This Week in Microbiology

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256: An mRNA Vaccine Against Ticks Dec 16, 2021

Show notes

TWiM discusses antigenic variation within dengue virus serotypes, and an mRNA vaccine that induces antibodies against tick proteins and prevents transmission of the Lyme disease agent.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Elio Schaechter, Michael Schmidt and Michele Swanson

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Links for this episode:

Dengue virus antigenic variation (eLife)
mRNA vaccine induces tick resistance (Sci Transl Med)

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

255: Fleaing The Plague Nov 21, 2021

Show notes

TWiM reveals a study showing that positive interactions among bacteria are far more common than previously thought, and how acquisition of a single gene enabled Yersinia pestis to expand the range of mammalian hosts that sustain flea-borne plague.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Elio Schaechter, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt

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Links for this episode:

Positive interaction s are common among bacteria (Sci Adv)
Expansion of mammal hosts for flea-borne plague (PLoS Path)
Hurling fleas (TWiM #80)

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

254: Episymbionts Are Good For You Nov 06, 2021

Show notes

Mark Martin returns to TWiM for a discussion of the observation that Gram's stain does not cross the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane, and suppression of gingival inflammation and bone loss through host modulation caused by episymbiotic Saccharibacteria.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Elio Schaechter, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt

Guest: Mark O. Martin

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Links for this episode

Gram's stain does not cross cytoplasmic membrane (ACS Chem Biol)
Gram stain protocol (pdf)
Chemical mechanism of Gram's stain (J Bact)
Episymbiotic Saccharibacteria suppress disease (Host Cell Microbe)
Microedu listserve
TWiM Listener survey

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

253: Cell growth and cell size with Petra Levin Oct 28, 2021

Show notes

Petra Levin joins TWiM to tell three stories from her laboratory: how starvation induces shrinkage of the bacterial cytoplasm; plasticity of E. coli cell wall and how it influences antibiotic resistance across different environments; and induction of antibiotic resistance by Triclosan.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Elio Schaechter, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt Guest: Petra Levin

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Links for this episode

Starvation induces E. coli shrinkage (PNAS)
Plasticity of cell wall metabolism and antibiotic resistance (eLife)
Triclosan induces antibiotic resistance (Antimicro Agents Chemother)
TWiM Listener survey

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

252: Electrifying microbial fuel cells Oct 08, 2021

Show notes

On this episode of TWiM, using colicins to ferry DNA into cells through an iron transporter, and construction of highly efficient microbial fuel cells that produce more electrical current than previously observed.

Links for this episode:

Colicins used to ferry DNA into cells (mBio)
Highly efficient microbial fuel cells (Science)
Silver assists fuel cells (Science)
Biological transport goes the extra mile (PNAS)
Long distance transport in cable bacteria (PNAS)
Columbia U pledges fossil free buildings (Columbia U)

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Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

251: Biofilms, Coronaviruses, and a Shigella Vaccine Oct 02, 2021

Show notes

TWiM explores the role of biofilms in infection by coronaviruses, and development of a Shigella vaccine using outer membrane vesicles derived from Salmonella

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Links for this episode

Biofilms and coronaviruses (Appl Envir Micro)
Outer membrane vesicle vaccine (Appl Envir Micro)
TWiM Listener survey

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

250: E-scaffolds and paper stickers Sep 10, 2021

Show notes

On this episode, an electrochemical scaffold that delivers safe doses of hypochlorous acid to treat wound infections in humans, and a method for sampling and monitoring bacteria and viruses on surfaces using plain paper stickers.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt

Links:

E-scaffolds on TWiM 143
The EPS matrix (J Bact)
Integrated HOCL-producing E-scaffold (AAM)
Surface sampling bacteria with paper stickers (AEM)
Surface sample viruses with paper stickers (Sci Rep)

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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

249: Phage-pathogen and toxin-antitoxin conflicts Aug 27, 2021

Show notes

TWiM reveals how temporal shifts in antibiotic resistance elements govern phage-pathogen conflicts, and the intracellular localization of toxin-antitoxin proteins in E. coli.

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Links for this episode:

Phage-pathogen conflicts (Science)
A 'Trap-Door' Strategy for Mobile Element Escape (Front Micro)
Location of toxin-antitoxin proteins (mBio)
Babel-Jerusalem Bookstore
Letters read on TWiM 249

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

248: Borgs Are Real Aug 13, 2021

Show notes

Mark Martin returns to TWiM to discuss ways to increase diversity in our field, and the discovery of Borgs, giant extrachromosomal elements with the potential to augment methane oxidation. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Elio Schaechter, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt

Guest: Mark O. Martin

Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Android, RSS, or by email.

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Links for this episode:

Unacknowledged privilege (Mol Biol Cell)
Black Microbiologists Association
Beginner's Guide to Minority Professor Hires
(ASM)Academic Career Readiness Assessment (UCSF)
Annual Biomed Res Conference for Minority Students
Lessons from Plants by Beronda Montgomery
Giant extrachromosomal BORGS (bioRxiv)

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

247: Therapy With Paleofeces and Phages Jul 30, 2021

Show notes

TWiM explores whether 'rewilding' is a way to get back our missing gut microbes, and failure of bacteriophage therapy due to the production of neutralizing antibodies.

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Links for this episode

Gut microbiota through an evolutionary lens (Science)
You're missing microbes (NY Times)
There is no 'healthy' microbiome (NY Times)
Antibody limits bacteriophage therapy (Nat)
Phage therapy on TWiEVO #44
Graham Hatfull on TWiV #87
TWiM Listener survey

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

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