anaerobically at 37°C and the other incubated aerobically at 37°C. The method of stocking the culture then depended on its ability to grow either aerobically or anaerobically. During my ten weeks in the laboratory I also characterised bacterial isolates from existing in-house culture collections. To achieve this, a technique called pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was used. This is a DNA-based fingerprinting method used to distinguish individual strains within a culture bank. The spectrum of inhibition of antimicrobials produced by gut microflora isolates was also studied using well diffusion assays. The antimicrobials were further characterised by investigating whether or not they are active at neutral pH. I also investigated the activity of antimicrobials under simulated intestinal conditions. In the laboratory at MFRC antimicrobial compounds are characterised using the most up to date methods such as mass spectrometry and HPLC and I was given the opportunity to work along side the scientist involved in this work to gain experience in the use and applications of this equipment. I also gained experience of DNA extraction methods, improved my aseptic technique, learned how to prepare culture stocks, prepared and sterilised media and gained experience of spread plating. This project allowed me to gain experience of working in a research laboratory and to learn new skills and techniques and see first hand what working in this environment is like. I am certain that this will be an advantage in college and in a future career in Biomedical Science. I would like to express my thanks to Professor Paul Ross for allowing me the opportunity to work at MFRC. I would also like to thank Mary Rea and Gillian Gardiner for all their time and help. Thanks also to the other staff in the laboratory for their support. Finally, I would like to thank SfAM for giving me this opportunity through their Students into Work Scheme. I would recommend this scheme to any student who has an interest in Microbiology and who would like to gain practical experience of working in a laboratory. Michelle Gardiner Cork Institute of Technology, Ireland
President’s Fund reports information am I eligible can I apply? If you often find difficulty in funding attendance at meetings. It is not only our student members who require our help. Senior microbiologists often find difficulty in funding attendance at meetings. If you are in this position you are eligible for this fund. For Further information visit: www.sfam.org.uk/grants.php
Therapeutic use of an artificial diet, with particular reference to cystic fibrosis (CF) I was very interested when I read the title of the SfAM 2006 Summer Conference “Living together: polymicrobial communities.” I hadn’t attended a SfAM conference for some time and I felt it would provide an opportunity to update my knowledge, renew contacts and make new friends. I decided to apply for the Presidents Fund Grant and was delighted when it was awarded to me. Having maintained many cultures relevant to the area of gut microbiology while working for National Collection of Industrial Bacteria (NCIMB), I was keen to find out as much as possible about our present knowledge of the role of these bacteria in the gut and of microbial interactions with the gut immune system. I was intending to review research performed my late father, Dr James Allan, some thirty five years ago into the therapeutic use of an artificial diet, with particular reference to cystic fibrosis (CF). This is an inherited chronic disease affecting the lungs and digestive system of about 70,000 children and adults worldwide. Riordan et al., discovered the CF gene in 1989. The normal Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein product is a chloride channel protein found in the membranes of cells lining the passageways of the lungs, intestine and other organs. Normal sodium and chloride ion balance is needed to maintain the thin mucus layer. The abnormal CF gene leads to damage or destruction the CFTR protein. This causes the mucus to become thick, which blocks the ducts. When this happens in the pancreas, the digestive enzymes cannot reach the small intestine to break down food. In 1970 Allan et al., first described the therapeutic use of an artificial diet, (based on a beef serum hydrolysate, medium chain triglycerides, Caloreen (a glucose polymer mixture) and a vitamin and mineral mixture) in treating E.coli
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