Dušica Vujaklija, Croatia

Dušica Vujaklija works at the Ruđer Bošković Institute in Zagreb, Croatia (http://www.irb.hr/eng/People/Dusica-Vujaklija). She gained her PhD from the University of Tokyo working on Streptomyces griseus and the mechanisms by which the signalling molecule A-factor controls cellular differentiation and streptomycin production. Her postdoctoral research at the University of British Columbia focused on understanding the role of tyrosine phosphorylation of proteins in the growth and development of Streptomyces spp. Since then her scientific interest has been focused on studying these common soil bacteria, best known as antibiotic producers, which exhibit an unusually complex life style. Currently her research group is investigating the functions, interactions and temporal expression of genes important for DNA metabolism and chromosome segregation during the reproductive phase. In addition they are investigating an unusual class of lipolytic enzymes produced by streptomycetes and other Actinobacteria from various ecological niches. Their research findings have been published in international scientific journals that cover a wide range of topics in molecular microbiology and biochemistry.

Dušica Vujaklija is also co-director of the international John Innes- Ruđer Bošković Summer Schools in Applied Molecular Microbiology organized every second year in Dubrovnik. These Schools, concentrating on the chemistry, biology and applications of microbial natural products, have earned an excellent reputation over the last 10 years and have been extremely well received by the participants who came from many different countries (http://www.jic.ac.uk/science/molmicro/summerschool/).