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About Timothy
Timothy Barnett, PhD, is a Senior Lecturer and Principle Research Fellow in the School of Biomedical Sciences' Microbiology and Immunology unit at the University of Western Australia. He also holds an Honorary Research Fellow position at the Telethon Kids Institute, where he heads the Strep A Pathogenesis and Diagnostics group and serves as Deputy Director of the Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases. Barnett completed his BSc (Honours) in Microbiology and Biochemistry at UWA in 1994 and his PhD in Microbiology and Pathology at the University of Tasmania in 2000. Following his doctorate, he conducted postdoctoral research in leading Strep A laboratories at Emory University with June Scott (2000-2006) and the University of Queensland with Mark Walker (2010-2016). He joined the Telethon Kids Institute in 2017 and established his laboratory as group leader in 2022.
Barnett's research centers on the disease-causing mechanisms of Streptococcus pyogenes, known as Group A Streptococcus or Strep A. His investigations explore molecular interactions between the bacterium and host cells, transcriptional responses to infection, novel antibiotic resistance mechanisms active only during infection, and epidemiological aspects. Notable contributions include the initial characterization of sortases anchoring proteins to the Strep A cell wall, elucidation of mRNA stability's role in stationary phase gene expression, and discovery of a unique strategy for evading host autophagy. Recent findings have identified host-dependent resistance to sulfamethoxazole via a horizontally acquired folate transporter. With 53 research outputs, key publications include "Host-dependent resistance of Group A Streptococcus to sulfamethoxazole mediated by a horizontally-acquired reduced folate transporter" (Nature Communications, 2022), "Prophage exotoxins enhance colonization fitness in epidemic scarlet fever-causing Streptococcus pyogenes" (Nature Communications, 2020), "Impact of Host and Bacterial Metabolism on Antibiotic Susceptibility" (Biochemistry, 2025), and "Multi-methods process evaluation of the SToP trial" (EClinicalMedicine, 2024). Barnett leads funded projects such as the Immunity to Streptococcus pyogenes Network (iSpy-Net) by Leducq Foundation and NHMRC grants on penicillin failure reduction. His impact is evidenced by grants totaling multiple projects and mentorship awards: joint winner of the 2024 UWA Vice-Chancellor's Research Mentorship Award, 2024 UWA School of Biomedical Sciences Research Mentoring Award, 2023 Telethon Kids PhD Supervisor of the Year, among others.
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