Volume 2, No. 1, 2016
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Acta Spartae is the undergraduate journal of sciences and mathematics at The University of Tampa, and is designed to recognize and promote the vibrant undergraduate research community at UT by providing a forum for the dissemination of research and ideas produced at the University.
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Browsing Volume 2, No. 1, 2016 by Author "Eric Freundt"
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Item Comparison of Antibiotic Susceptibility of Bacterial Communities on Cell Phones Belonging to Health Care Workers and Non-Health Care Workers(College of Natural and Health Sciences, The University of Tampa, 2016) Matt Guillemette, Zachary Rivera; Eric FreundtThe frequent use of cell phones inside of health care facilities produces a risk of contamination of the phones with potentially pathogenic bacteria. The elevated use of antibiotics within these health care facilities may also contribute to heightened levels of antibiotic resistant strains on these devices. To assess this, bacterial samples were collected from health care workers’ and non-health care workers’ cell phones. The bacterial isolates were assessed for antibiotic resistance via the Kirby-Bauer method. Eleven out of nineteen of the bacterial isolates from the health care workers cell phones displayed resistance to at least one antibiotic. According to our study, the lower amount of resistance of the bacteria isolated from the health care worker samples compared to the non-health care worker samples leads us to conclude that there is not a higher prevalence of antibiotic resistant bacteria on health care workers’ phones.Item The Efficacy of natural Antimicrobials and Antibiotics on Staphylococcus aureus and an Unknown Environmental Isolate(College of Natural and Health Sciences, The University of Tampa, 2016) Keith Gandy, Danielle Oddo, Danielle Pett; Eric FreundtThe problem of antibiotic resistance is growing increasingly prominent as more microbes are evolving to evade traditional antibiotics. New antibiotics and treatments against virulent bacteria are becoming a necessity in the medical community. In this experiment, antimicrobial properties of homeopathic compounds were tested. Tea tree oil and apple cider vinegar were compared with three common antibiotics: vancomycin, erythromycin and cephalothin. These compounds were tested against the possibly virulent bacteria Staphylococcus aureus as well as an environmentally isolated strain that was identified to be a gram positive streptobacillus. The results of this experiment demonstrated that the homeopathic compounds created zones of inhibition. The zone diameter directly correlated with the susceptibility or resistance of that particular colony to the antibiotic. The zones from the homeopathic medicines and the antibiotic disks of vancomycin, cephalothin, and erythromycin were compared. The largest zones of inhibition with Staphylococcus aureus and the environmental isolate were generated by cephalothin. Although traditional antibiotics displayed the greatest antimicrobial properties, our results suggest that homeopathic compounds can successfully inhibit growth of potential pathogenic bacteria and should be considered for future clinical applications.Item Protective Qualities of UV-resistant Bacteria(College of Natural and Health Sciences, The University of Tampa, 2016) Sloan Goldberg; Eric FreundtUltraviolet radiation causes detrimental effects on the cell by mutating its DNA. Micrococcus luteus and Micrococcus radiophilus are two bacterial species known to be able to withstand high levels of UV radiation. However, it is unknown if they have any protective effects on other cells, like Escherichia coli. Using UVB radiation from a light box, minimum lethal doses (MLD) were determined for M. luteus, M. radiophilus, and E. coli. The MLDs of the Micrococcus species were substantially higher than the MLD of E. coli. E. coli was mixed with the Micrococcus species and exposed to UV radiation to test for protective effects. It was found that E. coli was able to grow past its MLD in a few cases with both M. luteus, and M. radiophilus. However, it was noted that exact timing was difficult to obtain with our methods. It was found that the E. coli colonies that did grow in higher UV exposure were usually surrounded by a Micrococcus species, potentially showing protection. Exploring microbes for their UV protective qualities may provide an alternative for chemical containing sunscreens, offering a potentially safer product for both people and the environment.