces expression of transposases and cell death of Streptococcus mitis in a biofilm model.
Infection and immunity. 82(8):3374-82 [DOI] 10.1128/IAI.01976-14. [PMID] 24866802.
2013
A two-component system regulates hemin acquisition in Porphyromonas gingivalis.
PloS one. 8(9) [DOI] 10.1371/journal.pone.0073351. [PMID] 24039921.
2012
Effect of periodontal pathogens on the metatranscriptome of a healthy multispecies biofilm model.
Journal of bacteriology. 194(8):2082-95 [DOI] 10.1128/JB.06328-11. [PMID] 22328675.
2011
Correlation network analysis applied to complex biofilm communities.
PloS one. 6(12) [DOI] 10.1371/journal.pone.0028438. [PMID] 22163302.
The RprY response regulator of Porphyromonas gingivalis.
Molecular microbiology. 64(4):1061-74 [PMID] 17501928.

Grants

Jul 2021 ACTIVE
A novel mechanism of virulence control in Porphyromonas gingivalis
Role: Co-Investigator
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH NIDCR
Nov 2016 – Jul 2018
Highly up regulated proteins in Tannerella Forsythia during periodontal disease
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding: NATL INST OF HLTH NIDCR

Education

PhD Biological Sciences
2001 · University of Barcelona
Master Microbiology
1998 · Autonomic University of Barcelona
Bs Bacteriology
1994 · Xaveriana University- Colombia

Contact Details

Emails:
Business:
apinedo@ufl.edu
Addresses:
Business Mailing:
PO Box 100424
GAINESVILLE FL 32610