Bacteria may not have brains, but they do have memories, at least when it comes to viruses that attack them. Many bacteria have a molecular immune system which allows these microbes to capture and retain pieces of viral DNA that they have encountered in the past, in order to recognize and destro... Read More
By the dawn of the 19th century, tuberculosis had killed one in seven of all people that had ever lived. Doctors believed it was hereditary, but had begun to observe that fresh air and outdoor living could sometimes change the course of the illness. Physician and TB patient Edward Trudeau was co... Read More
We’re in the midst of an outbreak of debate, people arguing the merits of vaccinations. Its symptoms include feverish rhetoric and noxious op-eds. In an attempt to stem the spread of unhealthy attitudes toward science and misinformation about vaccines, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation sponsor... Read More
An international team led by Uppsala University scientists has succeeded, for the first time, in depicting intact live bacteria with an X-ray laser. This technique, now described in the journal Nature Communications, can give researchers a clearer understanding of the complex world of cells.
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An experimental medication that targets a protein in Ebola virus called VP24 protected 75% of a group of monkeys that were studied from Ebola virus infection, according to new research conducted by the U.S. Army, in collaboration with Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc. The study was published this week ... Read More
Pictured here are blue colonies of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) growing on Remel Spectra MRSA medium. Spectra media contains a chromogen that yields a blue color as a result of phosphatase activity. The phosphatase enzyme is present in many staphylococci, including Staphylo... Read More
Close up image of the edge of an unknown fungal contaminant showing concentric rings of black spore formation (center of colony) and nonspore forming white hypae on the outer edge of the colony. Fungal contaminant was found on TSA after a month of refrigerated temperatures, presumably an air bo... Read More
Lyme disease, transmitted by a bite from a tick infected by the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, had long been considered easy to treat, usually requiring a single doctor's visit and a few weeks of antibiotics for most people.
But new research from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public H... Read More
A trial of a GSK/NIH candidate Ebola vaccine at Oxford University suggests the vaccine has an acceptable safety profile and is able to generate an immune response.
A Montana State University graduate student who wants to reduce the number of people dying from lung infections has discovered a molecule that's critical for immunity.
Caffrey researches the early immune response against Aspergillus fumigatus, a common mold that can be found in soil or compos... Read More
Created by: Michelle Vu, Research Associate, BS Microbiology
Isolate: Chromobacterium violaceum
Agar: Mueller Hinton Agar
Incubation Conditions: 24 hours at 37C + 24 hours at Room Temperature
Pictured is Chromobacterium violaceum shaped in a biohazard symbol. This drawing was done at a mic... Read More
Fecal microbiota transplantation can be effective for recurrent Clostridium difficile infection, but new-onset obesity could follow transplant of stool from an overweight donor, a new study finds
"Fecal transplant has helped a lot of people who have run out of other options," Dr. Colleen R. K... Read More
New research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham suggests that Fusobacterium necrophorum more often causes severe sore throats in young adults than streptococcus — the cause of the much better known strep throat. The findings, published today in the Annals of Internal Medicine, suggest ... Read More
Dr. Vincent Racaniello is the Higgins Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the college of Physicians and Surgions of Columbia University. Along with his academic research, he is known for expanding knowledge with great contributions through his virology blog virology.ws, and his wide podc... Read More
The microbes that call the New York City subway system home are mostly harmless, but include samples of disease-causing bacteria that are resistant to drugs — and even DNA fragments associated with anthrax and Bubonic plague — according to a citywide microbiome map published today by Weill Corne... Read More
What do your mouth and your behind have in common? They're linked by a bug that we thought was usually benign, but may in fact have a much darker side.
Fusobacterium nucleatum is a common bacterium that lives in our mouths, often without causing any ill effects, although it is also frequently... Read More
Scientists have revealed how coral-dwelling microalgae harvest nutrients from the surrounding seawater and shuttle them out to their coral hosts, sustaining a fragile ecosystem that is under threat.
Coral reefs are the jungles of the oceans, home to some of the planet's most fertile fishing g... Read More
Vitamin A may protect children against malaria, especially during the rainy season when infected mosquitos flourish, a study suggests.
“Our research found that children who received vitamin A supplementation were less likely to become infected with malaria,” she said. “Now we need to test vit... Read More