ZFIN ID: ZDB-PERS-150227-1
Torraca, Vincenzo
Email: vincenzo.torraca@kcl.ac.uk
URL: https://twitter.com/VinTorraca
Affiliation: Torraca Lab
Address: Department of Infectious Diseases, School of Immunology and Microbial Sciences, Guy’s Campus King’s College London
Country: United Kingdom
Phone: 004420 7594 3152
Fax:
ORCID ID: 0000-0001-7340-0249


BIOGRAPHY AND RESEARCH INTERESTS
I am a Lecturer in Infectious Disease at King's College London and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA). My research focuses on host-pathogen interactions, genomic epidemiology, and antimicrobial resistance for globally relevant bacterial pathogens. In my lab, we use the zebrafish model to recapitulate human infections with a variety of bacteria, including Shigella, E. coli, Salmonella, and Mycobacterium. We are also interested in cell biology and we explore infections as a tool to obtain a better understanding of cell functions in both physiological and pathological contexts. Over the last few years, my work focused on the persistent carriage of enteropathogens and on the development of innovative strategies to counteract Shigella infections.

I was previously a Senior Lecturer in Microbiology and Co-Course Leader for BSc (Hons) Medical Sciences at the University of Westminster, an Assistant Professor and Wellcome ISSF Fellow at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, a Marie Curie Research Fellow at Imperial College London and a Marie Curie PhD Fellow at Leiden University.

I was awarded a Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching (LSHTM), a PhD in Microbiology and Immunology (Leiden University), a MSc in Molecular and Cellular Biology (Salerno University) and a BSc in Molecular and Computational Biology (Salerno University).


PUBLICATIONS
Torraca, V., White, R.J., Sealy, I.M., Mazon-Moya, M., Duggan, G., Willis, A., Busch-Nentwich, E.M., Mostowy, S. (2023) Transcriptional profiling of zebrafish identifies host factors controlling susceptibility to Shigella flexneri. Disease models & mechanisms. 17(1):
Zhang, R., Torraca, V., Lyu, H., Xiao, S., Guo, D., Zhou, C., Tang, J. (2023) RUNDC1 negatively mediates the fusion of autophagosomes with lysosomes via regulating SNARE complex assembly. Autophagy. 20(2):454-456
Zhang, R., Yang, Y., He, C., Zhang, X., Torraca, V., Wang, S., Liu, N., Yang, J., Liu, S., Yuan, J., Gou, D., Li, S., Dong, X., Xie, Y., He, J., Bai, H., Hu, M., Liao, Z., Huang, Y., Lyu, H., Xiao, S., Guo, D., Ali, D.W., Michalak, M., Ma, C., Chen, X.Z., Tang, J., Zhou, C. (2023) RUNDC1 inhibits autolysosome formation and survival of zebrafish via clasping ATG14-STX17-SNAP29 complex. Cell death and differentiation. 30(10):2231-2248
Torraca, V., Brokatzky, D., Miles, S.L., Chong, C.E., De Silva, P.M., Baker, S., Jenkins, C., Holt, K.E., Baker, K.S., Mostowy, S. (2023) Shigella serotypes associated with carriage in humans establish persistent infection in zebrafish. The Journal of infectious diseases. 228(8):1108-1118
Miles, S.L., Torraca, V., Dyson, Z.A., López-Jiménez, A.T., Foster-Nyarko, E., Lobato-Márquez, D., Jenkins, C., Holt, K.E., Mostowy, S. (2023) Acquisition of a large virulence plasmid (pINV) promoted temperature-dependent virulence and global dispersal of O96:H19 enteroinvasive Escherichia coli. mBio. 14(4):e0088223
Torraca, V., Bielecka, M.K., Gomes, M.C., Brokatzky, D., Busch-Nentwich, E.M., Mostowy, S. (2023) Zebrafish null mutants of Sept6 and Sept15 are viable but susceptible to Shigella infection. Cytoskeleton (Hoboken, N.J.). 80(7-8):266-274
Huan, Y.W., Torraca, V., Brown, R., Fa-Arun, J., Miles, S.L., Oyarzún, D.A., Mostowy, S., Wang, B. (2023) P1 Bacteriophage-Enabled Delivery of CRISPR-Cas9 Antimicrobial Activity Against Shigella flexneri. ACS synthetic biology. 12(3):709-721
Ngo, H.V., Robertin, S., Brokatzky, D., Bielecka, M.K., Lobato-Márquez, D., Torraca, V., Mostowy, S. (2022) Septins promote caspase activity and coordinate mitochondrial apoptosis. Cytoskeleton (Hoboken, N.J.). 80(7-8):254-265
Zhang, R., Varela, M., Forn-Cuní, G., Torraca, V., van der Vaart, M., Meijer, A.H. (2020) Deficiency in the autophagy modulator Dram1 exacerbates pyroptotic cell death of Mycobacteria-infected macrophages. Cell Death & Disease. 11:277
Sommer, F., Torraca, V., Meijer, A.H. (2020) Chemokine Receptors and Phagocyte Biology in Zebrafish. Frontiers in immunology. 11:325
Stirling, D.R., Suleyman, O., Gil, E., Elks, P.M., Torraca, V., Noursadeghi, M., Tomlinson, G.S. (2020) Analysis tools to quantify dissemination of pathology in zebrafish larvae. Scientific Reports. 10:3149
Torraca, V., Kaforou, M., Watson, J., Duggan, G.M., Guerrero-Gutierrez, H., Krokowski, S., Hollinshead, M., Clarke, T.B., Mostowy, R.J., Tomlinson, G.S., Sancho-Shimizu, V., Clements, A., Mostowy, S. (2019) Shigella sonnei infection of zebrafish reveals that O-antigen mediates neutrophil tolerance and dysentery incidence. PLoS pathogens. 15:e1008006
Torraca, V., Gomes, M.C., Sarris, M., Mostowy, S. (2019) Meeting report: Zebrafish Infection and Immunity 2019. Lab animal. 48:284-287
Sommer, F., Torraca, V., Kamel, S.M., Lombardi, A., Meijer, A.H. (2019) Frontline Science: Antagonism between regular and atypical Cxcr3 receptors regulates macrophage migration during infection and injury in zebrafish. Journal of Leukocyte Biology. 107(2):185-203
Rougeot, J., Torraca, V., Zakrzewska, A., Kanwal, Z., Jansen, H.J., Sommer, F., Spaink, H.P., Meijer, A.H. (2019) RNAseq Profiling of Leukocyte Populations in Zebrafish Larvae Reveals a cxcl11 Chemokine Gene as a Marker of Macrophage Polarization During Mycobacterial Infection. Frontiers in immunology. 10:832
Masud, S., Prajsnar, T.K., Torraca, V., Lamers, G.E.M., Benning, M., Van Der Vaart, M., Meijer, A.H. (2019) Macrophages target Salmonella by Lc3-associated phagocytosis in a systemic infection model. Autophagy. 15(5):796-812
Willis, A.R., Torraca, V., Gomes, M.C., Shelley, J., Mazon-Moya, M., Filloux, A., Lo Celso, C., Mostowy, S. (2018) Shigella-Induced Emergency Granulopoiesis Protects Zebrafish Larvae from Secondary Infection.. mBio. 9(3)
Torraca, V., Mostowy, S. (2017) Zebrafish Infection: From Pathogenesis to Cell Biology. Trends in cell biology. 28(2):143-156
Mazon-Moya, M.J., Willis, A.R., Torraca, V., Boucontet, L., Shenoy, A.R., Colucci-Guyon, E., Mostowy, S. (2017) Septins restrict inflammation and protect zebrafish larvae from Shigella infection. PLoS pathogens. 13:e1006467
Chatzopoulou, A., Schoonheim, P.J., Torraca, V., Meijer, A.H., Spaink, H.P., Schaaf, M.J. (2017) Functional analysis reveals no transcriptional role for the glucocorticoid receptor β-isoform in zebrafish. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology. 447:61-70
Torraca, V., Tulotta, C., Snaar-Jagalska, B.E., Meijer, A.H. (2017) The chemokine receptor CXCR4 promotes granuloma formation by sustaining a mycobacteria-induced angiogenesis programme. Scientific Reports. 7:45061
Torraca, V., Otto, N.A., Tavakoli-Tameh, A., Meijer, A.H. (2017) The inflammatory chemokine Cxcl18b exerts neutrophil-specific chemotaxis via the promiscuous chemokine receptor Cxcr2 in zebrafish. Developmental and comparative immunology. 67:57-65
Masud, S., Torraca, V., Meijer, A.H. (2017) Modeling Infectious Diseases in the Context of a Developing Immune System. Current topics in developmental biology. 124:277-329
Torraca, V., Cui, C., Boland, R., Bebelman, J.P., van der Sar, A.M., Smit, M.J., Siderius, M., Spaink, H.P., Meijer, A.H. (2015) The CXCR3/CXCL11 signaling axis mediates macrophage recruitment and dissemination of mycobacterial infection. Disease models & mechanisms. 8(3):253-69
Torraca, V., Masud, S., Spaink, H.P., Meijer, A.H. (2014) Macrophage-pathogen interactions in infectious diseases: new therapeutic insights from the zebrafish host model. Disease models & mechanisms. 7:785-797
Spaink, H.P., Cui, C., Wiweger, M.I., Jansen, H.J., Veneman, W.J., Marín-Juez, R., de Sonneville, J., Ordas, A., Torraca, V., van der Ent, W., Leenders, W.P., Meijer, A.H., Snaar-Jagalska, B.E., and Dirks, R.P. (2013) Robotic injection of zebrafish embryos for high-throughput screening in disease models. Methods (San Diego, Calif.). 62(3):246-54

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