If you want to learn more about the Characterization of Enterococci in Marine Ecosystems of Puerto Rico or would like to have a copy of my research abstract, please do not hesitate in contacting me through this blog or calling Dr. Luis A. Rios Hernandez at (787)832-4040, extension 2958.

If you would like to know more about my current research on Biomedical Applications of Magnetic Nanoparticles, visit my Research Blog at http://nanobiomeds.wordpress.com/

Thanks for all the enthusiastic support provided by all the visitors throughout last year’s research experience and please accept my most excited invitation to continue visiting and discovering, through my work, the newest findings on Nanobiotechnology in my new blog. http://nanobiomeds.wordpress.com/

Special thanks to Dr. Luis A. Rios Hernandez for his mentoring and supporting throughout the year and best wishes on his investigation and upcoming projects.

Acknowledments:
My research on Microbial Ecology of Marine Ecosystems was supported by Amgen Foundation through Biominds. http://biominds.wordpress.com/

I have learned that there are only five pigmented enterococcus species and from those five; four species have clinical significance to humans. That is very interesting because I have identified more than 10 % of my isolates as yellow pigmented enterococci. In order to better understand this characteristic and other phenotypic and genetic characteristics from the genus, I have studied some aspects of microbial physiology and prokaryote genetics. This seems to be only the beginning of a long learning experience because the more that I study, learn and discover, the more there is to know.

The biggest challenge during this semester of research has being to manage the time need it in order to maintain all the isolates up-to-date on the progress of the biochemical tests. I have about 200 isolates from two water samples, and in order to obtain considerable data about the enterococci ecosystem at the Patilla’s beach, I have to take into consideration a good portion of that community. Balancing time between the very time consuming procedures that I have to follow for every test and the time required for my college course have definitely proven to be the hardest part of the research.

However, as hard as it may be sometimes, my research team has always helped me when I have needed them the most. That has being a key factor in the progress of the research because when I have needed a little extra hand, there has being not one, but many hands looking forward to help me in whatever I may need. For that reason, I would like to appreciate all of the help from Gustavo, Julian & Rose who have reached out to help me on numerous occasions. Thank You Guys!!!

For the next semester, I expect to have more time available for the research, therefore, substantially increasing the productivity of my research. This will allow me to create the genetic catalog for the isolates from the Patilla’s Beach. I will test some of the available methods for detection on enterococci in order to identify methods for the quantification of organisms from a sample for the design of population density measuring tools. Before that, I will continue to work during the summer in order to characterize more phenotypic differences among the isolates, so that I could more accurately identify the species among the sample.

In order to work on identifying the bacteria isolated from water samples I had to conduct many biochemical tests that required learning staining techniques, tests for identifying metabolic pathways of microorganisms, and motility capabilities. To accurately conduct and evaluate the validly of my results I had to learn to use many laboratory equipment.

Some of the laboratory equipment that I learned to use this semester was the bacteriological hood, water baths, centrifuge, pH meter, autoclave, thermo cycler and the electrophoresis chamber. This equipment helps us in indentifying phenotypic and genotypic characteristic that differentiate species among the genus Enterococcus. These are the tools that will help us to create enterococcus communal profiles that will allow us to compare one ecosystem with others in order to identify possible contamination sources.

On this stage of the investigation, team work has being an essential factor in the catalysis of everything that goes around the laboratory. There are multiple moving parts, as all of my partners and I, are working in different assignments that complement each other’s work. We have all come together in a very fluent but extremely bonded unit and this has shown off in the tremendous rate of success that we have experience, even while working with limited resources.

We have collaborated in the construction of a data base of graphs that illustrate the relationship between the concentration of enterococci and the time of the year. This collection of graphs contains information from more than 20 beaches from Puerto Rico that are being monitored by personnel from the “Junta de Calidad Ambiental” (JCA). These graphs have allowed me to identify the sites with the highest population density of enterococci within the monitoring inventory of the JCA. The measurements of population densities are currently being interpreted as being proportionally related to the amount of fecal contamination that it is being introduced to the marine ecosystem by different sources that have not being identified yet. This inferred relationship could not be the reason for these high densities and obtaining a more accurate description of this relationship is one of the goals of my investigation.

The high population density of enterococci at the “Balneario de Patillas” is more easily appreciated when the data collected from the water samples is plotted on a graph (Fig. 1). This graph shows that this section of the beach has maintained a population of enterococci above the limit (36 CFU per 100 mL of water sampled) continuously for over six months, during last year. This could be a very alarming indicator of a sustained introduction of fecal contaminants to the affluent water bodies of this marine ecosystem or an acquired capability of enterocci to maintain viability, and of developing growth mechanisms outside of its host’s environment. Considering that the amount of colonies allowed by the JCA to still deem the water source as “meeting with the quality indication standards” is a count equal to or less than 36 colonies per 100 mL of water sampled, this graph raises many concerns about the health risks associated with the exposure to these concentrations of enterococci.

My investigation on Bacterial Ecology on waters of Puerto Rico is a collective effort of a team of researchers from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez Campus (UPRM). The team is base out of the Anaerobic Microbiology Laboratory at the UPRM, and conducts water sampling and analysis of microbial populations from different sources across the island. The Anaerobic Microbiology Laboratory is directed by Dr. Luis Ríos Hernández, Anaerobic Microbiologist graduated from the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Rios, is my mentor and with his extensive knowledge and experience on polluted aquifers and their microbial populations along with their intrinsic relationships based on metabolic pathways for biodegradation, we hope to identify inhabitant microbes in the waters of Puerto Rico, their relations with physical and chemical factors, possible enteric hosts of these organism, sources of contamination if any, and possible risk of exposure to human beings. We will validate the current contamination indicating methods used by regulating agencies to prove that they, in fact, are the correct methods to apply, base on Puerto Rico’s and many other tropical territories unique biochemical characteristics. To accomplish all of these tasks, Dr. Rios has recruited the help of a graduated marine biologist and undergraduate students from the Department of Biology and Nursing of the UPRM.

The Team:

Dr. Luis Ríos Hernández –Laboratory Director / Mentor / Researcher

Rose – Marine Biologist / Laboratory Technician / Researcher

Tayri – Biology Undergraduate Researcher

Dorcas – Industrial Microbiology Undergraduate Researcher

Franchesca – Industrial Microbiology Undergraduate Researcher

Gustavo – Industrial Microbiology Undergraduate Researcher

Julian – Biology Undergraduate Researcher

Leonardo – Industrial Microbiologist Undergraduate Researcher

Oscar – Nursing Undergraduate Student / Biology Undergraduate Researcher

Bio-Minds will help me reach those mentioned goals by continuing supporting my undergraduate research that is helping me to develop those technical skills, disciplines, scientific critical thinking and work ethics that will guaranteed my success in all stages of my researching career. The array of opportunities and networking connections is exponentially increasing since the day that I joined the team, and I have had already made contact with research faculty from other schools that will like for me to help on their own investigation during summer research programs, like is the case of the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras and their Molecular Biology Laboratory. This is just a few examples of how Bio-Minds had brought me into the spotlight and had also share some of that light to show me some paths that I could very well make use of, when striding towards my goals.