Associate professor Nathan Crook is the 2025 Biotechnology and Bioengineering Daniel I.C. Wang Award recipient! This award recognizes his outstanding work, exemplified in his article: “Development of Peptide Glucosyltransferase Inhibitors With Comprehensive Coverage Across Clostridioides difficile Toxin B Sub-Types.” He will be presented with the award at the American Chemical Society Spring 2026 annual meeting. 

The award-winning research focuses on developing treatments for Clostridioides difficile infections, which are particularly challenging to treat. Infections can cause colonic inflammation and severe diarrhea due to the presence of two toxins, TcdA and TcdB. One promising treatment approach is to block these toxins using small protein pieces called peptides. These inhibitors can be used alone or in combination with antibiotics to reduce symptoms and reduce the risk of antibiotic resistance.

In this study, Crook and his colleagues designed and improved peptide inhibitors that specifically target the toxin TcdB. The most effective peptides inhibit TcdB activity by preventing its ability to modify critical proteins in human cells. This, in turn, stops the process that leads to cell damage and disease symptoms. The peptide inhibitors worked against the three most common versions of TcdB, which together account for more than 90% of infections. In experiments using human colon cells, the peptides helped protect the intestinal barrier and reduced cell death caused by TcdB. Overall, this research shows that peptide inhibitors could be a new and effective way to help treat C. difficile infections.

Congratulations Prof. Crook on this achievement! Visit the Crook Lab website to learn more about their research.