This Week in Microbiology

Design of a synchronously lysing bacterium for delivery of anti-tumor molecules in mice, and hopanoids, the lipids that live forever, brought to you by the four Microbies of TWiM. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello , Elio Schaechter, Michael Schmidt , and Michele Swanson . Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app...

Insight into the biology of rhinovirus C from cryo-electron microscopy, and a novel antibiotic from a commensal bacterium that grows in the human nose, from the doctors of TWiM. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello , Elio Schaechter, and Michael Schmidt . Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this epi...

Vincent, Elio, and Michele present cell division by longitudinal scission in an insect symbiont, and thermally activated charge transport in microbial nanowires. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello ,  Michele Swanson and Elio Schaechter. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this episode Cell divisio...

Hosts:  Vincent Racaniello  and  Michael Schmidt Michael and Vincent present Spotlights, brief reviews of classic papers in the  Journal of Bacteriology , and explain how a single bacterial species can reverse autism-like social deficits in the offspring of obese mice.   Links for this episode Protein secretion  in  E. coli  (J Bacteriol) Plague pathogenesis (J Bacteriol) Reversal of  diet induced...

Filmed live in Boston, MA at Microbe 2016, David S. Schneider and Vanessa Sperandio talk about their work on regulation of bacterial virulence in the gut by bacterial adrenergic sensors, and the physiological mechanisms that make us ill and that help us recover.

The arrival in the US of plasmid-mediated resistance to colistin antibiotics, a last line of defense against many gram-negative bacilli, and a quorum sensing system in a eukaryote are topics of this episode hosted by Vincent, Michael, and Michele. Image: Etest used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration of an antibiotic for a particular bacterium. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello ,  Michael Sc...

A eukaryote without a mitochondrion, and using a phage enzyme to eliminate intracellular bacteria are two topics discussed by the TWiMers on this episode. Image (right): An entry in the ASM Agar Art Contest which bears an uncanny resemblance to one of the TWiM hosts. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello , Elio Schaechter, Michele Swanson , and Michael Schmidt . Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher ,...

The TWiM team explores microbes in snowblower vents on the ocean floor, and cleavage of antibody molecules by a Mycoplasma protease. Image (right): Photograph of the 'Subway' snowblower vent on the sea floor at Axial Seamount, Juan de Fuca Ridge. Visible are white 'snow' in the vent and orange floc on the seafloor. Credit: Canadian Scientific Submersible Facility and the University of Washington H...

The microbiome of hibernating bears, and zebrafish as a model for bacterial sepsis feature in this animal-centric episode of TWiM hosted by Vincent, Michael, and Michele. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello , Michele Swanson , and Michael Schmidt . Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this episode M...

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt. A deep sequencing study of commercially available probiotics, and design and synthesis of a minimal bacterial genome are the topics tackled by Vincent, Michael, and Michele on this episode of TWiM. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app ....

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt. Vincent, Michael, and Michele reveal how a fungal protease blunts the innate immune response and promotes pathogenicity. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this episode Michele on Flint Legionella outbreak (Detroit News) Fu...

Hosts:  Vincent Racaniello ,  Michael Schmidt , and Elio Schaechter. Guest: Harris Wang Harris joins Vincent, Elio, and Michael to describe multiplex automated genome engineering, a method for targeting many modifications in a population of bacterial cells. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , Android , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld a...

Vincent, Michele, and Michael reveal the discovery of a new species of the spirochaete that causes Lyme disease, and fecal microRNAs that shape the gut microbiome. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this episode Identification of a novel Borrelia species causing Lyme disease (Lancet Inf...

Host: Vincent Racaniello Special guests: Rebekah Kading and Wyndham Lathem From the ASM Biodefense and Emerging Diseases Research meeting, Vincent speaks with Rebekah and Wyndham about their work on Rift Valley Fever virus and other vector-borne pathogens, and the evolution and pathogenesis of Yersinia pestis, the agent of plague. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , Android , RSS , or...

Hosts:  Vincent Racaniello and Elio Schaechter. Vincent and Elio marvel in the finding that a phage tail-like structure from a marine bacterium stimulates tubeworm metamorphosis, and reveal Ophidiomyces as a cause of snake fungal disease. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , Android , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this...

Hosts:  Vincent Racaniello ,  Michael Schmidt , and Elio Schaechter. The microbophiles investigate the ratio of bacterial to human cells in our bodies, and how placing solar panels on a bacterium enables it to carry out photosynthesis. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , Android , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this ep...

Hosts:  Vincent Racaniello , Elio Schaechter  and  Michele Swanson On the last episode for 2015, Vincent, Elio, and Michele discuss how soil amoeba hunt nematodes in packs, and the role of mushrooms as rainmakers. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , Android , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this episode  Pack hunting by...

The TWiM team marvels over the finding of a completely nitrifying Nitrospira , and horizontal gene transfer from Wolbachia into an animal genome. Links for this episode: Complete nitrification by Nitrospira bacteria (Nature one , two ) Enigmatic comammox (PhysOrg) Ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (Ann Rev Micro) Tardigrade controversy (SciAlert) Horizontal gene transfer from Wolbachia to grasshopper (Pe...

Hosts:  Vincent Racaniello ,  Elio Schaechter  and  Michele Swanson The TWiMeriti reveal a Brazilian social bee that must cultivate a fungus to survive, and diet-mediated reduction in gut colonization by  Candida albicans . Links for this episode  Bee  cultivates fungus  to survive (Curr Biol) Diet reduces   C. albicans  gut colonization (mSphere) mSphere , a new open-access ASM journal Image cred...

Vincent visits the laboratories of Kit and Joseph Pogliano on the campus of the University of California, San Diego, where he learns about their work on the bacterial cytoskeleton, sporulation, and the effects of antibiotics on bacterial cells. Visit microbeworld.org/twim for complete shownotes including the special video version of this episode. Thanks for listening and watching!

Vincent, Elio, and Michele meet with Harry Mobley, Mary O’Riordan, and Vince Young at the University of Michigan, during the designation of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology as a Milestones in Microbiology site. They discuss how the laboratory has advanced the science and teaching of microbiology, and discuss faculty work on uropathogenic E. coli, induction of stress by bacterial infec...

Vincent meets up with Romney and Duncan at the 79th annual meeting of the Southern California branch of the American Society for Microbiology, where they talk about emerging technologies for antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and next generation sequencing and advanced molecular diagnostics. Visit microbeworld.org/twim to watch the video version and for complete shownotes including links mentio...

The TWiM team wonders why definitions in biology often change, and discuss how the small molecule terrein is important for the growth of a soil fungus. Image: Lesion formation on banana surfaces infected with Aspergillus terreus. Source Links mentioned:   ASM Undergraduate Research Capstone Program ASM Undergraduate Fellowship Program Regulation of terrein production in Aspergillus terreus Visit m...

Hosts:  Vincent Racaniello ,  Michael Schmidt , and Elio Schaechter. The TWiMitos discuss the reconstruction of a 1,000-year-old antimicrobial remedy, and using gallium as an antimicrobial in the battle for iron. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes , Stitcher , Android , RSS , or by email. You can also listen on your mobile device with the Microbeworld app . Links for this episode  1,000 year old a...

The TWiM team focuses on the gut microbiome, from a single member, Akkermansia muciniphila, to the effect of antibiotics on its composition and colonization resistance against C. difficile. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on  iTunes ,  Stitcher ,  Android ,  RSS , or by  email.  You can also listen on your mobile device with the  Microbeworld app . Links for this episode  Agar art contest Akkermansia muc...