Dorte Frees

Dorte Frees is an Associate Professor at the Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen, with dual appointments in Food Safety and Zoonoses and Veterinary Clinical Microbiology. Her research focuses on unraveling the molecular mechanisms underlying Staphylococcus aureus pathogenesis and antibiotic resistance.

Her academic background includes a cand. scient degree (1994) from the University of Copenhagen and a Ph.D. (2000) from KVL, Department of Food Science.

Dr. Frees' research primarily investigates the role of ClpP proteases and Clp chaperones in Staphylococcus aureus virulence, antibiotic resistance, and cell division. Her work has demonstrated that these molecular components are essential for the pathogen's ability to cause disease. The long-term objective of her research is to provide the scientific basis for developing drugs that interfere with these mechanisms.

Her recent publications reveal a strong focus on bacterial cell division mechanisms, antibiotic resistance pathways, and the molecular regulation of virulence in Staphylococcus aureus and other pathogens like Streptococcus pneumoniae and Salmonella enterica. Her work spans fundamental molecular microbiology to clinical applications.

Dr. Frees has served as an editor for several prominent microbiology journals including FEMS Immunology & Medical Microbiology, Microbiology, FEMS Microbiology Letters, and Journal of Applied Microbiology.

She has presented her research through numerous lectures, with topics centered on Clp proteases and their role in bacterial pathogenesis. Her work has established important connections between bacterial proteolysis systems and virulence regulation.