Geobacter is one of the genera in the phylum of Proteobacteria and the family of Geobacteracea. Geobacter species are found in soils and aquatic sediment and have thus no requirement for air in order to survive. In other words, they are anaerobic. What is interesting about some of the species in this family (such as…Continue reading Geobacter’s conductive nanowires
Category: Molecular Biology
Zika does not like Wolbachia spp
Exciting news on the Zika virus front! Researchers have now found that mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia pipientis are at a reduced risk to become infected with Zika virus. The prevalence of Zika virus infection was significantly reduced in mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia bacteria. Determination of Zika virus infection in mosquitoes was accomplished by quantifying virus…Continue reading Zika does not like Wolbachia spp
Why green veggies are good for your gut – get ‘sulfoquinovosed’
Sulfoquinovose (SQ), it’s quite a mouthful 🙂 SQ is a abundant sugar produced by photosynthetic organisms, such as leafy green vegetables, as a source of carbon and sulfur. It is the only sugar that contains sulfur, required to build proteins that sustain bacteria. Researchers have now found out that good gut bacteria, such as E.…Continue reading Why green veggies are good for your gut – get ‘sulfoquinovosed’
Bacterial virulence factors as target for anti-infectives
Targeting virulence factors, produced by bacteria to evade the immune system, is another approach to find new anti-infectives medications. In this light, Shapiro and Wencewicz investigated the virulence factor acinetobactin and its precursor produced by Acinetobacter Baumanii. The precursor of acinetobactin, creatively called pre- acinetobactin, seems to be most stable in acidic environments, such as wounds.…Continue reading Bacterial virulence factors as target for anti-infectives
A targeted sequence panel for detecting 34 vertebrate virus families at once
The challenge in detecting a set of viruses simultaneously in clinical samples lies in the large variety of their genomes, i.e. there is no gene that is present in all viruses. With the advent of new sequencing technologies, including high throughput parallel sequence analysis, it became possible to process more sequence data. So much more…Continue reading A targeted sequence panel for detecting 34 vertebrate virus families at once
MIME: Mutational Interference Mapping Experiment – RNA viruses
MIME (Mutational Interference Mapping Experiment) is used to investigate the interaction of RNA with its respective interaction partners in greater detail. In this approach, the RNA of interest is randomly mutated and amplified. The vast pool of resulting mutated RNAs is then mixed with a possible interaction partner, e.g. a protein, is added. Next, the…Continue reading MIME: Mutational Interference Mapping Experiment – RNA viruses
On the reprogramming of gut bacteria
Switching gene expression on and off altered Bacteroides thetaiotamicron’s response (after reintroduction into mice) through adaptation of the diet. Full text @ http://www.cell.com/cell-systems/pdfExtended/S2405-4712%2815%2900006-X
An interesting link between Alzheimer’s disease and MK5
Admitted, this one is a bit of an odd one out between all the microbial stuff, but it is a subject near to my heart, as I used to work with MK5 (essentially, an enzyme that transfers phosphate groups to its substrate). During our work with the protein we suspected that the protein would play…Continue reading An interesting link between Alzheimer’s disease and MK5
A missing link between the brain and the immune system
A new discovery that will change textbooks forever: Previously it was thought that these vessels were absent in the brain, as they hadn’t been found. However, now scientists have discovered through the use of live imaging that there exist lymphatic vessels within the brain. The vessels were located very close blood vessels, which might have…Continue reading A missing link between the brain and the immune system