The Cast of Snoopy Against ESKAPE Relatives

Soil microbes have unique characteristics with abilities to kill antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can be used to create new antibiotics. A sample of silty soil from the front yard of my house was utilized for the Tiny Earth Network project, a project in collaboration with students from around the world to discover new antibiotics through experimental research. To begin this research project, a gram of soil was serially diluted onto agar plates to determine the amount of bacteria in a soil sample. From the serially diluted plates, twelve candidates were chosen to be transferred onto a master plate. The candidates named after the cast of Snoopy were then tested against ESKAPE relatives for anti-microbial screening. Several candidates displayed zones of inhibition towards S. epidermidis. A specific candidate “Franklin” exhibited a greater zone of inhibition to S. epidermidis serving as potential for further research in the discovery of a new antibiotic.