Recent Grants

NHMRC Project Grant (2009-2011). "DNA segregation in multiresistant Staphylococcus aureus". CIs: N. Firth, M.A. Schumacher, S.O. Jensen & R.A. Skurray.

NHMRC Project Grant (2007-2009). "Molecular mechanisms of plasmid maintenance in multiply-resistant staphylococci". CIs: N. Firth, M.A. Schumacher, S.M. Kwong, S.O. Jensen & R.A. Skurray.

Selected Journal Publications

Ni, L.*, Jensen, S. O.*, Tonthat, N. T., Berg, T., Kwong, S. M., Guan, F. H. X., Brown, M. H., Skurray, R. A., Firth, N. and Schumacher, M. A. (2009). The Staphylococcus aureus pSK41 plasmid-encoded ArtA protein is a master regulator of plasmid transmission genes and contains a RHH motif used in alternate DNA-binding modes. Nucleic Acids Research. DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkp756.
*Joint first authors

Jensen, S.O. and Lyon, B.R. (2009). Genetics of antimicrobial resistance in Staphylococcus aureus. Future Microbiology. 4: 565-582.

LeBard, R.J., Jensen, S.O., Arnaiz, I.A., Skurray, R.A. & Firth, N. (2008). A multimer resolution system contributes to segregational stability of the prototypical staphylococcal conjugative multiresistance plasmid pSK41. FEMS Microbiology Letters. 284: 58-67.

Jensen, S.O., Kwong, S.M., Lyon, B.R., and Firth, N. (2008). Evolution of multiple drug resistance in staphylococci. Microbiology Australia. 29: 120-124.

Schumacher, M.A., Glover, T.C., Brzoska, A.J., Jensen, S.O., Dunham, T.D., Skurray, R.A. and Firth, N. (2007). Segrosome structure revealed by a complex of ParR with centromere DNA. Nature. 450: 1268-1271.

Jensen, S. O., Thompson, L. S. and Harry, E. J. (2005). Cell division in Bacillus subtilis: FtsZ and FtsA association is Z-ring independent, and FtsA is required for efficient midcell Z-ring assembly. Journal of Bacteriology. 187: 6536-6544.

Jensen, S. O., Thompson, L. S. and Harry, E. J. (2005). Cell Division in Bacillus subtilis: FtsZ and FtsA Association Is Z-Ring Independent, and FtsA Is Required for Efficient Midcell Z-Ring Assembly. Journal of Bacteriology, 187: 6536-6544.

Selected Abstracts (presenter underlined)

Slade O. Jensen, Lisheng Ni, Fiona Guan, Stephen M Kwong, Tracey Berg, Melissa H Brown, Ronald A Skurray, Nam Ky Tonthat, Maria A Schumacher and Neville Firth (2009). Functional and Structural Analysis of ArtA, a Master Transcriptional Regulator of Conjugative Staphylococcal Multiresistance Plasmids. National Conference on the Molecular Biology of Bacterial Pathogens (BacPath 10), Barossa Valley, Adelaide.

Michael Liu, Stephen Kwong, Angela Connolly, Stuart Cordwell, Cindy Pon, Slade Jensen, Rebecca LeBard, Danielle Davies, William Figgett, Evelyn Lai, Alvina Sarosh, Susan Yeow, Deborah Barton, Robyn Overall, Ronald Skurray and Neville Firth (2009). Replication and Maintenance of Staphylococcal Resistance Plasmids. Australian Society for Microbiology National Conference, Perth, Australia.

Slade O. Jensen, Rebecca J. LeBard, Danielle S. Davies, William A. Figgett, Evelyn Lai, Ronald A. Skurray and Neville Firth (2008). Novel Maintenance Mechanism of Staphylococcal Multi-resistance Plasmids. International Plasmid Biology Conference, Gdansk, Poland.

Slade O. Jensen, Rebecca J. LeBard, Danielle S. Davies, William A. Figgett, Evelyn Lai, Ronald A. Skurray and Neville Firth (2008). Novel Maintenance Determinant carried by Staphylococcal Multiresistance Plasmids. International Symposium on Staphylococci and Staphylococcal Infections, Cairns, Australia.

Maria A. Schumacher, Tiffany C. Glover, Anthony J. Brzoska, Slade O. Jensen, Thomas Dunham, Ronald A. Skurray,. and Neville Firth (2007). Segrosome structure revealed by ParR-centromere complex. Southwest Macromolecular Symposium, Texas, USA.

Slade O. Jensen, Anthony J. Brzoska, Rebecca J. LeBard, Danielle S. Davies, William A. Figgett, Ronald A. Skurray and Neville Firth (2007). Maintenance Mechanisms of Multi-resistance Plasmids from Staphylococci. National Conference on the Molecular Biology of Bacterial Pathogens (BacPath 9), Lorne, Victoria.

Slade O. Jensen, Fiona Guan, Stephen M. Kwong, Tracey Berg, Melissa H. Brown, Ronald A. Skurray and Neville Firth (2006). Global Regulation of Survival Functions in Conjugative Staphylococcal Multiresistance Plasmids. Abstracts of the 2006 International Symposium on Plasmid Biology, Fallen Leaf Lake, California, USA.

Anthony J. Brzoska, Slade O. Jensen, Danielle S. Davies, Ronald A. Skurray and Neville Firth (2005). Partitioning of the Staphylococcal Multi-resistance Plasmid pSK41. Abstracts of the 2005 Australian Society for Microbiology National Conference, Canberra, Australia.