Throughout my time at Muhlenberg, I have gained extensive quantitative and research skills. My Culminating Undergraduate Experience (CUE) course entitled “Host-Bacteria Interactions” this year centered around integrating biological concepts through reading and analyzing various published journal articles in oral, gut, and airway microbiota as they relate to the host, highlighting important biological processes at the molecular level.
Part of this course involved writing a comprehensive review paper like the published ones we read in class, integrating a minimum of 25 references from scientific literature, and including a graphical abstract and figures which I created. I also lead a one hour and fifteen minute discussion and presentation about my research topic.
Through this course, I have gained invaluable skills in reading scientific literature, understanding key molecular processes, compiling thorough research, and presenting my findings to an audience. These skills will help me in dental school and throughout my career as a dentist, as I will undoubtedly need to perform research and present my findings in the future.
Attached please find my research paper on the topic of Staphylococcus aureus and its effects on bovine mastitis.