Graduation Year

2023

Document Type

Campus Only Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Biology

Reader 1

Anna Wenzel

Reader 2

Pete Chandrangsu

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Terms of Use for work posted in Scholarship@Claremont.

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© 2023 Ty Rocker

Abstract

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria pose a major healthcare threat. Novel antibiotics are imperative in mitigating infections from these “superbugs” that possess resistance to traditional treatment options. Humulus lupulus, or hops, are a dioecious perennial plant whose female flower cones contain many compounds with medicinal potential. One of these compounds is xanthohumol, which has been shown to possess significant antibiotic and antibiofilm properties. By experimenting with the encapsulation of xanthohumol within liposomal surfactants, this study aims to increase fusibility to bacterial membranes and potentially increase the antimicrobial efficacy of xanthohumol against gram-positive bacteria. An ancillary goal is to determine if surfactant-encapsulated xanthohumol influences gram-negative bacteria, whose outer membrane confers protection against many antimicrobial agents. While no significant inhibition of bacterial growth was observed from encapsulated xanthohumol, manipulation of experimental factors, such as pH, surfactant species, encapsulating techniques, and storage parameters may deem promising for future research.

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