Environmental Internship Program - 2023 Booklet

Kaeli Ficco ’24
CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING
PROJECT TITLE
Probing Suppression and
Evasion of the Plant
Immune System by
Commensals From the
Plant Root Microbiome
ORGANIZATION(S)
Conway Lab,
Department of
Chemical and Biological
Engineering, Princeton
University
I studied how root commensal bacteria can
suppress the plant immune system to enable
these bacteria to cohabitate with the plant.
Specifically, I investigated a group of bacteria
that share a similar protein that cuts an immunetriggering
microbe-associated molecular
pattern. I was tasked with deleting these genes
and using various assays to quantitatively and
qualitatively classify immune suppression of my
gene deletion strains compared to the wild-type
bacteria. Throughout the internship, I utilized
and developed multiple lab procedures including
cloning, DNA and protein expression techniques,
protein separation techniques and techniques to
identify plant immune activation. I also learned
valuable scientific presentation and writing skills
that I look forward to utilizing as I continue my
research in the Conway Lab next year.
FOOD SYSTEMS
AND HEALTH
LOCATION(S)
Princeton, New Jersey
MENTOR(S)
Jonathan Conway,
Assistant Professor of
Chemical and Biological
Engineering; Samuel
Eastman, Postdoctoral
Research Associate,
Chemical and Biological
Engineering
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