Federal Grant Award Summary

Northeastern University received a $440,000 Project Grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859), awarded on July 1, 2026, with completion scheduled for June 30, 2031. The award funds research to discover novel antimicrobial molecules and characterize unique biosynthetic chemistry from anaerobic bacteria in the Clostridia genus, which comprise a significant portion of the human gut microbiome but remain largely underexplored as sources of bioactive natural products.

The research deliverables encompass two complementary investigative tracks. Topic 1 focuses on biochemical and genetic characterization of a newly discovered family of cobalamin-dependent radical S-adenosylmethionine (B12-RSAM) enzymes fused with non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) adenylation domains, with the goal of understanding their catalytic mechanisms for stereoselective methylation—a novel reaction in NRPS biochemistry that could enhance the stability and activity of peptide-derived antibiotics. Topic 2 targets the discovery and development of novel antimicrobial compounds from cellulolytic Clostridia through expression of biosynthetic gene clusters in newly developed Clostridial chassis strains and activation of cryptic metabolic pathways in native bacterial producers. These research efforts address the critical global health threat of antimicrobial resistance by identifying new antibiotics with novel molecular scaffolds and mechanisms of action.