Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Pathogenic Microbiology Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 7 of 7

Full-Text Articles in Pathogenic Microbiology

Design And Testing Of Novel Anthrax Vaccines Utilizing A Tobacco Mosaic Virus Expression System, Ryan C. Mccomb Dec 2015

Design And Testing Of Novel Anthrax Vaccines Utilizing A Tobacco Mosaic Virus Expression System, Ryan C. Mccomb

KGI Theses and Dissertations

Anthrax is a potentially fatal disease caused by the bacteria Bacillus anthracis. Infection and disease occur after spores gain entry into the body, germinate into vegetative bacteria, and produce toxin. Bacillus anthracis spores have been engineered as bioweapons and have been used repeatedly in warfare and terrorism to inflict casualties in military and civilian populations. Currently, only one vaccine has been approved for prevention of anthrax in the United States. This vaccine is an undefined product that is difficult to produce, requires a long vaccination schedule, and is reactogenic. Efforts to make an improved anthrax vaccine are being pursued. …


Algr Directly Controls Rsma In Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Tyler Speaks Aug 2015

Algr Directly Controls Rsma In Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Tyler Speaks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a bacterial pathogen that can infect any human tissue. The lungs of cystic fibrosis patients become chronically infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Virulence factor gene expression is under elaborate regulatory control that remains poorly characterized. Understanding the regulatory hierarchy involved during infection is essential for identifying novel drug targets. RsmA is a post-transcriptional regulatory protein that controls expression of several virulence factors. Previous studies demonstrated alginate regulatory components AlgU and AlgR as regulators of rsmA expression. The aim of this study was to determine how AlgR controls rsmA expression. Western blot analysis of HA-tagged RsmA confirmed lower …


Regulation Of Vancomycin Resistance And Stress Response By The Msaabcr Operon In Staphylococcus Aureus, Dhritiman Samanta Aug 2015

Regulation Of Vancomycin Resistance And Stress Response By The Msaabcr Operon In Staphylococcus Aureus, Dhritiman Samanta

Dissertations

Staphylococcus aureus is the predominant cause of public health problems around the world. Vancomycin has been an important antibiotic against Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections. However, Vancomycin Intermediate S. aureus (VISA) strains have been reported. These strains are characterized by thick cell walls, reduced autolytic rate, reduced PBP4 activity, and increased amount of D-Ala-D-Ala termini in the cell wall. In this study, we show that the msaABCR operon regulates vancomycin resistance in two clinical VISA strains. Deletion of the msaABCR operon in strains Mu50 and HIP6297 resulted in a significant decrease in the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for vancomycin. …


Transduction As The Method Of Horizontal Gene Transfer Of The Staphylococcal Chromosomal Cassette Mec (Sccmec), Amber B. Sauder May 2015

Transduction As The Method Of Horizontal Gene Transfer Of The Staphylococcal Chromosomal Cassette Mec (Sccmec), Amber B. Sauder

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) gains resistance to β-lactam antibiotics through a mutated penicillin binding protein (PBP2a) encoded on the SCCmec element. In combination with the recombinase encoded by ccr, these two genes are used as markers of the mobile genetic element (SCCmec). Due to recent increases in community acquired MRSA infections, the mechanisms of antibiotic resistance gene transfer have gained attention. Transduction, a method of horizontal gene transfer mediated by bacteriophage, is believed to be responsible for the movement of the SCCmec element. Recent studies have shown the transduction of the SCCmec element in clinical isolates; however, this study is …


Tonb Not Directly Related To Efflux Of Antibiotics In E. Coli, Amber Gombash May 2015

Tonb Not Directly Related To Efflux Of Antibiotics In E. Coli, Amber Gombash

Honors Projects

Studies in Pseudomonas aeruginosa have suggested that the TonB energy transduction system directly contributes to efflux-mediated antibiotic resistance, ostensibly by energizing one or more efflux systems. We have found ∆tonB strains of Escherichia coli to similarly be more sensitive to certain antibiotics relative to wild-type strains. To test the hypothesis that this enhanced sensitivity involved the energization of efflux systems, sensitivity patterns for a variety of antibiotics were evaluated using a set of strains differentially lacking genes encoding the Acr efflux system, the universal outer membrane efflux portal TolC, and TonB. No correlation was evident between the resistance phenotypes of …


Thermal Inactivation Of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia Coli In Foods, Malcond David Valladares May 2015

Thermal Inactivation Of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia Coli In Foods, Malcond David Valladares

Doctoral Dissertations

Emerging non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) were recently added to the zero tolerance policy by the USDA-FSIS. Therefore, the precise characterization of their thermal inactivation kinetics in different foods and the effect of stress on thermal inactivation are needed. This research aimed at determining the heat inactivation kinetics of non-O157 and O157 STECs in buffer and model food matrices and the effects of DnaK levels on thermal resistance after acid and heat-shock. Thermal inactivation was carried out in either in 2-ml glass vials or nylon vacuum-sealed bags for buffer and food (spinach, ground-beef, turkey deli-meat, pasta) samples, respectively. Vials …


The Characterization Of A Putative Virulence Factor Expressed By Sneathia Amnii, Amy Sanford Jan 2015

The Characterization Of A Putative Virulence Factor Expressed By Sneathia Amnii, Amy Sanford

Theses and Dissertations

Preterm birth, defined at birth before 37 weeks gestation, affects millions of newborns worldwide every year. Preterm birth is a leading cause of infant morbidity and mortality. One major cause of preterm birth is preterm premature rupture of membranes (PPROM), which can be triggered by bacterial infection and inflammation. A bacterial species that has been implicated in preterm birth and other obstetric complications is Sneathia amnii. The goals of this study were to observe cytopathogenic effects caused by S. amnii strain Sn35 and identify putative virulence factors causing those effects. Sn35 was able to adhere to, invade, and damage/kill …