Joint opinion on measures by the EU to reduce antimicrobial agents in animal husbandry, diet changes the gut microbiome of dogs, and synthetic chemicals might drive global climate change.

Jobs

PhD Position: THE ROLE OF THE GUT MICROBIOME IN LIVER DISEASE: DEVELOPMENT Of BIOINFORMATIC APPROACHES TO IDENTIFY, CHARACTERISE AND ANALYSE THE GUT VIROME – KU Leuven

Postdoctoral Research Scientist, Microbiology, School of Natural Sciences, NUI Galway

Microbiology Supervisor – Clinical Pathology Laboratories, Inc

General microbiology and policy

Artificial bacteria: A semisynthetic organism engineered for the stable expansion of the genetic alphabet – Yorke Zhang – PNAS

• Press: First step to ‘designer life’: Biologists breed bacteria with lab-made DNA, adding two extra, artificial letters – Ben Guarino – Washington Post

Policy opinions: EMA and EFSA Joint Scientific Opinion on measures to reduce the need to use antimicrobial agents in animal husbandry in the European Union, and the resulting impacts on food safety (RONAFA) – CVMP and BIOHAZ – EFSA Journal

Acid-suppression medications and bacterial gastroenteritis: a population-based cohort study – Wei Li – british journal of clinical pharmacology

Animal experiments

Effects of the Dietary Protein and Carbohydrate Ratio on Gut Microbiomes in Dogs of Different Body Conditions – Qinghong Li – mBio

• Press: Study shows how a dog’s diet shapes its gut microbiome – Phys.org

Water and extremophile microbiome

Novel Primer Sets for Next Generation Sequencing-Based Analyses of Water Quality – Elvina Lee – PLoS One

Evaluation of Methods for the Concentration and Extraction of Viruses from Sewage in the Context of Metagenomic Sequencing – Mathis Hjort Hjelmsø – PLoS One

Phages and viruses

FRNA Bacteriophages as Viral Indicators of Faecal Contamination in Mexican Tropical Aquatic Systems – Luis Jose Rene Arredondo-Hernandez – PLoS One

The Complete Genome Sequence of a Second Distinct Betabaculovirus from the True Armyworm, Mythimna unipuncta – Robert L. Harrison – PLoS One

Characterization and Genetic Variation of Vibrio cholerae Isolated from Clinical and Environmental Sources in Thailand – Achiraya Siriphap – PLoS One

Bioinformatics

Comparing and Evaluating Metagenome Assembly Tools from a Microbiologist’s Perspective – Not Only Size Matters! – John Vollmers – PLoS One

Microbes in the news

Study: Babies’ Microbiomes Indifferent to Mode of Delivery – Kerry Grens – The Scientist

About FishTaco: Microbiome as complex as previously thought – Julian Harris – PHG Foundation

Auckland’s water shock: Bacteria levels ‘dangerously high’ – NZ Herald

For healthier buildings, just add bacteria? – Ed Yong – Ted

Xin’s non-microbiology pick

Synthetic chemicals as agents of global change – Emily S Bernhardt – Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment