Jeffrey Pruet, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry, and Danielle Orozco-Nunnelly, PhD., associate professor of biology, and their team of student-researchers have been awarded $19,733 by the Indiana Space Grant Consortium to research natural antimicrobial compounds and their effect on 12 of the identified infectious microbes found on the International Space Station. The project will involve Valpo undergrads as well as a student researcher from Ivy Tech Community College and is an example of the University fostering exemplary learning as defined in the strategic, five-year plan Uplift Valpo: Our Beacon for the Journey Forward.
Professors Pruet and Orozco-Nunnelly and their students will study chemical compounds found in plants used in traditional medicine around the world, most notably Argemone mexicana. Once isolated and identified, chemistry students will experiment with altering the structure of these molecules and testing their effectiveness against samples of the 12 infectious microbes.
“The main benefit of natural over synthetic is that they’re just a huge resource of new, novel compounds that have antimicrobial properties that haven’t been explored,” Professor Orozco-Nunnelly said.
While it is too early to tell if any of the molecules being researched could lead to new medicines, Professor Pruet says that there are hopeful signs.
“We’ve started to discover some pretty promising molecules that are better than the plant-derived source, so that’s a big jump in the right direction,” Professor Pruet said.
For the students involved, getting the opportunity to put real research on their resumes as undergraduates could have a major impact on their future education and careers. Participating student-researchers will have their names listed as co-authors on published works, and present their findings both on Valpo’s campus and at the annual Indiana Academy of Sciences meeting in March, 2024.
For more information on the departments involved, visit valpo.edu/biology and valpo.edu/chemistry.
