BacterioFiles 212 - Ghosts Get Good Guarding

Left: Not a ghost
Right: A ghost
Hjelm et al. 2015

This episode: Bacterial ghosts could make good vaccines for different things!

Download Episode (9.8 MB, 10.7 minutes)

Show notes:
Journal Paper

Other interesting stories:

What would happen if all microbes suddenly disappeared?

Probiotics help protect children and pregnant women from heavy metal toxicity

Using virus-like particles to kill harmful algae (paper)

Yeast make nice beer scent to attract fruit flies

Algae-powered electric Grand Prix cars

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

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This show features music from Mevio's podsafe Music Alley.

BacterioFiles 211 - Stenotrophomonas Summons Snare-Setting Saviors

Fungal trap
Wang et al. 2014

This episode: Bacteria in soil signal to fungi to save them from predatory roundworms!

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Show notes:
News blog/Journal Paper

Other interesting stories:

Bacteria eat photographs to make cool, creepy art

Microbial communities in NYC Central Park are as diverse as anywhere

Giant clams catch light just right to disperse it to their symbiotic algae

Changing yeast's environment can allow it to tolerate (and produce) more ethanol

Hydrothermal vent viruses seem to survive by helping hosts adapt (paper)

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

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This show features music from Mevio's podsafe Music Alley.

BacterioFiles 210 - Archaea Acquired Alternative Abilities

This episode: Genes taken from bacteria may have been important for the evolution of distinct groups of archaea!

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Show notes:
Journal Paper

Other interesting stories:

Bacterial signals could tell cancer cells to stop causing problems

(Sulfite-free) wine could have helpful bacteria

Probiotic prevents chickens from carrying human pathogen (paper)

Plants keep helpful bacteria in their seeds

Bacteria are helping break down drugs in waterways

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

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This show features music from Mevio's podsafe Music Alley.

BacterioFiles 209 - Myxococcus Menace Motivates Megastructures

Megastructure
(Müller et al. 2015)

This episode: Microbial predators in soil cause microbial prey to build fortifications!

Download Episode (8.8 MB, 9.5 minutes)

Show notes:
Journal Paper

Other interesting stories:

Using bacteria to produce adhesives that shellfish use underwater

Maintaining gut community may be important for surviving intensive care

Human gut might actually have some useful bacteria for biofuels too

Termites use mixture of fungal and bacterial symbionts

Bacteria help seeds sprout faster

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

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This show features music from Mevio's podsafe Music Alley.

BacterioFiles 208 - Discovering Dietary Dwellers

Bifidobacterium
microbewiki.kenyon.edu

This episode: Dr. Angela Zivkovic discusses the microbes present in our food!

Download Episode (21.6 MB, 23.6 minutes)

Show notes:
Journal Paper

Other interesting stories:

Archaea seem to be producing vitamin B₁₂ in oceans

Tree microbiomes differ between species like animals'

Some bacteria can help plants form root nodules better (paper)

Biofilms can be useful materials for different things, like sticking to steel

Electricity from microbe metabolism could power waste treatment

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

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This show features music from Mevio's podsafe Music Alley.

BacterioFiles 207 - Microbe Messages Mire Malaria Movement

Green fluorescence shows α-gal expression
Yilmaz et al. 2014

This episode: Gut microbes may induce an immune response that protects against malaria!

Download Episode (10.2 MB, 11.2 minutes)

Show notes:
News item/Journal Paper

Other interesting stories:

Gut bacteria help immune responses even in the lungs (of mice)

Conductive bacteria can encase themselves in uranium

Discovering and prepping bacteria to degrade environmental pollutants

Using bacteria to reduce arsenic toxicity in rice

Soil fungi protect potatoes from parasites

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

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This show features music from Mevio's podsafe Music Alley.

BacterioFiles 206 - Mollusc Maneuvers Microbe Machines to Macerate Maples

Shipworm, in or out of wood.
O'Connor et al, 2014.

This episode: When digesting wood, shipworms outsource their microbial symbionts from gut to gills!

Download Episode (9.7 MB, 10.6 minutes)

Show notes:
Journal Paper

Other interesting stories:

Swimming alga Euglena could help treat iron overdose (paper)

Bacteria in bees could produce useful antimicrobials

Tough bacteria could help make nuclear waste storage safer

Learning about ancient cultures from their fossilized feces (paper)

Using phages to make wastewater treatment better

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

Subscribe at iTunes, check out the show at Twitter, MicrobeWorld, or Facebook

This show features music from Mevio's podsafe Music Alley.