Biology Research at Neumann University Backed by Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Neumann University was recently designated as a SEA-PHAGES (Science Education Alliance-Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science) institution by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI).

The HHMI is a science philanthropy whose mission is to advance basic biomedical research and science education for the benefit of humanity.

Beginning in the fall of 2018, freshman and sophomore Biology majors will be able to enroll in a two-semester discovery-based undergraduate research course where students will learn to isolate and identify bacteriophages, viruses that attack bacteria, and have the opportunity to have their research published in national venues before the end of their junior year, making them highly competitive for industry jobs after graduation. Students will also be introduced to various methods to isolate bacteriophages and the use of computer systems in a bioinformatics (computational) class.

After an in-depth application process and approval, Neumann joined Cabrini University as one of the only two institutions in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Consortium for Higher Education (SEPCHE) to offer the course. Cabrini has previously offered the course to students from SEPCHE institutions as a summer undergraduate research experience; however, this will be the first time the course is offered on campus at Neumann University.

“This course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) is part of a national effort to improve science education. When students can work in a hands-on way like they do in this course, science concepts are more understandable and engaging. At the same time, their research discoveries help advance what is known in the wider world about phages,” said Beth Moy, Executive Director of SEPCHE.

As more is known about phages, there may be beneficial potential for treating humans. Research with phages to treat human bacterial diseases (because phages attack bacteria) was abandoned long ago with the rise of antibiotics. With the recent increase of drug-resistant bacteria, however, phages are receiving more scientific attention for possible medical uses.

Dr. Matthew Mastropaolo, Ph.D., assistant professor of Biology at Neumann University, along with two other Neumann faculty members, Dr. Patricia Fallest-Strobl and Dr. Lauren Salvitti, will undergo training to be certified to facilitate the two-part course. The first part of the course is referred to as the “wet lab” and will have students digging in the soil on campus to find new viruses. The second part of the course, the “dry lab,” will have the students perform a variety of microbiology techniques including complex genome annotation and bioinformatic analyses.

“This is a great opportunity for Neumann students to get practical research experience in a laboratory setting, where they get ownership of their own projects,” Mastropaolo said about the program coming to Aston, PA.

It is the hope of the HHMI that the SEA-PHAGES program increases undergraduate interest and retention in the biological sciences through immediate immersion in authentic, valuable, yet accessible research. By finding and naming their own bacteriophages, students develop a sense of project ownership and have a ready-made personal research project at a fraction of the cost of traditional apprentice-based research programs.

The Neumann University administration anticipates that a “Neumann University” phage will be identified and named in the near future.

SEPCHE members are Arcadia University, Cabrini University, Chestnut Hill College, Gwynedd Mercy University, Holy Family University, Immaculata University, Neumann University and Rosemont College.