Combating Antimicrobial Resistance Through Student-Driven Research and Environmental Surveillance

Abstract

Emerging resistance to all classes of antimicrobials is one of the defining crises of the 21st century. Many advances in modern medicine, such as routine surgeries, are predicated on sustaining patients with antimicrobials during a period when their immune systems alone cannot clear infection. The development of new antimicrobials has not kept pace with the antimicrobial resistance (AR) threat. AR bacteria have been documented in various environments, such as drinking and surface water, food, sewage, and soil, yet surveillance and sampling has largely been from infected patients. The prevalence and diversity of AR bacteria in the environment, and the risks they pose to humans are not well understood. There is consensus that environmental surveillance is an important first step in forecasting and targeting efforts to prevent spread and transmission of AR microbes. However, efforts to date have been limited. The Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment (PARE) is a classroom-based project that engages students around the globe in systematic environmental AR surveillance with the goal of identifying areas where prevalence is high. The format of PARE, designed as short classroom research modules, lowers common barriers for institutional participation in course-based research. PARE brings real-world microbiology into the classroom by educating students about the pressing public health issue of AR, while empowering them to be partners in the solution. In turn, the PARE project provides impactful data to inform our understanding of the spread of AR in the environment through global real-time surveillance.

Learning and STEM identity gains from an online module on sequencing-based surveillance of antimicrobial resistance in the environment: An analysis of the PARE-Seq curriculum

“…Studies have already demonstrated the use of Oxford Nanopore sequencing technology in a classroom setting, a cutting-edge approach to teaching students emerging metagenomic methods [49]. Finally, PARE-Seq can be further incorporated into other existing PARE modules, such as through sequencing isolates from the existing library modules [16,50]. These…”

Educational Activities for Students and Citizens Supporting the One-Health Approach on Antimicrobial Resistance

“…Within formal education practices, the best examples of promoting antibiotic resistance awareness are the ‘course-based research experiences’ (CRE) or, specific for undergraduates, the ‘Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience’ (CURE) [ 25 ]. These activities have been developed as a research-intense course specifically for bachelor or graduate programs.…”

“…An interesting activity has been proposed to educate students in this format, by studying the prevalence of antibiotic resistance in the environment using common but internationally established microbiological methods and equipment. The activity is called ‘Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment’ (PARE) and it has a double intention: combating antimicrobial resistance through student-driven research and fostering environmental global surveillance [ 25 ]. This activity ( accessed on 8 September 2021) has engaged students around the globe, in the USA, France, Germany and China, in the surveillance of environmental soil samples to document the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria [ 25 , 29 ].…”

A framework for leveraging network course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) faculty to develop, validate, and administer an assessment instrument

“…The Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance in the Environment (PARE) project is a library of modular CURE curricula organized around the theme of environmental surveillance of antibiotic resistance ( 24 , 25 , 32 ). The majority of instructors begin by implementing the “core” module but then go on to expand the duration of research in subsequent implementations through addition of other PARE modules (Genné-Bacon, submitted).…”

“…Colonies are counted to determine the number of colony-forming units on each plate type, followed by calculations to determine the percent resistance. The results are uploaded to an international database and results can be visualized in real time on a map ( 24 , 25 ). The range of institution types participating in PARE, the varying course context, and the differences in total module numbers taught contribute to significant implementation differences across classrooms ( 25 , 32 ).…”