Background In 2015, I completed my undergraduate degree in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Plymouth with the aim of becoming a multidisciplinary scientist within the NHS. Five years on, I was a practicing Biomedical Scientist in Microbiology at Severn Pathology, North Bristol NHS Trust. My undergraduate degree had prepared me well for the role – however, what it hadn’t prepared me for was the increasing number of multi-drug resistant organisms that we were encountering in the lab. From this and by watching experts in the field, I grew an appetite for knowledge on resistant organisms and what we can do to treat and prevent them. This led me to undertake the MSc in Antimicrobial Resistance at the University of Sheffield, in conjunction with the Florey Institute. I have a clinical diagnostics background in microbiology and am looking forward to expanding this and my research skill repertoire. I have a particular interest in multi-drug resistant nosocomial pathogens such as Acinetobacter baumannii and also with virulence mechanisms associated with antibiotic resistance, in the hopes that my research will one day positively impact infection management in patients.
Florey MSc Research Project Collapsing beta-lactam resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae My project was conducted in the lab of Dr Andrew Fenton and was split into two lines of parallel investigation, both focused on the biological effect of beta-lactam antibiotics on the S. pneumoniae cell:
How perturbations in c-di-AMP homeostasis promote beta-lactam resistance in S. pneumoniae
Characterising the re-sensitising effect of nine ‘pas’ genes across clinical isolates, previously identified by the Fenton Lab.
Transposon-insertion sequencing was used to find hypothetical gene interactions associated with beta-lactam resistance, which I then tested by creating mutants via transformation and testing them with antibiotic spot assays or commercial E-strips. Further characterisation of re-sensitising mutants via microscopy, growth curves or specificity experiments will be invaluable in identifying effector proteins in c-di-AMP-mediated beta-lactam resistance. Throughout my project, I hope to develop my analytical thinking and reasoning skills to further apply in my career. I would like to continue research in AMR moving forward with a focus on clinically relevant pathogens.