Dr. Xue Liu

Associate Professor, Shenzhen University

Dr. Liu received her PhD in 2017 from Tsinghua University in China. She went on to complete postdoctoral studies in the Department of Fundamental Microbiology at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland, before joining Shenzhen University in 2021. Her research interests lie in the development of high-throughput tools for pathogenic and non-model gut bacteria. She aims to investigate bacterial pathogenesis, bacteria-phage interaction, and antibiotic resistance with the developed powerful tools.

Education & Working Experience

Education

2011.9 – 2017.7 Ph.D., Tsinghua University School of Medicine, Beijing, China. Supervisor: Jingren Zhang
2015.9 – 2017.1 Joint-Ph.D. student, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands. Supervisor: Jan-Willem Veening
2007.9 – 2011.6 B.S., Huazhong University of Science & Technology, Wuhan, China. Thesis mentor: Yun Liu

Working Experience

2021.8-now Associate Professor, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Health Science Center, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
2017.10 –2021.7 Postdoc, Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland. Supervisor: Jan-Willem Veening

Publications

2025年

Zhang, Y., Zhang, T., Xiao, X., Wang, Y., Kawalek, A., Ou, J., Ren, A., Sun, W., de Bakker, V., Liu, Y., et al. Xue Liu (2025). CRISPRi screen identifies FprB as a synergistic target for gallium therapy in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Nat Commun 16, 5870. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61208-z.
Rengifo-Gonzalez, M., Mazzuoli, M.-V., Janssen, A.B., Rueff, A.-S., Burnier, J., Liu, X., and Veening, J.-W. (2025). Make-or-break prime editing for genome engineering in Streptococcus pneumoniae. Nat Commun 16, 3796. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59068-8.

2024年

Liu, X., Van Maele, L., Matarazzo, L., Soulard, D., Alves Duarte da Silva, V., de Bakker, V., Dénéréaz, J., Bock, F.P., Taschner, M., Ou, J., et al. (2024). A conserved antigen induces respiratory Th17-mediated broad serotype protection against pneumococcal superinfection. Cell Host Microbe 32, 304-314.e8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chom.2024.02.002.
Liu, X., de Bakker, V., Heggenhougen, M.V., Mårli, M.T., Frøynes, A.H., Salehian, Z., Porcellato, D., Morales Angeles, D., Veening, J.-W., and Kjos, M. (2024). Genome-wide CRISPRi screens for high-throughput fitness quantification and identification of determinants for dalbavancin susceptibility in Staphylococcus aureus. mSystems 9, e01289-23. https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.01289-23.
Jana, B., Liu, X., Dénéréaz, J., Park, H., Leshchiner, D., Liu, B., Gallay, C., Zhu, J., Veening, J.-W., and van Opijnen, T. (2024). CRISPRi-TnSeq maps genome-wide interactions between essential and non-essential genes in bacteria. Nat Microbiol 9, 2395–2409. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-024-01759-x.3.
Zhou, Y., Song, Y., Zhang, Y., Liu, X., Liu, L., Bao, Y., Wang, J., and Yang, L. (2024). Azalomycin F4a targets peptidoglycan synthesis of Gram-positive bacteria revealed by high-throughput CRISPRi-seq analysis. Microbiol Res 280, 127584. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micres.2023.127584.
Barbuti, M.D., Lambert, E., Myrbråten, I.S., Ducret, A., Stamsås, G.A., Wilhelm, L., Liu, X., Salehian, Z., Veening, J.-W., Straume, D., et al. (2024). The function of CozE proteins is linked to lipoteichoic acid biosynthesis in Staphylococcus aureus. mBio 15, e0115724. https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.01157-24.

2023年

Zhang, H., Li, X., Liu, X., Ji, X., Ma, X., Chen, J., Bao, Y., Zhang, Y., Xu, L., Yang, L., et al. (2023). The usnic acid derivative peziculone targets cell walls of Gram-positive bacteria revealed by high-throughput CRISPRi-seq analysis. Int J Antimicrob Agents 62, 106876. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2023.106876.
Sun, D., Liu, X., and Yang, X. (2023). Editorial: The spatial-temporal dynamics of host-pathogen interaction during inflammatory disease. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 13, 1308419. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2023.1308419.
Minhas, V., Domenech, A., Synefiaridou, D., Straume, D., Brendel, M., Cebrero, G., Liu, X., Costa, C., Baldry, M., Sirard, J.-C., et al. (2023). Competence remodels the pneumococcal cell wall exposing key surface virulence factors that mediate increased host adherence. PLoS Biol 21, e3001990. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001990.

2022年

Dewachter, L., Dénéréaz, J., Liu, X., de Bakker, V., Costa, C., Baldry, M., Sirard, J.-C., and Veening, J.-W. (2022). Amoxicillin-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae can be resensitized by targeting the mevalonate pathway as indicated by sCRilecs-seq. Elife 11, e75607. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.75607.
Huang, W., Zhang, J., He, Y., Hu, C., Cheng, S., Zeng, H., Zheng, M., Yu, H., Liu, X., Zou, Q., et al. (2022). A cyclic adenosine monophosphate response element-binding protein inhibitor enhances the antibacterial activity of polymyxin B by inhibiting the ATP hydrolyzation activity of CrrB. Front Pharmacol 13, 949869. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2022.949869.
Dong, N., Zeng, Y., Wang, Y., Liu, C., Lu, J., Cai, C., Liu, X., Chen, Y., Wu, Y., Fang, Y., et al. (2022). Distribution and spread of the mobilised RND efflux pump gene cluster tmexCD-toprJ in clinical Gram-negative bacteria: a molecular epidemiological study. Lancet Microbe 3, e846–e856. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2666-5247(22)00221-X.

2021年

Liu, X., Kimmey, J.M., Matarazzo, L., de Bakker, V., Van Maele, L., Sirard, J.-C., Nizet, V., and Veening, J.-W. (2021). Exploration of Bacterial Bottlenecks and Streptococcus pneumoniae Pathogenesis by CRISPRi-Seq. Cell Host & Microbe 29, 107-120.e6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chom.2020.10.001.
de Bakker, V., Liu, X., Bravo, A.M., and Veening, J.-W. (2022). CRISPRi-seq for genome-wide fitness quantification in bacteria. Nat Protoc 17, 252–281. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41596-021-00639-6.

2020年及以前

Liu, X., Li, J.-W., Feng, Z., Luo, Y., Veening, J.-W., and Zhang, J.-R. (2017). Transcriptional Repressor PtvR Regulates Phenotypic Tolerance to Vancomycin in Streptococcus pneumoniae. J Bacteriol 199. https://doi.org/10.1128/JB.00054-17.
Liu, X., Gallay, C., Kjos, M., Domenech, A., Slager, J., Kessel, S.P. van, Knoops, K., Sorg, R.A., Zhang, J.-R., and Veening, J.-W. (2017). High‐throughput CRISPRi phenotyping identifies new essential genes in Streptococcus pneumoniae. Molecular Systems Biology 13, 931. https://doi.org/10.15252/msb.20167449. （cover paper）
Zhang, B., Liu, X., Lambert, E., Mas, G., Hiller, S., Veening, J.-W., and Perez, C. (2020). Structure of a proton-dependent lipid transporter involved in lipoteichoic acids biosynthesis. Nat Struct Mol Biol 27, 561–569. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41594-020-0425-5.
Wang, X., Zeng, Y., Sheng, L., Larson, P., Liu, X., Zou, X., Wang, S., Guo, K., Ma, C., Zhang, G., et al. (2019). A Cinchona Alkaloid Antibiotic That Appears To Target ATP Synthase in Streptococcus pneumoniae. J. Med. Chem. 62, 2305–2332. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.8b01353.
Zhu, D., Wang, L., Shang, G., Liu, X., Zhu, J., Lu, D., Wang, L., Kan, B., Zhang, J.-R., and Xiang, Y. (2014). Structural biochemistry of a Vibrio cholerae dinucleotide cyclase reveals cyclase activity regulation by folates. Mol Cell 55, 931–937. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2014.08.001.
Yang, H., Liu, X., Li, Q., Li, L., Zhang, J.-R., and Tang, Y. (2016). Total synthesis and preliminary SAR study of (±)-merochlorins A and B. Org Biomol Chem 14, 198–205. https://doi.org/10.1039/c5ob01946j.
He, L., Nair, M.K.M., Chen, Y., Liu, X., Zhang, M., Hazlett, K.R.O., Deng, H., and Zhang, J.-R. (2016). The Protease Locus of Francisella tularensis LVS Is Required for Stress Tolerance and Infection in the Mammalian Host. Infect Immun 84, 1387–1402. https://doi.org/10.1128/IAI.00076-16.
Wen, Z., Sertil, O., Cheng, Y., Zhang, S., Liu, X., Wang, W.-C., and Zhang, J.-R. (2015). Sequence elements upstream of the core promoter are necessary for full transcription of the capsule gene operon in Streptococcus pneumoniae strain D39. Infect Immun 83, 1957–1972. https://doi.org/10.1128/IAI.02944-14.
Song, Y., Li, Q., Liu, X., Chen, Y., Zhang, Y., Sun, A., Zhang, W., Zhang, J., and Ju, J. (2014). Cyclic Hexapeptides from the Deep South China Sea-Derived Streptomyces scopuliridis SCSIO ZJ46 Active Against Pathogenic Gram-Positive Bacteria. J Nat Prod 77, 1937–1941. https://doi.org/10.1021/np500399v.