/ Chemistry/ Celebrating Professor Gourdine’s NSF Grant for Bladder Microbiome Research

Celebrating Professor Gourdine’s NSF Grant for Bladder Microbiome Research

September 04, 2025

Assistant Professor Jean-Philippe Gourdine

Jean-Philippe Gourdine, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, has been awarded a $249,263 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). This funding will support his project, “Exploring the Role of Urinary Host N-Glycans as a Nutrient Source for Bladder Bacteria Metabolism.”

Did you know urine is not sterile? Despite being a harsh environment for bacteria, microorganisms can still thrive in the bladder. Professor Gourdine’s research seeks to answer a fascinating question: What do these tiny tenants survive on?

The bladder is often described as a resource-poor environment, but it’s rich in glycoproteins. Prof. Gourdine’s preliminary research suggests that some bacteria can digest complex sugars (glycans) from their host. This NSF grant will allow him to investigate how bacteria manage to live in this unique environment. Why does it matter? We can gain a better understanding of the ecology of urinary microbes and their roles in both healthy and diseased states, for instance, to mitigate urinary tract infections with prebiotics.

The grant is part of the NSF’s Launching Early-Career Academic Pathways in Mathematical and Physical Sciences program, which sponsors research by pre-tenure faculty at institutions that don’t receive significant NSF funding.

This award will have a considerable impact on Lewis & Clark’s Chemistry Department and its students. It will support:

The purchase of new equipment to help Professor Gourdine establish his research lab on campus.
Paid summer research experiences for six undergraduate students over the two-year grant period.
Materials for in-course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
Continued collaboration with one of the European leaders in Glycosciences, the Center for Research on Plant Macromolecules in Grenoble, France.

This grant represents a tremendous opportunity for Prof. Gourdine and his students to push the boundaries of this critical research!

Chemistry is located in Olin Center on the Undergraduate Campus.

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Chair Louis Kuo

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Lewis & Clark
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Health Frontiers

Mapping the Urobiome for Better Bladder Health

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is supporting Jean-Philippe Gourdine’s research into how “good” bacteria survive in the harsh environment of the urinary tract—work that will be important for improving bladder health and the development of new treatments for urinary diseases.

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