【报告人Speaker】：Prof. Dr. Victor Sourjik, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology
【摘要Abstract】：Bacterial chemotaxis plays an important role in colonization of various environmental niches. Consequently, the sensory domains of chemoreceptors are highly variable among bacteria, likely as the result of evolutionary adaption to their respective environments. However, the identity of ligands remains unknown for the vast majority of chemoreceptors, which limits our understanding of the physiological importance of bacterial chemotaxis. To address this issue for bacteria inhabiting one specific niche, we performed a systematic mapping of bacterial chemoreceptor ligands for the gut microbiota, combining an in vitro screen for candidate ligands with subsequent validation of their signaling in a heterologous E. coli model. We identified multiple gut metabolites, including short-chain fatty acids, lactate, indole, pyrimidines, amines, purines, and amino acids, as specific receptor signals, highlighting the diversity of signals perceived by gut bacteria. Our findings revealed differences in the signal spectrum between two functional families of bacterial environmental sensors: nutrient compounds are primarily sensed by chemotaxis receptors, but not by histidine kinases. Furthermore, we identified and characterized two novel subsets of sensory domains that bind short-chain carboxylic acids and uracil.
【报告人简介Speaker Biography】：Professor Victor Sourjik is the Director of the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Germany and a Professor of Biology and Physics at Philipps University of Marburg. He earned his Master’s degree in Physical and Chemical Biology from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology in 1993, and his Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Regensburg, Germany, in 1997, where he also completed postdoctoral research. From 1998 to 2003, he conducted postdoctoral work at Harvard University, USA. Between 2003 and 2013, he served at Heidelberg University as a Junior Group Leader and later as a Professor (W3) of Molecular Biology. As an internationally recognized expert in microbial signal transduction and motility, Professor Sourjik has made pioneering contributions to understanding how bacteria sense and respond to environmental changes through signaling networks. His laboratory has developed a series of FRET-based real-time imaging techniques and systematically analyzed the dynamic regulation of bacterial signaling systems, revealing the physical and evolutionary connections among motility, metabolism, and ecological adaptation. In recent years, his team has applied experimental evolution approaches to elucidate the evolutionary plasticity of cellular signaling networks and their roles in the emergence of metabolic interactions. To date, Professor Sourjik has published numerous influential papers in leading international journals, including Nature Communications, PLOS Biology, PNAS, and ISME Journal. He has been invited to chair major international conferences such as the Gordon Research Conference, EMBO Conference, and FEMS Congress. He is a recipient of the European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant, the EMBO Young Investigator Award, and is a Fellow of the European Academy of Microbiology (EAM). In addition, he serves on the Editorial Board of PLOS Biology and is widely regarded as a leading scientist in the global field of bacterial signal transduction and motility mechanisms.
Victor Sourjik 教授，1993年在俄罗斯莫斯科物理技术学院获得物理与化学生物学硕士学位；1997年在德国雷根斯堡大学获得生物学博士学位并做博士后工作； 1998年至2003年，在美国哈佛大学从事博士后研究；2003年至2013年，在德国海德堡大学先后担任青年课题组负责人和分子生物学教授（W3）；2014年至今，任德国马克斯·普朗克陆地微生物学研究所所长，并兼任马尔堡菲利普斯大学生物学与物理学教授。Sourjik 教授长期从事微生物信号转导及运动行为的定量研究，致力于揭示细菌如何通过信号网络感知和响应环境变化。他的实验室发展了多种基于FRET的实时成像技术，系统解析了细菌信号网络的动态调控机制，揭示了运动性、代谢与生态适应之间的物理和进化联系。近年来，Sourjik 教授的团队借助实验进化方法，系统阐明了细胞信号网络的进化可塑性及其代谢网络中的作用。他在 Nature Communications、PLOS Biology、PNAS、ISME Journal 等国际顶级期刊发表多篇重要论文，并多次受邀在 Gordon Research Conference、EMBO Conference、FEMS Congress 等国际会议上担任大会主席。Sourjik 教授曾获欧洲研究理事会（ERC）高级研究资助、EMBO青年科学家奖及欧洲微生物学会院士（EAM）等多项荣誉，并担任PLOS Biology杂志编委，是国际细菌信号转导与运动机制研究领域的领军科学家。
【时间Time】：2025年11月14日 10:30-12:00AM
【地点Venue】：5号楼 学术报告厅
【邀请人Host】：高贝乐 研究员
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