Ryan C. Hunter, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology

Contact Info
Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology
Faculty, Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB) Ph.D. Graduate Program
Preceptor, Medical Scientist Training Program (Combined MD/PhD Training Program)
PhD, University of Guelph, 2007
Summary
Expertise
Host-microbe interactions, polymicrobe infections, cryo-EM
Research
Research Summary/Interests
Host-microbe interactions, microbial community dynamics
Research in the Hunter lab is focused on host-microbe interactions and seeks to characterize the effect of in vivo environmental chemistry on the dynamics of polymicrobial infections. While recent culture-independent studies have provided a comprehensive survey of the host microbiome and its association with health and disease, there is a major gap in our understanding of the environmental conditions under which pathogens live, how and why they adapt to specific niches within the host, and how microbe-environment relationships co-evolve throughout the course of infection. Our research combines molecular genetics, environmental chemistry, high-resolution microscopy (in situ hybridization and cryo-electron microscopy) and culture-independent approaches to address these ecological questions. The long-term goal is to gain a better understanding of disease etiology, predictors of clinical outcomes, and novel avenues for antimicrobial therapy. We are primarily interested in the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa and its co-habitants in microbial communities of chronic respiratory infections (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sinusitis, and cystic fibrosis).
Publications
- Hunter, R.C., F. Asfour, B. Osuna, J. Dingemans, T. Samad, A. Malfroot, P. Cornelis, D.K. Newman. 2013. Ferrous iron is a significant component of bioavailable iron in the cystic fibrosis airways. mBio 4:e00557-13.
- Dietrich, L.E.P., C. Okegbe, A.M. Price-Whelan, H. Sakhtah, R.C. Hunter, D.K. Newman. 2013. Bacterial community morphogenesis is intimately linked to the intracellular redox state. J. Bacteriol. 195: 1371-1380.
- Hunter, R.C., V. Klepac-Ceraj, M. Lorenzi, H. Grotzinger, T.R. Martin, D.K. Newman. 2012. High phenazine content in CF sputum correlates with poor lung function and microbial community complexity. Am. J. Resp. Mol. Cell. Biol. 47:738-745.
- Flores, G., R.C. Hunter, Y. Liu, A. Mets, S. Schouten, A.L. Reysenbach. 2011. Hippea jasoniae sp. nov. and Hippea alviniae sp. nov., thermoacidophilic Deltaproteobacteria isolated from deep-sea hydrothermal vent deposits. Int. J. Sys. Evol. Microbiol. 62:1252-1258.
- Reddy, K.C., R.C. Hunter, N. Bhatia, D.K. Newman, D.H. Kim. 2011. Caenorhabditis elegans NPR-1-mediated behaviors are suppressed in the presence of mucoid bacteria. PNAS U.S.A. 108:12887-12892.
- Hunter, R.C., A.P. Hitchcock, J.J. Dynes, M. Obst, T.J. Beveridge. 2008. Mapping the speciation of iron in Pseudomonas biofilms using scanning transmission X-ray microscopy. Environ. Sci. Technol. 42:8766-8772.
- Hunter, R.C., T.J. Beveridge. 2005. High resolution visualization of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 biofilms by freeze-substitution transmission electron microscopy. J. Bacteriol. 187:7619-7630.