Jorvik: a membrane-containing phage that will likely found a new family within Vinavirales
Study identifies a new type of membrane-containing bacteriophage , Jorvik , that infects the freshwater mixotrophic model bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus.
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Your microbes live on after you die − a microbiologist explains how your necrobiome recycles your body to nourish new life
How your necrobiome recycles your body to nourish new life. Studies show that not only do our microbes continue to live on after we die, they play a role in recycling our body so that new life can flourish.
How climate change could make fungal diseases worse
Fungal diseases in general are appearing in places they have never been seen before & previously harmless or mildly harmful fungi are turning deadly for people. A likely reason for this worsening fungal situation, scientists say, is climate change.
Pacific has one of most successful years for grants in school history
University of the Pacific secured 62 grants from federal, state and county agencies totaling more than $36 million—one of the best years for government grants in school history.
Inflammasome-mediated glucose limitation induces antibiotic tolerance in Staphylococcus aureus
• Staphylococcus aureus activates NLRP3 inflammasome in macrophages • NLRP3 activation --> depletion of glucose in macrophage cytoplasm • Reduced glucose --> antibiotic tolerance in S. aureus • Restoration of cytoplasmic glucose improves antibiotic efficacy
The oral microbiome: diversity, biogeography and human health
Review article highlights recent understanding of biogeography of oral niches at the species level & summarizes the relationship between the oral microbiota & pathology of oral diseases & systemic disease.
More reasons to eat mushrooms & fried crickets!
Study in mice found that digesting chitin , an abundant dietary fiber in insect exoskeletons & mushrooms & crustacean shells, engages the immune system. An active immune response was linked to less weight gain, reduced body fat & resistance to obesity.
A GWAS in the pandemic epicenter highlights the severe COVID-19 risk locus introgressed by Neanderthals
Large GWAS indicated that genetic factors influence the response to SARS-CoV-2. However, sex, age, concomitant diseases, differences in ancestry, and uneven exposure to the virus impacted the interpretation of data. We aimed to perform a GWAS of COVID-19 outcome in a homogenous population who experienced a high exposure to the virus and with a known infection status. We recruited inhabitants of Bergamo province -that in spring 2020 was the epicenter of the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic in Europe- via an online questionnaire followed by personal interviews. Cases and controls were matched by age, sex and risk factors. We genotyped 1195 individuals and replicated the association at the 3p21.31 locus with severity, but with a stronger effect size that further increased in gravely-ill patients. Transcriptome-wide association study highlighted eQTLs for LZTFL1 and CCR9 . We also identified 17 loci not previously reported, suggestive for an association with either COVID-19 severity or...