New Paper Accepted in G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics
September 03, 2026
Congratulations to Anushka Tennakoon and the team on their latest publication.
Our research article, “Identification of novel inhibitors of Mycobacterium smegmatis growth through genome-wide overexpression of Cluster P3 mycobacteriophage Xavia genes,” has been officially accepted for publication in G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics.
Study Highlights
- Systematic screening of the Cluster P3 mycobacteriophage Xavia genome to identify phage-derived factors that restrict host bacterial growth.
- Identification of candidate inhibitory genes and pathways capable of disrupting Mycobacterium smegmatis physiology.
- New insights into phage–host dynamics that help pinpoint potential targets for anti-mycobacterial strategies.
Marshall Puckett joins the Rijal Lab as undergraduate honors student
August 24, 2026
Marshall Puckett joined the Rijal Lab as undergraduate honors student and will conduct research for his honors thesis. His projects focus on how Mycobacterium tuberculosis uses polyphosphate (polyP) to modulate macrophage behavior and how host polyP-responsive pathways can be targeted to counter this effect.
Abdelrahman Khader joins the Rijal Lab as a Graduate Research Assistant
August 11, 2026
We are pleased to welcome Abdelrahman Ayman Hasan Khader to the Rijal Lab as a Graduate Research Assistant and PhD student. Abdelrahman will continue his research on host responses to bacterial infection using complementary experimental models. His work contributes to our broader research on intracellular bacterial persistence, host-pathogen interactions, and antimicrobial stress responses. Welcome to the lab, Abdelrahman!
Anushka Tennakoon receives Graduate School Fall Travel Award
August 7, 2026
Congratulations to Anushka on being selected as a recipient of the University of Southern Mississippi Graduate School’s Fall Travel Award. The award provides $500 in support of conference travel and research dissemination.
Anushka will present his research at the 40th Annual ASM South Central Branch Meeting, held October 22–24, 2026, in Hot Springs, Arkansas. His work examines how Mycobacterium tuberculosis and bacterial extracellular polyphosphate influence macrophage responses, with the goal of identifying host-directed strategies to improve control of intracellular bacterial infections. Well done, Anushka!.
Review article published in Frontiers in Immunology
July 27, 2026
Congratulations to Ramesh Rijal and Alexandre F. Marques on the online publication of their review article, “Phosphorylation shapes antigen presentation and immune recognition: Mechanistic insights and translational perspectives,” in Frontiers in Immunology. The review examines how phosphorylation reshapes the peptide repertoire presented by MHC class I and II molecules, with consequences for T-cell recognition, innate immune signaling, and immune evasion. It highlights translational opportunities for phosphorylated antigens in cancer immunotherapy and vaccine development, as well as host-directed approaches to infectious diseases, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
The article appears in the journal’s Vaccines and Molecular Therapeutics section and is available online at Frontiers in Immunology.
Hattiesburg High School Students Earn Top Honors at Regional and State Science Fairs
June, 2026
Congratulations to Myah Eaton and Kendall Ellis from Hattiesburg High School for their outstanding achievements in student research. Myah and Kendall earned first place in Microbiology at both the Mississippi Region I & VI Science and Engineering Fair and the Mississippi Science and Engineering Fair for their project, “Assessing Bacterial Contamination in Community Water Sources Affected by an Overflowing Sewer System.” In the Rijal Lab, they examined bacterial contamination in community water sources impacted by sewer overflow in Petal, Mississippi.
We also celebrate their future plans beyond high school:
- Myah Eaton will attend William Carey University to pursue a bachelor’s degree in biology and later plans to attend medical school to become a surgeon.
- Kendall Ellis will attend the University of Southern Mississippi to major in forensic science and plans to become a DNA analyst.
Congratulations again to Myah and Kendall on these well-deserved awards and exciting next steps.
Jaelyn Davis ‘s honors thesis approved
May 12, 2026
Congratulations to Jaelyn Davis on the approval of her Honors thesis by the USM Honors College. Her thesis received an “Meets Expectations” designation, recognizing exceptional undergraduate scholarship. This marks an important milestone as she completes her undergraduate training and prepares for graduation. Well done, Jaelyn!
Ella King’s honors thesis approved
May 5, 2026
Congratulations to Ella King on the approval of her Honors thesis by the USM Honors College. Her thesis received an “Exceeds Expectations” designation, recognizing exceptional undergraduate scholarship. This marks an important milestone as she completes her undergraduate training and prepares for graduation. Well done, Ella!
Presentations by Rijal Lab Students at the Mississippi Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting
March 19-20, 2026
Graduate student Anushka Tennakoon and undergraduate student Ella King from the Rijal Lab presented their work at the Mississippi Academy of Sciences (MAS) annual meeting in Biloxi, Mississippi, with Anushka delivering an oral presentation and Ella presenting a poster.
Work led by students in our Microbial Genetics course identifies growth-inhibitory genes encoded by mycobacteriophage Xavia
January 6, 2026
Big congratulations to the students of BSC 477/577 – Microbial Genetics on their newly posted preprint:
Tennakoon et al. Identification of novel inhibitors of Mycobacterium smegmatis growth through genome-wide overexpression of Cluster P3 mycobacteriophage Xavia genes. bioRxiv 2026. doi: https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.01.06.698002
This student-led research project screened 71 genes from Cluster P3 phage Xavia in Mycobacterium smegmatis, identifying 18 genes that impair growth, two of which were toxic even without induction. The screen revealed multiple candidate inhibitors, including phage structural proteins, lysis factors, and strongly inhibitory unknowns, providing leads for future mechanistic studies.
Ella King receives Eagle SPUR award
December 16, 2025
Congratulations to Ella King on receiving an Eagle SPUR (Scholars Program for Undergraduate Research) award through the Drapeau Center for Undergraduate Research at the University of Southern Mississippi. The award supports her undergraduate research in the Rijal Lab focused on macrophage responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Well done, Ella.
Madelyn Moresi’s honors thesis approved
December 8, 2025
Congratulations to Madelyn Moresi on the approval of her Honors thesis by the USM Honors College. Her thesis received an “Exceeds Expectations” designation, recognizing exceptional undergraduate scholarship. This marks an important milestone as she completes her undergraduate training and prepares for graduation. Well done, Madelyn!
New paper published in Microbiology Spectrum
December 3, 2025
Our latest research is now peer-reviewed and officially published in Microbiology Spectrum:
Rijal R*, Gomer RH. Pharmacological inhibition of host signaling pathways enhances macrophage killing of intracellular bacterial pathogens. Microbiol Spectr. 2026 Jan 3; e02163-25. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.02163-25. PMCID: PMC12772234
In this study, we show that targeting select host proteins enhances macrophage killing of intracellular pathogens, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Legionella pneumophila, and Listeria monocytogenes. Guided by a polyphosphate (polyP)-based pathway first defined in Dictyostelium, inhibitors of P2Y1, RAGE, mTOR, and IP6K restored key macrophage functions such as phagosome acidification and proinflammatory polarization. These findings support host-directed approaches that boost innate clearance across diverse intracellular infections.
Research assistant joins the Rijal Lab
November 7, 2025
Abdelrahman Ayman Hasan Khader joined the Rijal Lab as a research student and will continue as a PhD student beginning Fall 2026. He studies host responses to bacterial infection using complementary experimental models. He is currently completing his Master of Public Health from the University of Southern Mississippi. The Rijal Lab is pleased to have him on the team.
Mississippi INBRE Project Development Grant awarded to the Rijal Lab
October 8, 2025
We are pleased to share that the Rijal Lab is part of a newly funded Mississippi INBRE Project Development Grant. Ramesh Rijal serves as Co-Principal Investigator and leads Aim 3, which focuses on experimental validation of repurposed drug candidates in Mycobacterium tuberculosis using THP-1 macrophage infection models.
NIH R16 awarded to the Rijal Lab
September 22, 2025
The Rijal Lab has received an NIH R16 award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to support the project “Elucidating the Role of Extracellular Polyphosphate in Mycobacterium tuberculosis Antibiotic Tolerance.” The four-year award supports research aimed at understanding how extracellular polyphosphate contributes to antibiotic tolerance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and how this process may be targeted to improve antimicrobial efficacy.
Madelyn Moresi awarded Discovery Scholar Research Grant
August 26, 2025
Congratulations again to Madelyn Moresi on being awarded a Discovery Scholar Research Grant from the USM Honors College. This grant supports her continued research and honors thesis work in the Rijal Lab. Great recognition of strong, consistent work.
Graduate students join the Rijal Lab
August 18, 2025
Anushka Tennakoon and Simon Kumar Shrestha joined the Rijal Lab as PhD students in Fall 2025. Both study host responses to bacterial infection using complementary experimental models. Anushka completed his Master’s in Biological Sciences from the University of Southern Mississippi under the supervision of Dr. Dmitri Mavrodi before joining the lab. Simon completed his Master’s from the University of Kaiserslautern, Germany, followed by a position as Assistant Professor at Kathmandu University, Nepal, before joining the lab.
Anushka Tennakoon receives MRA Travel Award
August 15, 2025
Congratulations to Anushka Tennakoon on receiving a Mississippi Research Alliance (MRA) Travel Award to support his poster presentation at the Conference on Bacteriophages: Biology, Dynamics, and Therapeutics, held July 7–11, 2025 in Washington, DC. Anushka will present his work on cytotoxic genes from mycobacteriophage Xavia active against Mycobacterium smegmatis. Well done, Anushka.
Poster presentations at ASM Microbe 2025
June 18–21, 2025 · Los Angeles, CA
Dr. Rijal and Anushka attended ASM Microbe 2025 in Los Angeles, where they presented posters on lab research, met potential collaborators, and learned new experimental approaches to bring back to the lab.
HHMI SEA-PHAGES Faculty Meeting
June 6–9, 2025
Ramesh Rijal attended the in-person HHMI SEA-PHAGES Faculty Meeting at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) headquarters in Washington, DC, focused on phage genomics and program development.
Madelyn Moresi receives Eagle SPUR award
May 27, 2025
Congratulations to Madelyn Moresi on receiving an Eagle SPUR (Scholars Program for Undergraduate Research) award from the University of Southern Mississippi. This award supports her undergraduate research project in the Rijal Lab, where she is studying macrophage responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Well deserved!
2025 Undergraduate Symposium Poster Presentations
April 26, 2025
Students from the BSC 477/577 Microbial Genetics (Spring 2025) cohort and members of the Rijal Lab presented posters at the University of Southern Mississippi Undergraduate Symposium. The presentations highlighted course-based and lab-integrated research projects developed during the semester.
Congratulations to Madelyn Moresi for receiving a Second Place Poster Award in her category. In addition, Group 1 from the BSC 477/577 cohort received a First Place Poster Award in their category, selected from three competing groups.
2025 Undergraduate symposium poster presentations
April 26, 2025
Students from the BSC 477/577 Microbial Genetics (Spring 2025) cohort and members of the Rijal Lab presented posters at the University of Southern Mississippi Undergraduate Symposium. The presentations highlighted course-based and lab-integrated research projects developed during the semester.
Jaelyn Davis joins the Rijal Lab as undergraduate honors student
February 3, 2025
Jaelyn Davis joined the Rijal Lab as undergraduate honors students and will conduct research for their honors theses. study host–bacterial interactions using the Dictyostelium discoideum model system.
Garrett Osowski joins the Rijal Lab as undergraduate researcher
October 22, 2024
Garrett Osowski joined the Rijal Lab as an undergraduate researcher to study host–bacterial interactions using the Dictyostelium discoideum model system.
Ella King and Madelyn Moresi join the Rijal Lab as undergraduate honors students
October 18, 2024
Ella King and Madelyn Moresi joined the Rijal Lab as undergraduate honors students and will conduct research for their honors theses. Their projects focus on how Mycobacterium tuberculosis uses polyphosphate (polyP) to modulate macrophage behavior and how host polyP-responsive pathways can be targeted to counter this effect.
Rijal Lab established at the University of Southern Mississippi
August 16, 2024
The Rijal Lab was established at the University of Southern Mississippi on August 16, 2024, within the School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences. This marked the start of the lab’s research program focused on host–pathogen interactions and bacterial persistence.
The Rijal Lab 