Biology professor discusses how we can prevent “The Last of Us” from coming true

On Tuesday, Oct. 22, the Gairdner National Lecture took place on campus and was presented by Christian Landry. The lecture discussed the problem of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), focusing on fungal infections and the limitations of antifungal treatments. He stated “that while antibiotics for bacterial infections have received a lot of attention, fungal infections have been overlooked despite being a serious threat.” He emphasized the urgent need for increased research funding because of an estimated rise in AMR-related deaths from 1 million to 10 million annually over the next 25 years. He also mentioned how less than 5 per cent of funding packages in science currently support fungal research. 

In his lecture, Landry stressed the challenge of treatment failure due to pre-existing or developing resistance in fungal pathogens. He talked about how fungal injections can be life-threatening, specifically for immunocompromised individuals. Resistance can also come from mutations during treatment or environmental exposure, making it difficult to manage infections. The goal of his research is to quantify the mechanisms behind antifungal resistance, specifically focusing on the genetic mutations that confer this resistance. He uses a systematic approach to map all possible mutations in antifungal target proteins and discusses the use of model organisms such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae to study resistance mechanisms. 

Landry’s research initially started with the examination of a well-known antifungal drug, and this eventually led to them focusing on azoles and nasales — the most commonly used antifungals currently. The research focused on azole resistance in fungi, specifically targeting an enzyme involved in ergosterol biosynthesis, which is crucial for fungal cell membranes. The findings of the research demonstrated numerous mutations that confer resistance. Many of the mutations showed minimal impact on fitness, which indicated a balance between resistance and competitiveness. The research also discovered that these resistance mutations are common across different strains. In the future, he hopes to enhance clinical decision-making by developing rapid genomic sequencing methods that can predict susceptibility in days. This approach discovered by his lab aims to improve treatment outcomes for patients with systemic infections. 

Bolstering the research presented in the lecture is Landry’s illustrious research career. He is currently a professor of biology and biochemistry at Laval University and Canada Research Chair in cellular systems and synthetic biology. He obtained a PhD in organismic biology from Harvard University as a Frank Knox Memorial fellow. He also completed his postdoctoral training in systems biology and biochemistry at Université de Montréal. Laundry’s research involves investigations of the evolution of resistance with fungal drugs, postoperative arms races and evolutionary trade-offs, and cellular processes network. He is also the winner of the 2024 Canada Gairdner, an accolade known as a precursor to a Nobel Prize.