Microbiology

Empty Viruses For Control Of Foot-and-Mouth Disease

In 2001 there was a massive outbreak of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) in the United Kingdom.  This caused, in terms of prices at that time £8bn / $13–16bn of loss to the UK economy, and much distress in agricultural communities.  One of the most memorable ...

Article - Robert H Olley - Apr 12 2013 - 9:07am

Ancient Bacteria-Killing Virus Holds Evolutionary Secret Against Antibiotic Resistance

The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a common concern in hospitals worldwide, and is the evolutionary result of the selective pressures caused by our extensive use of antibiotics to fight bacterial infections. Scientists are often fighting the ...

Article - Jennifer Wong - Apr 16 2013 - 5:23pm

Bacterial Vaginosis- More Common Than Yeast Infections And A Risk For Premature Births, STDs

Bacterial vaginosis is a condition that occurs when the typical mix of microbes in the vagina is knocked off-kilter, sometimes resulting in a change in the consistency of vaginal fluids and an unpleasant odor. Bacterial vaginosis is diagnosed through exam ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 23 2013 - 9:37am

Black Sea: There's Genetic Gold In Them Thar Sediments

The Black Sea sediment record has a terrific variety of past plankton species that left behind their genetic makeup- the plankton paleome. The semi-isolated Black Sea is highly sensitive to climate driven environmental changes, and the underlying sediment ...

Article - News Staff - May 6 2013 - 5:30pm

Justinian Plague Of The Dark Ages Caused By Yersinia Pestis Bacterium

'Pestilence', widespread outbreaks of deadly contagious disease, are known throughout history. In popular translations of the Christian Bible, Pestilence is one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Today we call them pandemics but they are no ...

Article - News Staff - May 10 2013 - 1:10pm

Neurotoxin: Mining The Clostridium Botulinum Genome

The toxin that causes botulism is the most potent that we know of- just 1/1,000th the weight of a grain of salt can be fatal, which is why so much effort has been put into keeping Clostridium botulinum, which produces the toxin, out of our food. ...

Article - News Staff - May 14 2013 - 6:08pm

Engineered Photosynthetic Cyanobacteria Can Grow Without Light

A new strain of photosynthetic cyanobacteria have been engineered to grow without the need for light.   ...

Article - News Staff - May 19 2013 - 6:11pm

Nature, Not Nurture?

Proteins may be more of a factor in shaping regulatory patterns than environment, according to a new study that looks at how cells' protein networks relate to a bacteria's genome. The lab of computer scientist Luay Nakhleh ar Rice University rep ...

Article - News Staff - May 21 2013 - 4:49pm

Toxoplasma, Cat Piss And Mouse Brains: My Lab’s First Paper On Microbial Manipulation Of Animal Behavior

All animals live in a microbe rich environment, with immense numbers of bacteria, archaea, fungi and other eukaryotic microbes living in, on and around them. For some of these microbes, the association is transitory and unimportant, but many make animals ...

Article - Michael Eisen - Jun 3 2013 - 11:29pm

Before Photosynthesis: The Precursor Photosystem That First Released Oxygen Into The Environment

Oxygen is necessary for survival on Earth but the planet's atmosphere did not always contain this life-sustaining substance. One of science's greatest mysteries is how and when oxygenic photosynthesis—the process responsible for producing oxygen ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 27 2013 - 9:20am