Ignacio Mir-Sanchis

Ignacio Mir-Sanchis serves as Assistant Professor at Umeå University's Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics and holds an affiliated position at the Wallenberg Centre for Molecular Medicine (WCMM). His research focuses on antimicrobial resistance mechanisms and phage therapy development.

His primary research interests center on Mobile Genetic Elements (MGEs) in Staphylococcus aureus, particularly Methicillin-Resistant S. aureus (MRSA). His laboratory investigates how MGEs hijack host proteins for DNA replication and gene expression during horizontal transfer, identifying potential drug targets. Additional work explores bacteriophages as therapeutic tools against antibiotic-resistant infections, employing techniques from molecular biology to cryo-EM structural analysis.

Recent publications reveal significant trends in bacterial defense mechanisms against viruses and protein dynamics related to antibiotic resistance spread. His 2025 discovery of bacterial viral defense systems provides new pathways for combating resistance.

• WCMM Fellow (2019)
• Swedish Research Council Grant (2023)

As head of the Mir-Sanchis Lab, he leads research on antimicrobial resistance and phage therapy, with active projects in bacteriophage engineering for therapeutic applications and structural analysis of resistance mechanisms. Current work includes developing phage-like particles as biotechnology tools and investigating host protein hijacking by MGEs.