Jesus Gonzalez-Morales

he/him

Education: Majoring in biomedical engineering

McNair Project: ​​Effects of spatial orientation of charge upon porin mediated transport (2021)

Mentor: Ryan Rafferty, Ph.D.

Gram-negative bacteria (GNB) can cause a multitude of infections that can develop into diseases. Common infections from GNB are pneumonia, meningitis, and bloodstream infections. Gram-negative bacteria have shown to play a role in cancer progression. When compared to Gram positive bacteria, GNB have one major distinction. The GNB have an extra lipopolysaccharide membrane which makes them resistant to most antibiotics and drugs. The main opening for small molecules and drugs to enter GNB is through their membrane protein channels, known as porins. These porins are located on
the outer most membrane. A multi-synthetic approach was used to develop a rigid Balgacyclamide scaffold, therefore scaffold will be used to test the GNB penetration. The effect of spatial orientation of charge has shown promising results in the penetration of GNB using the rigid Balgacyclamide scaffold.