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Art, Science and Antibiotics
At the Institute for Molecular Biosciences in Brisbane, scientists are searching for solutions to significant global health challenges. In the Superbugs vs Superdrugs research group, Lily Kenchington-Evans is looking for new antibiotics and, along the way, bringing science to life in print and on stage.
Lily in the chemistry lab. (Image courtesy of Lily Kenchington-Evans)
The many sides to microbes
Microbes of all kinds – bacteria, viruses, fungi and others – live all around and even within us. Many of these microbes help to keep us healthy, but others can cause serious harm. Bacterial infections alone are behind millions of deaths worldwide each year. Moreover, the medicines typically used to treat them are becoming less effective.
Tuberculosis, or TB, offers a striking example. Today patients, doctors and public health officials face not only TB but multi-drug-resistant TB. Treatment options are becoming ever more limited as the microbe responsible, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, develops resistance to the usual antibiotic agents (isoniazid and rifampicin) and even those used when first-line treatments do not work.
Under the right conditions, bacteria can reproduce incredibly fast. As bacteria reproduce, mutations arise in their genetic material, some 'good' and some 'bad' for survival. Unfortunately, what's good for the bacteria isn't always good for us.
To apply an aphorism to antibiotics, what doesn't kill a microbe makes it stronger. This strength might show up in the form of a thick cell wall, the ability to eject unwanted particles or a change in shape that stops an antibiotic working as it should.
Bacteria also gain strength by forming biofilms. These aren't just aggregations of microbes but complex structures constantly changing to suit their environment. In these forms, bacteria become embedded in an extracellular matrix ('extra' as a prefix indicating something outside the cell). While these structures don’t cause resistance in and of themselves, they do contribute to it. The matrix makes it hard for drugs to get through to target microbes, and it's much easier for microbes to share genes that build resistance when their neighbours are close by.
Before this gets too doom-and-gloom, know that biofilms aren't all bad. In fact, you might have encountered a beverage-based biofilm in the form of a SCOBY, or ‘symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast’. This particular biofilm facilitates the fermentation of tea into kombucha and may even have applications for apparel. With that refreshed perspective on a refreshment, let’s now turn to the science and scientists tackling microbial abilities of a different kind.
Acting on antimicrobial resistance
As rates of antimicrobial resistance rise, preserving the efficacy of existing treatments is critical. An antimicrobial, its dose and the duration of treatment prescribed should be decided carefully and targeted to the microbe responsible – an antiviral for a virus and an antibiotic for a bacterium, for example. This is what’s known as antimicrobial stewardship.
Medicinal chemistry is the field of science dedicated to the discovery and development of new drugs – and sometimes even ‘decorating’ existing ones to bolster their effectiveness. Since the so-called golden age of antibiotic discovery in the mid-1900s this has become increasingly difficult, but researchers in the Blaskovich lab are rising to the challenge.
A biosafety cabinet in the microbiology lab, where Lily tests chemical compounds against different types of bacteria. (Image credit: Lily Kenchington-Evans)
In one paper fittingly published during World Antimicrobial Resistance Week (18 to 24 November each year), researchers described a way to illuminate how bacteria and antibiotics interact. By attaching a fluorescent tag to the antibiotic erythromycin, the researchers were able to visualise how bacterial cells responded. Different species and even different strains of the same bacterial species showed variation in uptake. Knowing this helps researchers decide which microbes to isolate for further investigation.
Throughout the course of a PhD, Lily Kenchington-Evans has embraced the opportunity to pursue solutions to the challenge of antibiotic resistance. Here’s what a day in the lab might look like doing just that.
Life in the lab
A day in the chemistry lab might start with checking in on a chemical reaction left going overnight. When the goal is to make a new compound, one type of reaction that's particularly useful falls into the category of 'click chemistry'. This technique earned three scientists the Nobel Prize in Chemistry back in 2022 and is widely used in the field of medicine development. UK researchers have shared footage from the lab if you’d like to see it in action. If you’re really keen, there’s even a hitchhiker’s guide to click chemistry.
At its heart, click chemistry is about efficiency. Through reactions combining simple chemical building blocks, researchers can create new compounds quickly and with minimal ‘side reactions’. One of the building blocks contains a functional group known as an azide and the other contains a functional group known as an alkyne. You might like to think of reactions between them like lego pieces fitting together, albeit at the miniscule, molecular scale.
“Colourful click creations” in the laboratory. (Image credit: Lily Kenchington-Evans)
One goal in the Blaskovich lab is to build up a 'library of azide-derivatised antibiotics', as Lily puts it. This is so the research team can investigate the best modifications or 'decorations' to make using click chemistry. Lily also makes anti-biofilm compounds with alkyne 'handles' and uses click reactions to generate dual-acting compounds – in essence, compounds with the potential to target bacteria in more ways than one.
Once a reaction has come to an end, Lily's job is to separate the resulting mixture through a process known as chromatography. With the desired compound isolated, it’s time for a trip from the chemistry lab to the microbiology lab.
To find out how well a compound works against a target species of bacteria, Lily tests for the minimum inhibitory concentration, or MIC. This is the smallest amount of a compound that will prevent a microbe from growing. In the lab, this is a baseline evaluation tool, but in healthcare settings the MIC determines how much of a drug a patient will need for effective treatment of an infection. If you recall the challenges posed by bacteria that form biofilms, you can add a higher MIC for some antibiotics to the list as well.
Over time, the fundamental discovery work being done in the laboratory will pave the way for new compounds to be taken to clinical trial and, hopefully one day, support human health globally.
As for Lily, after undergraduate study in chemistry and microbiology, then honours research in the Barnard lab at La Trobe University making metal complexes with antimicrobial properties, they have reached the final year of their PhD. Atop these achievements, Lily has demonstrated an admirable and influential commitment to science communication and mentorship.
Science on stage and beyond
Where else is there to start but Pint of Science? Drawing on experience in the performing arts, Lily has brought a love of science to the stage many times. Their Pint of Science debut came just one month into their PhD, and there might just be some exciting research findings to share at this year’s festival.
Lily presenting at Pint of Science 2025. (Image courtesy of Lily Kenchington-Evans)
Lily’s commitment to sharing science with the community goes back even further. During undergraduate study, Lily was a mentor for the In2science program, which provides peer support in STEM to high-school students, fostering engagement with, awareness of and enthusiasm for these core subjects beyond school. Lily's invaluable contributions were formally recognised at In2science’s annual awards in both 2018 and 2021.
Since then, Lily has continued supporting STEM students through the National Youth Science Forum. At the summit in 2026, Lily marked their fourth presentation on antimicrobial resistance and the invaluable role of medicinal chemists in combating this global threat.
Before moving to Brisbane to pursue a PhD, Lily also served on Science Gallery Melbourne’s Sci Curious advisory board. In doing so, Lily had the chance to contribute to the creation of a soundscape combining audio recordings from all sorts of different environments. Naturally, the sounds Lily contributed came from the science lab!
Lily can also put their name to the art gracing a cover of the American Chemical Society’s Organic & Inorganic journal. In collaboration with artist Susan Bin, they created ‘an abstract and joyful homage to chemistry’ that pays tribute to diverse representation in science too.
From sharing science stories in new and unusual ways to creating new compounds in the chemistry lab, Lily embodies and inspires a creative life in science.
References
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Biofilms and implants: new approaches and challenges. (2025, February 26). Nature. https://www.nature.com/collections/ihjacggeaa
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Blaskovich, M.A.T. and Cooper, M.A. (2025). Antibiotics re-booted—time to kick back against drug resistance. npj Antimicrobials and Resistance, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44259-025-00096-1
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