Senior Lecturer, Department of Clinical Microbiology and Immunology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine

Dr. Salomon received his B.Sc. (suma cum laude) in Biology with an emphasis in biotechnology from the Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University in 2006. He then continued to his Ph.D. studies also at the Faculty of Life Sciences at TAU in the Dean's direct Ph.D. track under the supervision of Prof. Guido Sessa. In 2011, Dr. Salomon joined the laboratory of Prof. Kim Orth at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX, USA as a Postdoctoral Fellow. He joined the Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University in 2016.

Dr. Salomon is the director of the Bacterial Platforms for Antibacterial Treatments Center at Tel Aviv University. He is also the recipient of the prestigious ERC grant, and of the Alon Fellowship for outstanding young investigators.

Bacterial Protein Secretion Systems and Toxins

Our lab is interested in the recently discovered Type VI Secretion Systems (T6SSs) and the toxins they deliver. We are pursuing discovery-driven research and translational approches to utilize the T6SS and its toxins as platforms for the development of novel antibacterial treatments.

The T6SS is a contact-dependent protein delivery system that is found in many Gram-negative bacteria. It uses a contractile apparatus to propel an innertube, which is decorated with toxic effector proteins, outside of the bacterial cell and into an adjacent recepient cell, where effectors are deployed. The T6SS is unique as it can deliver toxins directly into eukaryotic host cells as well as into competing bacterial cells, and thus mediates both virulence and antibacterial toxicities.

We employ a multi-disciplinary approach to identify T6SSs activities and toxins in various bacterial pathogens. Using molecular biology, genetics, microbiology, biochemistry, microscopy, proteomics, and bioinformatic tools, we are identifying novel virulent and antibacterial toxins and determine their mechanism of action and their targets. In addition, we study T6SSs in pathogenic bacteria and determine their contibution to pathogenicity, inter-bacterial competition, and dissemination in the environment.

Selected publications:

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Jana B, Salomon D #, Bosis E #. (2020) A novel class of polymorphic toxins in Bacteroidetes. Life Science Alliance, 3(4),doi: 10.26508/lsa.201900631.

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Fridman CM, Keppel K, Gerlic M, Bosis E #, Salomon D #. (2020) A comparative genomics methodology reveals a widespread family of membrane-disrupting T6SS effectors. Nature Communications, 11:1085.

Cohen H*, Baram N*, Edry-Botzer L, Salomon D #, Gerlic M #. (2020) Vibrio pore-forming leukocidin activates pyroptotic cell death via the NLRP3 inflammasome. Emerging Microbes & Infections, 9(1):278-290.

Jana B, Salomon D. (2019) Type VI secretion system: a modular toolkit for bacterial dominance. Future Microbiology, doi:10.2217/fmb-2019-0194.

Jana B*, Fridman CM*, Bosis E #, Salomon D #. (2019) A modular effector with a DNase domain and a marker for T6SS substrates. Nature Communications, 10:3595.

Ben-Yaakov R, Salomon D. (2019) The regulatory network of Vibrio parahaemolyticus type VI secretion system 1. Environmental Microbiology, 21(7). 2248-2260.

Dar Y, Salomon D #, Bosis E #. (2018) The antibacterial and anti-eukaryotic type VI secretion system MIX-effector repertoire in Vibrionaceae. Marine Drugs, 16, 433.

Ray A, Schwartz N, de Souza Santos M, Zhang J, Orth K, Salomon D. Type VI secretionsystemMIX-effectors carry both anti-bacterial and anti-eukaryotic activities. EMBO Reports. 2017, 18(11):1798-1990.

Li P, Kinch LN, Ray A, Dalia AB, Cong Q, Nunen LM, Camilli A, Grishin NV, Salomon D #, Orth K #. Acute Hepatopancreatic Necrosis Disease (AHPND)- causing Vibrio parahaemolyticus strains maintain an antibacterial Type VI Secretion system with versatile effector repertoires. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2017, 83(13):e00737-17.

# Corresponding authors

Ray A, Kinch LN, de Souza Santos M, Grishin NV, Orth K #, Salomon D #. Proteomics analysis reveals previously uncharacterized virulence factors in Vibrio proteolyticus. mBio. 2016, 7(4):e01077-16. doi:10.1128/mBio.01077-16.

Salomon D. MIX and match: mobile T6SS MIXeffectors enhance bacterial fitness. Mob Genet Elements. 2016, 6:e1123796.

Salomon D, Klimko JA, Trudgian DC, Kinch LN, Grishin NV, Mirzaei H, Orth K. Type VI secretion system toxins horizontally shared between marine bacteria. PLoS Pathog. 2015, 25;11:e1005128.

Salomon D, Klimko JA, Orth K. H-NS regulates the Vibrio parahaemolyticus type VI secretion system 1. Microbiology. 2014, 160:1867-73.

Salomon D, Kinch LN, Trudgian DC, Guo X, Klimko JA, Grishin NV, Mirzaei H, Orth K. Marker for type VI secretion system effectors. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2014, 111:9271-6.

Salomon D, Gonzalez H, Updegraff BL, Orth K. Vibrio parahaemolyticus type VI secretion system 1 is activated in marine conditions to target bacteria, and is differentially regulated from system 2. PLoS One. 2013, 8:e61086.

Salomon D, Guo Y, Kinch LN, Grishin NV, Gardner KH, Orth K. Effectors of animal and plant pathogens use a common domain to bind host phosphoinositides. Nature Communications. 2013, 4:2973.

Salomon D, Orth K. What pathogens have taught us about posttranslational modifications. Cell Host Microbe. 2013, 14:269-79.

# Corresponding authors