Project:

Analysis of Microbiomes in Poison ivy and the effects of the environment on these Microbiomes

Students:

Christian Meehan, Adwoa Enin

School:

William Floyd High School, Suffolk

Mentors:

Victoria D'Ambrosia

Abstract:

A microbiome is the collective genetic material of the microorganisms that reside in an environmental niche or the microorganisms themselves (Adam et al., 2016). The microbiota of plants have a vast impact on the ecosystem they reside in because they are the base of the food web. Additionally, poison ivy has had a increase in growth due to the rising levels of CO2 in the atmosphere. This increase in poison ivy may be associated with the increase in dermatitis due to contact with poison ivy, being one of the most widespread ailments in the United States according to poison center records (Mohan, et al., 2006). The research question being addressed is: will there be a difference between microbiomes in poison ivy located near an industrialized area, a wooded area, and a small farm? The data will be analyzed using Jupyter notebooks and QIIME analysis. It is expected that there will be a difference in microbiomes closer to the more industrialized areas.

Poster:

Team samples: