Microbiology Commons^™

Developing A Nasal Organotypic Model To Investigate The Effects Of The Nasal Microbiome On Susceptibility To Pathogens, Victor H.K. Lam Mr.

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

The microbiota is essential to the functioning of the immune system. The nasal milieu secretes immune molecules that can be influenced by diverse bacteria. Hence commensals that enhance anti-viral responses may confer resistance to respiratory viral infection.

Our collaborators have identified 7 microbial state types (CST) defined by indicator species in the nose and recently, through analyses of nasal immune molecules, we have categorized the nasal immune profile types into 8 groups (IPT). Although the IPTs correlated with certain CSTs, the influence of the nasal microbiome on susceptibility to respiratory pathogens is still unknown.

Defining this complex relationship requires a …

Functional Characterization Of A High-Throughput In Vitro Model To Predict Faecal Microbiota Transplantation (Fmt) Donor Success, Catherine M. Andary

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

Faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) involves the administration of donor faecal matter to a diseased recipient with the goal of remodeling the host microbiome to provide health benefits. In recent years, FMT has emerged as a potential therapy for a variety of microbiome-associated diseases such as atherosclerosis. Trimethylamine (TMA) is an atherosclerosis-linked metabolite generated by the gut microbiota from dietary precursors which is then oxidized to trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) by the liver, contributing to increased gut permeability. It has been shown that FMT may alter or restore the gut microbiome of recipients to reduce plasma TMAO levels. Despite its potential, the …

Exploring The Use Of Covellite As A Proxy For Corrosion Of Native Copper By Sulphur Reducing Bacteria, Manan K. Joshi

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

We are analyzing the effect of sulphate reducing bacteria on native copper, and using that evidence to further support the initiative of having a deep geological repository to store nuclear material. Sulphate reducing bacteria are a concern for the deep geological repository as they cause the corrosion of regular copper. However native copper has gone billions of years without corrosion, which could either mean that it had not been exposed to sulphate reducing bacteria over the billions of years, or native copper is able to withstand corrosion despite the contact of sulphate reducing bacteria. We can find out by trying …

Assessing Selective Plasmids For Bradyrhizobium Sp. Doa9 And Mesorhizobium Loti, Aiden J. Wilcox, Rebecca Meaney, Bogumil Karas

Undergraduate Student Research Internships Conference

No abstract provided.

Role Of Gp120 Glycosylation In Sexual Transmission Of Hiv, Yingxue Sun, Adam Meadows, Najwa Zebian, Eric Arts, Carole Creuzenet

Western Research Forum

Background:

In chronic HIV patients, the viral populations are genetically diverse due to mutations introduced by the viral reverse transcriptase during HIV replication. However, more than 80% new infections result from single transmission founder (TF) viruses; therefore, targeting the TFs is key to control AIDS worldwide.

Gp120 is a glycosylated envelope protein required for HIV infection, propagation, and transmission. Glycans on gp120 influence HIV infectivity through their interactions with lectins, the carbohydrate-binding immune proteins in the host mucosa. To transmit sexually, viruses must overcome the lectin traps to access more target T cells.

Hypothesis:

TF viruses are less likely to …

Modelling Non-Linear Functional Responses In Competitive Biological Systems., Nickolas Goncharenko

Western Research Forum

One of the most versatile and well understood models in mathematical biology is the Competitive Lotka Volterra (CLV) model, which describes the behaviour of any number of exclusively competitive species (that is each species competes directly with every other species). Despite it's success in describing many phenomenon in biology, chemistry and physics the CLV model cannot describe any non-linear environmental effects (including resource limitation and immune response of a host due to infection). The reason for this is the theory monotone dynamical systems, which was codeveloped with the CLV model, does not apply when this non-linear effect is introduced. For …

Pulmonary Surfactant Fortified With Cath-2 As A Novel Therapy For Bacterial Pneumonia, Brandon J. Baer

Western Research Forum

Background: Bacterial pneumonia is a leading cause of death worldwide, with high mortality rates persisting even after antibiotic treatment. Current treatments for pneumonia involve administration of antibiotics, however after the bacteria are killed they release toxic substances that induce inflammation and lung dysfunction. Host defense peptides represent a potential solution to this problem through their ability to down regulate inflammation. However, effective delivery to the lung is difficult because of the complex branching structure of the airways. My study addresses this delivery problem by using exogenous surfactant, a pulmonary delivery vehicle capable of improving spreading of these peptides throughout the …