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honours 2017
honours projects3 projects are available in 20171. Biochemical and biophysical basis of pneumococcal disease 2. Zinc homeostasis in Pseudomonas aeruginosa3. Co-evolution of heavy metal and drug resistance in pathogenic bacteria
Honours is the most important year in your science degree. It provides you with your first real exposure to full time research in a lab. So it’s important to keep several points in mind when choosing your project. Find a project that you’re interested in, ask about the laboratory environment (i.e. who will you be working with day to day), and what skills that project will develop.
The McDevitt laboratory, in the Research Centre for Infectious Diseases, offers a range of multidisciplinary projects that combine microbiology with genetics and biochemistry. A project in our lab will provide you with a diverse set of research skills ideally suited for a PhD project or a job in science.
mcdevitt laboratoryfor more information contact me or visit the websiteroom 4.13/4.16; molecular life sciences buildingemail: [email protected]://biological.adelaide.edu.au/research/mpbp/
mcdevitt laboratory
2. Zinc homeostasis in Pseudomonas aeruginosaPseudomonas aeruginosa is a major opportunistic human pathogen and the leading cause of death in cystic fibrosis. Our recent studies have identified the novel pathways involved in zinc uptake from the lung environment. This project will use our detailed insights to assess the roles of these major, yet uncharacterised, proteins and how they influence the growth and behaviour of P. aeruginosa. This study will define the poorly understood pathways used in Gram-negative bacteria for zinc uptake.
This project will develop: Molecular Microbiology Skills • Gene cloning and routine PCR • Gene transcription analyses by qRT-PCR • Generating mutant bacterial strains • Biofilm formation and phenotypic growth assays Biochemistry Skills • Expressing and purifiying recombinant proteins • Spectroscopic biochemical assays (e.g. UV-Vis, fluoresence) Advanced Biophysical Skills • Membrane fluidity and lipidomic analyses • Scanning and transmission electron microscopic analyses
honours projects 20171. Biochemical and biophysical basis of pneumococcal disease All pathogenic organisms, whether bacterial, viral or parasitic, require metal ions (e.g. manganese, iron and zinc) to mediate disease. These metals are stolen directly from the host and so the pathways that the pathogen uses to scavenge these essential ions are ideal targets for novel antimicrobials. This Honours project will investigate the unique metal ion uptake and management pathways in the major human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae. This will provide crucial information for our drug development research program.
This project will develop: Molecular Microbiology Skills • Gene cloning and routine PCR • Gene transcription analyses by qRT-PCR and RNAseq • Generating mutant bacterial strains Biochemistry Skills • Expressing and purifiying recombinant proteins • Setting up and performing crystallisation trials • Structure/function analyses of recombinant proteins Advanced Biophysical Skills • Performing inductively coupled plasma mass-spectrometry • Mapping metal cofactors in bacteria by metalloproteomics • Using advanced spectroscopic tools to perform biochemical assays
Scanning Electron Micrograph of Streptococcus pneumoniae
Scanning Electron Micrograph of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Victoria Pederick, McDevitt lab PhD candidate)
3. Co-evolution of heavy metal and drug resistance genetic elements in pathogenic bacteriaRecently we isolated a carbapenem-resistant Salmonella enterica strain that is resistant to 9 classes of antimicrobials as well as a range of heavy metals. This resistance profile arises from a large plasmid that contains both antibiotic and heavy metal resistance associated genes. Similar plasmids have now been isolated from other pathogenic bacteria in Australia and Asia. This project will investigate the mechanisms of heavy metal resistance and explore the hypothesis that heavy metals in the environment are co-selecting for resistance to antibiotics. For more project details contact me.
