In the microscopic world, bacteria have long been in fierce competition for resources. As a result, many bacterial species have evolved the ability to produce molecular “weapons” that negatively impact the physiological processes of their competitors. Some of these compounds have since been successfully adapted for use as antimicrobial therapies, and are commonly known as antibiotics. Unfortunately, pathogenic bacteria are continually evolving resistance to one or more of these therapeutics, resulting in increased incidences of antibiotic-resistant, or multi-drug resistant infection. Alarmingly, the research and development of novel antimicrobial therapeutics have slowed significantly, due largely to the idea that antimicrobial development is not a financially lucrative pursuit. As the antibiotic resistance crisis continues to grow, it is imperative that new and effective antimicrobial metabolites are identified. Bacteria from locally collected soil samples will be cultured on a selection of general media to encourage the growth of soil bacteria. Individual bacterial colonies will be isolated and screened for antimicrobial activity against ESKAPE-safe relatives, bacterial strains that share significant similarities with antibiotic-resistant strains. Metabolites will be extracted from bacterial isolates found to exert a microbiostatic effect in these screens. Extracts will be fractionated using TLC, and each fraction will be screened to confirm microbiostatic activity. Lead fractions will be submitted for untargeted LC-MS metabolomics analysis to identify presumed antimicrobial compounds based on structural similarities to known antimicrobial compounds.

Soil sleuths: Characterization of antimicrobial compounds from soil-dwelling bacteria

ACS Spring 2022

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