Spence Porché L, Goller Carlos, Riley Noah, Norman Daiza, Leggett Zakiya
Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Design, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA.
Department of Biology and Biomedical Sciences, North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
J Microbiol Biol Educ. 2025 Apr 24;26(1):e0008824. doi: 10.1128/jmbe.00088-24. Epub 2024 Dec 6.
The citizen science project integrates participatory science and community engagement into three courses (ES100-Introduction to Environmental Science, BIOL2700-Environmental Problems, and BIT479/579-High-Throughput Discovery course). Undergraduate students enrolled in ES100 and BIOL2700 collected samples from various locations as part of a class assignment. Students in the BIT479/579 course analyzed the samples using automation and high-throughput molecular biology approaches to reveal the genetic diversity in a portion of a key gene ("gold gene") needed to produce the peptide delftibactin with gold detoxification properties. The project emphasizes the abundance of microbes such as with potentially useful genes. The ES100 and BIOL2700 students were assessed using a pre- and post-survey and assignment. This study describes an approach to actively engage undergraduate students in interdisciplinary explorations of public science, further explores the presence and genetic diversity of a key delftibactin gene of , and seeks to understand the environments in which reside while contributing to the discovery of new knowledge.
公民科学项目将参与式科学和社区参与融入三门课程（ES100 - 环境科学导论、BIOL2700 - 环境问题以及BIT479/579 - 高通量发现课程）。注册ES100和BIOL2700课程的本科生作为课堂作业的一部分，从不同地点采集样本。BIT479/579课程的学生使用自动化和高通量分子生物学方法分析样本，以揭示产生具有金解毒特性的肽代尔夫特菌素所需的一个关键基因（“金基因”）部分中的遗传多样性。该项目强调具有潜在有用基因的微生物的丰富性。通过前后调查和作业对ES100和BIOL2700课程的学生进行评估。本研究描述了一种让本科生积极参与公共科学跨学科探索的方法，进一步探索代尔夫特菌素关键基因的存在及其遗传多样性，并试图了解其所处环境，同时为新知识的发现做出贡献。
