We are pleased to announce the latest addition to our Ph.D. graduates! On May 8th, Bothayna Gashgari successfully defended her thesis, "The reuse of treated wastewater for plant irrigation: Exploring the relationship between environmental stressors, water disinfection, and horizontal gene transfer via natural transformation."

Bothayna researched the complex connection between stress factors and the natural transformation process in Acinetobacter baylyi, both in controlled laboratory environments and real-world situations. Her doctoral study focuses on the potential for reusing treated water for agricultural irrigation in Saudi Arabia using established water treatment methods.

Bothayna earned a Bachelor of Science in Genetics and Biotechnology from the University of King Abdulaziz in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. She joined KAUST twice as a visiting student, where she conducted research focusing on molecular studies of proteomics, with a specific emphasis on date fruit. Subsequently, she pursued her master's studies at KAUST, focusing on molecular basic research and chromatin-associated proteins. Later, Bothayna joined Professor Peiying Hong's group at the Water Desalination and Reuse Center, where she investigated the relationship between environmental stressors, chlorinated effluent treated wastewater, and horizontal gene transfer (HGT), particularly natural transformation, to evaluate the feasibility of wastewater reuse for plant irrigation.