SWOSU biology faculty join Bean Beetle Microbiome Project
WEATHERFORD – Biological Sciences faculty, Drs. Eric Paul and Gina McGrane recently joined a project with collaborations between Emory University and Morehouse College to implement a curricular-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) in their General Microbiology Laboratory.
The principal investigators for this National Science Foundation-funded project, Drs. Chris Beck and Larry Blumer of Emory University and Morehouse College, respectively, intend to implement this CURE at universities and colleges across the country. The aims of their project include increasing student engagement, persistence, and performance in science classes and increasing the understanding of the importance of microbes that live in association with bean beetles.
Bean beetles are agriculturally important pests of stored beans; an infestation can reduce the overall mass of beans by approximately 11%. The microbiome of bean beetles likely supplies essential nutrients for insect survival. Increased understanding of the specific microbes involved in supporting the survival of the bean beetle may lead to novel control measures.
The CURE will be implemented in General Microbiology
at SWOSU in spring 2023. Students participating in the CURE will learn the classical skills that are always a part of microbiology courses and will also answer novel scientific questions using techniques for microbiome community analysis. Participating students will contribute to the societal understanding of both microbiomes in general and the bean beetle microbiome.
As participants in the CURE project, SWOSU will receive supplies and access to Sanger and next-generation sequencing and software for bioinformatics analysis. Additionally, the project will fund travel for faculty and student to present their findings at scientific meetings.*