Clean water
UNICEF estimates that over 2.2 billion people worldwide do not have access to clean drinking water. Micro-organisms are responsible for a host of waterborne diseases, but simultaneously offer solutions in purifying water and improving sanitation. Biofertilizers offer promising solutions for reduced nutrient runoff and wastewater recycling. As well as applying microbes to combat the problem, applied microbiologists can use their knowledge of health and disease to reduce cases of waterborne disease.
Careers
Researchers find contaminated water in fast-food soda fountains
Scientists found microbial contamination in common sources of drinking water in the Eastern Coachella Valley, including soda fountains at fast-food restaurants.
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News25 new phage viruses IDed in Barcelona’s wastewaters
Scientists have identified 25 new viruses that infect bacteria in the human intestinal tract in wastewaters around the city’s metropolitan area and in some towns nearby.
News‘Regular testing needed’ following massive blue green algal bloom in UK’s largest lake
Water in the UK’s largest freshwater lake needs to undergo routine testing for cyanobacteria species in the future, following a devastating bloom, scientists have warned.
NewsE coli bacteria engineered to generate electricity from wastewater
Scientists have reported a groundbreaking achievement in bioelectronics, advancing the capabilities of common E. coli bacteria to generate electricity.
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3D-printed ‘living material’ waffles could clean up contaminated water
Researchers have developed a new type of material, combining a seaweed-based polymer with engineered bacteria, that could offer a sustainable and eco-friendly solution to clean pollutants from water.
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NewsPost-Idalia floodwaters may harbour flesh-eating bacteria
Following the devastation of Hurricane Idalia, health authorities are urgently cautioning beachgoers to remain vigilant as floodwaters may harbour Vibrio vulnificus, a rare and deadly flesh-eating bacterium.
NewsAlgae provide clues about 600 million years of plant evolution
Research team led by Göttingen University investigates 10 billion RNA snippets to identify ’hub genes’.
NewsDrinking water quality linked to lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis
High levels of some minerals and metals in environmental water supplies may increase the risk of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) pulmonary infections in people with cystic fibrosis, according to a new study.
NewsGlitter impairs growth of cyanobacteria, study shows
Use of glitter in makeup, party costumes and decorations should be reconsidered, say researchers who investigated the effects of five concentrations of glitter on two strains of cyanobacteria.
News Mapping methane emissions from rivers around globe reveals surprising sources
Researchers have found that methane emissions in tropical aquatic habitats are comparable to those in the much colder streams and rivers of boreal forests and Arctic tundra habitats.
NewsTubing and swimming change the chemistry and microbiome of streams
Scientists have reported preliminary results showing that tubing and swimming can alter the chemical and microbial fingerprint of streams, but the environmental and health ramifications are not yet known.
NewsSome phytoplankton can blitz neurotoxin methylmercury - even in the dark
In the search for ways to fight methylmercury in global waterways, scientists have discovered that some forms of phytoplankton are good at degrading the potent neurotoxin - even in the absence of sunlight.
NewsCurrent estimates of Lake Erie algae toxicity may miss the mark
A new study of the annual harmful algal bloom (HAB) in Lake Erie suggests that the toxicity of the bloom may be overestimated in earlier warm months and underestimated later in the summer.
