Troy Skwor, associate professor of biomedical sciences, works with undergraduate researcher Yara Haddad in his lab. The research aims to pinpoint antibiotic-resistant genes in drug-resistant bacteria. (UWM Photo/Andy Manis)
Whether he’s studying drug-resistant bacteria in his Milwaukee lab at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee or educating children in developing countries, Troy Skwor’s work reflects his deep commitment to public health. For him, research is more than just discovery — it’s about making a difference in people’s lives. But he doesn’t lack a scientist’s curiosity toward the microbes themselves.
“It’s so fascinating to learn how pathogens are evolving and who is outsmarting who,” he said.
Both his research and his humanitarian work have led Skwor across the globe and deep into the microbial world, studying everything from malaria and tuberculosis to Chlamydia trachomatis, the bacterium that causes trachoma — a painful eye infection that impacts 100 million people worldwide and can cause blindness.
A simple invitation
His path to becoming a global health researcher began right here in Wisconsin. A first-generation college student from Milwaukee, Skwor was studying at UW-Madison when a mentor nudged him toward research. “If it wasn’t for that person telling me, ‘You should try this,’ I wouldn’t be where I am today,” he said.
Now an associate professor of biomedical sciences and the director of the Antibiotic Resistance and Antimicrobial Photodynamic Therapy Laboratory at UWM, he’s paying that forward. He loves spotting students with untapped potential and opening doors to research careers they hadn’t imagined for themselves.
Antibiotics of light
Skwor’s own career transformed after a chance visit to UWM years ago. While in town visiting family, he stopped by campus and crossed paths with biomedical sciences professor Janis Eells. The conversation turned into a collaboration, and together they published work showing that light-based therapies called phototherapies could kill Chlamydia without drug-based antibiotics.
That project was the beginning of a new line of research for Skwor. After teaching at Rockford University, he returned to Milwaukee, this time as a professor, to focus more heavily on research. He now leads a research program with big implications for local communities and global health.
In one federally funded collaboration, he’s working to combat multidrug-resistant bacteria using advanced light therapies. “This project is really exciting because it has the chance to save the lives of some of our wounded military if it works,” he said.
Superbugs around the world
Even during the COVID shutdown, Skwor kept going. With his in-person lab closed, he and his research students led a global data review of antimicrobial resistance in Aeromonas bacteria, analyzing 15,000 strains from across the world. The study revealed how gaps in infrastructure, especially the absence of wastewater treatment and clean water, fuel the rise of superbugs.
Closer to home, his lab monitors antimicrobial resistance at Milwaukee’s beaches and in its waterways. A recent study from Skwor’s team found that drug-resistant bacteria from treated wastewater closely resemble those found at local beaches and in hospital patients — raising concerns that environmental exposure could contribute to the spread of infections. His team and collaborators recently earned a multimillion-dollar EPA grant to expand on this work and investigate how wastewater treatment can reduce antimicrobial resistance.
In another project, his group is looking at what happens when treated wastewater returns to rivers emptying into Lake Michigan as part of Waukesha’s new drinking water diversion. And in a USDA-funded project, he and collaborators with the lab of Qingsu Cheng, assistant professor of biomedical engineering at UWM, are exploring whether photodynamic disinfection could make treated wastewater safe enough to irrigate crops.
Underlying all of his work, in the lab and beyond, is his passion for human health. He’s worked with commercial sex workers in Ecuador to better understand recurrent chlamydial infections and developed diagnostic tests for Chlamydia in Thailand. He’s volunteered in St. Lucia, South Africa and Uganda, educating youth and providing basic necessities. He even ran a marathon to raise funds for World Vision’s clean water mission. Across all these efforts, Skwor is helping advance solutions to some of the world’s most urgent health threats.
Written by Anna Funk
Link to original story: https://uwm.edu/news/uwm-professor-is-fighting-superbugs-in-milwaukee-and-around-the-world/