Laboratory of Microbial Ecology

The Laboratory of Microbial Ecology studies different aspects of microbial ecology and evolution, including microbial diversity in natural and artificial environments, microenvironments of the human body, prevalent microflora in hospital environment, physiology of bacterial communities in relation to system-level processes, marine, freshwater and geothermal water microbial habitats, influence of environmental factors on abundance and composition of microbes and their viruses.   The Laboratory is actively engaged in the scientific projects related to the role of microbes in human health and disease, environmental and food safety, plant protection and aquaculture.   The phage research remains one of the main directions of the lab and is primarily associated with various aspects of phage ecology, also selection of efficient phage candidates for the prevention, diagnosis and therapy of bacterial diseases in medicine, food industry and agriculture.

Laboratory Personnel

Marine Tediashvili, PhD– Head of the Laboratory-m.tediashvili@pha.ge
Nino Janelidze, PhD – Leading Scientist -n.janelidze@pha.ge
Tamar Kokashvili, PhD – Leading Scientist – t.kokashvili@pha.ge
Tamar Eliashvili, PhD – Senior Scientist
Elene Didebulidze, PhD – Senior Scientist – e.didebulidze @pha.ge  
Nino Lashkhi, MSc – Scientist
Sophiko Sturua – Scientist
Ketevan Porchkhidze, MSc – Senior laboratory assistant
Tinatin Khukhunashvili, MSc – Senior laboratory assistant
Tamar Koberidze, MSc – Senior laboratry assistant
Kristina Tchalidze – Laboratory assistant
 

Scientific Grant projects (last 5 years)

• 2024-2025 -NNLE “Eliava Foundation – Association for the Development of Bacteriophages in Georgia”- Detailed molecular characterization of selected lytic bacteriophages active to leading phytophatogenic bacteria Ralstonia solanacearum and Pectobacterium (Erwinia) carotovoum to be used for creation of combined antibacterial preparation. (PI: T. Kokashvili).
• 2023-2026 -Isolation, Study and Selection of Bacteriophages Specific to Burkholderia cepacia Complex for Potential Use in Clinical Applications.Co-participant: University of Georgia (PI: N.Janelidze).
• 2022-2024- Shota Rustaveli Georgian National Science Foundation, Fundamental Research Grant Project FR-22-18364 – „Study of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of bacteriophages in an experimental mouse model”. Co-manager: Marina Tediashvili.
• 2022-2023- Eliava Foundation-“Study of specific immune responses to bacteriophages in patients with urinary tract infections following phage therapy”. Project Manager: Marina Tediashvili.
• 2023- G 7 program – Bacteriophages as therapeutic and preventive means in fight against antibiotic resistant medically important pathogens.Project Manager: Marina Tediashvili.
• 2022-2023 – A joint project of the “Eliava Foundation” and the “University of Georgia”- “Study of specific immune response to bacteriophages after phage therapy in patients with urinary tract infections ”(Phase 1). (PI : m. Tediashvili).
• 2019-2023– “Ferring Pharmaceuticals”- “Developments of Phage-based Products in the field of Reproductive Medicine and Women’s health”.(PI: M.Kutateladze)
• 2019-2020 -NNLE “Eliava Foundation – Association for the Development of Bacteriophages in Georgia”- “Creation of experimental prophylactic phage preparation against V. cholera“. (PI: T. Kokashvili).
• 2019-2020-NNLE ” Eliava Foundation – Association for the Development of Bacteriophages in Georgia”- ” Creation of Phage Bank against A.hydrophila to control infections caused by Aeromonas in fish”. (PI: N. Janelidze).
• 2019-2020-NNLE ” Eliava Foundation – Association for the Development of Bacteriophages in Georgia”- “Identification and Selection of bacteriophages against coagulase-negative Staphylococcus“. (PI: E. Didebulidze).
• 2018-2020 STCU P664a- “Bacteriophages Lytic to selected multidrug resistant human pathogenic Bacteria: detailed characterization and evaluation of safety, therapeutic efficacy and decontamination potential”.(PI: M.Tediashvili).
• 2018-2020, CPEA-LT-2017/10061 – “Network for research-based higher education in microbial biotechnology”. (PI: N. Birkland Co. PI: E. Jaiani).
• 2017-2020– SRNSF FR 17-442 – “Viruses in the Black Sea: diversity, community dynamics, virus-host interactions”. (PI: E. Jaiani).

Selected Publications (Last 5 years)

• Marina Tediashvili, Giuseppe Aprea. One Health Concept and Bacteriophages.  ONE HEALTH JOURNAL (OHA Journal ), 2024, N 04, 07.2024, pp. 65-77.  Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale” Edizioni IZSTe-press - Digital Publishing | Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy.
• Muradashvili M., G. Meparishvili, Z. Sikharulidze, T. Kokashvili,S. Ghoghoberide, N. Jabnidze, M.Tediashvili. PHYLOGENETIC STUDY OF RALSTONIA SOLANACEARUM IN GEORGIA.  International Journal of Agricultural and Natural Sciences (IJANS), 2024, E-ISSN: 2651-3617 17(2): 210-3, 211-222
• Dzhuraeva M., Kh. Bobodzhanova, R. Javier-Lopez, M. Tediashvili, E. Jaiani, N.K. Birkeland. Draft Genome Sequence of Agrobacterium radiobacter Strain MD_2022b, Isolated from a   Grape Plant in Tajikistan. Microbiol Resour Announ.. 2023 Mar 20;e0113122.doi: 10.1128/mra.01131-22
• Janelidze N, Jaiani E, Didebulidze E, Kusradze I, Kotorashvili A, Chalidze K, Porchkhidze K, Khukhunashvili T, Tsertsvadze G, Jgenti D, Bajashvili T, Tediashvili M. Phenotypic and Genetic Characterization of Aeromonas hydrophila Phage AhMtk13a and Evaluation of Its Therapeutic Potential on Simulated Aeromonas Infection in Danio rerio. Viruses. 2022; 14(2):412. 
• Geliashvili N., E Jaiani, M Tediashvili, NK Birkeland. Taxonomic Characteristics of Dominant Microbial Communities in Hot Spring Sediments in Western Georgia. In the Book: “Microbial Communities and their Interactions in the Extreme Environment”, 2021,Springer, Singapore, pp. 87-96.
• Lasareishvili B. Hang Shi, Xunhao Wang, Kyle D Hillstead, M. Tediashvili, E. Jaiani, V.V. Tarabara. Virus recovery by tangential flow filtration: A model to guide the design of a sample concentration process. Biotechnology progress, 2021, 37(3).
• Jaiani, E.; Kusradze, I.; Kokashvili, T.; Geliashvili, N.; Janelidze, N.; Kotorashvili, A.; Kotaria, N.; Guchmanidze, A.; Tediashvili, M.; Prangishvili, D. Microbial Diversity and Phage-Host Interactions in the Georgian Coastal Area of the Black Sea Revealed by Whole Genome Metagenomic Sequencing. Mar Drugs 2020, 18, E558, doi:10.3390/md18110558.