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Phenotypic Analysis Of S. Aureus Strains From University Student Health Centers And Environmental Controls, Antonio Teixeira
Phenotypic Analysis Of S. Aureus Strains From University Student Health Centers And Environmental Controls, Antonio Teixeira
Honors Theses
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a group of pathogenic bacterial strains resistant to a class of antibiotics that is a major cause for concern in health care systems. There is a lack of study in whether health care centers are reservoirs for these bacteria, especially within developed countries. Five environmental swab samples were collected from five different university health care centers across the region, and 16 swab samples from a general university environment. Any isolated bacterial strains collected underwent five biochemical tests (mannitol fermentation, DNase activity, oxidase activity, catalase activity, and coagulase activity) to preliminarily identify S. aureus bacteria. 24% …
Investigating The Efficacy Of Dna Damage With Bleach In Forensic Laboratories And At Crime Scenes, Alyssa Tuccinardi
Investigating The Efficacy Of Dna Damage With Bleach In Forensic Laboratories And At Crime Scenes, Alyssa Tuccinardi
Honors Theses
Household/commercial bleach (6% NaOCl, sodium hypochlorite) degrades DNA through oxidative damage, production of chlorinated base products, and cleavage of DNA strands (breaking it into smaller and smaller fragments). The presence of these lesions significantly impacts the ability to generate a full genetic profile from an evidentiary sample. In fact, knowledge of the damaging effect of bleach on DNA is the basis for its use in forensic laboratories to clean workbenches and prevent cross-contamination of samples between cases. Additionally, bleach is used intentionally by criminals to clean up crime scenes and destroy DNA evidence. A previous study demonstrated that bleach has …