Blasting Off with Phages: Bacteriophage Study in a Novel Environment — Presentation Detail — Celebration of Scholars

Instructions

Student presentations must have a faculty sponsor.

Abstracts must include a title and a description of the research, scholarship, or creative work. The description should be 150-225 words in length and constructed in a format or style appropriate for the presenter’s discipline.

The following points should be addressed within the selected format or style for the abstract:

A clear statement of the problem or question you pursued, or the scholarly goal or creative theme achieved in your work.
A brief comment about the significance or uniqueness of the work.
A clear description of the methods used to achieve the purpose or goals for the work.
A statement of the conclusions, results, outcomes, or recommendations, or if the work is still in progress, the results you expect to report at the event.

Presenter photographs should be head and shoulder shots comparable to passport photos.

Additional Information

More information is available at carthage.edu/celebration-scholars/. The following are members of the Research, Scholarship, and Creativity Committee who are eager to listen to ideas and answer questions:

Jun Wang
Kim Instenes
John Kirk
Nora Nickels
Andrew Pustina
James Ripley

Blasting Off with Phages: Bacteriophage Study in a Novel Environment

Name: Owen Lewer
Major: Biology
Hometown: Waseca, MN
Faculty Sponsor: Deborah Tobiason
Other Sponsors: Henle, Andrea
Type of research: Independent research
Funding: WSGC

Name: Claire Pfeffer
Major: Biology
Hometown: Madison, WI
Faculty Sponsor: Deborah Tobiason
Other Sponsors: Henle, Andrea
Type of research: Independent research
Funding: WSGC

Abstract

Currently, undergraduates across the country are able to get first-hand research experience through the Phage Hunters program which is a part of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Education Alliance. Through this course, students isolate a novel bacteriophage and characterize it through a variety of techniques. The purpose of this study is to pilot an extension of the current program in which students would be introduced to Space Biology by testing the stability of bacteriophages in the space environment on the International Space Station (ISS). Understanding bacteriophage stability is necessary if they are to be used in the future on spaceflights for biocontrol and/or phage therapy. Different phages have been shown to have various levels of stability under various temperatures, but the reason for varying stability is unknown. Two Mycobacteriophages from distinct clusters are being tested as possible candidates for studies on the ISS. Preliminary results have shown that both Mycobacteriophages Cerasum and GreaseLightnin show high stability at both 4°C and 30°C making either phage a possible candidate to send to the ISS. Further analysis on their lysogens have revealed that the phages have different tendencies to select lytic or lysogenic life cycles.

Poster file