Bio
I am a microbiologist, with a strong interest in food safety and antimicrobial resistance. My career journey began at the Government Analytical Services in Barbados, where I worked closely with the local food industry to support their microbiology and food chemistry testing needs. I went on to complete a MSc in Food Science and Microbiology at the University of Strathclyde, and later a PhD in Food Sciences at the University of Nottingham. There, my research focused on investigating the transcriptional response of Campylobacter jejuni to bacteriophage infection. My work has ranged from developing molecular tools for food pathogen detection to publishing the Campylobacter strain central to my PhD research. Beyond academia, I played a key role in enhancing national animal disease surveillance, establishing molecular diagnostics for animal health, and supporting food safety, nutritional and quality assurance testing for domestic and export markets. Today, I am dedicated to teaching and mentoring the next generation of Caribbean scientists while advancing research in antimicrobial resistance.
Qualifications
- PhD. (Nottingham) 2014
- MSc. (Strathclyde) 2008
- BSc. (UWI) 2002
Research Areas
- Antimicrobial resistance
- Food safety and quality assurance
- Monitoring of drug residues, pesticides and other contaminants in food
- Molecular diagnostics
Teaching Areas
- Investigation of antimicrobial resistance in the food chain
- General Microbiology
- Microbial Pathogenesis
- Virology
- Food Microbiology
- Food Fermentation
Publications
- Hooton, SPT, Brathwaite, KJ and Connerton, IF, 2016. The bacteriophage carrier state of Campylobacter jejuni features changes in host non-coding RNAs and the acquisition of new host-derived CRISPR spacer sequences. Frontiers in Microbiology, 7: 355. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2016.00355
- Anjum, A, Brathwaite, KJ, Aidley, J, Connerton, PL, Cummings, NJ, Parkhill, J, Connerton, I and Bayliss, CD, 2016. Phase variation of a Type IIG restriction-modification enzyme alters site-specific methylation patterns and gene expression in Campylobacter jejuni strain NCTC11168. Nucleic Acids Research, 2, 44(10):4581-94. https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkw019
- Brathwaite, KJ, 2015. Interactions between campylobacters and their bacteriophages. PhD Thesis, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington Campus, UK. Supervisor: Prof. Ian Connerton. https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/28422/1/Thesis_KBrathwaite.pdf
- Brathwaite, KJ, Siringan, P, Connerton, PL and Connerton, IF, 2015. Host adaptation to the bacteriophage carrier state of Campylobacter jejuni. Research in Microbiology, 166(6):504-515. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resmic.2015.05.003
- Brathwaite, KJ, Siringan, P, Moreton, J, Wilson, R and Connerton, IF, 2013. Complete genome sequence of universal bacteriophage host strain Campylobacter jejuni subsp. jejuni PT14. Genome Announcements, 1(6):e00969-13. https://doi.org/10.1128/genomea.00969-13
Keywords
Microbiology, Food Safety, Quality Assurance, Foodborne Pathogens, Virology, Food Fermentation, Molecular Biology, Antimicrobial Resistance, One Health, Disease Surveillance, Microbial Diagnostics, Agriculture
