A group of young students became genuine biomedical scientists even before they began high school. Collaborating with a nearby university, these middle schoolers gathered and examined environmental samples in search of new antibiotic candidates. Notably, one sample of goose droppings collected from a local park contained a bacterium that exhibited antibiotic properties and included a new compound that inhibited the growth of human melanoma and ovarian cancer cells during laboratory tests.
Disparities in educational resources, particularly in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), where experiments can be costly, have led to underrepresentation of some students in these disciplines. By involving a group of these students early on in high-quality research efforts, Brian Murphy and his team from the University of Illinois at Chicago are offering young learners the opportunity to envision themselves as scientists and explore scientific career paths through practical experience. The team joined forces with a Boys and Girls Club in Chicago to engage interested middle schoolers in a 14-week applied science program.
Murphy’s lab specializes in finding antibiotics from natural sources, and the group of young scientists contributed by providing environmental samples from their local areas. Their involvement extended beyond sample collection; they actively engaged in the scientific discovery process by programming a specialized robot to retrieve bacterial colonies from growth plates and assess them for antibiotic properties.
Among the 14 samples collected was goose droppings from the Garfield Park Lagoon, which harbored a strain of bacteria known as Pseudomonas idahoensis. The students analyzed the bioassay data of the bacteria and concluded that it had antibiotic activity and produced an unprecedented compound. Subsequently, university researchers used nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry to determine the compound’s molecular structure, named it orfamide N in reference to its molecular family, and examined its biological effects. Although orfamide N did not account for the initial antibiotic activity observed from P. idahoensis, it did inhibit the growth of human melanoma and ovarian cancer cells in culture trials. Future research may uncover additional beneficial qualities of this newly identified molecule.
The researchers assert that this project demonstrates the potential to merge educational outreach with research focused on natural products, highlighting the significance of strong collaborations between universities and their surrounding communities.
The authors express gratitude for funding from the University of Illinois at Chicago Graduate College, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant, the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Faculty Scholar Award, the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Graduate Student Scholar Award, and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases within the National Institutes of Health. Special thanks are also extended to the volunteer outreach mentors at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago.
