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Universidade Nacional da Irlanda em Galway -- Ciência sem Fronteiras
PhD Project Template
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Use one form per project
Please complete & submit to international@nuigalway.ie as soon as possible, and by 27/11/2012
In your email, begin the subject line with [SWB] (be sure to use square brackets) to ensure that
your email is filed correctly. Emails will be automatically filed
PI name & contact details:
Dr Gerard Fleming
Microbiology, School of Natural Sciences, NUIGalway. Ireland
Email: ger.fleming@nuigalway.ie
Tel: +353 91 493562
School:
School of Natural Sciences
Yes
Has project been agreed with head
(or nominee) of proposed
registration school?
Research Centre / group
affiliation:
Infectious Disease and Immunity Cluster
Research group / centre
website:
http://ncbes.eurhost.net/infectious-disease.aspx
PI website / link to CV:
http://www.nuigalway.ie/microbiology/dr__gerard_fleming.html
http://www.nuigalway.ie/microbiology/moru.html
Brief summary of PI research / research group / centre activity (2 or 3 lines max):
If you are already involved in relevant scholarly activities relating to Brazil, please mention them here.
The PI research encompasses the development of antimicrobial resistance in Pseudomonas
aeruginosa, cultivation, enrichment and selection of microorganisms using continuous culture and
Biodiscovery from the Deep Sea Environment.
Research includes: Antibiotic and biocide cross-resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Control of
biofilms in cooling towers, Development and testing of novel biocides, Bioactive metabolites from
deep Sea environments, Bacterial community structure and function in the deep sea, Culture of
deep sea microorganisms under extreme hydrostatic pressures.
Title & brief description of PhD project (suitable for publication on web):
Evolution of Metal and Antibiotic Co-Resistance in Planktonic and Biofilm cells of Pseudomonas
aeruginosa
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Universidade Nacional da Irlanda em Galway -- Ciência sem Fronteiras
The human pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa is associated with cystic fibrosis, burns
and causes hospital- acquired infections including pneumonia and those of the of the
urinary tract. We have recently shown sub-lethal concentrations of disinfectants can
lead to cross resistance to an array of antibiotics in Pseudomonas aeruginosa1 and that
these findings were significant and reported globally in the scientific journals including
2Nature and 3New Scientist, in broadcast media (e.g.4CNN, 5BBC) and in the print media
(e.g. 6Time magazine). There an increasing body of evidence that Pseudomonas
aeruginosa can show low-level resistance to metals such as Zinc, Copper and Silver
when challenged with sub-inhibitory concentration. It is as of yet unclear if such metal
tolerances might co-select for enhanced tolerance to biocides and antibiotics. Simply,
might low-level metal contamination as found in hospital water supplies and wastetreatment systems induce cross- resistance to an array of antibiotics and biocides in
this important human pathogen?
This study will investigate the co-evolution of metal, disinfectant and antibiotic
resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Strains will be grown in long-term continuous
culture with selection pressure applied as increasing levels of sub-lethal concentrations
of Copper, Silver and Zinc. Furthermore, the evolution of resistance will be investigated
for biofilm cells which will develop during the course of these cultures. In this regard
the level of biofilm biomass creation, biofilm structure and physical properties of the
biofilm together with specific gene expression will be investigated.
The outputs from this study will enable us to further understand the development of
cross-resistance to antimicrobial agents in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. With such
enhanced understanding, we can then advance regimes for the effective control of this
pathogen in healthcare environments.
1
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19815578
http://www.nature.com/nrmicro/journal/v8/n2/full/nrmicro2308.html
3
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn18333-toodilute-disinfectant-boosts-bacteria-resistance.html
4
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/12/30/disinfectant.superbugs/index.html?iref=allsearch,
5
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8427399.stm
6
http://healthland.time.com/2009/12/28/in-hospitals-can-disinfectant-create-super-bugs/
2
Unique selling points of PhD project in NUI Galway:
Nuigalway offers a four-year Structured `PhD programme – with added learning structures to enhance the
scientific researcher.
Within NUIGalway, Dr Fleming’s Group is a member of the Infectious Disease research Cluster which
facilitates cross fertilisation of techniques and offers a forum for discussuon both within Microbiology and
across other disciplines.
Dr. Fleming’s Group leads a dynamic and focus led group with a multidisciplinary approach to research. The
ethos of the group is one of fostering the researcher so she/he can realise her/his full potential as a creative
and productive scientist.
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Universidade Nacional da Irlanda em Galway -- Ciência sem Fronteiras
Dr. Fleming has over thirty-year’s experience of working with chemostat culture and has advanced chemostat
culture facilities. He has published widely in the field and has well established links with Industry in the use of
this medium for selection and enrichment purposes.
Name & contact details for project queries, if different from PI named above:
Please indicate the graduates of which disciplines that should apply:
B.Sc in Biological Science; B.Sc in Microbiology; B.Sc in Molecular Biology; B.Sc. in Fermentation
Technology
Ciência sem Fronteiras / Science Without Borders Priority Area:
Please indicate the specific programme priority area under which the proposed PhD project fits- choose only
one (tick box):
Engineering and other technological areas
Pure and Natural Sciences (e.g. mathematics, physics, chemistry)/Physical Sciences (Mathematics,
X
Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Geosciences)
Health and Biomedical Sciences / Clinical, Pré-clinical and Health Sciences
Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), Computing
Aerospace
Pharmaceuticals
Sustainable Agricultural Production
Oil, Gas and Coal
Renewable Energy
Minerals, Minerals Technology
Biotechnology
Nanotechnology and New Materials
Technologies for Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Disasters
Bioprospecting and Biodiversity
Marine Sciences
Creative Industry
New technologies in constructive engineering
Please indicate which of the following applies to this project (referring to Science Without Borders
arrangements):
Suitable only as a Full PhD (Y/N): _ __Y__
Available to candidates seeking a Sandwich PhD arrangement (Y/N): _N_
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Universidade Nacional da Irlanda em Galway -- Ciência sem Fronteiras