July - 2017

Diatoms have sex after all, and ammonium puts them in the mood

New research shows a species of diatom, a single-celled algae, thought to be asexual does reproduce sexually, and scientists learned it's a common compound - ammonium - that puts the ubiquitous organism in the mood. Source: Phys

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Microbiota Manipulations

BUG CONTROL: Researchers modified an endogenous Bacteroides promoter sequence to be inducible—it can be turned on or off in mice by adding (right) or omitting (left) anhydrotetracycline (aTC) to the animal’s drinking water. The aTC binds to the TET repressor protein (yellow), thereby preventing its suppression of gene expression. As a proof of principle, the researchers integrated the modified promoter upstream of a sialidase gene in the bacterium’s genome, and showed they could control the enzyme’s activity in mouse intestines. Source: The scientist

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HIV hijacks surface molecule to invade cell

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have discovered a key step in the process that HIV uses to inject its genetic material into cells. Working with cultures of cells and tissues, the researchers prevented the invasion process by chemically blocking this step, preventing HIV genetic material from entering cells. The findings could lead to the eventual development of new drugs to prevent HIV infection. Source: Phys

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Symbiotic ciliates and bacteria have a common ancestor

Ciliates, just like humans, are colonized by a vast diversity of bacteria. Some ciliates and their bacterial symbionts have become friends for life, as researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen demonstrated by comparing a group of these single-celled ciliates and their bacterial partners from the Caribbean and the Mediterranean Seas. The bacteria provide their ciliate hosts with nutrition by oxidizing sulfur. Surprisingly, they found that this partnership originated once, from a single ciliate ancestor and a single bacterial ancestor, although a whole ocean separates the sampling sites. Source: Phys

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Pause to read the traffic sign: Regulation of DNA transcription in bacteria

One of the central tenets of biology is that information flows from DNA to RNA in order to encode proteins, which function in the cell. Arguably just as critical as the genetic code is the timing of this information flow. By producing the right RNA and right proteins at the right time, a cell can effectively strategize its survival and success. One such regulatory element, the riboswitch, has excited interest as a potential target for antibiotics. After over 10 years of research, Scientists of Goethe University together with colleagues from other universities have put together the puzzle pieces of a riboswitch-based regulatory process in the bacterium Bacillus subtilis, presenting the most extensive model of the timing of riboswitch action to date. Source: Phys

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June - 2017

New Antibiotic Resistance Genes Found in Soil Microbes

Farm soil harbors abundant genes related to antibiotic resistance in microbes, including some that have never been identified in human pathogens, according to a study published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Researchers identified novel gene products, including peptides and enzymes, which can provide resistance to classes of antibiotics used to combat a range of bacterial infections, including those that cause strep throat and chlamydia. Source: The scientist

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Study: Microbes from Young Fish Extend Older Fish’s Lives

Turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) hit old age after just a couple of months, but scientists have found a way to extend their brief lives. They replaced the gut bacteria of middle-aged fish with microbial species present in younger fish, getting the microbial transplant recipients to live about a month longer. Source: The scientist

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Number of Bacterial and Archaeal Type Strains Doubled

In an effort led by US Department of Energy (DOE) scientists at the Joint Genome Institute (JGI), an international research team released 1,003 novel bacterial and archaeal reference genomes, doubling the volume of existing bacterial type strains and boosting their known microbial phylogenetic diversity by about 24 percent, according to a study published in Nature Biotechnology. Source: The scientist

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Ancient Protein Helps E. coli Thwart Viral Attack

Resurrecting ancient proteins in modern E. coli can protect the bacterium from viral infection, scientists reported. Researchers from Spain engineered the genetic sequences that code for ancestral forms of the protein thioredoxin, including one that would have existed about 4 billion years ago and found that not only did the old protein function in the cells, but when these bacteria were exposed to the bacteriophage T7, they fended off viral infection. Source: The scientist

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May - 2017

Antibiotic-resistant microbes date back to 450 million years ago, well before the age of dinosaurs

According to a new study led by researchers from Massachusetts Eye and Ear, the Harvard-wide Program on Antibiotic Resistance and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, "superbugs" known as the enterococci, arose from an ancestor that dates back 450 million years about the time when animals were first crawling onto land (and well before the age of dinosaurs). Published in the journal Cell, the study authors shed light on the evolutionary history of these pathogens, which evolved nearly indestructible properties and have become leading causes of modern antibiotic-resistant infections in hospitals. Source: phys

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Pathogenic bacteria train their defence in lakes and oceans

Peter Mathisen at Umeå University has found links between the aquatic environment and the spreading of diseases such as tularaemia. The results indicate that aquatic environments act as "gyms" for bacteria, where the presence of predators train their defense against being killed and eaten up. The results are important for assessments of aquatic environments at risk of spreading pathogenic bacteria. Source: phys

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Bioinspired agent kills drug-resistant bacteria

Researchers in Ireland have developed a bioinspired antimicrobial treatment that can rapidly kill drug-resistant bacteria. The treatment consists of iodo-thiocyanate complexes, which are inspired by enzymes and reactive molecules produced by our immune system. Source: phys

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April - 2017

Gut bacteria tell the brain what animals should eat

Neuroscientists have, for the first time, shown that gut bacteria "speak" to the brain to control food choices in animals. In a study published in the Open Access journal PLOS Biology, researchers had identified two species of bacteria that have an impact on animal dietary decisions. The investigation was led by Carlos Ribeiro, and colleagues from the Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown in Lisbon, Portugal and Monash University, Australia. Source: phys

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Venus' hair found growing on the surface of underwater volcano after eruption

A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in Spain and Italy studying the aftermath of the eruption of the Tagoro underwater volcano in 2011 and 2012 has found that colonies of bacteria living in filaments attached to the volcano surface (named Thiolava veneris which is Lation for Venus hair) were the first organisms to colonize the volcano after the eruption. Source: phys

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Caterpillar found to eat shopping bags, suggesting biodegradable solution to plastic pollution

Scientists have found that a caterpillar commercially bred for fishing bait has the ability to biodegrade polyethylene: one of the toughest and most used plastics frequently found clogging up landfill sites in the form of plastic shopping bags. Source: phys

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Bacteriophages, natural drugs to combat superbugs

Viruses that specifically kill bacteria, called bacteriophages, might one day help solve the growing problem of bacterial infections that are resistant to antibiotic treatment. Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center have determined that phages can effectively reduce bacterial levels and improve the health of mice that are infected with deadly, antibiotic-resistant bacterial 'superbugs.' Source: phys

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Using rooster testes to learn how the body fights viruses

Our bodies are constantly under siege by foreign invaders; viruses, bacteria and parasites that want to infiltrate our cells. Using rooster testes, scientists shed light on how germ cells, sperm and egg, protect themselves from viruses so that they can pass accurate genetic information to the next generation. The findings could help researchers better fight viruses in chickens and in people. Credit: University of Rochester Medical Center. Source: phys

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Young human blood makes old mice smarter

A protein found in young human blood plasma can improve brain function in old mice. The finding was published in Nature. It is the first time a human protein has been shown to have this effect. It is also the latest evidence that infusions of ‘young blood’ can reverse symptoms of ageing, including memory loss, decrease in muscle function and metabolism, and loss of bone structure. Source: nature

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March - 2017

Prehistoric ancestor of leukaemia virus found in bats

Ancient DNA traces from the family of viruses that cause a rare type of leukaemia have been found in the genomes of bats, filling the "last major gap" in retrovirus fossil record. The research, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences was conducted by the University of Glasgow and The Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, offered conclusive evidence that these viruses are between 20 and 45 million years old. The findings represented the first concrete piece of evidence that the 'Deltaretrovirus' group had a truly ancient origin in mammals. The results also offer key insights to the characteristics of these viruses and would allow scientists to better understand them in the future. Source: phys

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A light rain can spread soil bacteria far and wide, study finds

A good rain can have a cleansing effect on the land. But an MIT study published in Nature Communications reports that, under the right conditions, rain can also be a means of spreading bacteria. Using high-resolution imaging, researchers from MIT's Department of Mechanical Engineering observed the effect of raindrops falling on dry soil laden with bacteria. When falling at speeds mimicking those of a light rain, at temperatures similar to those in tropical regions, the drops released a spray of mist, or aerosols. Each aerosol carried up to several thousand bacteria from the soil. The researchers found the bacteria remained alive for more than an hour afterward. Source: phys

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Zika may be spread by 35 species of mosquitoes, researchers say

Zika may be spread by as many as 35 species of mosquitoes, including seven found in the United States, according to a predictive model created by University of Georgia ecologists and published Tuesday in the journal, eLife. Source: phys

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February - 2017

New tool for combating mosquito-borne disease: Insect parasite genes

Wolbachia is the most successful parasite the world has ever known. You've never heard of it because it only infects bugs: millions upon millions of species of insects, spiders, centipedes and other arthropods all around the globe. The secret to the over-achieving bacterium's success is its ability to hijack its hosts' reproduction. Biologists have known that Wolbachia have had this power for more than 40 years but only now have teams of biologists from Vanderbilt and Yale Universities identified the specific genes that confer this remarkable capability. Source: phys

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January- 2017

Retroviruses 'almost half a billion years old'

Retroviruses - the family of viruses that includes HIV - are almost half a billion years old, according to new research by scientists at Oxford University. That's several hundred million years older than previously thought and suggests retroviruses have ancient marine origins, having been with their animal hosts through the evolutionary transition from sea to land. Source: phys

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Secret new weapon of insect-transmitted viruses exposed

Secret new weapon of insect-transmitted viruses exposed. The scientists uncovered molecular mechanisms that the cucumber mosaic virus uses to manipulate plants to make them release odors that attract aphids, which transmit the virus. The work was published Jan. 6 in the journal Cell Research. Source: phys

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New insights into 'master regulator' of cell division overturn textbook explanation

An image of fission yeast cells in the process of cell division. Fission yeast cells are related to human cells but are much simpler, making experiments faster and easier to interpret. Importantly, many of the key discoveries in cell biology occur in yeast before being confirmed in humans. Credit: The Francis Crick Institute Source: phys

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Scientists crack the structure of HIV machinery

Salk Institute scientists have solved the atomic structure of a key piece of machinery that allows HIV to integrate into human host DNA and replicate in the body, which has eluded researchers for decades. The findings describing this machinery, known as the "intasome," appear January 6, 2017, in Science and yield structural clues informing the development of new HIV drugs. Source: phys

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Researchers discover new mechanism for Type IV pili retraction in Vibrio cholera

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December- 2016

How single-celled organisms navigate to oxygen

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Mice eating a low-fibre diet have a higher risk of bowel infection, thanks to bacteria that normally live in the gut

Eric Martens at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor and Mahesh Desai, now at the Luxembourg Institute of Health, together with their colleagues, compared the effects of fibre-poor and fibre-rich diets in mice that lacked their own bacteria and were given a mix of 14 species of human gut bacteria. These microbes normally consume carbohydrates from dietary fibre, but without these nutrients, the bacteria instead degraded the mucus barrier that lines the intestinal wall.Thinning of this protective layer (pictured as indicated by white arrows in the right panel; left panel shows normal layer) exposed the intestinal surface to attack by disease-causing bacteria. More than half of the mice eating a low-fibre diet lost at least 20% of their body weight after infection with the pathogen Citrobacter rodentium. Source: nature

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The truth about the five-second rule, according to scientists

The ‘five-second rule’ – a folkloric guideline on the time it is considered safe to eat food dropped on the floor – has been debunked by a new study. Four different surfaces and food types were used in the experiment. Watermelon, bread, bread and butter, and gummy candy were dropped on surfaces of stainless steel, ceramic tile, wood and carpet for less than one second, five, 30 and 300 seconds. The surfaces were contaminated with a bacterium similar to salmonella. A total of 2,560 measurements were taken with all the different food, surface and time combinations. Source: independent

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Skin bacteria could protect against disease

There are more and more examples of the ways in which we can benefit from our bacteria. According to researcher Rolf Lood from Lund University in Sweden, this is true for the skin as well. He has shown that the most common bacteria on human skin secrete a protein which protects us from the reactive oxygen species thought to contribute to several skin diseases. The protein has an equally strong effect on dangerous oxygen species as known antioxidants such as vitamin C and vitamin E. Source: phys

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November- 2016

Bacteria behave differently on International Space Station

Altered Extracellular Model. Biomolecular model based on the gene expression data analyses support the reduction of glucose molecules (blue gradient) and acid buildup (gold gradient) proposed to occur in the boundary layer around the cell. This altered extracellular environment has been hypothesized to result as an effect of reduced gravity-driven forces acting on the cell-fluid system and has been put forth as the biophysical mechanism governing bacterial behavior in space. Blue circles indicate overexpression of genes associated with metabolism, while gold circles represent the overexpression of acidic condition genes. Source: sciencedaily

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Fungi boost bacterium

Benjamin Wolfe at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, and his colleagues examined the relative abundance of Staphylococcus bacteria (three species pictured), which are common in cheese. They found that Staphylococcus equorum dominated, despite being the slowest grower in lab tests. In the presence of fungi of the genus Scopulariopsis, S. equorum lowered its expression of genes involved in iron uptake and metabolism. The fungi could be providing the bacterium with freely available iron needed for growth, saving S. equorum the effort of acquiring and processing the nutrient, and allowing it to outcompete other bacteria. Fungi could be influencing the diversity of other bacterial communities, including those in humans, the authors say. Source: nature

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Engineers design a new weapon against bacteria

A team of researchers at MIT, the University of Brasilia, and the University of British Columbia has now engineered an antimicrobial peptide that can destroy many types of bacteria, including some that are resistant to most antibiotics. Source: sciencedaily

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HOOKED

Marinomonas primoryensis (about 1.5μm in length without the flagellum) latches onto ice floes in the Antarctic Ocean. Source: the-scientist

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October- 2016

Ancient microbe fossils show earliest evidence of shell making

Roughly 809-million-year-old microbe fossils, such as this one found in Canada, may be the oldest evidence of organisms creating minerals for protection against predators. The shells take many shapes, including this honeycomb pattern. Source: sciencenews

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The Seaweed Holobiont

The oxygen generated via photosynthesis by the seaweed and the presence of a source of carbon-rich constituents from macroalgal cell walls, turn the algae’s surface into a good microenvironment for a bunch of different microorganisms. Source: fems

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Amazing world of Microbes: Some Unbelievable facts about Microorganisms

Beef tapeworm is the largest parasite (which causes taeniasis in human), which can easily grow 7½ meters or 25 feet long!. Source: microbeonline

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New analysis of big data sheds light on cell functions

Researchers have developed a new way of obtaining useful information from big data in biology to better understand—and predict—what goes on inside a cell. Using genome-scale models, researchers were able to integrate multiple different data sets and discovered new biological patterns among different cellular processes. The research, led by bioengineers at the University of California San Diego, was published online Oct. 26 in Nature Communications. Source: phys

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September- 2016

Computers learn to spot deadly bacteria

Machine learning can predict strains of bacteria likely to cause food poisoning outbreaks, research has found. The study -- which focused on harmful strains of E. coli bacteria -- could help public health officials to target interventions and reduce risk to human health. The researchers used software that compares genetic information from bacterial samples isolated from both animals and people. Source: phys

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More than 7 million bacterial genes in the pig gut

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Poisonous, cancer-fighting, glow-in-the-dark 'ghost fungus' enchants Border photographers

In the dead of night at the Chiltern-Mt Pilot National Park, an elusive glow-in-the-dark fungus has been enchanting photographers. Source: britmycolsoc

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August- 2016

New technique shows protein changes in intact microbial communities

By looking at how microbial proteins are modified over time, scientists can begin to understand changes in the broader community. The protein changes, or post-translational modifications (PTMs), occur in response to a sensed environmental cue. These alterations create rippling signal cascades, often leading to pervasive changes in the organism's growth and behavior. Although scientists have studied this regulatory mechanism extensively in individual organisms, its role at the scale of a complex community remains poorly understood. A new technique resulting from this study allows PTM analysis in proteins collected from an intact microbial community. This type of analysis allows scientists to link PTMs to larger, community-scale attributes that can be readily identified. They can translate these attributes into broader changes in biological processes in different environments. Source: phys

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Bacteria supply their allies with munitions

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Discovery of an ape virus in an Indonesian rodent species

The gibbon ape leukemia virus (GALV) is a medically important tool in cancer therapies. GALV is a retrovirus pathogenic to its host species, the southeast Asian lar gibbon (Hylobates lar) and thought to have originated from a cross-species transmission and may not originally be a primate virus at all. An international research team screened a wide range of rodents from southeast Asia for GALV-like sequences. The discovery of a new GALV in the grassland melomys (Melomys burtoni) from Indonesian New Guinea supports the hypothesis that this host species, and potentially related rodent lineages in Australia and Papua New Guinea, may have played a key role in the spread of GALV-like viruses. Source: sciencedaily

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Researchers succeed in developing a genome editing technique that does not cleave DNA

A research team has succeeded in developing 'Target-AID', a genome editing technique that does not cleave the DNA. The technique offers, through high-level editing operation, a method to address the existing issues of genome editing. It is expected that the technique will be applied to gene therapy in the future in addition to providing a powerful tool for breeding useful organisms and conducting disease and drug-discovery research. Source: sciencedaily

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July - 2016

Fungus a possible precursor of severe respiratory diseases in pigs

Respiratory diseases in pigs typically involve multiple infections from different pathogens. Some pathogens play a greater role than others in the progression of the disease. The fungus Pneumocystis carinii is a relatively common cause of pneumonia in Austrian pigs, but its role has so far remained largely unexplored. Pneumocystis is considered to be less dangerous than other pathogens, as it probably requires other underlying conditions to sufficiently weaken the immune defence of the animals first. Source: phys

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Rare fungus product reduces resistance to antibiotics

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Bacteria avoid age defects through collective behaviour

As they age, more and more defects arise in most organisms. Researchers from the Niels Bohr Institute have discovered that microorganisms like bacteria can keep a colony young by practicing a common strategy for propagation. The same may be true for, for example, stem cells in humans. The results have been published in the scientific journal Cell Systems. Source: phys

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Researchers uncover the mechanism that triggers host plant resistance against parasitic plants

There exist more than 4,500 plant species that live as parasites on other plants. Some of them cause great damage to agriculture, even leading to the complete failure of crops. Researchers working with Dr Markus Albert at the University of Tübingen's Center for Plant Molecular Biology (ZMBP) and collaborators from the Sainsbury Laboratory in Norwich (Professor Cyril Zipfel, Matthew Smoker) have been investigating the ways in which some species defend themselves against such parasites. They looked at various tomato cultivars that can prevent the dodder parasite from latching onto them. The scientists discovered a gene in the tomato that enabled the plant to recognize the dodder and trigger an innate immune mechanism. Up to now, that kind of defense mechanism had only been observed against microbial pathogens, insects and arachnids. The results suggest that it may be possible to better protect crops against plant parasites. Source: phys

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Vibrio cholerae swimming in the gut of a live zebrafish

The growing interest in the trillions of bacteria that live inside our guts is underlined by the more than 10,000 people who read the recent PLOS Biology essay by Diana Bojanova and Seth Bordenstein – "Fecal Transplants: What is being transferred?" – in its first two weeks. But why just imagine these swarming denizens of your GI tract when you could actually watch them?. Source: phys

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June - 2016

Antibody double trouble for HIV

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Bacterium could curb malaria

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Addressing antibiotic resistance: Breath analysis aims to reduce unnecessary prescriptions

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May - 2016

Magic mushroom drug lifts depression in human trial

A hallucinogenic drug derived from magic mushrooms could be useful in treating depression, the first safety study of this approach has concluded. Source: scientificamerican

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White House goes big on microbiome research

The US government is launching an effort to study the vast, and mostly invisible, array of microorganisms that thrive in the human body and across ecosystems. Source: nature

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Bacteria, not fungi, behind dandruff severity: study

A team from Japan and China found dandruff, which afflicts around half the world’s population, is more strongly linked to populations of two bacterial groups – Propionibacterium and Staphylococcus – than the Malassezia fungus, which also happily colonises the human scalp and is widely believed to be the main cause of the condition. Source: cosmosmagazine

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Orange Penicillium: a new fungus among us

Distinguished by the bright orange color it displays when produced in colonies, this fungus was named as a tribute to the Dutch royal family, specifically His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange. It was reported in a journal published by the National Herbarium of the Netherlands. The newcomer was isolated from soil in Tunisia. This species also produces a sheet-like extra-cellular matrix that may function as protection from drought. Source: esf

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Bacteria are individualists

No two bacteria are identical – even when they are genetically the same. A new study from researchers from Eawag, ETH Zurich, EPFL Lausanne, and the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen reveals the conditions under which bacteria become individualists and how they help their group grow when times get tough. Source: phys

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April - 2016

Your gut bacteria are more than what you eat

Like it or not, the microbes in and on our bodies play a big role in human health and disease. Yet we still don’t know what determines the exact makeup of these invisible communities and how they vary within populations. Now, two large-scale studies show that factors once thought to be critical, such as natural versus cesarean birth, breastfeeding, or body mass index, don't matter as much as researchers had thought. Instead, medication—including heartburn medicine, antibiotics, and statins—breathing efficiency, stool consistency, and age all correlated better with microbiome composition, the two groups report today in Science. Even chocolate consumption has an effect. Source: sciencemag

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Probiotics stop menopause-like bone loss in mice

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E. Coli: A "Model Organism" From Theodor Escherich's Legacy

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Findings from the gut—new insights into the human microbiome

People who like milk chocolate have slightly different microbes in their intestines than those who prefer their chocolate dark, although researchers do not know why. Significant differences in the so-called microbiome are also found in individuals based on whether or not they eat a lot of fiber or take certain medications—such as the diabetes drug metformin, female hormones or antihistamines. Source: scientificamerican

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Devastating wheat fungus appears in asia for the first time

Fields are ablaze in Bangladesh, as farmers struggle to contain Asia’s first outbreak of a fungal disease that periodically devastates crops in South America. Plant pathologists warn that wheat blast could spread to other parts of south and southeast Asia, and are hurrying to trace its origins. Source: scientificamerican

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A single-celled organism capable of learning

For the first time, scientists have demonstrated that an organism devoid of a nervous system is capable of learning. Biologists have succeeded in showing that a single-celled organism, the protist, is capable of a type of learning called habituation. This discovery throws light on the origins of learning ability during evolution, even before the appearance of a nervous system and brain. It may also raise questions as to the learning capacities of other extremely simple organisms such as viruses and bacteria. Source: sciencedaily

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Entrancing animated trading cards reveal the surprising beauty of viruses

Viruses can be scary, but they’re beautiful. Take adenovirus type 5, colloquially known as the common cold. You can’t see the virus with the naked eye, of course, but a microscope reveals a hypnotic icosahedral structure. It’s big (for a virus), and sports a spike at each vertex that helps it stick to target cells. The form follows function, which in this case, means infiltrating the cells of a host and hijacking their replication machinery. Source: wired

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Animation: Developing immunological memory

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Pandemic E. coli strain H30 cloaks its stealth strategies

The difficulty in subduing the pandemic strain of drug-resistant E. coli, called H30, may go beyond patient vulnerability or antibiotic resistance. This form of the disease-pathogen may have an intrinsic ability to cause persistent, harmful, even deadly infections. Source: medicalxpress

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Deadly animal prion disease appears in Europe

A highly contagious and deadly animal brain disorder has been detected in Europe for the first time. Scientists are now warning that the single case found in a wild reindeer might represent an unrecognized, widespread infection. Source: nature

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Discovery of enzyme in the sleeping sickness parasite streamlines drug development

Researchers from Umeå University in Sweden have discovered that the single-celled parasite causing African sleeping sickness has a defence mechanism against potential pharmaceuticals under development against the disease. The deadly parasite has an enzyme that can cleave and hence disarm adenosine analogue pharmaceuticals. This according to a study recently published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. Source: the scientist

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Tuberculosis bacteria build 'edible' havens in immune cells

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Immune Influence

Although the details of this microbe-cancer link remain unclear, investigators suspect that the microbiome’s ability to modulate inflammation and train immune cells to react to tumors is to blame. Here are some of the hypotheses that have come out of recent research in rodents for how gut bacteria shape immunity and influence cancer. Source: the scientist

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Algae enlisted to produce biofuel using discarded papayas

USA Algae are the star players in an effort by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists in Hilo, Hawaii, to produce a renewable source of oil for conversion into biodiesel to help meet the island state's energy needs. Source: news

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Newly identified cell explosions involved in bacterial secretion, adherence

A multinational research team has discovered an explosive cell lysis mechanism of bacteria controlled by a phage-related enzyme that releases cell-derived public goods and is activated by stress. The researchers found that explosive cell lysis also contributed to membrane vesicle formation, which helps determine bacterial virulence. These findings further help understanding of how bacteria control their environment and interact as communities. This could aid the development of growth inhibition techniques. Source: sciencedaily

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Can a Bottle Made From Algae End the World's Plastic Addiction?

It started as a homework assignment for a college class, but the biodegradable, algae-based container 32-year-old product design student Ari Jónsson ended up creating has the potential to shake up the plastic water bottle industry. Source: takepart

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Tissue-damaging fungal toxin discovered in pioneering study

Throughout evolution, pathogens have come up with many tricks to infect and damage their hosts: viruses capture whole cells and turn them into factories for their own replication until the cells are exhausted and die. Infectious bacteria produce multiple molecules that can manipulate the host cell's metabolism or simply destroy it. But what about human pathogenic fungi? Source: phys

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Reprogramming gut bacteria as “living therapeutics”

An MIT spinout, Synlogic, is aiming to create a new class of medicines, by re-programming bacteria found in the gut as “living therapeutics.” Source: news

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March - 2016

Malaria family tree has bird rootsi

Extensive testing of malarial DNA found in birds, bats and other small mammals from five East African countries revealed that malaria has its roots in bird hosts. It then spread from birds to bats and on to other mammals. Source: sciencedaily

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World TB Day 2016: Treating TB faster

Researchers at the MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCL are working on projects to tackle different forms of tuberculosis (TB) with shorter treatment programmes. The STREAM project is looking at multidrug-resistant TB, the TRUNCATE project is looking at drug sensitive TB, and the SHINE project is investigating new, shorter treatments for children with TB. Source: insight

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FDA Says Deploying Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Is Environmentally Safe

U.S. health regulators said a genetically engineered mosquito being used in the fight against Zika will not have a significant impact on the environment, possibly paving the way for the technique to be used in the country. Source: Scientificamerican

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Landmark editorial identifies microbes as major cause of Alzheimer's disease

A worldwide team of senior scientists and clinicians have come together to produce an editorial which indicates that certain microbes - a specific virus and two specific types of bacteria—are major causes of Alzheimer's disease. Their paper, which has been published online in the highly regarded peer-reviewed journal, Journal of Alzheimer's disease, stresses the urgent need for further research—and more importantly, for clinical trials of anti-microbial and related agents to treat the disease. Source: medicalxpress

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Urinary Tract Infection: How Bacteria Nestle in

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Viral ‘fossils’ in our DNA may help us fight infection

You are up to 8% virus, at least as far as your genome is concerned. Up to 100,000 pieces of ancient viral DNA live among our genes, yet their function—if any—has long been unclear. A new study suggests that some of this foreign genetic material may boost our immune systems, even protecting us from other viruses. Source: scienmag

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'Humble little fungus' is oldest known land fossil

The fungus, which dates back 440 million years, spent its life under the ground rotting down matter. Source: BBC

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February - 2016

New bacterial pump could be used to remove cesium from the environment by light

The NITech-led team, in collaboration with colleagues at The University of Tokyo, successfully induced a molecular pump found in bacteria to transport cesium. The process simply requires the presence of light to make it function. The finding could pave the way for a new means of extracting cesium from the environment, potentially speeding up decontamination efforts following the radioactive fallout from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011. Source: scienmag

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CRISPR-like ‘immune’ system discovered in giant virus

Gigantic mimiviruses fend off invaders using defences similar to the CRISPR system deployed by bacteria and other microorganisms, French researchers report1. They say that the discovery of a working immune system in a mimivirus bolsters their claim that the giant virus represents a new branch in the tree of life. Source: nature

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ToRCH Profile IgM, Serum

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New RNA letter regulates gene expression

A new study finds that RNA, considered the DNA template for protein translation, often appears with an extra letter -- and this letter is the regulatory key for control of gene expression. The discovery offers insight into different RNA functions in cellular processes and contributions to the development of disease. Source: sciencedaily

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Alcohol also damages the liver by allowing bacteria to infiltrate

Alcohol itself can directly damage liver cells. Now researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report evidence that alcohol is also harmful to the liver for a second reason—it allows gut bacteria to migrate to the liver, promoting alcohol-induced liver disease. The study, conducted in mice and in laboratory samples, is published February 10 in Cell Host & Microbe. Source: medicalxpress

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The Lost and Found Fungi project

Brian Douglas describes how the Lost and Found Fungi project at Kew aims to help develop British fungal conservation, by trying to find out which “lost” species are truly extinct and which species are simply under-recorded due to lack of survey work. Source: kew

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Lithium battery catalyst found to harm key soil microorganism

The material at the heart of the lithium ion batteries that power electric vehicles, laptop computers and smartphones has been shown to impair a key soil bacterium. The study is an early signal that the growing use of the new nanoscale materials used in the rechargeable batteries that power portable electronics and electric and hybrid vehicles may have untold environmental consequences. Source: sciencedaily

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Food Testing Start-Up Looks to Stand Out With a New Wrinkle

Nothing unnerves consumers more and drives them away from a restaurant, food or beverage faster than a flurry of headlines about people being sickened by dreaded bacteria like E. coli or listeria. Source: nytimes

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January - 2016

Ganoderma lucidum reduces obesity in mice by modulating the composition of the gut microbiota

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Extracellular Vesicles from Trypanosoma brucei Mediate Virulence Factor Transfer and Cause Host Anemia

Intercellular communication between parasites and with host cells provides mechanisms for parasite development, immune evasion, and disease pathology. Bloodstream African trypanosomes produce membranous nanotubes that originate from the flagellar membrane and disassociate into free extracellular vesicles (EVs). Source: Cell

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S. aureus Can Spread from Blood to Eye, Endangering Vision

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Zika Virus Threatens U.S. from Abroad

To protect patient privacy the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declined to provide the locations of Zika cases in the U.S. but that information is available from state health departments. Until recently state health officials did not require physicians and hospitals to report Zika virus disease, so it is possible that some cases may have not been captured by state records. These maps represent the most comprehensive U.S. data available to date. Scientific American will continue to update them as more U.S. Zika cases are confirmed and their histories evolve. Source: Scientific American

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More Evidence Emerges for "Transmissible Alzheimer's" Theory

For the second time in four months, researchers have reported autopsy results that suggest Alzheimer’s disease might occasionally be transmitted to people during certain medical treatments—although scientists say that neither set of findings is conclusive. Source: Scientific American

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Impact of human activity on local climate mapped

A new study pinpoints the temperature increases caused by carbon dioxide emissions in different regions around the world. Source: Science Daily

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Does our Microbiome Control Us or Do We Control It?

We may be able to keep our gut in check after all. That’s the tantalizing finding from a new study published today that reveals a way that mice—and potentially humans—can control the makeup and behavior of their gut microbiome. Such a prospect upends the popular notion that the complex ecosystem of germs residing in our guts essentially acts as our puppet master, altering brain biochemistry even as it tends to our immune system, wards off infection and helps us break down our supersized burger and fries. Source: Scientific American

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