dr. S (Susanna) Commandeur

During my studies (Biomedical Sciences VU, Amsterdam) I became interested in mycobacterial infections. Triggered by the complexity of the pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis, I pursued a career in the mycobacterial field and started my PhD in the department of Infectious Diseases (LUMC, Leiden). The aim of my PhD project was to identify Mycobacterium tuberculosis proteins that could be used as vaccine candidates. 

While exploring host immune responses to M. tuberculosis, I became interested in bacterial adaptation to environmental condition and switched to the microbiology field after obtaining my PhD. As a postdoctoral researcher in department of Medical Microbiology and Infection control (Amsterdam UMC (VUmc)) I worked with Mycobacterium marinum, a pathogen that causes a tuberculosis-like disease in poikilothermic animals. With this model organism I studied the persister population in mycobacteria (PreDICT-TB (IMI/EFPIA) and VENI)

As a researcher at Wageningen Bioveterinary Research (WBVR) I now focus on host-pathogen interactions and immune evasion of mycobacteria, but also apply gained knowledge on other (zoonotic) intracellular bacterial infections, including Brucella and Mycoplasma species.