Author

William P. J. Smith

University of ManchesterORCID 0000-0002-9270-7614Unclaimed ORCID profile · follow to get notified of new preprints

Biology Disciplines

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Microbiology· 3

Signature Assays, Organisms & Methods

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Organism:E. coli· 2 Research Focus:host-pathogen & immune response· 2 Organism:Arabidopsis· 1 Organism:bacteria (other)· 1 Assay:bulk RNA-seq· 1 Research Focus:cell type annotation· 1 Research Focus:differential expression· 1 Approach:experimental assay· 1

Frequent Co-Authors

Marek BasleriD· 2 shared Michael A. BrockhurstiD· 2 shared Alejandro Tejada-ArranziD· 1 shared Elisa T. GranatoiD· 1 shared Ewan Armstrong-Bond· 1 shared Katharine Z. CoyteiD· 1 shared Knight CgiD· 1 shared Raveen K. J. TankiD· 1 shared

Activity by Year

2025-2026 · peak 2/yr

Co-Author Collaboration Network

8 top collaborators · 15 mutual co-author links

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2 shared papersMicrobiology

Marek BaslerORCID

Mutual co-authors in cluster

Author profile →

3 papers

Recent·Most cited

Evolved resistance against the type 6 secretion system is toxin specific

William P. J. Smith, Alejandro Tejada-Arranz, Raveen K. J. Tank, Marek Basler, Michael A. Brockhurst

The paper investigates how resistance to T6SS toxins evolves, finding toxin-specific resistance mechanisms and trade-offs in E. coli.

bioRxiv · Mar 17, 2026 · PreprintMicrobiology

Type VI secretion system activity at lethal antibiotic concentrations leads to overestimation of weapon potency

William P. J. Smith, Elisa T. Granato

The paper shows that T6SS activity in A. baylyi persists under selective conditions, leading to biased competition assay results and suggesting pre-plating with antibiotics can correct this bias.

Microbiology · Aug 21, 2025Peer-reviewedMicrobiology

Multiplicity of Type 6 Secretion System toxins limits the evolution of resistance

William P. J. Smith, Ewan Armstrong-Bond, Katharine Z. Coyte, Knight Cg, Marek Basler, Michael A. Brockhurst

This study shows that multiple toxins in T6SS limit resistance evolution in bacteria, similar to combination therapies in medicine.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · Jan 9, 2025Peer-reviewedMicrobiology