2021 Virtual Undergraduate Research Symposium

2021 Virtual Undergraduate Research Symposium

Optical Nanosensors for Monitoring Oxygen Gradients in Capillary Culture Systems

Optical Nanosensors for Monitoring Oxygen Gradients in Capillary Culture Systems

PROJECT NUMBER: 11 | AUTHOR: Cecilia Nepple​, Chemical and Biological Engineering

MENTOR: Kevin Cash, Chemical and Biological Engineering

ABSTRACT

Microbial communities are all around us. Complex communities are present in soil, water, and the human body – breaking down and recycling nutrients. These communities are interdependent, the waste from one species is food for another. However, the bulk of laboratory microbiology is done on one species in isolation. This project aims to deploy the diverse culturing technique of the Winogradsky column on the microscale via capillary beds. These capillaries establish nutrient gradients, resulting in metabolic flux which is measured through the use of oxygen, iron, lactate, and sulfur nanosensors. This work focuses on the first phase of the project, using previously established oxygen sensors to study the metabolic rates of facultative anaerobe P. aeruginosa. It explores the limitation of current imaging techniques and how optical nanosensors can be optimized and deployed in diverse microbial systems. This work was accomplished through the mentorship of Dr. Kevin Cash and the Cash Lab. Please see the additional resources for more information about the lab and the project at large.

PRESENTATION

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Hello! I am Cecilia Nepple, a senior Chemical Engineering candidate, specializing in biomedical engineering. I was the first student from Mines accepted to the University of Oxford’s year exchange. I served as an associate student at Christ Church College. While studying there, I volunteered with a homeless shelter and coordinated care during a mumps outbreak. The experience exposed inequity in the healthcare system, one I believe I can help remedy through engineering.
Now pursuing dreams of medical school, I work with the Cash Lab to engineer nanosensors in a capillary bed system. I also work as the sorority housing director, and have done so for two years. Outside of work and study, I am heavily involved on campus. I am a Harvey Scholar, member of the McBride Honors College, and officer of Sigma Kappa sorority. Thank you for listening to my presentation, and you can contact me at cnepple@mymail.mines.edu with any questions.

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