Dr. Wayne L. Hynes

Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
Track Coordinator, Biomedical Sciences
Director, Master's Degree Programs in Biological Sciences

An environmental component to my research is associated with looking for antibiotic resistance plasmids and transfer of these markers in the ballast tanks of deep-sea ships. This work is in collaboration with Fred Dobbs in the Oceanography Department and has been funded. This project is still in the initial stages as we try to determine how big a risk microorganisms, in particular Vibrio cholerae, carrying antibiotic resistance genes may be to the environment. The presence of these genes in the environment could easily lead to the development of new bacterial strains resistant to antibiotics that could ultimately cause disease in man.