S-STEM Scholar Rolanda Bell's Blog

                                                                                            Staphylococcus Aureus on Mannitol Plate S. Aureus was identified in two of the participants in my study. Although this organism is typically described as an opportunistic pathogen, it is a part of the normal skin flora of approximately 1/4 of the US population. S. Aureus is also associated with dry skin and atopic dermatitis (Williams et al, 2017). Consistent with current research, the person in our dry skin condition had the most colonies of S. Aureus when compared to the participants with normal and combination skin.  Biochemical characteristics of S. Aureus include, mannitol  +, coagulase +, glucose +, lactose (+) or (-) , and anaerobic.

                                                                                                                      Corynebacterium on blood agar Hello STEM Family, I’d like you to meet my friend Cory. Cory is long, dark, and radiates positivity. I know what you’re thinking, but currently Cory is cohabitating with S. Epidermis on Mt. St. Nares. They’ve been together for the last thirty days. However, if you want to   meet a special friend like Cory, here’s what to look for. They have to be comfortable swimming in shallow and deep water as there is little oxygen down there; have an insatiable sweet tooth, lactose tolerant, and a bubbly personality. Corynebacterium and S. Epidermis were isolated from the nose of our participant with combination skin. Both are gram positive bacteria; however, Corynebacterium are rods and S. Epidermis are coccoid. Biochemical properties include: catalase positive, facultative anaerobic,   beta hemolysis positive, and glucose positive. Cor

 Each of the photos represents a skin type. The faces were colored purple to represent the places where gram positive bacteria was identified and pink to represent where gram negative bacteria was identified. The project has identified familiar bacteria like S. Aureus and S. epidermis and less familiar bacteria like Veillonella Dispar and Staphylococcus Schleiferi. (more below) Combination Skin                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Dry Skin                                                                              Normal Skin Type The project is designed to not only catalog the different bacteria in the microbiomes of the various skin types, but also to examine how daily cleansing effects the composition of the microbiome, specifically the

So I started my project and realized that all my timelines would be busted. When I started mapping out the microbiome by skin type, I knew it would be a lot of work. However, my 8 year old self has dreams of changing the world. Who am I to say that she shouldn't at least try. Anyway, my older and wiser self  just wanted to share the important lessons I've learned so far.  If you are using the Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, then there are 3 tests you should run right after gram staining: 1) test for oxygen requirements (facultative, anaerobic, aerobic), 2) test for catalase, and 3) determine if the bacteria can ferment carbohydrates (start with glucose 'cause it's already in the refrigerator). This book highlights in bold black letters, the results of these 3 tests at the beginning of every chapter.  The other lesson I learned concerns the order in which I ran the tests. I grouped the bacteria by whether they were gram negative or posit

Hi Everyone, For my project, I intend to map out the human microbiome by skin type. Ultimately, I would like to identify how to use bacteria to treat skin infections associated with particular skin types. For example, if a person with dry skin also suffers from atopic dermatitis, then theoretically, one could apply healthy bacteria to the skin in order to relieve the symptoms of the infection.  Just imagine...instead of seeing a dermatologist in a doctor's office, you can go to the spa. There, the "staph" would culture the bacteria on your body and develop treatments just for you. Yes…I just put the tin foil hat on.  I know it seems like I’m dreaming, but there are start up companies out there who think that probiotics in creams are a viable solution for people suffering from various skin conditions. However, I think the right approach is to customize the products because you don’t want to introduce bacteria that will upset the balance in your microbiom