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Gary L. Sloan

Professor Emeritus

Research Interests

Production of extracellular enzymes by bacteria. Current research involves: studies on extracellular enzymes produced by staphylococci and streptococci that kill closely related organisms and the possible evolutionary relationships among some of these enzymes; studies on the cell wall modifications that allow these organisms to be resistant to their own bacteriolytic enzymes; and studies on the physiological significance of proteolytic processing of proenzyme forms of extracellular hydrolytic enzymes.

Selected Publications

  • Gargis, A.S., L.S. Heath, H.E. Heath, P.A. LeBlanc, S.R. Gargis, T.H. Harris, and G.L. Sloan.  2013.  Complete nucleotide sequences of plasmids pACK2 and pACK5 from Staphylococcus simulans biovar staphylolyticus. Plasmid 69:257 – 262.
  • Gargis, S.R., H.E. Heath, P.A. LeBlanc, L. Dekker, R.S. Simmonds, and G.L. Sloan. 2010. Inhibition of the activity of both domains of lysostaphin through peptidoglycan modification by the lysostaphin immunity protein. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 76:6944 – 6946.
  • Gargis, A.S., A.H. Tate, L.S. Heath, H.E. Heath, P.A. LeBlanc and G.L. Sloan.  2010.  Complete nucleotide sequences of plasmids pACK1 and pACK3 from Staphylococcus simulans biovar staphylolyticus. Plasmid 64:104 – 109.
  • Gargis, S.R., A.S. Gargis, H.E. Heath, L.S. Heath, P.A. LeBlanc, M.M. Senn, B. Berger-Bächi, R.S. Simmonds, and G.L. Sloan. 2009. Zif, the zoocin A immunity factor, is a FemABX-like immunity protein with a novel mode of action. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 6205 – 6210.
  • Gargis, A.S., L.S. Heath, H.E. Heath, P.A. LeBlanc and G.L. Sloan. 2009. Characterization of pACK4, a mobilizable plasmid from Staphylococcus simulans biovar staphylolyticus. Plasmid 62:201 – 205.
  • Gargis, A.S., A.D. O’Rourke, G.L. Sloan, and R.S. Simmonds. 2009. Prevalence and acquisition of the genes for zoocin A and zoocin A resistance in Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus. J. Mol. Evol. 68:498 – 505.
  • Gargis, S.R., H.E. Heath, L.S. Heath, P.A. LeBlanc, R.S. Simmonds, B.D. Abbott, R. Timkovich, and G.L. Sloan. 2009. Use of 4-sulfophenyl isothiocyanate labeling and mass spectrometry to determine the site of action of the streptococcolytic peptidoglycan hydrolase zoocin A. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75:72 – 77.
  • Chen, Y., R.S. Simmonds, G.L. Sloan, and R. Timkovich. 2008. The metal binding site of zoocin A. J. Biol. Inorg. Chem. 13:855 – 860.
  • Akesson, M., M. Dufour, G.L. Sloan, and R.S. Simmonds. 2007. Targeting of streptococci by zoocin A. FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 270:155 – 161.
  • Heath, L. S., S. R. Gargis, S. R. Smithberg, H. P. Johnson, H. E. Heath, P. A. LeBlanc, and G. L. Sloan. 2005. Plasmid-specified FemABX-like immunity factor in Staphylococcus sciuri DD 4747. FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 249:227 – 231.
  • Heath, L.S., H.E. Heath, P.A. LeBlanc, S.R. Smithberg, M. Dufour, R.S. Simmonds, and G.L. Sloan. 2004. The streptococcolytic enzyme zoocin A is a penicillin-binding protein. 2004. FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 236:205 – 211.