Young students from the James R Jordan Boys and Girls Club of Chicago made a groundbreaking discovery while studying goose droppings in a local park. Students at the school, under the supervision of researchers at the University of Illinois and Professor Brian Murphy of Chicago, identified a potentially anticancer compound. Students participated in a STEM program that turned them into true biomedical scientists before they even started high school. The students carefully isolated a bacteria from goose poop that showed antibiotic activity. The results were published in the journal ACS Omega, with student Camarria Williams credited as co-author.
Professor Murphy’s research laboratory focuses on the discovery of antibiotics from natural sources, and the cohort of young scientists participated by providing environmental samples from their local communities.
According to a press release According to the American Chemical Society, one of 14 samples of goose droppings collected from Garfield Park Lagoon contained a strain of bacteria called Pseudomonas idahoensis. The students interpreted bioassay data from the bacteria and concluded that it had antibiotic activity and produced a compound never seen before.
Next, the university researchers determined the molecular structure of the compound using nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry, named it orfamide N after the family of molecules to which it belongs, and studied its activity biological.
Although orfamide N was not responsible for the antibiotic activity the team initially observed in P idahoensis, the compound inhibited the growth of human melanoma and ovarian cancer cells in culture tests. Further studies could reveal other advantageous properties of this newly characterized molecule, according to the ACS release.
The researchers say this work proves that it is possible to combine educational outreach with natural product discovery research, and highlights the importance of a strong relationship between universities and their local communities.
These students’ work is an inspiring example of how curiosity and learning can lead to meaningful advances, even in unexpected places. Camarria Williams, a student, was listed as a co-author of the findings, which were published in the journal ACS Omega.