This Week in Microbiology

Latest Episodes:

216: It starts with a cough May 01, 2020

Show notes

The TWiM team discuses saliva as more sensitive for SARS-CoV-2 detection in COVID-19 patients than nasopharyngeal swab and how Mycobacterium tuberculosis sulfolipid-1 activates nociceptive neurons and induces cough.

Links for this episode:

Preventing the next pandemic (NY Times)
COVID-19 treatment guidelines (NIH)
Saliva sensitive for SARS-CoV-2 detection (medRxiv)
A mycobacterial molecule provokes cough (Cell)
Letters read on TWiM 216
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

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215: Cultural transformation and pathogen emergence Apr 17, 2020

Show notes

A ferret model for infection by SARS-CoV-2, and how Neolithization lead to emergence of a human bacterial pathogen.

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

Links for this episode:

Infection and transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in ferrets (Cell Host Micr)
Neolithization led to emergence of Salmonella enterica (Nat Ecol Evol)
Arnold Demain (Wikipedia)

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

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214: Masterful subversion Apr 03, 2020

Show notes

Vincent, Elio and Michael reveal the ASM COVID-19 summit, and how Salmonella injects a protein into the cell to drive suppression of the immune response.

ASM COVID-19 Summit
Value of SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic testing (mBio)
How SARS-CoV-2 is changing (nextstrain)
Contribute to COVID-19 data
Salmonella effector suppresses inflammation (Cell Host Micr)

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213: Fugitive emissions Mar 20, 2020

Show notes

Vincent, Elio and Michael discuss the stability of human coronaviruses on surfaces and in aerosols, and peptidoglycan production by a mosaic consisting of a bacterium within a bacterium within an insect.

Links for this episode:

Human coronavirus 229E infectivity on common surfaces (mBio)
Aerosol and surface stability of SARS-CoV-2 (medRxiv)
Peptidoglycan synthesis by a insect-bacteria mosaic (Cell)
Letters read on TWiM 213

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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

212: A coronavirus outbreak and IRF4 deficiency in Whipple's disease Feb 06, 2020

Show notes

The TWiM team reviews the coronavirus outbreak that began in Wuhan, China, and the finding that an IRF deficiency underlies Whipple's disease.

2019-nCoV case tracking (JHU)
Clinical features of infection with 2019-nCoV (Lancet)
Early transmission dynamics of 2019-nCoV (NEJM)
Isolation of 2019-nCoV (NEJM)
TLR4 defect in Whipple's disease (eLife)

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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

211: Bacteria, colon cancer and fire blight Jan 09, 2020

Show notes

The Fellowship of the TWiM reveal that colorectal cancer-associated microbiota are associated with higher numbers of methylated genes in colonic mucosa, and identification of metabolites needed by the fire blight disease bacterium for virulence in apples.

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Links for this episode:

Colorectal cancer and the gut microbiome (PNAS)
Fire blight (YouTube)
Fire blight spreads north (NY Times)
E. amylovora auxotrophs (Appl Environ Micro)

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

210: The Waze of microbes Dec 05, 2019

Show notes

The Microbial Comrades present the oldest osteosynthesis in history, and how a small molecule produced by stressed bacteria is a warning signal that repels healthy populations to promote their survival.

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

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Links for this episode

P. aeruginosa PQS repels bacteria(J Bact)
PQS signaling(J Bact)
Letters read on TWiM 210
TWiM Listener survey

Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv

209: Resuscitating persisters and flagellotrophic phage Nov 14, 2019

Show notes

The TWiM team reveals how ribosome modification resuscitates bacterial persister cells, and explain how a phage tail fiber protein exploits rotation of flagella to move towards the cell membrane.

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Links for this episode:

Ribosome modification resuscitates persister cells (Environ Micro)
Flagellotrophic phage targets host with tail fiber (Mol Micro)
Hydrodynamics of phage migration along flagella (Phys Rev Fluids)

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

208: Georgia Tech microbial Oct 31, 2019

Show notes

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michele Swanson and Michael Schmidt

Guests: Deanna Beatty, Mark Hay, Gina Lewin, Frank Stewart, and Marvin Whiteley

At Georgia Tech, members and trainees of the Center for Microbial Dynamics and Infection discuss the identification of pathogen essential genes during coinfections, and how coral management can improve coral defenses against pathogens.

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Links for this episode:

Center for Microbial Dynamics and Infection
Pathogen essential genes during coinfection (PNAS)
Managing coral protects from pathogens (Sci Adv)

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

207: Partnerships to Advance Public Health Oct 17, 2019

Show notes

From ASM Microbe 2019 in San Francisco, Vincent speaks with Victoria McGovern, Carl Nathan, and Dan Portnoy about advancing human health through innovative collaborations.

Host: Vincent Racaniello

Guests: Victoria McGovern, Carl Nathan, and Dan Portnoy

Links for this episode: