How does antibiotic resistance evolve in mixed communities? (WEBBER_Q26DTP)

Antibiotic resistance remains one of the great challenges to human health and whilst we understand a lot about resistance mechanisms much of this work has been limited to simple laboratory studies. In the real-world bacteria often live in complex communities of many species where they must compete to survive. We have recently found that selection of antibiotic resistance in biofilms can happen readily but that the responsible mutations can have significant fitness costs.

This project will explore how resistance can emerge in mixed species biofilms and understand which mechanisms of resistance are viable in competition. The student will be based in the groups of Prof Mark Webber and Dr Matthew Gilmour and will use Salmonella as a model organism.
The student will learn skills in microbiology, biofilm biology, genomics, transposon mutagenesis and informatics and be embedded within two large and dynamic research groups.

The student will be based within the state-of-the-art Quadram Institute building located on the Norwich Research Park, which host the Centre for Microbial Interactions, a vibrant research community of over 100 microbiology research groups. The project offers a wide range of opportunities for training and personal development in a world class environment.