Phage Biology

Gautam Dutta1, Naomi Hoyle1, Sarah Perigo1, Raul Raya2, Andrew Brabban1, Elizabeth Kutter1; 1The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA; 2Cerela-Conicet, Tucuman, ARGENTINA.

Bacteriophages have played an integral role in the development of modern genetics, molecular biology, viral morphogenesis, and now in the resurgence of phage therapy. In a time when antibiotic resistance has become a major cause of disease and death, phages offer an old solution to this new challenge, bringing excitement to help students learn basic science and pull together ideas and concepts from many subject areas to tackle real-world issues in all their complexity. The Evergreen approach to science and education provides opportunities to apply theoretical knowledge gained in the classroom to onging group oriented research projects with wide-reaching implications, whether students are headed towards public policy, K-12 teaching, research or the health professions.

We currently have for ongoing projects:

(1) A collaboration with partners in the Republic of Georgia to do molecular characterization of phages to be used in a therapeutic cocktail against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in wounds and burns from natural and unnatural disasters (Supported by the Civilian Research and Development Foundation).

(2) A collaboration with the USDA in Texas to isolate phages effective against Escherichia coli 0157:H7 and study their genomics and anerobic/aerobic infection kinetics.

(3) A collaboration with the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission to isolate and characterize phages against Aeromonas salmoncida the causative agent of Furnculosis in salmonids, which will then be tested in salmon at a high school in Aberdeen in collaboration with two Murdock fellow teachers.

(4) A study of aspects of phage morphogenesis that seem relevant to phage infection under some environmental condidions. Many students enter the lab with little working knowledge of microbiology, molecular biology, or host-pathogen interactions, but become stimulated through the many new questions and concepts that can be explored relatively easily and inexpensively with phages, and we have scores of extraordinary results and excited students to show from the process. Our hope is that phages will once again become one of the standared tools of the science educator.

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Last Updated: May 29, 2008

The Evergreen State College

2700 Evergreen Parkway NW

Olympia, Washington 98505

(360) 867-6000