About the Project
Actinomycetes have historically provided mankind with secondary metabolites that have led to the development of the majority of our antimicrobial agents. The increased requirement for the discovery of new therapeutic and commercially significant antimicrobial agents has stimulated the selective isolation of novel actinomycetes from diverse habitats. Explorations of the extreme environments have resulted in the discovery of many such strains that have been found to produce commercially significant products, such as Verrucosispora maris. A member of the suborder Micromonosporineae, the strain was recovered from marine sediment and found to produce abyssomicin C (1), a novel bioactive secondary metabolite.
The project will be focused on bioprospecting samples obtained from the unique and extreme habitat, The Great Salt Plains National Park, where diverse extremophiles have previously been recovered. The project will involve a two pronged approach in the isolation of actinomycetes from The Great Salt Plains. Firstly, the use of next generation sequencing for targeted microbial community profiling, which will establish the microbial diversity within The Great Salt Plains samples. An understanding of the microbial habitat will lead to a more directed approach to enhance the recovery of novel bioactive compound producers, by selective isolation. Novel antimicrobial compound producers will be characterised using a polyphasic taxonomic approach, incorporating whole genome sequencing, with the novel bioactive compounds interest further assessed for antimicrobial potential.
Informal Enquiries
Enquiries regarding this studentship should be made to: Dr Amanda Jones [Email Address Removed]
For further details of how to apply, entry requirements and the application form, see
https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/research/postgraduate-research-degrees/how-to-apply/
Please ensure you quote the advert reference above on your application form.
Eligibility
For further details of how to apply, entry requirements and the application form, see
https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/research/postgraduate-research-degrees/how-to-apply/
Please ensure you quote the advert reference above on your application form.
How to Apply
For further details of how to apply, entry requirements and the application form, see
https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/research/postgraduate-research-degrees/how-to-apply/
Please ensure you quote the advert reference above on your application form.
Funding Notes
This studentship is only open to self-funding candidates. Self-funding candidates are expected to pay University fees and to provide their own living costs. In addition, a ‘bench fee’ will have to be paid to cover project running costs (at a level that will be determined specifically for each project).
References
Ahmed, L., Jensen, P.R., Freel, K.C., Brown, R., Jones, A.L., Kim, B.Y. and Goodfellow, M. (2013). Salinispora pacifica sp. nov., an actinomycete from marine sediments. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, 103, 1069-1078.
Goodfellow, M., Stach, J.E.M., Brown, R., Bonda, A.N.V., Jones, A.L., Mexosn, J., Fiedleer, H.-P., Zucchi, T.D. and Bull, A.T. (2012) Verrucosispora maris sp. nov., a novel deep-sea actinomycete isolated from a marine sediment which produces abyssomicins. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, 101, 185-193.
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