Anju Sreelatha, Ph.D.

Dr. Anju Sreelatha received her B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Texas at Dallas in 2009. Following a research fellowship with the UT Dallas Green Fellows Program, Dr. Sreelatha earned her Ph.D. from UT Southwestern in 2014 under the supervision of Kim Orth, Ph.D. During her graduate work, she identified the biochemical activity and molecular mechanism of a bacterial effector protein, VopQ. These studies provided a better understanding of bacterial pathogenesis and also offered new insight into the host cell mechanisms of autophagy and vesicle fusion. As a postdoctoral fellow with Vincent Tagliabracci, Ph.D. she discovered a new catalytic activity for the protein kinase fold and the selenoprotein family. Her postdoctoral work on Selenoprotein O revealed a new paradigm in cellular antioxidant pathways. In 2019, Anju joined the Department of Physiology as an Assistant Professor.

The Sreelatha lab is focused on studying the role of SelO in the mitochondria using mammalian systems. The lab utilizes a multidisciplinary approach with structural biology, biochemistry, molecular biology, and cell biology to unravel the molecular mechanisms of selenoproteins in health and disease.

Undergraduate

University of Texas at Dallas (2009), Biochemistry

Graduate School

UT Southwestern Medical Center (2014), Biochemistry

• Mitochondrial Redox
• Oxidative Stress Response
• Selenoproteins

Featured Publications

A Bacterial Effector Mimics a Host HSP90 Client to Undermine Immunity.

Lopez VA, Park BC, Nowak D, Sreelatha A, Zembek P, Fernandez J, Servage KA, Gradowski M, Hennig J, Tomchick DR, Pawlowski K, Krzymowska M, Tagliabracci VS, Cell 2019 Sep 179 1 205-218.e21

Protein AMPylation by an Evolutionarily Conserved Pseudokinase.

Sreelatha A, Yee SS, Lopez VA, Park BC, Kinch LN, Pilch S, Servage KA, Zhang J, Jiou J, Karasiewicz-Urbanska M, Lobocka M, Grishin NV, Orth K, Kucharczyk R, Pawlowski K, Tomchick DR, Tagliabracci VS, Cell 2018 10 175 3 809-821.e19

Phosphorylation of spore coat proteins by a family of atypical protein kinases.

Nguyen KB, Sreelatha A, Durrant ES, Lopez-Garrido J, Muszewska A, Dudkiewicz M, Grynberg M, Yee S, Pogliano K, Tomchick DR, Pawlowski K, Dixon JE, Tagliabracci VS, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2016 06 113 25 E3482-91

The secretory pathway kinases.

Sreelatha A, Kinch LN, Tagliabracci VS, Biochim. Biophys. Acta 2015 Oct 1854 10 Pt B 1687-93

Vibrio effector protein VopQ inhibits fusion of V-ATPase-containing membranes.

Sreelatha A, Bennett TL, Carpinone EM, O'Brien KM, Jordan KD, Burdette DL, Orth K, Starai VJ, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2015 Jan 112 1 100-5

Inhibiting AMPylation: a novel screen to identify the first small molecule inhibitors of protein AMPylation.

Lewallen DM, Sreelatha A, Dharmarajan V, Madoux F, Chase P, Griffin PR, Orth K, Hodder P, Thompson PR, ACS Chem. Biol. 2014 Feb 9 2 433-42

The pore-forming bacterial effector, VopQ, halts autophagic turnover.

Sreelatha A, Orth K, Starai VJ, Autophagy 2013 Dec 9 12 2169-70

Vibrio effector protein, VopQ, forms a lysosomal gated channel that disrupts host ion homeostasis and autophagic flux.

Sreelatha A, Bennett TL, Zheng H, Jiang QX, Orth K, Starai VJ, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2013 Jul 110 28 11559-64

Amyloidogenic peptide/single-walled carbon nanotube composites based on tau-protein-related peptides derived from AcPHF6: preparation and dispersive properties.

Muñoz E, Sreelatha A, Garriga R, Baughman RH, Goux WJ, J Phys Chem B 2013 Jun 117 25 7593-604

Manipulation of host membranes by bacterial effectors.

Ham H, Sreelatha A, Orth K, Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 2011 Jul 9 9 635-46