Environmental Resistome
Are human fecal inputs from septic systems and sewage overflows a significant source of new antibiotic resistance genes to the environment? Does the severity of pollution correlate with number and diversity of genes in impacted aquatic environments?
Microbial Source Tracking
We use molecular methods such as community bacterial DNA sequencing and quantitative PCR to assess the contribution of septic systems to bacterial pollution of local waterways.
Wastewater Epidemiology
Commensal bacteria that inhabit our guts as “normal flora” can be reservoirs of antibiotic resistance that may be shared with pathogens via plasmid exchange. Can we detect emerging resistance trends within communities by screening wastewater for resistant strains of common enteric bacteria?