A research opportunity is currently available with the Office of Vaccines Research and Review (OVRR), at the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER), Food and Drug Administration (FDA) located in Silver Spring, Maryland. This project is aimed at evaluating the use of bacteriophage to treat Staphyloccocus aureus colonization and/or disease in order to better combat multi-antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens. A major goal of this project is to establish and utilize animal models to investigate the potential of phage treatment against S. aureus to decolonize the upper respiratory tract and/or to treat S. aureus infections. However, other aspects will delve into aspects of the genetics of bacteriophage that are relevant to their deployment in these contexts. These include genetic mechanisms of bacterial resistance to phage and mechanisms of phage adaptation to infect different or new hosts. Efforts on this project will proceed on multiple fronts including mouse models of infection and phage treatment, isolation of mutant bacterial and bacteriophage strains, genetic engineering of bacterial and bacteriophage strains, isolation of bacteriophage from natural sources, next generation DNA sequence analysis. The participant can expect to gain valuable experience as part of a high-level research team performing molecular and genetic research in an area of relevance to human health in general and more specifically in terms of treatment of multiply antibiotic resistant bacterial pathogens. Activities will include learning new laboratory techniques, performing definitive laboratory experiments to answer key questions in phage therapy, and presentation of findings in lab meetings. https://www.zintellect.com/Opportunity/Details/FDA-CBER-2021-0016 Josefine Fleetwood, (she/her/hers) Employer Relations Manager Oregon State University | College of Engineering Josefine.fleetwood@oregonstate.edu