Host-Microbe Interaction

Advancing Precision Medicine Through Infection Control

The HMI Research Group's mission is to generate new knowledge on host-microbe interactions in health and disease for prevention and treatment of bacterial infections.

Our research is concentrated across three strategic areas:

  1. Bacterial infection biology: Virulence and pathogenesis
  2. Human microbiome: Homeostasis and modulation
  3. Antimicrobial resistance: Mechanisms, drivers and evolution

We are located at the Department of Medical Biology (IMB), Faculty of Health Sciences (HF)-UiT, and a part of the Centre for new Antibacterial Strategies (CANS) and and Patient-tailored management of bacterial infections (CAG-PIA). We maintain a close working relationship with Norwegian Centre for Detection of Antimicrobial Resistance (K-res) and Pediatric Infection Research Group (Pedinf).

Strategic research areas

 

Members


Principal Investigators


Researchers


Postdoctoral Fellows


Doctoral Research Fellows


Research Assistants


Ingeniører


HMI is involved in the following teaching activities:


Latest publications


Genomic Characterization of a Multidrug-Resistant Serratia marcescens Isolate Recovered from a Neonatal Meningitis Case in Iraq (AcademicArticle 01.10.2026) Integrative multi-omics reveals CUL4B as a modulator of macrophage pyroptosis and innate defense against Staphylococcus aureus (AcademicArticle 16.10.2026) β-lactamases: From trade-offs and adaptability to inhibitor design. The roles of collateral sensitivity, epistasis, and conformational dynamics in resistance evolution (DegreePhd 16.10.2026) Roadmap for integrated One Health AMR surveillance in Nordic countries (AcademicArticle 1.6.2026) NORM/NORM-VET 2025 : Usage of Antimicrobial Agents and Occurrence of Antimicrobial Resistance in Norway (ReportResearch 2026) The Funding Gap in Norway: A Comparison of European and Norwegian Research Councils’ Policies on Eligibility Extension Due to Maternity Leave (AcademicChapter 26.6.2026) From culture to clarity in four hours: accelerating clinical management of bloodstream infections using metagenomics (Lecture 19.8.2026) Chemoproteomic profiling of adaptive ATP-binding protein activity in Enterococcus faecium in response to host-derived cues (AcademicArticle 6.7.2026) Performance of EUCAST disc diffusion and supplementary methods to detect reduced susceptibility to linezolid in enterococci— the NordicAST LRE-study (AcademicArticle 28.5.2026) Development of a quantitative self-assessment tool for hospital antimicrobial stewardship and infection control programs: a step towards standardizing clinical studies (AcademicArticle 6.2.2026) Metagenomic survey of pathogen prevalence in the infant gut (AcademicArticle 22.5.2026) Mechanistic Origins and Evolutionary Erosion of Collateral Sensitivity in a β-lactamase (AcademicArticle 3.6.2026) Performance of disk diffusion and MIC gradient tests in tigecycline susceptibility testing of enterococci: a Nordic multicentre study (AcademicArticle 4.6.2026) Development and optimization of host DNA depletion in blood cultures using a saponin and salt-activated nuclease-based method (AcademicArticle 8.4.2026) Evaluation of ambulance blood cultures in patients with suspected sepsis. A rural prospective cohort study (AcademicArticle 01.01.2026)

MSc and BSc Projects

HMI accepts ambitious Bachelor and Master students with relevant backgrounds (e.g., Biomedicine, Pharmacy, Clinical Nutrition, Bioinformatics, Medicine) for various project-based work. Contact Principal Investigators for more information.

Popular science outreach

Joining forces in the fight against superbugs

Samler kreftene i kampen mot superbakteriene

CANS-Professor Receives Honorary Award

Ny forskning kan stoppe fryktet sykehus-bakterie

Enterokokker er bakterienes «dr. Jekyll and mr. Hyde»

How beneficial bacteria can help premature babies thrive

Bacteria hide their resistance – a challenge for diagnostics

Hunting microbes event for families at national science week, Northern Norwegian science center


Contact us:

Principal Investigators

 

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