Oral core microbiome, symbionts in crabs, sponges, and Drosophila, metabolites in dolphin’s breath, and retraction of a paper favored by Dr. Oz.

Pregnancy and birth

NEC in Twin Pregnancies: Incidence and Outcomes – Sathyaprasad C Burjonrappa, Brian Shea, Diya Goorah – Journal of Neonatal Surgery

“There is a remarkable higher incidence of NEC amongst twins. Abnormal colonization of the gastrointestinal tract appears to be an immediate postpartum event.”

Human oral microbiome

Intraindividual variation in core microbiota in peri-implantitis and periodontitis – Noriko Maruyama – Scientific Reports

“To improve our knowledge of the different communities of complex oral microbiota, we compared the microbial features between peri-implantitis and periodontitis in 20 patients with both diseases. “

Antimicrobial Effect of Lemongrass Oil against Oral Malodor Microorganisms and the Pilot Study of Safety and Efficacy of Lemongrass Mouthrinse on Oral Malodor – Panitta Satthanakul – Journal of Applied Microbiology

“Antimicrobial activity of LG mouthrinse was examined against common odorigenic microorganisms using broth microdilution assay and the disc diffusion method. A randomized double-blind clinical study was performed in 20 healthy volunteers.”

Animal microbiome

Molecular evidence of digestion and absorption of epibiotic bacterial community by deep-sea crab Shinkaia crosnieri – Tomo-o Watsuji – ISME Journal

“A phylogenetic analysis showed that many of the bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequences obtained from the intestine were closely related to the sequences of the epibionts, thus they were probably derived from the epibionts.”

* In vivo function and comparative genomic analyses of the Drosophila gut microbiota identify candidate symbiosis factors – Peter D. Newell – Frontiers in Microbiology

“We compared microbiota isolates with con-specific or closely related bacterial species isolated from non-fly environments. “

* Two distinct microbial communities revealed in the sponge Cinachyrella – Marie L. Cuvelier – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Sponges of the genus Cinachyrella are common in Caribbean and Floridian reefs and their archaeal and bacterial microbiomes were explored here using 16S rDNA tag pyrosequencing.”

* Symbiotic archaea in marine sponges show stability and host specificity in community structure and ammonia oxidation functionality – Fan Zhang – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“PCR cloning and sequencing of archaeal 16S rRNA and amoA genes showed that the archaeal community composition and structure were different from that in seawater and varied among sponge species. “

Plant microbiome

Reduced dependence of rhizosphere microbiome on plant-derived carbon in 32-year long-term inorganic and organic fertilized soils – Chao Ai – Soil Biology and Biochemistry

“Wheat rhizosphere microbiome was studied by stable isotope probing and pyrosequencing.”

Environmental microbiome

Characterization of bacterial communities associated with seasonal water masses from Tongyoung in South Sea of Korea – Sung-Suk Suh – Ocean Science Journal

“In this study, we adopted a 16S rRNA gene tag-pyrosequencing technique to investigate the bacterial communities associated with two different water masses from Tongyoung in the South Sea of Korea. “

Bacterial community structure of a lab-scale anammox membrane bioreactor – Alejandro Gonzalez-Martinez – Biotechnology Progress

“In this study, next-generation sequencing techniques have been used for the investigation of the bacterial communities of this MBR Anammox for the first time ever. “

Metagenomics & Bioinformatics

GenomePeek: What exactly is that sequencing data? – Katelyn McNair – MicroBEnet

“I wrote the initial version of GenomePeek, and tested it with various data sets using this student’s data. I quickly found that some genes work better than others, and so currently the four genes analyzed are: 16S, recA, rpoB, and groEL.”

Metabolomics

Metabolite Content Profiling of Bottlenose Dolphin Exhaled Breath – Alexander A. Aksenov – Analytical Chemistry

“We have developed a method to reproducibly sample breath from small cetaceans, specifically Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). “

Proteomics

Symbiosis, Dysbiosis and Rebiosis – the value of metaproteomics in human microbiome monitoring – Lei Mao and Jacqueline Franke – Proteomics

“After a brief review of the history and state-of-the-art of metaproteomics in the field of environmental health research, focus of this perspective article will be put on the role of cross-species joint efforts in symbiosis, dysbiosis and rebiosis of the human gut during human development, pathogenesis and aging.”

More microbiology

Bridging the gap between viable but non-culturable and antibiotic persistent bacteria – Mesrop Ayrapetyan – Trends in Microbiology

“This discussion is intended to stimulate discourse about these seemingly different but very similar dormant states.”

* Phylogenomic Reconstruction Indicates Mitochondrial Ancestor Was an Energy Parasite
Zhang Wang, Martin Wu – PLOS ONE

“Using a phylogenomic approach and leveraging on the increased taxonomic sampling of alphaproteobacterial and eukaryotic genomes, we reconstructed the metabolisms of both proto-mitochondria and pre-mitochondria.”

Real-time video imaging as a new and rapid tool for antibiotic susceptibility testing by the disk diffusion method: a paradigm for evaluating resistance to imipenem and identifying extended-spectrum β-lactamases – Stéphanie Le Page – International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents

“..we present here for the first time video movies of the appearance of the diameter of inhibition by the disk diffusion in real-time. “

Microbes in the news

Can Microbes Help Feed the World? – Amy Mayer – BioScience

“To help meet the challenge for food, scientists are using new technologies to better understand the role that soil microbes might play in bolstering agricultural production. “

Dentists Want To See Studies On Pot-Cavity Link – CBS Local

“Patients are experiencing tooth decay, expensive dentist bills and the pain of dealing with it all. The biggest side effect is dry mouth.”

Bik’s Picks

Brain surgery, by robot, through the cheek – Science Daily

“Engineers have developed a surgical robot designed to perform brain surgery by entering through the cheek instead of the skull that can operate on a patient in an MRI scanner. Additionally, the engineers have designed the system so that much of it can be made using 3-D printing in order to keep the price low.”

* Hilarious cartoons on Imgur: Real Scientists vs. Movie Scientists 

* Authors retract green coffee bean diet paper touted by Dr. Oz – Ivan Oransky – Retraction Watch

“Two authors of a 2012 paper sponsored by a company that made grand claims about green coffee bean extract’s abilities to help people lose weight have retracted it. The study was cited by The Dr. Oz Show, and last month it cost the company a $3.5 million settlement with the Feds.”

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