Biography

I was born and raised in Beijing, the capital city of China. I received my Bachelor’s degree in Biological Science from China Agricultural University. I received my PhD degree in Entomology from the University of Minnesota after completing the dissertation research on the “Analysis of Bacterial-Host Interactions in Wolbachia Infection”. In 2016, I joined Dr. Peter Christie’s lab in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at McGovern Medical School, as a postdoctoral fellow working on bacterial type IV secretion systems (T4SSs). In November 2024, I was promoted to Research Assistant Professor and have been continuing my work in deciphering the mechanisms of bacterial T4SSs and exploring their translational potentials in Dr. Christie’s lab.

Areas of Interest

Research Interests

-T4SS pilus biogenesis pathway and mechanisms of pilus extension and retraction.

-T4SS substrate translocation pathway.

-Reprogramming bacterial T4SS for new antimicrobial strategies.

Publications

Li, Y. G., Haeusser, D., Margolin, W., & Christie, P. J. (2025). Conjugative delivery of toxin genes ccdB and kil confers synergistic killing of bacterial recipients. Journal of Bacteriology, e00168-25.

 Li, Y. G., Breidenstein, A., Berntsson, R. P. A., & Christie, P. J. (2024). Conjugative transfer of the IncN plasmid pKM101 is mediated by dynamic interactions between the TraK accessory factor and TraI relaxase. FEBS letters, 598(21), 2717-2733.

Kishida, K., Li, Y. G., Ogawa-Kishida, N., Khara, P., Al Mamun, A. A. M., Bosserman, R. E., & Christie, P. J. (2024). Chimeric systems composed of swapped Tra subunits between distantly-related F plasmids reveal striking plasticity among type IV secretion machines. PLoS genetics, 20(3), e1011088.

Al Mamun, A. A. M., Kissoon, K., Li, Y. G., Hancock, E., & Christie, P. J. (2024). The F plasmid conjutome: the repertoire of E. coli proteins translocated through an F-encoded type IV secretion system. Msphere, 9(7), e00354-24.

 Li, Y. G., Kishida, K., Ogawa-Kishida, N., & Christie, P. J. (2023). Ligand-displaying Escherichia coli cells and minicells for programmable delivery of toxic payloads via type IV secretion systems. MBio, 14(5), e02143-23.

 Li, Y. G., & Christie, P. J. (2020). The TraK accessory factor activates substrate transfer through the pKM101 type IV secretion system independently of its role in relaxosome assembly. Molecular microbiology, 114(2), 214-229.

 Li, Y. G., Hu, B., & Christie, P. J. (2019). Biological and structural diversity of type IV secretion systems. Microbiology spectrum, 7(2), 10-1128.

González‐Rivera, C., Khara, P., Awad, D., Patel, R., Li, Y. G., Bogisch, M., & Christie, P. J. (2019). Two pKM101‐encoded proteins, the pilus‐tip protein TraC and Pep, assemble on the Escherichia coli cell surface as adhesins required for efficient conjugative DNA transfer. Molecular microbiology, 111(1), 96-117.

Rehman, S., Li, Y. G., Schmitt, A., Lassinantti, L., Christie, P. J., & Berntsson, R. P. A. (2019). Enterococcal PcfF is a ribbon-helix-helix protein that recruits the relaxase PcfG through binding and bending of the oriT sequence. Frontiers in microbiology, 10, 958.

Li, Y. G., & Christie, P. J. (2018). The Agrobacterium VirB/VirD4 T4SS: mechanism and architecture defined through in vivo mutagenesis and chimeric systems. Agrobacterium Biology: From Basic Science to Biotechnology, 233-260.

Li, Y. G., & Fallon, A. M. (2016). Rearing the soil arthropod Folsomia candida (Collembola: Isotomidae) on agar plates and estimating biomass by protein staining with Ponceau S. Applied entomology and zoology, 51(3), 489-494.

Baldridge, G. D., Li, Y. G., Witthuhn, B. A., Higgins, L., Markowski, T. W., Baldridge, A. S., & Fallon, A. M. (2016). Mosaic composition of ribA and wspB genes flanking the virB8-D4 operon in the Wolbachia supergroup B-strain, wStr. Archives of Microbiology, 198(1), 53-69.