Rate My Professor Gregory Cook

Cook's research in microbial physiology and biochemistry centers on bacterial metabolism and energetics as targets for drug development against pathogens such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. His laboratory conducts multidisciplinary work spanning human biomedical research, agritech, and biotech, translating findings into new antimicrobials to combat resistance and persistence. Additional efforts address animal and plant health, including inhibitors for mastitis-causing bacteria, fungal plant pathogens, and greenhouse gas emissions in ruminants. Key publications include 'Energetics of bacterial growth: balance of anabolic and catabolic reactions' (1995), 'Genomic and metagenomic surveys of hydrogenase distribution indicate H2 is a widely utilised energy source for microbial growth and survival' (2016), 'Physiology of mycobacteria' (2009), and recent articles such as 'ClpC1-targeting peptide natural products differentially dysregulate the proteome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis' (2026) and 'Remission spectroscopy resolves the mechanism of action of bedaquiline within living mycobacteria' (2025). He has supervised over 100 postgraduate students, including 45 PhDs as primary supervisor, and 30 postdoctoral fellows, while securing funding from government, industry, and pharmaceutical sources for investigator-driven programs.