All Biofilms articles
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NewsBacteria organise themselves into diverse, coordinated communities in order to travel across large distances
A new study examined the migration of microbial communities over long distances, and found bacteria migrate not as solitary swimmers, but in diverse, coordinated communities that also contain viruses and “hitchhiking” microbes that cannot swim on their own.
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NewsQ&A: Meet Letters in Applied Microbiology Junior Reviewer Md. Ekramul Karim
We caught up with Md Ekramul Karim, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Houston, who is one of the newest Junior Reviewers with Letters in Applied Microbiology.
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NewsDentistry researchers testing oral bacteria transplants to cure bad breath
To rebalance the oral microbiome and cure chronic halitosis, researchers are embarking on a first-of-its-kind experiment. These clinical trials transplant bacteria and other microbes from healthy donors into patients with halitosis. If successful, the healthy microbiota will crowd out the bad and patients’ bad breath will improve.
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NewsResearcher investigates how a bioengineered peptide can break through harmful bacterial ‘fortresses’ and curb severe infections
A researcher is refining a powerful therapy for drug-resistant bacteria that pierces the gooey coating that anchors and protects such germs from the drugs we take to kill them. She has found that an antimicrobial peptide naturally found in cows weakens the biofilm defenses of Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteria and destroys it.
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NewsWhy antibiotics fail against a common dental implant disease
A study of peri-implantitis found that bacteria corrode implants, causing them to shed microscopic titanium particles into the surrounding tissue. Those particles hijack the immune cells sent to clear the infection and lock them into a state of inflammation that destroys the jawbone they are supposed to protect.
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NewsHidden small RNA determines if cholera bacterium can infect humans
Scientists have uncovered what gives Vibrio cholerae, the bacterium that causes cholera, the ability to colonize the human gut. They found that a small RNA embedded within another gene controls where cholera thrives, a discovery that could improve prediction and prevention strategies.
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NewsHow bacteria ‘chat’ their way to carbon-neutral water treatment
Global climate goals demand that wastewater treatment plants transform their operations. A new review reveals that quorum sensing (QS), the chemical communication system bacteria use to coordinate behavior, could be the key.
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NewsWhy antibiotics may soon fail to curb the plague bacterium - and where we can find new strategies
A new review shows that while most infections caused by the Yersinia plague bacterium can currently be treated with antibiotics, concerns about rising antimicrobial resistance mean that we need to come up with new ways to disarm the bacteria instead of killing them.
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NewsScientists pinpoint the changes that happen when gut bacteria invade the bloodstream
Researchers have pinpointed genotypic and phenotypic changes that take place when colonising bacteria in a patient’s gut invade and infect the bloodstream. The team aimed to determine what changes occur within bacteria in a patient’s gut that enable them to become invasive bloodstream pathogens.
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NewsViruses enhance sulfamethoxazole removal in wetlands by modulating bacteria-phage interactions
A new study examines the role of viruses in sulfamethoxazole (SMX) removal in constructed wetlands. The research demonstrates that the addition of phage-concentrated solutions (PCS) enhances the degradation of SMX by enriching SMX-degrading bacteria.
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NewsStudy finds blood pressure drug effective for treating antibiotic-resistant bacteria
A new study reports that a drug used to lower blood pressure could also be the basis of a promising new treatment for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Candesartan cilexetil not only killed MRSA bacteria at different growth stages, but also reduced the formation of biofilms.
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NewsHow microbes survive in the plastisphere
Trillions of persistent plastic particles of varying sizes are scattered throughout the world’s oceans, where they often accumulate in ocean gyres known as ‘garbage patches’. Two of these regions were the focus of research expeditions.
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NewsViruses ‘eavesdrop’ on each other – but it can backfire
Viruses can “eavesdrop” on each other using chemical signals – but it can backfire for the eavesdropper, new research shows. Scientists studied chemical communication by phages, viruses that infect bacteria.
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NewsCopper-loaded starch nanoparticles can target bacteria in microbial communities
Researchers have developed copper-loaded starch nanoparticles that can be broken down by specific bacteria to release antibacterial copper molecules. They hope that these nanoparticles can be used to target biofilms, which account for 50-70% of healthcare-associated infections.
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NewsNew antibiotic alternative fights foodborne salmonella
Researchers have discovered a safe and highly effective natural virus that functions like a precision-guided missile, capable of eliminating harmful Salmonella on various foods and packaging materials, showing great potential as a novel guardian for food safety.
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NewsDifferent plastics, different threats: Tracking antibiotic resistance on riverborne debris
While traditional plastics steadily accumulate antibiotic resistance genes over time, biodegradable plastics can trigger short-lived but intense spikes in pathogens and resistance during degradation.
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NewsMapping the hidden gene highways of wastewater biofilms
A new study uncovers the hidden microbial connections within wastewater biofilms by combining Hi-C sequencing with multi-omics to directly map which phages and plasmids are associated with which microbial hosts.
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NewsScientists discover ‘consortium’ of bacteria cooperating to eat phthalate plasticizers that single microbes can’t stomach
Researchers have discovered a synergistic ‘consortium’ of plastic-eating bacteria, which can eat phthalate esters (PAEs) – plasticizers which are often found in building materials, food packages, and personal care products, but have been implicated in hormonal, metabolic, and developmental disorders and some cancers.
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NewsWhen waste becomes fertilizer: Can sludge-derived liquids reshape aquatic life in farmlands?
Hydrothermal carbonization has been proposed as a soil amendment to reduce synthetic fertilizer inputs and enhance crop productivity. Research finds it reshapes community assembly, trophic interactions, and functional expression in periphyton, with network integrity emerging as the primary driver of ecosystem functioning.
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NewsWebinar: Unraveling periprosthetic joint infection
The free ‘Unraveling Periprosthetic Joint Infection’ webinar on March 25 explores one of the most challenging complications in modern orthopedic medicine, sitting at the intersection of microbiology, surgery, and patient care.