Deeper Dive
My project works to solve the potentially imminent issue of Vibrio cholerae serogroup O139 proliferation and infection in water reservoirs. I relied on coral-isolated marine probiotics in solid and liquid media assays to assess their efficacy against strains of Vibrio cholerae and identified significant efficacy across three out of four screened probiotics. The results of this project help ensure that we understand and possess a possible treatment in cholera prevention for a strain whose future implications we know little about.
I grew up hearing my grandmother’s stories of cholera outbreaks at the Dominican Republic and Haiti border and was concerned when I read the World Health Organization’s 2024 declaration regarding serogroup O139. As I began to research the topic, I recognized the global impact an eighth cholera pandemic would have, especially given the potential lack of appropriate water sanitation methods or antibiotics. I was inspired by the more than 1.8 billion people whose lives could become even more at risk.
My Davidson Fellows project was not without difficulty. My work in the wet lab resulted in many lab days filled with unexpected results or errors that often led to an entire experiment needing to be redone. With each of these setbacks, I gained valuable experience and knowledge that allowed me not only to become a better scientist but also to broaden my project scope.
Having access to advanced university-level coursework, like chemistry and the microbiology of human disease, provided insight into paths I could explore in my project.
This project has the potential to help prevent or halt a potential eighth cholera pandemic by targeting Vibrio cholerae in water reservoirs. The identified probiotic strains McH1-7, OfavHM2-11 and McHM3-18 could provide a possible approach to addressing the bacteria in these environments. Particularly, McH1-7 is a prime candidate for solid environmental surfaces, such as copepods or other organisms that Vibrio cholerae is known to inhabit or infect. McH1-7, OfavHM2-11 and McHM3-18 supernatants could be used for the planktonic, or free-floating, forms of Vibrio cholerae existing within the water in reservoirs, thus addressing the issue at its point of origin.