
Sonya S. 2025 | BASIS Independent Silicon Valley
- Project Title: A Comprehensive Analysis of Bacterial Genomic Data
- BASIS Independent Advisor: Ms. Pochiraju
- Internship Location: Intelliscience Training Institute
- Onsite Mentor: Dr. Sohail Zaidi, San Jose State University Department of Engineering
Around 48 million people fall sick from foodborne illnesses each year within America, most stemming from the presence of bacteria such as E. Coli. However, due to increases in the use of antibiotics and small molecule medication, bacteria have begun mutating at more rapid rates, causing a change in symptoms seen within patients. Therefore, to understand how to better target and prevent foodborne illnesses from becoming rampant within communities, it’s necessary to analyze the location of these mutations and its impact on symptoms within patients.
My research will focus on analyzing the changes within E. Coli strains to determine where changes from the original E. Coli genetic DNA. I will create an algorithm using Python to run this analysis by using the national databases of genetic code, National Institute of Health and EcoCyc. The final product of this algorithm should demonstrate where the changes in the genetic code are through bar graphs, line charts, and base pair comparison charts. This algorithm will then hopefully be used for further analysis of other food bacterial strains including Salmonella and Listeria.