Biology: Microbiology
Published

Race-based variations in gut bacteria emerge by 3 months of age      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Early social and environmental exposures can have large and lasting effects on child development and adult health. One of the systems that is vulnerable to external influence is the gut microbiome. A new study highlights a critical development window during which racial differences in the gut microbiome emerge. The findings are based on analysis of data from 2,756 gut microbiome samples from 729 U.S. children between birth and 12 years of age.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

New insights into fighting antimicrobial resistance      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Cooking food thoroughly and avoiding some types of vegetables and salad during a course of antibiotic treatment could potentially reduce antibiotic resistance, by preventing bacteria carrying resistance genes getting into the gut, according to a new study.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Molecules in vegetables can help to ease lung infection      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have found that molecules in vegetables like broccoli or cauliflower help to maintain a healthy barrier in the lung and ease infection.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Treating back-to-school ear infections without antibiotic resistance      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

'Back-to-school' season means buying pens, figuring out the bus route, and ... earaches. Cutting corners with antibiotics, however, can accelerate resistance. Today, researchers report developing a single-use nanoscale system that's unlikely to generate resistance. Using a compound similar to bleach in test animals, they show it can kill off a bacterium that causes ear infections, and it could someday be easily applied as a gel.

Biology: Botany Biology: Microbiology
Published

Microgreens and mature veggies differ in nutrients, but both might limit weight gain      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Young vegetables known as microgreens are reputed to be particularly good for health. But are microgreens the superfood they're claimed to be, and how do they compare to mature veggies? Scientists have found that their nutritional profiles differ, as do their effects on gut bacteria. Yet, tests in mice suggest that both microgreen and mature vegetables can limit weight gain.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Teeth could preserve antibodies hundreds of years old, study finds      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Teeth could be capable of preserving antibodies for hundreds of years, allowing scientists to investigate the history of infectious human diseases, a new study has found.

Biology: Developmental Biology: Microbiology
Published

Building muscle in the lab      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new method allows large quantities of muscle stem cells to be safely obtained in cell culture. This provides a potential for treating patients with muscle diseases -- and for those who would like to eat meat, but don't want to kill animals.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Common wristbands 'hotbed' for harmful bacteria including E. coli, staphylococcus      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Routinely cleaning wristbands is generally ignored. New research finds 95 percent of wristbands tested were contaminated. Rubber and plastic wristbands had higher bacterial counts, while gold and silver, had little to no bacteria. Bacteria found were common skin residents of the genera Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas, and intestinal organisms of the genera Escherichia, specifically E. coli. Staphylococcus was prevalent on 85 percent of the wristbands; researchers found Pseudomonas on 30 percent of the wristbands; and they found E. coli bacteria on 60 percent of the wristbands, which most commonly begins infection through fecal-oral transmission.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Protective particles allow engineered probiotics to report gut disease      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Bioengineers developed a platform that enhances survival and function of probiotics engineered to diagnose inflammatory bowel disease in animals. The technology holds promise for minimally invasive disease monitoring and advanced smart therapeutics.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: General Physics: Optics Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics
Published

Switching 'spin' on and off (and up and down) in quantum materials at room temperature      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have found a way to control the interaction of light and quantum 'spin' in organic semiconductors, that works even at room temperature.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Oxygen charge for battling multidrug-resistant pathogens      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In antibacterial photodynamic therapy, irradiation is used to produce reactive oxygen species that kill off bacteria. Because it requires external light and oxygen, this method is only suitable for surface infections. A research team has now introduced a molecular 'singlet oxygen battery' that can be 'charged' with reactive oxygen, which it then releases in deep tissue layers to target methicillin-resistant staphylococcus.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Engineering: Nanotechnology
Published

Gold buckyballs, oft-used nanoparticle 'seeds' are one and the same      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Chemists have discovered that tiny gold 'seed' particles, a key ingredient in one of the most common nanoparticle recipes, are one and the same as gold buckyballs, 32-atom spheres that are cousins of the Nobel Prize-winning carbon buckyballs discovered in 1985.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Images of enzyme in action reveal secrets of antibiotic-resistant bacteria      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Advanced microscopy techniques give scientists valuable clues for how to fight an enzyme that is leading to a rise in cases of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections worldwide.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Geoscience: Environmental Issues Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Transforming flies into degradable plastics      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Imagine using insects as a source of chemicals to make plastics that can biodegrade later -- with the help of that very same type of bug. That concept is closer to reality than you might expect. Researchers will describe their progress to date, including the isolation and purification of the insect-derived chemicals and their conversion into their bioplastics.

Biology: Developmental Biology: Microbiology Mathematics: Modeling
Published

Distribution of genetic information during bacterial cell division      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A mathematical model provides new insights into the distribution of genetic information during bacterial cell division

Biology: Microbiology Energy: Technology
Published

Microbial corrosion of iron      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Iron is well-known for rusting, but this doesn't just happen on contact with oxygen and water. Some bacteria are also able to able to decompose iron anaerobically in a process referred to as electrobiocorrosion. The sediment-dwelling bacterium Geobacter sulfurreducens uses electrically conductive protein threads for this purpose. They produce magnetite from the iron, which promotes further corrosion in a positive feedback loop.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Surprise COVID discovery helps explain how coronaviruses jump species      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Unexpected new insights into how COVID-19 infects cells help explain why coronaviruses are so good at jumping from species to species and will help scientists better predict how COVID-19 will evolve.

Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Chemistry: Organic Chemistry Energy: Alternative Fuels Physics: Optics
Published

Chromium replaces rare and expensive noble metals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Expensive noble metals often play a vital role in illuminating screens or converting solar energy into fuels. Now, chemists have succeeded in replacing these rare elements with a significantly cheaper metal. In terms of their properties, the new materials are very similar to those used in the past.

Biology: Microbiology Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Soil microbiome, Earth's 'living skin' under threat from climate change      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using a novel method to detect microbial activity in biological soil crusts, or biocrusts, after they are wetted, a research team in a new study uncovered clues that will lead to a better understanding of the role microbes play in forming a living skin over many semi-arid ecosystems around the world. The tiny organisms -- and the microbiomes they create -- are threatened by climate change.

Biology: Microbiology
Published

Variable patient responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection are mimicked in genetically diverse mice      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have created a panel of genetically diverse mice that accurately model the highly variable human response to SARS-CoV-2 infection. The team uncovered differences in the innate immune and regulated proinflammatory responses, the timing and strength of which are associated with disease severity.