Further Understanding the Role of 7a-dehydroxylation in Resistance Against Clostridioides difficile

Hannah Partington, a PhD research at Nottingham Trent University/University of Nottingham was recently awarded the DWS Travel Grant to present her research at the Microbiology Society Annual Conference 2026 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The conference took place over four days, consisting of scientific symposia, workshops, fora, professional development sessions, prize lectures, and more. 

We asked Hannah to share more about her study and how a Whitley Workstation was central to her research:

"My work looks at further understanding the role of the metabolism of bile acids in colonisation resistance against Clostridioides difficile. With the DWS Travel Grant, I had the opportunity to present a poster on an aspect of my work which involves genetically engineering ’probiotic’ strains to possess the ability to modulate bile acid metabolism. The surrogate species chosen also belongs to the Clostridiales order. These are Gram positive, obligate anaerobes, and so all work is performed in a Whitley A95 Workstation. This includes cultures, conjugations and assays assessing the impact of these strains and the bile acid metabolism on C. difficile spores and vegetative cells. 

Through my poster, I was able to showcase how I have successfully performed chromosomal insertions in a species in which genetic engineering of the chromosome has not been well established. This genetically-engineered strain will enable further assessment of the extent of protection the metabolism of primary bile acids provides against C. difficile, alongside offering a potential preventative technique for infections.

MicroSoc 2026 was the largest conference I have attended and I found it a hugely insightful week. There was such a breadth of topics being showcased, and it was a great opportunity to develop my outreach skills, in particular discussing my work with others who are not in the field. I am hugely grateful to my supervisory team across both Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham, as well as DWS for awarding me the travel grant."

We thank Hannah for providing such an insightful overview into her research and would like to congratulate her once again on receiving the DWS Travel Grant Award.

If you think that you might be eligible for the DWS Travel Grant, please visit our travel grant page for more details.