Ted White, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Pathobiology
Associate Member, Seattle Biomedical research Institute

CONTACT INFORMATION
University of Washington
Seattle Biomedical Research Institute
Box 357238, 

4 Nickerson, Suite 200
Seattle, Washington 98109

Phone: (206) 284-8846
E-mail: tedwhite@u.washington.edu

LINK TO TED WHITE'S COMMUNITY OF SCIENCE WEB PAGE


CURRENT RESEARCH INTERESTS

Dr. White's research program is focused on pathogenic yeasts including Candida albicans, the causative agent of oral thrush (candidiasis) in HIV-infected patients, newborns, and the elderly and the major cause of vaginal yeast infections in healthy and immune-compromised women. Specifically, Dr. White's research focuses on the identification and analysis of virulence factors, traits in the yeast, which allow it to interact with its human host and to cause disease. Dr. White's current research efforts are centered on a recent and significant clinical problem, the emergence of drug-resistant Candida. He has recently identified genetic changes associated with resistance, including mutation and overexpression of the target enzyme and overexpression of several pumps, which control the concentration of the drug within the cell. Genetic and molecular techniques are being used to analyze the basic mechanisms that result in gene expression associated with resistance. Dr. White and his laboratory are also interested in the whole-cell response of Candida cells in the presence of antifungal drugs. Recent data suggests that resistance is associated with mating type and alters hyphal formation. In collaboration with Dr. Kieren Marr at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Dr. White has described the first example of the development of antifungal drug resistance in bone marrow transplant patients. They have demonstrated that resistance in these isolates is inducible, transient, and part of a "heterozygous resistance" phenotype that is currently being characterized.

PUBLICATIONS