Team: 38
School: St. Thomas Aquinas
Area of Science: Microbiology
Interim: Team Number: #38
School Name: St. Thomas Aquinas
Area of Science: Microbiology
Project Title: Bacteria and Antibiotic Resistance
Problem Definition:
To identify why certain bacteria becomes resistant to antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance eliminates drug effectiveness designed to cure or prevent infections in humans and animals. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics causes harm to both humans and animals. When antibiotic resistance happens the bacteria that causes infections are difficult or sometimes impossible to treat. Bacteria develops resistance by carrying pieces of their DNA from one bacteria to another and shares that information to other bacteria's DNA to make a long line of DNA resistant bacteria. During the course of time, bacteria can become resistance to certain antibiotics called mutation or natural DNA alteration or natural selection of an organism to survive and reproduce more bacteria that is more resistant to antibiotics.
Problem Solution:
By identifying why bacteria survives and becomes resistance to certain drugs we can prevent the spread of harmful infections to both humans and animals. Immunization and antibiotics can prevent the spread of resistant bacteria. Because bacterial resistance to antibiotics is a natural phenomenon called survival of an organism and the right to live in a natural environment we need to continue to develop antibiotics to eradicate antibiotic resistant bacteria as well as to test and track all resistant bacteria to our current antibiotics.
Progress to Date:
Our dog named Shadow, a Doberman Pinscher, developed an ear infection that caused severe itching, head shaking, scratching the affected ear, mild odor, pain to touch, and redness and swelling of the ear canal. The vet prescribed antibiotics but the infection comes and goes whenever we think it's cured. We are trying different types of antibiotics and see which is the best to treat the infection so it won't come back for a while, or hopefully be treated forever.
Expected Result:
By using different types of antibiotics and checking the composition of each prescription, we can tell which one is the best for treatment. By identifying the bacteria if its yeast or gram-positive or gram-negative or moulds we can predict if weather has something to do with the infection or not and chooses the right antibiotic every time infection sets in his ears.
Team Members: (1) Franchesca Nyberg
Sponsoring Teacher: Eric Vigil
Team Members:
Sponsoring Teacher: Eric Vigil