劳拉·米勒·康拉德

Fighting Hospital-Acquired Infections

Growing up, 劳拉·米勒·康拉德 was in awe of medicine’s power to cure disease, which inspired her to study organic chemistry and conduct chemistry research in search of 疾病的治疗. This work led to her present day pursuit: blocking antibiotic resistant pathways in bacteria that cause hospital-acquired infections.

“The antibiotic colistin is 一个 drug that has effectively treated these types of infections, caused by multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa, but we are now encountering colistin resistance,” she explains. “However, our lab has identified a class of small 产生P的分子. aeruginosa more susceptible to colistin-mediated eradication.”

Undergraduate and master’s degree students from Chemistry, Biology, Biomedical 工程, and Chemical 工程 conduct the research on the project, from the synthesis of the small molecules to microbiological assays to in vitro kinetics. 他们运用概念 from their academic studies while learning the skills needed to conduct research independently.

“In the long term, we hope that these small molecules may eventually be used in clinical settings to help save the lives of those infected with this bacterium,” says Dr. 米勒 康拉德. “At the same time, we are trying to develop even more potent drugs to battle hospital-acquired infections.”

Mellanie Gomes, ’20 Chemical 工程, is adjusting her pipetman in the biosafety cabinet in preparation for diluting the P. 绿脓杆菌文化. 梅兰妮是国民党员 Institute of Health Research Training Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE) 学者.

Chemistry, College of 科学
Sponsor: National Institutes of Health

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