Identifying putative antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the ancient oral cavity from the Industrial Revolution

This project plans to use dental calculus (miniralised plaque) samples to acquire a better understanding of the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the human oral microbiome. This will be the first metagenomic study regarding antibiotic resistance genes dating back to the Industrial Revolution (c. 1750-1850). We expect to detect some evidence of ARGs based on the notion that ARGs are an intrinsic element of the oral microbiome. However, it is anticipated that predecessors of today’s antibiotic-resistant bacteria will lack the same ARGs, since the antibiotic era (c. 1940) is likely to have pushed this gene acquisition. Bioinformatic techniques, such as phylogenetic reconstruction, of these bacteria aims to give further insight on when, where, and at what rate these ARGs were obtained from the Industrial Revolution to the antibiotic (modern) era. The project will entail writing a report that includes a literature review, a section on wet laboratory and bioinformatics methodology, and final outcomes. These findings will be used to inform the final data analysis for our PhD dissertations, which will be co-prepared for peer-review publication.

Faculty Supervisor:

Camilla Filomena Speller

Student:

Partner:

University of Bradford

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Health and Related Sciences & Technology; Other

University:

The University of British Columbia

Program: