Microbiology

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

Genetically Modified Gas Output From Cattle

A growing population and greater wealth will mean more demand for meat in developing nations. That brings concern about air quality related to food production. Some emissions are direct, such as methane from ruminants, while others are secondary, such as ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 7 2013 - 10:10pm

Distributive Conjugal Transfer- The Advantages Of Sex, None Of The Downsides

Sexual reproduction is costly. For starters, only half of the population can bear offspring so the other half has to work hard to make sure they're included in the future gene pool. Yet there is a payoff beyond the sex jokes sure to follow that state ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 10 2013 - 7:58pm

How Salmonella Resists Antibiotics And Antibacterial Soaps

Salmonella bacteria is most frequently spread to humans by infected food and as they develop a resistance to one group of antibiotics they are also less susceptible to killing by other, unrelated antibiotics and a biocide used in common household items.  R ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 27 2013 - 12:12pm