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UrduSoil aeration and water infiltration among benefits ants provide
Tag: microbes
3D-printed microbes open door to enhanced performance of biomaterials
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory scientists have developed a new method for 3D printing living microbes in controlled patterns, expanding the potential for using engineered bacteria to recover rare-earth metals, clean wastewater, detect uranium and more.
Science Snapshots From Berkeley Lab
These news briefs cover topics including gut microbes, tsetse flies in 3D, an energy use framework for heating and cooling, and new gravitational lensing candidates.
Symbionts of Methane Eating Microbes Fix Nitrogen
Sediments on the ocean floor contain large amounts of methane. Two groups of microbes work together in symbiosis to break down this methane in oxygen-deprived sediments. New research shows that both groups can fix nitrogen to satisfy their need for nutrients from methane. This helps the microbes hedge against changes in their environment.
Story tips: Volcanic microbes, unbreakable bonds and flood mapping
ORNL story tips: Volcanic microbes, unbreakable bonds and flood mapping
Greenland Melting Likely Increased by Bacteria in Sediment
Bacteria are likely triggering greater melting on the Greenland ice sheet, possibly increasing the island’s contribution to sea-level rise, according to Rutgers scientists. That’s because the microbes cause sunlight-absorbing sediment to clump together and accumulate in the meltwater streams, according to a Rutgers-led study – the first of its kind – in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The findings can be incorporated in climate models, leading to more accurate predictions of melting, scientists say.
Antibiotics for C-sections Effective After Umbilical Cord Clamped
Antibiotics for cesarean section births are just as effective when they’re given after the umbilical cord is clamped as before clamping – the current practice – and could benefit newborns’ developing microbiomes, according to Rutgers co-authored research. The study, by far the largest of its kind and published in the journal Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control, challenges current recommendations for antibiotic use. Administering antibiotics after clamping does not increase the risk of infection at the site of C-section incisions, the study concludes.
Wildfire smoke carry microbes that can cause infectious diseases
Wildfire smoke contains microbes, infectious agents that might cause diseases. In a perspective piece published in Science, researchers at UC Davis Health and the University of Idaho proposed a multidisciplinary approach to study the health impacts of microbes carried by wildfire smokes.
Engineers go microbial to store energy, sequester CO2
By borrowing nature’s blueprints for photosynthesis, Cornell University bioengineers have found a way to efficiently absorb and store large-scale, low-cost renewable energy from the sun – while sequestering atmospheric carbon dioxide to use later as a biofuel.
PNNL Scientists Elected AAAS Fellows
Two Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researchers, one a world-leading authority on microorganisms and their impact on soil and human health, and the other an expert on coastal ecosystem restoration, have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Rutgers Expert Available to Discuss Science and Benefits of Handwashing in COVID-19 Era
New Brunswick, N.J. (Nov. 23, 2020) – Rutgers University–New Brunswick Professor Donald W. Schaffner, a food microbiologist who has also studied handwashing for more than 20 years, is available for interviews on the science and benefits of handwashing during the COVID-19 pandemic and overall.…
Gut Microbiome Manipulation Could Result from Virus Discovery
Scientists have discovered how a common virus in the human gut infects and takes over bacterial cells – a finding that could be used to control the composition of the gut microbiome, which is important for human health. The Rutgers co-authored research, which could aid efforts to engineer beneficial bacteria that produce medicines and fuels and clean up pollutants, is published in the journal Nature.
Microbe “Rewiring” Technique Promises a Boom in Biomanufacturing
Berkeley Lab researchers have achieved unprecedented success in modifying a microbe to efficiently produce a compound of interest using a computational model and CRISPR-based gene editing. Their approach could dramatically speed up the research and development phase for new biomanufacturing processes, getting advanced bio-based products, such as sustainable fuels and plastic alternatives, on the shelves faster.
Study Sheds Light on Critically Endangered Beluga Whale Population
A study recently published in Animal Microbiome outlines important first steps in understanding epidermal microbial communities in beluga whales, as well as their role in beluga health.
NUS researchers develop novel process that turns branches and prawn shells into nutritional supplements and medicine
Researchers from NUS Engineering have developed a novel conversion approach that marries chemical and biological processes to produce high-value amino acids such as L-DOPA and L-Proline from low-cost, abundant waste material like crustacean shells and sawdust.
What is the impact of fire on desert soils of Nevada?
Prescribed burning allows team to study soil biochemistry in sagebrush ecosystems
Bat Tick Found for the First Time in New Jersey
A tick species associated with bats has been reported for the first time in New Jersey and could pose health risks to people, pets and livestock, according to a Rutgers-led study in the Journal of Medical Entomology. This species (Carios kelleyi) is a “soft” tick. Deer ticks, which carry Lyme disease, are an example of “hard” ticks.
Sulfur-scavenging bacteria could be key to making common component in plastic
Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Ohio State University discovered a new microbial pathway that produces ethylene, providing a potential avenue for biomanufacturing a common component of plastics, adhesives, coolants and other everyday products.
Bacteria Can Defuse Dangerous Chemical In Passaic River
Bacteria that can help defuse highly toxic dioxin in sediments in the Passaic River – a Superfund hazardous waste site – could eventually aid cleanup efforts at other dioxin-contaminated sites around the world, according to Rutgers scientists. Their research, published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, needs further work to realize the full potential of the beneficial bottom-dwelling microbes.
Ocean microbes could interact with pollution to influence climate
Little is known about how ocean microbes affect climate. Now, scientists report that pollution can change molecules released to the atmosphere by ocean microbes. They present their results today at the American Chemical Society Fall 2020 Virtual Meeting & Expo.
Why is testing for soil microbes important?
Various types of microbes are key ingredients to healthy soil
WHOI receives $2.7M from Simons Foundation to study nutrients, microbes that fuel ocean food web
The Simons Foundation has awarded Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) two grants totaling $2.7 million to study key processes that help fuel the health of our ocean and planet.
Story Tips: Predicting fire risk, solid state stability check and images in a flash
ORNL Story Tips: Predicting fire risk, solid state stability check and images in a flash
Harmful Microbes Found on Sewer Pipe Walls
Can antibiotic-resistant bacteria escape from sewers into waterways and cause a disease outbreak? A new Rutgers study, published in the journal Environmental Science: Water Research & Technology, examined the microbe-laden “biofilms” that cling to sewer walls, and even built a simulated sewer to study the germs that survive within.
Science Snapshots July 2020
Berkeley Lab Science Snapshots July 2020
Carbon Cycling in Wet Soils
Testing microbial activity in soil columns helps researchers understand how carbon is stored in soils that are periodically waterlogged.
Exploring Nature’s Treasure Trove of Helpful Compounds
Compounds that plants, fungi, bacteria, and animals produce can sometimes help people as well. In fact, many medicines, molecules used in research, and other useful compounds originated in nature. Learn more about recent discoveries in the fascinating field of natural products research.
Crop residue decisions affect soil life
New findings share how prescribed fire and no-till management impact soil microbes
How are soil microbes affected by fertilizer in soils?
Nutrients are responsible for more than just plant growth.
Lawrence Livermore, NASA researchers find space station’s surface microbial profile resembles crew member’s skin
A study conducted by a team of national lab and NASA researchers has found that the environment of the International Space Station (ISS) is affected by the microbial composition of the astronauts themselves.
Rutgers Experts Available to Discuss Environmental Protection During COVID-19 Crisis
New Brunswick, N.J. (April 15, 2020) – Rutgers University–New Brunswick professors Nicole Fahrenfeld and John Reinfelder are available for interviews on environmental protection issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fahrenfeld can discuss issues including microbial water quality, sewer issues (including what…
Finding answers in the ocean
The test being used to diagnose the novel coronavirus—and other pandemics like AIDS and SARS—was developed with the help of an enzyme isolated from a microbe found in marine hydrothermal vents as well as freshwater hot springs. Biomedical breakthroughs sometimes…
After Turning Microorganisms Into Art, Student Helps NASA Study Origins of Life Through Algae (Video)
Rutgers student Julia Van Etten, whose @Couch_Microscopy Instagram page garnered more than 25,000 followers by showcasing microorganisms as art, is now working with NASA on research into how red algae can help explain the origins of life on Earth.
Microbes play important role in soil’s nitrogen cycle
But different microbes have distinct roles to play, and environmental factors influence activity.
Natural organic matter influences arsenic release into groundwater
Microbes in groundwater release arsenic from sediments, and organic matter helps fuel this reaction. Now, researchers reporting in ACS’ Environmental Science & Technology have discovered that the type of natural organic matter (NOM) influences the rate and level of arsenic release.
Microbes far beneath the seafloor rely on recycling to survive
Scientists from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution reveal how microorganisms could survive in rocks nestled thousands of feet beneath the ocean floor in the lower oceanic crust.
A Viral Gold Rush
Researchers developed open-source software that can classify viruses in ways that previous tools could not.
New Portable Tool Analyzes Microbes in the Environment
Imagine a device that could swiftly analyze microbes in oceans and other aquatic environments, revealing the health of these organisms – too tiny to be seen by the naked eye – and their response to threats to their ecosystems. Rutgers researchers have created just such a tool, a portable device that could be used to assess microbes, screen for antibiotic-resistant bacteria and analyze algae that live in coral reefs. Their work is published in the journal Scientific Reports.
‘Are Noncommunicable Diseases Communicable?’ Rutgers Experts Available to Discuss Paper in Science Today
New Brunswick, N.J. (Jan. 16, 2020) – Rutgers professors Maria Gloria Dominguez-Bello and Martin J. Blaser are available to discuss a paper in the journal Science today on whether diseases long thought to be noncommunicable – such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer…
Study weighs deep-sea mining’s impact on microbes
The essential roles that microbes play in deep-sea ecosystems are at risk from the potential environmental impacts of mining.
How to Make it Easier to Turn Plant Waste into Biofuels
Researchers have developed a new process that could make it much cheaper to produce biofuels such as ethanol from plant waste and reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Their approach, featuring an ammonia-salt based solvent that rapidly turns plant fibers into sugars needed to make ethanol, works well at close to room temperature, unlike conventional processes, according to a Rutgers-led study in the journal Green Chemistry.
Simplifying Microbial Consortia Opens a Path to Understanding Soil Community Ecology
New research demonstrates that microbial communities that are simplified but still representative may offer a way to explore more complex ones. In particular, they can help scientists uncover the mechanisms that drive the ecology of groups of soil microbes.
Droughts Spell Changes for Soil Microbes
Scientists predict a warming Earth will cause more droughts that are more severe in the grasslands of the central United States. This research found that soil drying affects the microbial community in several ways.
Predicting How Microbial Neighbors Influence Each Other
Researchers developed a new theoretical framework called minimal interspecies interaction adjustment (MIIA). It predicts how surrounding organisms and other factors drive changes in interactions in microbial communities.
Whales may owe their efficient digestion to millions of tiny microbes
Microbial communities inside whales may play an important role in the digestion of one of the ocean’s most abundant carbon-rich lipids, known as a wax ester.
Rogers examines the effects of ancient microbes in new book
The idea of freezing a life in ice and thawing it out years, even centuries, later has been used extensively in novels, movies and comics. According to BGSU biology professor Scott Rogers in his new book this concept may be more fact than fiction, and the outcomes of this are just as worrying as they are exciting.
Decoding plant chatter could lead to stronger crops
Researchers will use a $2.25 federal grant to study how cells communicate within plants, and between plants and pathogens, to develop crops that are resilient to disease and other stresses. The work also could play a role in reengineering plants and microbes to improve biofuel production.
Unlocking the Biochemical Treasure Chest Within Microbes
An international team of scientists lead by the Joint Genome Institute has developed a genetic engineering tool that makes producing and analyzing microbial secondary metabolites – the basis for many important agricultural, industrial, and medical products – much easier than before, and could even lead to breakthroughs in biomanufacturing.
Microbes are Metabolic Specialists
Scientists can use genetic information to measure if microbes in the environment can perform specific ecological roles. Researchers recently analyzed the genomes of over 6,000 microbial species.
Pivot Bio Joins the International Phytobiomes Allianc
Pivot Bio has joined the International Phytobiomes Alliance as a sponsoring partner, both organizations announced today.