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Armin Kousha, Ph.D.

Associate Researcher

Research Interests

  • Multidrug Resistant Bacterial Infections
  • Host-Pathogen Interactions
  • Natural Products

At the Bench

Armin Kousha, PhD, is a Norwegian citizen born in Iran. He was a full-time teaching faculty member in Iran from 1997 until 2009, and he has been a research scientist in Norway since then. After earning an honors degree in veterinary science and fish health in Iran, he went on to pursue his PhD at Pune University in India. After immigrating to Norway, he got a graduate degree from The Arctic University of Norway and worked in top labs for fish health, including Prof. E. Ringø, Prof. R.E. Olsen, and Prof. Åshild Krogdahl. His career highlights include animal and fish health, with an emphasis on molecular microbiology and physiology, as well as original studies on antibiotic therapeutic, immune-regulatory, and histopathological effects. 

During his post-graduate training at the UC San Diego Prof. Nizet lab (2016-2017), he developed a strong interest in multi-drug resistant bacterial infections and is now using a variety of in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo techniques to study the synergistic interaction of antibiotics and the innate immune system. His research at Nizet laboratories is linked to a number of transdisciplinary projects, with a focus on developing breakthrough treatment strategies that can have a significant impact on future clinical management of infectious diseases.

Outside of Lab

Armin enjoys cooking, reading books, and watching TV series and movies.

Academic Appointments

Year Position
2021-present Research Associate, Department of Pediatrics, Prof. Nizet’s Laboratory-San Diego
2018-2020 Research Scientist in fish health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Norwegian University of Life Sciences-Oslo
2017-2018 Visiting Researcher, Department of Medical Biology, The Arctic University of Norway-Tromsø
2016-2017 Visiting Scholar; Department of Pediatrics, Prof. Nizet’s Laboratory-San Diego
2013-2016 Business Developer and Consultant, Fish Containment Solutions
Badinotti Group (Freelance)
1997-2009 Teaching Faculty Member, Department of Animal and Veterinary Medicine, The Azad University

Education

University Degree Year Field
University of Pune, India Ph.D. 2006 Environmental Science
The Arctic University of Norway M.S. 2013 International Management
Azad University M.S. 1996 Natural Resources Engineering-Fish Biology
Azad University B.S. 1994 Veterinary Medicine

Honors

Year Honor/Award
2009 Life time Member of The Norwegian Association of Researchers (NAR)
2008 Bronze Medal for Fish Probiotic Development;19th Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition; (ITEX08), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
2008 Director and Coordinator of International Training Courses; Zoonoses; Collaboration with The National Institute of Public Health(NIPH), Czech Republic
2007 Director and Coordinator of International Training Courses; Fish Nutrition and Health; Azad University and The Arctic University of Norway
2006 Distinct Research Scholar Award; University of Pune; India
2005 Distinct Research Scholar Award; University of Pune; India

Publications

Kumaraswamy M, Riestra A, Flores A, Dahesh S, Askarian F, Uchiyama S, Monk J, Park H, Bondsäter G, Nilsson V, Chang M, Bulitta JB, Lang Y, Kousha A, Bjånes E, Chavarria N, Clark T, Seo H, Sakoulas G, Nizet V.. UUnrecognized Potent Activities of Colistin Against Clinically Important mcr+ Enterobacteriaceae Revealed in Synergy with Host Immunity. 2024. The Journal of Clinical Investigation. Accepted.

Lekbua A, Thiruppathy D, Coker J, Weng Y, Askarian F, Kousha A, Marotz C, Hauw A, Nizet V, Zengler K. SkinCom, a synthetic skin microbial community, enables reproducible investigations of the human skin. 2024. Cell Reports Methods. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crmeth.2024.100832.

Thomas S.P*, Askarian F*, Kousha A, Suzuki E, Tsai C.M, Liu G, Nizet V, Dorrestein P.C, Tsunoda Sh.M. Perinatal ampicillin administration modulates murine bile acid metabolism in vivo- an observational study. BioRxiv, doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.31.578215. 2024. *Equally contributed.

Askarian F, Chih-Ming T, Cordara G, Zurich RH, Bjånes E, Golten O, Sørensen HV, Kousha A, Meier A, Chikwatie E, Bruunf JA, Ludvikseng JA, Choudhury B, Trieua D, Davis, S, Edvardsen PKT, Mollnes T E, Liu GY, Krengel U, Conrad DJ, Vaaje-Kolstad G, Nizet V. Immunization with lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase CbpD induces protective immunity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia. The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)2023.120 (30): e2301538120.

Kumaraswamy M, Wiull K, Joshi B, Kousha A, Vaaje-Kolstad G, Johannessen M, Hegstad K, Nizet V, Askarian F. Bacterial membrane-derived vesicles attenuate vancomycin activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. 2021. Microorganisms 9 (10): 2055.

Ulloaa E*, Kousha A*, Tsunemotoe H, Poglianoa J, Licitraf Carmelo, LiPumag J, Sakoulasa G, Nizet V, Kumaraswamy M. Azithromycin exerts bactericidal activity and enhances innate immune mediated killing of MDR Achromobacter xylosoxidans. 2020. Infectious Microbs & Diseases 2(1): 10-17. *Equally contributed.

Askarian F, Lapek Jr, Dongre J. D, M, Tsai C. Kumaraswamy M. Kousha A, Valderrama J. A, Ludviksen J. K, Cavanagh J. P, Uchiyama S, Mollnes T. E, Gonzalez D. J, Wai S. N, Nizet V, Johannessen M. Staphylococcus aureus membrane derived vesicles promote bacteria virulence and confer protective immunity in murine infection models. 2018. Frontiers in Microbiology 9: 262.

Sakoulas G, Kumaraswamy M, Kousha A, Nizet V. Interaction of antibiotics with innate host defense factors against Salmonella enterica serotype Newport. 2017. mSphere 2:e00410-17.

Kousha A, Ringø E. Antibacterial effect of aquatic extract of Heracleum Spp. Hogweed plants from Europe on thirteen different bacteria. 2015. Pharmaceutical Chemistry Journal 48 (10).

Ringø E, Andersen R, Sperstad S, Zhou Z, REN P, Breines E.M, Hareide E, Yttergård G.J, Opsal K, Johansen H. M, Andreassen A, Kousha A, Godfroid J, Holzapfel W. Bacterial Community of Koumiss from Mongolia Investigated by Culture and Culture-Independent Methods. 2014. Food Biotechnology 28 (4).

Kousha A, Myklebust R, Olsen RPathophysiological effect of chronic and acute stress in Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar (Actinopterygii: Salmoniformes: Salmonidae). 2013. Acta Ichthyologica Piscatoria. (2013) 43 (4): 299–305.

Askarian F, Kousha A, Salma W, Ringø E. The effect of lactic acid bacteria administration on growth, digestive enzyme activity and gut microbiota in Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) and beluga (Huso huso) fry. 2011. Aquaculture Nutrition 17 (5), 488 – 497.

Salma W, Zhou Zh, Wang W, Askarian F, Kousha A, Tajabadi Ebrahimi M, Myklebust R, Ringø E. Histological and bacteriological changes in intestine of beluga (Huso huso) following ex vivo exposure to bacterial strains. 2011. Aquaculture 314 (1-4), 24-33.

Jawad L.A, Kousha A. A case of vertebral coalescence and lateral line deformity in Hypophthalamichthys nobilis (Richardson, 1844) obtained from aquaculture activity in Iran. 2011. Boll. Mus. reg. Sci. nat. Torino 28 (1): 29-36.

Askarian F, Kousha A, Ringø E. Isolation of lactic acid bacteria from gastrointestinal tracts of beluga (Huso huso) and Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus). 2009. Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 25 (Suppl. 2): 91–94.