Background In 2023, I graduated from the University of Sheffield with a degree in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology. My time had been focused on biochemistry, but I had become enamoured with diseases and how they worked. Towards the middle of my undergrad, I was introduced to the topic of drug resistance and felt this was something I wanted to dive into. My research project delved into the genes responsible for AMR in Enterococcus faecalis, and I wrote a literature review on the role of the cell envelope in drug resistant tuberculosis. I was lucky enough to get a place on the Antimicrobial Resistance MSc and stick around in Sheffield for another year. In the summer of 2023, I was a part of the university’s iGEM team. Our project was based around fine tuning bacterial growth, which meant my summer consisted of daily dry and wet lab experience. My time there was exciting and widened my view on the field greatly. I have always had an interest in how our body fights off disease and would love to pursue a future in clinical immunology or microbiology in the hopes that I can contribute in the fight against resistance.
Florey Research Project
Determining the mucosal response to S. aureus colonisation My project was based in Dr Thom Locke’s lab in the department of Infection, Immunity and Cardiovascular Disease of the Royal Hallamshire Hospital. The work aimed to identify the effects of the mucosal immune system against Staphylococcus aureus during carriage. Carriage can often lead to fatal invasive infection, and understanding the effect the immune response has on staphylococcal antigens can lead to new therapeutic targets that could save countless lives from the rise of antimicrobial resistant strains.
SAM strips were placed inside the nasal passages of participants with different carriage status for absorption. My work included extracting mucosal lining fluid (MLF) samples from these SAM strips via elution. MLFs were then analysed using multiplex immunoassays using the Luminex system. Assays required magnetic microspheres that were coupled with antibodies and antigens. IgA and IgG was used for binding to antigens bound to the microspheres, and seven step dilutions and wash steps were carried out using phosphate-buffered saline mixed with Tween (0.1%).
I am extremely thankful to have been given this experience, and grateful to everyone who has been aiding me through my work. My time undertaking this research has developed my laboratory techniques and has been particularly aligned with my wanting to continue research in AMR in the future.