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Matthew Hamilton
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E-mail: hami0192@umn.edu
Thesis Advisor: Michael Sadowsky
Year entered: 2003
Degrees received:
B.S., Cell and Molecular Biology, Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, MO 2003
Honors and Awards:
- NIH Biotechnology Training Grant 7/04-9/06, 9/07 - 7/08
- Microbial and Plant Genomics Institute Travel Award 2006
- ASM Corporate Activities Program Travel Grant 2006
- Department of Microbiology Dennis W. Watson Fellowship
2006-2007
- MICaB travel award 2008
Thesis research:
My thesis research consists of the development of marker DNA
probes for the identification of host source specific Escherichia
coli, the use of these probes in a source tracking study
and colonization studies to determine the role of some of
these probes in preferential colonization of the respective
host species. The hypothesis is that E. coli have
evolved host specific genes allowing for preferential colonization
of their respective hosts. A PCR based genome subtraction
method, suppressive subtractive hybridization, was used to
isolate DNA sequences specific to E. coli isolated
from a single host species. This method was successful in
isolating marker DNAs specific to waterfowl. Further work
demonstrated that these marker DNAs are useful for high throughput
screening of environmental isolates to quantitatively determine
the contribution of waterfowl to fecal loading in contaminated
waterways.
Currently, the marker technology described above and several
PCR based methods are being used in a project examining the
sources and population dynamics of E. coli isolated
from a contaminated waterways in south central Minnesota.
Also, one of the marker DNAs bears significant homology to
a family of adhesin genes found in E. coli, suggesting
that the marker DNA is a fragment of a previously unidentified
adhesin. Further work on this gene is underway to determine
its role in the colonization of waterfowl intestinal tissue.
The high throughput methodology developed in my thesis work
is also being adapted for use as a tool for screening E.
coli for the presence of toxin and virulence genes. Using
this method we are examining large numbers of E. coli
isolated from a contaminated beach in Southern California.
Publications:
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