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- All Subjects: Microbiology
- Creators: Bean, Heather
The objective of this investigation is to evaluate how environmental changes that are related to the growth environment in the CF lung alters rhamnolipid production. Thirty-five P. aeruginosa isolates from Dartmouth College and Seattle Children’s Hospital were selected to observe the impact of temperature, presence of Staphylococcus aureus metabolites, and oxygen availability on rhamnolipid production. It was found that the rhamnolipid production significantly decreased for 30C versus 37C, but not at 40C. The addition of S. aureus spent media, in any of the tested conditions, did not influence rhamnolipid production. Finally, the change in oxygen concentration from normoxia to hypoxia significantly reduced rhamnolipid production. These results were compared to swarming assay data to understand how changes in rhamnolipid production impact surface-mediated motility.
This project begins with an overview of the female reproductive tract microenvironment. It outlines the microenvironment of the vaginal, cervical, and endometrial epithelium and the interactions with immune cells and hormone cycles. The review also outlines the models currently used to study the female reproductive tract. The second chapter of the thesis is a study of the effects of pathogenic and commensal bacteria P. micra, F. magna, and F. nucleatum on cervical epithelial cells. This study analyzes cytotoxic effects after 24 hour infection of these bacteria. This was assessed through crystal violet staining, conventional pcr of cDNA synthesized from extracted cervical RNA, and LDH analysis. There is also an attempted biofilm assay. It was concluded that bacteria P. micra, F. magna and F. nucleatum have cytotoxic potential. This was not expected as F. magna is largely understood to be a commensal bacteria in the vaginal microbiome.