色花堂app

 Julia Martin, associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, was recently awarded. Over the next three years, Martin and students working in her lab will be looking into how fluctuations in the supply of micronutrients - specifically manganese, zinc, and calcium - to Streptococcus pneumoniae affect the bacteria鈥檚 physiology. 

 鈥淲hen a person or host organism has a bacterial infection, like strep, there is a war going on over micronutrients between the bacteria and the host,鈥� said Martin. 鈥淭he host can withhold micronutrients and starve the bacteria, or it can poison them by bombarding them with an excess of micronutrients. Bacteria have also evolved their defenses to either acquire more micronutrients from their host when needed or get rid of the excess when they have too much, all to keep things balanced for optimum bacterial growth.鈥� 

During their research, Martin and her students will feed cultures of S. pneumoniae differing amounts of manganese, zinc, and calcium. They鈥檒l measure how varying micronutrients impact the bacteria鈥檚 ability to grow and reproduce.  

鈥淭his research will help us understand how bacteria manage their micronutrient needs and to identify the internal mechanisms the bacteria use when they are starved for micronutrients and when they have too much,鈥� Martin said. 鈥淲e will also be able to see how those same mechanisms may influence how a bacterial infection develops.鈥�

Initial funding for Martin鈥檚 research was provided by the Idaho INBRE program and helped to support undergraduate researchers in the lab. One of those students, Crystal Lovato, is on track to earn a pair of bachelor鈥檚 degrees from ISU this December in honors microbiology and music. Originally from Boise, Lovato has spent the last two years working on what turned out to be a profoundly personal research project, and her efforts were the subject of her honors thesis defense.

鈥淎s someone who has had a lot of complications with lung health, this topic helped me understand and apply biological knowledge to my own experience,鈥� said Lovato. 鈥淢y work on this research and my mom鈥檚 medical struggles inspired me to pursue a doctorate in biomedical research.鈥�  

Lovato has already been accepted into one graduate school and is waiting to hear back from a few others before making a choice on where to start her graduate studies in the fall of 2023.   

 鈥淭he fact that I was able to truly build my experience at ISU to what I needed and dreamed of made attending ISU one of the best experiences of my life. Dr. Martin has been the greatest mentor and helped me realize my dreams of helping others through research,鈥� said Lovato. 鈥淪he nurtured my curiosity, valued my input, and helped me realize my potential and ability. Because of this experience, I feel prepared to move on to graduate school.鈥�

Looking ahead, Martin and her students鈥� research may aid in creating new treatments for bacterial infections, specifically for bacteria that have become resistant to antibiotics. Citing a study published in globally in 2019, 鈥�4.95 million people died from illnesses in which bacterial antimicrobial resistance played a part. Of those, 1.27 million deaths were the direct result of antimicrobial resistance 鈥� meaning that drug-resistant infections killed more people than HIV/AIDS (864,000 deaths) or malaria (643,000 deaths).鈥�

鈥淓ffective treatments for infections such as strep have become limited because of new multi-antibiotic strains emerging,鈥� said Reuben Opoku, a master鈥檚 student studying microbiology from Ghana. 鈥淚n order to develop new treatments that stop the infection, we must better understand the molecular and cellular processes involved.鈥�

鈥淭his type of research into bacteria and micronutrients is in its infancy,鈥� Martin explained, 鈥淭he knowledge gained will provide other scientists and researchers with a base to build on towards new and effective antimicrobial treatments.鈥�

For more information on the ISU Department of Biological Sciences, visit isu.edu/biology. 

Prospective students can schedule a campus tour at.