December 7, 2016

Microbiota of migratory birds, blue fungus living in snow, migrating from SSU rRNAs to metagenomics.

Jobs

Awesome job at awesome institute: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Microbiology – California Academy of Sciences

Human gut microbiome

Special issue of Trends in Food Science & Technology; several papers have appeared here before but worth checking out: Unravelling the role of the gut microbiome in energy balance and brain development and function: the European project MyNewGut

Review: Homeostasis of the Gut Barrier and Potential Biomarkers – Jerry M Wells – American Journal of Physiology, Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology

Review: Challenges in simulating the human gut for understanding the role of the microbiota in obesity – M. Aguirre – Beneficial Microbes

Animal models

Integrated Role of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis Supplementation in Gut Microbiota, Immunity, and Metabolism of Infant Rhesus Monkeys – Xuan He – mSystems

Review: Dissecting the interplay between intestinal microbiota and host immunity in health and disease: Lessons learned from germfree and gnotobiotic animal models – Ulrike Fiebiger – European Journal of Microbiology and Immunology

Animal microbiome

Changes in gut microbiota of migratory passerines during stopover after crossing an ecological barrier – William B. Lewis – The Auk

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Microbial Community Structure and Function of Soil following Ecosystem Conversion from Native Forests to Teak Plantation Forests – Vidya De Gannes – Frontiers in Microbiology

Drought tolerance of bioenergy grass Saccharum spontaneum L. enhanced by arbuscular mycorrhizae – P.P. Mirshad – Rhizosphere

Perspective: Microbiome selection could spur next-generation plant breeding strategies – Murali Gopal – Frontiers in Microbiology

Water and extremophile microbiome

Siderophore-based microbial adaptations to iron scarcity across the eastern Pacific Ocean – Rene M. Boiteau – PNAS

Phylogenetic diversity of microbial communities of the Posolsk Bank bottom sediments, Lake Baikal – S. M. Chernitsyna – Microbiology

Dampened copepod-mediated trophic cascades in a microzooplankton-dominated microbial food web: A mesocosm study – Bernadette Pree – Limnology and Oceanography

Antarctomyces pellizariae sp. nov., a new, endemic, blue, snow resident psychrophilic ascomycete fungus from Antarctica – Graciéle C. A. de Menezes – Extremophiles

Temporal variability of bacterial communities in cryoconite on an Alpine glacier – Andrea Franzetti – Environmental Microbiology Reports

Intraclade Heterogeneity in Nitrogen Utilization by Marine Prokaryotes Revealed Using Stable Isotope Probing Coupled with Tag Sequencing (Tag-SIP) – Michael Morando – Frontiers in Microbiology

Pollution microbiology

Effect of metal concentration on the microbial community in acid mine drainage of a polysulfide ore deposit – V. V. Kadnikov – Microbiology

Metagenomics and bioinformatics (viruses too)

MEGARes: an antimicrobial resistance database for high throughput sequencing – Steven M. Lakin – Nucleic Acids Research

Improvements to PATRIC, the all-bacterial Bioinformatics Database and Analysis Resource Center – Alice R. Wattam – Nucleic Acids Research

Alignment-free d2* oligonucleotide frequency dissimilarity measure improves prediction of hosts from metagenomically-derived viral sequences – Nathan A. Ahlgren – Nucleic Acids Research

*  Crystal Ball: Migrating SSU rRNA gene surveys to the metagenomics era – Josh D. Neufeld – Environmental Microbiology Reports

Techniques

DNA extraction from benthic Cyanobacteria: comparative assessment and optimization – V. Gaget – Journal of Applied Microbiology

Microbial ecology

Microbial Community Coalescence for Microbiome Engineering – Matthias C. Rillig – Frontiers in Microbiology

More microbiology

How to Define Pathogenicity, Health, and Disease? – Mauno Vihinen – Human Mutation-Variation, Informatics, and Disease

Crystal Ball: Accessories make the microbe – Lisa Y. Stein – Environmental Microbiology Reports

Validating Regulatory Predictions from Diverse Bacteria with Mutant Fitness Data – Shiori Sagawa – bioRxiv

Microbes in the news

With my former Stanford co-worker Fiona Strouts: New farmers’ market baker knows art, science of bread-making. Stanford fellow brings baking know-how to Portola Valley farmers’ market – Dave Boyce – Mountain View Voice

New Mechanism to Control Human Viral Infections Discovered – Sean Nealon – University of California Riverside

Uterine microbiota play a key role in implantation and pregnancy success in in vitro fertilization – EurekAlert (see digest October 12)

Understanding microbiome impact on pig health – National Hog Farmer

Syphilis is coming back – Juha Wahlstedt – Clinical Laboratory Blogspot

December 5, 2016

Contraceptives and the vaginal microbiome, Ralstonia and CF outcome, Alzheimer’s, helminths in cats, the Mississippi River.

General microbiome and ecology

Review: Disentangling Interactions in the Microbiome: A Network Perspective – Mehdi Layeghifard – Trends in Microbiology

Book Chapter: Chapter 4 – The Human Microbiome – Jacquelyn S. Meisel – Genomic and Precision Medicine (Third Edition): Foundations, Translation, and Implementation – Chp

Pregnancy and early life

Maternal health and the placental microbiome – Elise Pelzer – Placenta

Human vaginal microbiome

Effects of Combined Oral Contraceptives, Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate, and the Levonorgestrel-releasing Intrauterine System on the Vaginal Microbiome – J. Paul Brooks – Contraception

Review: Lactobacillus iners: Friend or Foe? – Mariya I. Petrova – Trends in Microbiology

Human skin microbiome

The protective effect of microbiota on S. aureus skin colonization depends on the integrity of the epithelial barrier – Marc Burian – Journal of Investigative Dermatology

Human respiratory microbiome

Ralstonia mannitolilytica in cystic fibrosis: A new predictor of worse outcomes – I. Coman – Respiratory Medicine Case Reports

Staphylococcal species heterogeneity in the nasal microbiome following antibiotic prophylaxis revealed by tuf gene deep sequencing – Claire L. McMurray – Microbiome

Human oral microbiome (also: gut / viruses)

Transmission of viruses via our microbiomes – Melissa Ly – Microbiome

Review: Endodontic Microbiology and Pathobiology : Current State of Knowledge – Ashraf F. Fouad – Dental Clinics of North America

Human gut microbiome

Extending colonic mucosal microbiome analysis—assessment of colonic lavage as a proxy for endoscopic colonic biopsies – Euan Watt – Microbiome

Review: Crohn’s disease – Joana Torres – The Lancet

Review: The Microbiome in Neurogastroenterology – Geoffrey A. Preidis – Pediatric Neurogastroenterology

Review: The endocrine vitamin D system in the gut – Antonio Barbáchano – Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology

Microbes at nearly sterile sites

Gram-negative bacterial molecules associate with Alzheimer disease pathology – Xinhua Zhan – Neurology

Press: Gram-negative bacteria may influence Alzheimer’s disease pathology – ScienceDaily

Animal and in vitro models

Modulation of a Circulating Uremic Solute via Rational Genetic Manipulation of the Gut Microbiota – A. Sloan Devlin – Cell Host & Microbe

Animal microbiome

Helminth infections and gut microbiota – a feline perspective – Ana M. Duarte – Parasites & Vectors

Review: Defining the Core Microbiome in Corals’ Microbial Soup – Alejandra Hernandez-Agreda – Trends in Microbiology

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Bacterial consortia inoculation mitigates the water shortage and salt stress in an avocado (Persea americana Mill.) nursery – Patricio J. Barra – Applied Soil Ecology

Heavy Metal Pollution Structures Soil Bacterial Community Dynamics in SW Spain Polluted Salt Marshes – Jennifer Mesa – Water, Air, & Soil Pollution

The Cucurbita pepo seed microbiome: genotype-specific composition and implications for breeding – Eveline Adam – Plant and Soil

Tolerance of the forest soil microbiome to increasing mercury concentrations – Aline Frossard – Soil Biology and Biochemistry

Repeated glyphosate exposure induces shifts in nitrifying communities and metabolism of phenylpropanoids – Marco Allegrini – Soil Biology and Biochemistry

Seasonal induced changes in spinach rhizosphere microbial community structure with varying salinity and drought – A. Mark Ibekwe – Science of the Total Environment

Cross-compatibility evaluation of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria of coconut and cocoa on yield and rhizosphere properties of vegetable crops – T.H Khadeejath Rajeela – Biocatalysis and Agricultural Biotechnology

Effect of rhizobacterial consortia from undisturbed arid- and agro-ecosystems on wheat growth under differing conditions – N.G. Inostroza – Letters in Applied Microbiology

Differences among Soil-Inhabiting Microbial Communities in Poa annua Turf throughout the Growing Season – Lisa A. Beirn – Corp Science

Increasing the Size of the Microbial Biomass Altered Bacterial Community Structure which Enhances Plant Phosphorus Uptake – Pu Shen – PLOS ONE

Water and extremophile microbiome

Microbial regime changes and indicators of eutrophication on the Mississippi River identified via a human-powered 2900 km transect – Michael W Henson – bioRxiv

Whole-Genome Enrichment Provides Deep Insights into Vibrio cholerae Metagenome from an African River – L. Vezzulli – Microbial Ecology

Identity, ecology and ecophysiology of planktic green algae dominating in ice‑covered lakes on James Ross Island (northeastern Antarctic Peninsula) – Linda Nedbalová

Built environment microbiome

Analysis of dark crusts on the church of Nossa Senhora do Carmo in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, using chemical, microscope and metabarcoding microbial identification techniques – Christine Gaylarde – International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation

Impact of wastewater treatment plant discharge on the contamination of river biofilms by pharmaceuticals and antibiotic resistance – Elodie Aubertheau – Science of the Total Environment

More microbiology

Human to human transmission of arthropod-borne pathogens – Byron E Martina – Current Opinion in Virology

Techniques

Methodological flaws introduce strong bias into molecular analysis of microbial populations – Niclas Krakat – Journal of Applied Microbiology

Microbes in the news

uBiome Awards Microbiome Impact Grant to Explore Effects of Heavy Drinking and Smoking on Oral Microbiome – PR Web

Missing Link in Malaria Evolution Discovered in Historical Specimens – Ben Andrew Henry – The Scientist

Book review: The Human Microbiome Handbook, Jason Tetro, Emma Allen-Vercoe (Eds.). DEStech Publications (March 2016)– Laura M. Cox – Anaerobe

Our ideas about bacteria evolution are wrong – scientists make new discovery – Sandra Hajda – Inquisitr

Bacteria Hysteria

Soap company uses bacteria-coated billboards to prove how dirty your stuff is – Mashable

November 22, 2016

Vaginal Mirobiome in PPROM, Prevotella copri and rheumatoid arthritis, mice transplanted with stool from lean or obese humans, archaea in a pond.

Pregnancy and early life

High Diversity and Variability in the Vaginal Microbiome in Women following Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes (PPROM): A Prospective Cohort Study – Teenus Paramel Jayaprakash – PLOS ONE

Human oral microbiome

Review: The oral microbiome – an update for oral healthcare professionals – M. Kilian – British Dental Journal

Human gut microbiome

Chronic opioid use is associated with altered gut microbiota and predicts readmissions in patients with cirrhosis – C. Acharya – Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics

In vitro fermentation of B-GOS: Impact on faecal bacterial populations and metabolic activity in autistic and non-autistic children – Roberta Grimaldi – FEMS Microbial Ecology

Evidence for Immune Relevance of Prevotella copri, a Gut Microbe, in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis – Annalisa Pianta – Arthitis & Rheumatology

Review: Human gut microbiota: the links with dementia development – Rashad Alkasir – Protein & Cell

Review: Gut hormones and gut microbiota: implications for kidney function and hypertensionGut hormones and gut microbiota: implications for kidney function and hypertension – Baris Afsar – Journal of the American Society of Hypertension

Review: Dysbiosis in the intensive care unit: Microbiome science coming to the bedside – Georgios D Kitsios – Journal of Critical Care

Review: Interactions between gut microbes and host cells control gut barrier and metabolism – P D Cani – International Journal of Obesity Supplements

Review: Life history and eco-evolutionary dynamics in light of the gut microbiota – Emilie Macke – Oikos

Animal experiments

Environmental spread of microbes impacts the development of metabolic phenotypes in mice transplanted with microbial communities from humans – Li Zhang – ISME Journal

Gut bacteria affect our metabolism – Science Daily

Animal microbiome

Gut microbiota of dung beetles correspond to dietary specializations of adults and larvae
– Shantanu P. Shukla – Molecular Ecology

Thesis: Characterization of the juvenile green turtle (Chelonia mydas) microbiome associated with the ontogenic shift from pelagic habitats to inshore resident areas – James T. Price – Purdue University

Tick microbiome and pathogen acquisition altered by host blood meal – Andrea Swei – The ISME Journal

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Investigation of Endophytic Bacterial Community in Supposedly Axenic Cultures of Pineapple and Orchids with Evidence on Abundant Intracellular Bacteria – Natalia Pimentel Esposito-Polesi – Current Microbiology

Tree species, tree genotypes and tree genotypic diversity levels affect microbe-mediated soil ecosystem functions in a subtropical forest – Witoon Purahong – Scientific Reports

High-methionine soybean has no adverse effect on functional diversity of rhizosphere microorganisms -J.G. Liang – Plant Soil Environment

Illumina sequencing-based community analysis of bacteria associated with different bryophytes collected from Tibet, China – Jing Yan Tang – BMC Microbiology
https://bmcmicrobiol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12866-016-0892-3
Networks Depicting the Fine-Scale Co-Occurrences of Fungi in Soil Horizons – Hirokazu Toju – PLOS ONE

Isolation and Identification of Keratinolytic Bacteria that Exhibit Feather-degrading Potentials – F. O. Iruolaje – Journal of Advances in Biology & Biotechnology

Water and extremophile microbiome

Cryo-protective effect of an ice-binding protein derived from Antarctic bacteria – Marco Mangiagalli – The FEBS Journal

Unusually High Archaeal Diversity in a Crystallizer Pond, Pomorie Salterns, Bulgaria, Revealed by Phylogenetic Analysis – Margarita Kambourova – Archaea

Polymetallic nodules, sediments, and deep waters in the equatorial North Pacific exhibit highly diverse and distinct bacterial, archaeal, and microeukaryotic communities – Christine N. Shulse – Microbiology Open

Conference abstract: Defining the boarders of extreme life: The study of microbial communities and their settings gives insights into Mars analogue life within the MASE project – A Perras – 16th International Symposium on Microbial Ecology

Pollution microbiology

Influence of plantation on microbial community in porous concrete treating polluted surface water – Yan Long – International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation

Food microbiology

Study of the bacterial diversity of foods: PCR-DGGE versus LH-PCR – Cristiana Garofalo – International Journal of Food Microbiology

Viruses and phages

Viral coinfection is shaped by host ecology and virus-virus interactions across diverse microbial taxa and environments – Samuel L Diaz-Munoz – bioRxiv

More microbiology

Uncovering new drugs and targets – Andrea Du Toit – Nature Reviews Microbiology

Microbiota under pressure – Andrea Aguilar – Nature Reviews Nephrology

Microbes in the news

‘Bacteria beaters’ win Longitude Prize Discovery Award – Shan Ross – The Scotsman

Bacteria for bio-toilets by February 15 – The Times of India

Your Office Has a Microbiome, and It Might Make You Sick – Zoe Schlanger – Wired

Tomato plants are more resistant against nematodes when colonized by a fungus – Farming Futures

Scientists use bacteria to map out NZ. A team of scientists growing bacteria in the shape of New Zealand have caught the attention of their colleagues across the globe – News Australia

The cover image is a map of New Zealand drawn with pyoverdine-producing P. aeruginosa cells in an ocean of indigoidine-synthesizing E. coli. – Cell Chemical Biology

Science, publishing, and career

Citizen science: The people behind the data – Mary Goodchild – NERC Planet Earth

November 19, 2016

Metformin and diabetes, lizards, Brazilian tree phyllosphere, Amazonian dark earth, air pollution in China, microbiomes of ice cream and cannabis.

General microbiome

Phylosymbiosis: Relationships and Functional Effects of Microbial Communities across Host Evolutionary History – Andrew W. Brooks – PLOS Biology

Review: A place for host–microbe symbiosis in the comparative physiologist’s toolbox – Kevin D. Kohl – Journal of Experimental Biology

Human skin and wound microbiology

Review: Cooperative Evolutionary Strategy between the Bacteriome and Mycobiome – Mahmoud Ghannoum – mBio

Human gut microbiome

Metformin Is Associated With Higher Relative Abundance of Mucin-Degrading Akkermansia muciniphila and Several Short-Chain Fatty Acid–Producing Microbiota in the Gut – Jacobo de la Cuesta-Zuluaga – Diabetes Care

News: Metformin Alters Gut Microbiota Composition in Diabetes – Doctors Lounge

Review (Blastocystis) : Modulating the Gut Micro-Environment in the Treatment of Intestinal Parasites – Luis Vitetta – Journal of Clinical Medicine

Review: Recent advances in Entamoeba biology: RNA interference, drug discovery, and gut microbiome – Pedro Morgado – F1000 Research

Microbes in blood, urine, and tissue

Changes in blood microbiota profiles associated with liver fibrosis in obese patients: A pilot analysis – Benjamin Lelouvier – Hepatology

Review: The Urinary Tract Microbiome in Health and Disease – Isabel M. Aragón – European Urology Focus

Animal experiments

A High-Fat High-Sucrose Diet Rapidly Alters Muscle Integrity, Inflammation and Gut Microbiota in Male Rats – Kelsey H. Collins – Scientific Reports

Animal microbiome

Gut microbial ecology of lizards: insights into diversity in the wild, effects of captivity, variation across gut regions, and transmission – Kevin D. Kohl – Molecular Ecology

In liver, not in feces: Metagenomic Evaluation of Bacteria from Voles – Katja A. Koskela – Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Phyllosphere Metaproteomes of Trees from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest Show High Levels of Functional Redundancy – M.R. Lambais – Microbial Ecology

Metagenome sequencing of the microbial community of two Brazilian anthropogenic Amazon dark earth sites, Brazil – Leandro Nascimento Lemos – Genomics Data

Metal-resistant rhizobacteria isolates improve Mucuna deeringiana phytoextraction capacity in multi-metal contaminated soils from a gold mining area – Cácio Luiz Boechat – Environmental Science and Pollution Research

Identification of the Core Set of Carbon-Associated Genes in a Bioenergy Grassland Soil
Adina Howe – PLOS ONE

The nutrient preference of plants influences their rhizosphere microbiome – Feng Cai – Applied Soil Ecology

Effect of microbial-based inoculants on nutrient concentrations and early root morphology of corn (Zea mays) – Pamela Calvo – Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science

The impact of winter legume and cereal cover crops on rhizosphere microbial communities of subsequent vegetable crops for contrasting crop decline – L.M. Manici – Biological Control

Impacts of protected colonial birds on soil microbial communities: When protection leads to degradation – María T. Domínguez – Soil Biology and Biochemistry

Water and pollution microbiome

Nearshore Pelagic Microbial Community Abundance Affects Recruitment Success of Giant Kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera – Megan M. Morris – Frontiers in Microbiology

Biostimulation and microbial community profiling reveal insights on RDX transformation in groundwater – Dongping Wang – Microbiology Open

Screening and In Situ Monitoring of Potential Petroleum Hydrocarbon Degraders in Contaminated Surface Water – Bulent Icgen – Clean Soil Air Water

Source tracking using microbial community fingerprints: Method comparison with hydrodynamic modelling – D.T. McCarthy – Water Research

Air microbiology

Airborne particulate matter pollution in urban China: A chemical mixture perspective from sources to impacts – Ling Jin – National Science Review

Review: Monitoring of the airborne biological particles in outdoor atmosphere. Part 1: Importance, variability and ratios – Andrés Núñez – International Microbiology

Review: Monitoring of airborne biological particles in outdoor atmosphere. Part 2: Metagenomics applied to urban environments – Andrés Núñez – International Microbiology

Food and cannabis microbiology

Metagenomic analysis of medicinal Cannabis samples; pathogenic bacteria, toxigenic fungi, and beneficial microbes grow in culture-based yeast and mold tests – Kevin McKernan – F1000 Research

Enrichment dynamics of Listeria monocytogenes and the associated microbiome from naturally contaminated ice cream linked to a listeriosis outbreak – Andrea Ottesen – BMC Microbiology

Bioinformatics

[PDF] A small-sample multivariate kernel machine test for microbiome association studies – Xiang Zhan – Fred Hutch Research

More microbiology

Quorum Sensing Controls Adaptive Immunity through the Regulation of Multiple CRISPR-Cas Systems – Adrian G. Patterson – Molecular Cell

Bacteria communicate to ramp up collective immune response to viral threats – Science Daily

A Molecular Genetic Basis Explaining Altered Bacterial Behavior in Space – Luis Zea – PLOS ONE

Alabama researcher helps solve mystery of runaway bacteria on spaceships – AL.com

Microbes in the news

PodcastThis Week in Microbiology: microbial DNA found on ATM machines in New York City, and how hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, alters microbial ecosystems deep in the Earth – TWIM

One swab from the surface of your smartphone can tell scientists all about your lifestyle
– Karen Turner – Washington Post

This bacteria is getting harder for kids to fight – Mashable

Armpit Bacteria Transplants Could Save Us From Our Stink – Kaleigh Rogers – Motherboard

Worrying traces of resistant bacteria in air – EurekAlert

 

Science, publishing, and career

An Open Letter from and to Female Scientists – Kelly Ramirez – Scientific American
500 Women Scientists: An open letter from women of science

Who Will Advise Trump on Science? – Ed Yong – The Atlantic

 

 

 

November 14, 2016

Infant gut microbiota, oral microbiota of farmworkers with pesticide exposure, critically ill patients, probiotics and Alzheimer’s, Sutterella is a commensal.

Events

Cheese Cultures & Microbiology Class, December 2, 2016, Petaluma – California Artisan Cheese Guild – Eventbrite

Pregnancy and early life

A comparison of intestinal microbiota in a population of low-risk infants exposed and not exposed to intrapartum antibiotics: The Baby & Microbiota of the Intestine cohort study protocol – Julia Simioni – BMC Pediatrics

Establishment and development of the intestinal microbiota of preterm infants in a Lebanese tertiary hospital – Tarek Itania – Anaerobe

Human oral microbiome

Human Oral Buccal Microbiomes Are Associated with Farmworker Status And Azinphos-methyl Agricultural Pesticide Exposure – Ian B. Stanaway – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

News: Study finds link between pesticide exposure and microbiome changes – Brooks Hays – UPI
Pesticide exposures can cause changes in oral microbiome – ASM

Molecular detection of bacteria associated to caries activity in dentinal lesions – Beatriz Gonçalves Neves – Clinical Oral Investigations

Review: Microbial Profiles and Detection Techniques in Peri-Implant Diseases: a Systematic Review – Miguel Padial-Molina – J Oral Maxillofac Res

Human skin microbiome

A Precision Microbiome Approach Using Sucrose for Selective Augmentation of Staphylococcus epidermidis Fermentation against Propionibacterium acnes – Yanhan Wang – Int J Mol Sci

A novel enzyme with antioxidant capacity produced by the ubiquitous skin colonizer Propionibacterium acnes – Maria Allhorn – Scientific Reports

Skin bacteria could protect against disease – Science Daily

Human vaginal microbiome

Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis are able to incorporate and enhance a pre-formed Gardnerella vaginalis biofilm – Joana Castro – Pathogens and Disease

Human gut microbiome

Critically ill patients demonstrate large interpersonal variation in intestinal microbiota dysregulation: a pilot study – Jacqueline M. Lankelma – Intensive Care Medicine

Mucosal Prevalence and Interactions with the Epithelium Indicate Commensalism of Sutterella spp. – Kaisa Hiippala – Frontiers in Microbiology

Review: Impact of Microbes on the Pathogenesis of Primary Biliary Cirrhosis (PBC) and Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC) – Jochen Mattner – Int J Mol Sci

Animal microbiome

Review: Microbiota-host interplay at the gut epithelial level, health and nutrition – Jean-Paul Lallès – Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Root bacterial endophytes alter plant phenotype, but not physiology – Jeremiah A. Henning – Peer J

Cultivation Versus Molecular Analysis of Banana (Musa sp.) Shoot-Tip Tissue Reveals Enormous Diversity of Normally Uncultivable Endophytic Bacteria – Pious Thomas – Microbial Ecology

Water microbiome

Unraveling the microbial community of a cold groundwater catchment system – Burga Braun – Water Research

Built environment microbiome

Size-related bacterial diversity and tetracycline resistance gene abundance in the air of concentrated poultry feeding operations – Min Gao – Environmental Pollution

Metabolomics

Review: Emerging roles of xenobiotic detoxification enzymes in metabolic diseases – Michael C. Petriello – Reviews on Environmental Health

Probiotics

Effect of probiotic supplementation on cognitive function and metabolic status in Alzheimer’s disease: a randomized, double-blind, and controlled trial – Elmira Akbari -Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience

News: Probiotics improve cognition in Alzheimer’s patients – Medical Xpress

More microbiology

tRNA-mediated codon-biased translation in mycobacterial hypoxic persistence – Yok Hian Chionh – Nature Communications

Cracking the code for dormant bacteria. Newly discovered genetic code controls bacterial survival during infections – Anne Trafton – MIT News Office

Microbes in the news

Monitoring in Real Time the Formation and Removal of Biofilms From Clinically Relevant Pathogens – PR Web

From the American College of Rheumatology Annual Scientific Meeting: Gut bacteria may be a trigger for antiphospholipid syndrome – EurekAlert

Three University of Maryland students are sending bacteria samples into space – Rachel Kuipers – the Diamondback

University of Texas at Dallas named “Milestones in Microbiology” – Joanna Urban – ASM

Bethany professor Matthew Swearingen receives research grant – Weirton Daily Times

Scientists try bacteria to halt invasive cheatgrass overwhelming the West – Keith Ridler – LA Times

November 12, 2016

Two papers on the detection of diseases by metabolomics of breaths or fecal gases, responses of soil bacteria to solar radiation and soil warming, genotyping of probiotics.

General microbiome

Special Issue on ‘Microbe–host interactions’ – Sven Hammerschmidt – FEBS Letters

Pregnancy and early life

Serum cathelicidin, nasopharyngeal microbiota, and disease severity among infants hospitalized with bronchiolitis – Kohei Hasegawa – Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

Human respiratory microbiome

Feasibility of Early Detection of Cystic Fibrosis Acute Pulmonary Exacerbations by Exhaled Breath Condensate Metabolomics: A Pilot Study – Xiaoling Zang – Journal of Proteome Research

Features of the bronchial bacterial microbiome associated with atopy, asthma and responsiveness to inhaled corticosteroid treatment – Juliana Durack – Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

Human vaginal microbiome

“Murdochiella vaginalis” sp. nov., a new bacterial species cultivated from the vaginal flora of a woman with bacterial vaginosis – Khoudia Diop – Human Microbiome Journal

Human esophagus and stomach microbiome

Editorial: The microbiome as a potential biomarker for oesophageal adenocarcinoma – Julian A Abrams – The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology

A non-endoscopic device to sample the oesophageal microbiota: a case-control study – Daffolyn R Fels Elliott – The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology

Human gut microbiome

Irritable bowel syndrome and active inflammatory bowel disease diagnosed by faecal gas analysis – R. B. M. Aggio – Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics

Review: Formation of propionate and butyrate by the human colonic microbiota – Petra Louis

Review: The Gut Microbiota : The Gateway to Improved Metabolism – Kristina B. Martinez – Gastroenterology Clinics of North America

Review: Regulation of the gut microbiome by inflammasomes – Grace Y. Chen – Free Radical Biology and Medicine

Review: The role of the microbiome in kidney stone formation – Mansi Mehta – International Journal of Surgery

Animal models

Giardia alters commensal microbial diversity throughout the murine gut – Nanelle R Barash – bioRxiv

Animal microbiome

Virus detection using metagenomic sequencing of swine nasal and rectal swabs – Ben M. Hause – J Swine Health Prod

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Bacterial active community cycling in response to solar radiation and their influence on nutrient changes in a high altitude wetland – Veronica Molina – Frontiers in Microbiology

Land-use change under different climatic conditions: Consequences for organic matter and microbial communities in Siberian steppe soils – Norbert Bischoff – Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment

Identifying the microbial taxa which consistently respond to soil warming across time and space – Angela M. Oliverio – Global Change Biology

The drivers underlying biogeographical patterns of bacterial communities in soils under sugarcane cultivation – Ademir Durrer – Applied Soil Ecology

EditorialA small soil bacterium dominates – Ursula Hofer – Nature Reviews Microbiology

Editorial/Review: The Role of Microbial Communities in Tropical Ecosystems – Silvia Pajares – Frontiers in Microbiology

Water microbiome

Cyanobacteria in lakes on Yungui Plateau, China are assembled via niche processes driven by water physicochemical property, lake morphology and watershed land-use – Jingqiu Liao – Scientific Reports

Implications of Ecological Niche Differentiation in Marine Bacteria for Microbial Management in Aquaculture to Prevent Bacterial Disease – Tom Defoirdt – PLOS Pathogens

Bacterial composition, abundance and diversity in fish polyculture and mussel–fish integrated cultured ponds in China – Xiafei Zheng – Aquaculture Research

Food microbiome

Diversity study of microbial community in bacon using metagenomic analysis – Langbo Yi – Journal of Food Safety

Probiotics

Genotyping by PCR and High-Throughput Sequencing of Commercial Probiotic Products Reveals Composition Biases – Wesley Morovic – Frontiers in Microbiology

Review: Weight gain by gut microbiota manipulation in productive animals – Emmanouil Angelakis – Microbial Pathogenesis

Viruses and phages

VirusDetect: An automated pipeline for efficient virus discovery using deep sequencing of small RNAs – Yi Zheng – Virology

Metabolomics

Book Chapter: A Mathematical Perspective on Microbial Processes in Earth’s Biogeochemical Cycles – Christof Meile – Mathematical Paradigms of Climate Science
Bioinformatics and metagenomics

EMDUnifrac: Exact linear time computation of the Unifrac metric and identification of differentially abundant organisms – Jason McClelland – bioRxiv

Genomic and metagenomic technologies to explore the antibiotic resistance mobilome – José L. Martínez – Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

More microbiology

The planktonic relationship between fluid-like electrodes and bacteria: wiring in motion
– Sara Tejedor Sanz – ChemSusChem

Experimental study and Random Forest prediction model of microbiome cell surface hydrophobicity – Yong Liu – Expert Systems with Applications

Microbes in the news

uBiome CEO Dr. Jessica Richman to Deliver Opening Keynote at American Medical Informatics Association Symposium – PR web

The impact of the rhizosphere microbiota on root system development and tolerance to environmental constraints in cereals – International Center for Biosaline Agriculture

Miami wants to introduce MORE mosquitoes to fight Zika: Officials considers bringing in bacteria-infected insects to stop spread of virus – Daily Mail

Bruker Moving Into PCR-Based Testing to Expand Clinical Microbiology, MALDI Biotyper Offerings – Genome Web

 

 

November 1, 2016

Ribosomal gene sequencing as a clinical diagnostic tool, probiotic microcins in the inflamed gut, toxic sugar metabolism by a bee symbiont, bacteria as indicators of soil condition, viruses of the human body.

General microbiome

Omics Approaches To Probe Microbiota and Drug Metabolism Interactions – Robert G. Nichols – Chemical Research in Toxicology

Review: Microbial interactions: ecology in a molecular perspective – Raíssa Mesquita Braga – Brazilian Journal of Microbiology

Human skin microbiome

Understanding the role of Propionibacterium acnes in acne vulgaris: the critical importance of skin sampling methodologies – Hélène Omer – Clinics in Dermatology

Human respiratory microbiome

Editorial: Macrolides, inflammation and the lung microbiome: untangling the web of causality – Robert P Dickson – Thorax

Review: A tale of two sites: how inflammation can reshape the microbiomes of the gut and lungs – Brittan S. Scales – Journal of Leukocyte Biology

Review: Emerging pathogenic links between microbiota and the gut–lung axis
– Kurtis F. Budden – Nature Reviews Microbiology

Human gut microbiome

16S rRNA Gene Sequencing as a Clinical Diagnostic Aid for Gastrointestinal-related Conditions – Daniel E Almonacid – bioRxiv

Detecting beer intake by unique metabolite patterns – Gözde Gürdeniz – Journal of Proteome Research

Metabolite and Microbiome Interplay in Cancer Immunotherapy – Caroline H. Johnson – Cancer Research

The infant gut microbiome correlates significantly with rotavirus vaccine response in rural Ghana – Vanessa C. Harris – Journal of Infectious Diseases
Could the gut microbiome be key to understanding and improving rotavirus vaccine performance in high disease burden settings? – Journal of Infectious Diseases

Fecal metabolomics in pediatric spondyloarthritis implicate decreased metabolic diversity and altered tryptophan metabolism as pathogenic factors – M L Stoll – Genes and Immunity

Can the composition of the intestinal microbiota predict the development of urinary tract infections? – Casper DJ den Heijer – Future Microbiology

Review: A tale of two sites: how inflammation can reshape the microbiomes of the gut and lungs – Brittan S. Scales – Journal of Leukocyte Biology

Review: Good Bugs, Bad Bugs in the Gut: The Role of Microbiota Dysbiosis in Chronic Gastrointestinal Consequences of Infection – Andre G Buret – American Journal of Gastroenterology

Review: Soy and Gut Microbiota: Interaction and Implication for Human Health – H Huang – J Agric Food Chem

Review: The gut microbiome and hypertension – M Pevsner-Fisher

Probiotics

Microcins mediate competition among Enterobacteriaceae in the inflamed gut – Martina Sassone-Corsi – Nature

Press: How good gut bacteria wrest control from the bad – Cosmos Magazine

Novel encapsulation improves recovery of probiotic strains in fecal samples of human volunteers – Volker Mai – Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology

Psychobiotics and the Manipulation of Bacteria–Gut–Brain Signals – Amar Sarkar – Trends in Neurosciences

Press: Psychobiotics: What Do We Know and Where Do We Go? – Laurie Anne Walden – Contagion Live

Review: Eosinophils, probiotics, and the microbiome – Helene F. Rosenberg – Journal of Leukocyte Biology

Animal experiments

Sex differences in colonization of gut microbiota from a man with short-term vegetarian and inulin-supplemented diet in germ-free mice – Jing-jing Wang – Scientific Reports

Functional Characterization of Inflammatory Bowel Disease–Associated Gut Dysbiosis in Gnotobiotic Mice – Hiroko Nagao-Kitamoto – CMGH Cellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology

Obese Mice Fed a Diet Supplemented with Enzyme-Treated Wheat Bran Display Marked Shifts in the Liver Metabolome Concurrent with Altered Gut Bacteria – Dorothy A Kieffer – Journal of Nutrition

Animal microbiome

Metabolism of Toxic Sugars by Strains of the Bee Gut Symbiont Gilliamella apicola – Hao Zheng – mBio

Microenvironmental heterogeneity of gut compartments drives bacterial community structure in wood- and humus-feeding higher termites – Aram Mikaelyan – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Bacteria as emerging indicators of soil condition – Syrie M. Hermans – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

Successive soybean-monoculture cropping assembles rhizosphere microbial communities for the soil suppression of soybean cyst nematode – M. Imran Hamid – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

Exploring the Influence of Environmental Factors on Bacterial Communities within the Rhizosphere of the Cu-tolerant plant, Elsholtzia splendens – Longfei Jiang – Scientific Reports

Endophytic Bacillus cereus effectively controls Meloidogyne incognita on tomato plants through rapid rhizosphere occupation and repellent action – Haijing Hu – Plant Disease

Drivers of yeast community composition in the litter and soil of a temperate forest
Tereza Mašínová – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

Transcriptomic responses of a simplified soil microcosm to a plant pathogen and its biocontrol agent reveal a complex reaction to harsh habitat – Michele Perazzolli – BMC Genomics

The root growth of wheat plants, the water conservation and fertility status of sandy soils influenced by plant growth promoting rhizobacteria – Naeem Khan – Symbiosis

Dynamics of bacterial communities in rice field soils as affected by different long-term fertilization practices – Jae-Hyung Ahn – Journal of Microbiology

Partitioning the effect of composition and diversity of tree communities on leaf litter decomposition and soil respiration – Mark Davidson Jewell – Oikos

Effects of Land use on the Structural Diversity of Soil Bacterial Communities in South Eastern Iran – Ghobad Jalali – Biosciences Biotechnology Research

Successive soybean-monoculture cropping assembles rhizosphere microbial communities for the soil suppression of soybean cyst nematode – M. Imran Hamid – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

Antarctic strict anaerobic microbiota from Deschampsia antarctica vascular plants rhizosphere reveals high ecology and biotechnology relevance – Rafael José Marques Peixoto – Extremophiles

The influence of the host plant is the major ecological determinant of soil presence of the nitrogen-fixing root nodule symbiont, Cluster II Frankia – Kai Battenberg – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

Review: Fungal endophytes and their interactions with plants in phytoremediation: A review – Zujun Deng – Chemosphere

Water and extremophile microbiome

Optical properties of dissolved organic matter relate to different depth-specific patterns of archaeal and bacterial community structure in the north Atlantic ocean – Elisa Guerrero-Feijóo

A computationally simplistic poly-phasic approach to explore microbial communities from the Yucatan aquifer as a potential sources of novel natural products – Miguel David Marfil-Santana – Journal of Microbiology

Food microbiology

Different flour microbial communities drive to sourdoughs characterized by diverse bacterial strains and free amino acid profiles – Giuseppe Celano – Frontiers in Microbiology

Built environment microbiome

Drinking water: One step forwards for the routine use of high-throughput DNA sequencing in environmental monitoring. An efficient and standardizable method to maximize the detection of environmental bacteria – Antonia Bruno – Microbiology Open

Weathering of a Roman Mosaic—A Biological and Quantitative Study on In Vitro Colonization of Calcareous Tesserae by Phototrophic Microorganisms – Addolorata Marasco – PLOS ONE

Bioinformatics and metagenomics

Phylogenetic Dirichlet-multinomial model for microbiome data – Yunfan Tang – arXiv

More microbiology

Bacterial evolution: Genomics of metabolic trade-offs – Martin F. Polz – Nature Microbiology

What’s in a Name? New Bacterial Species and Changes to Taxonomic Status from 2012 through 2015 – Erik Munson – Journal of Clinical Microbiology

Employment of Near Full-Length Ribosome Gene TA-Cloning and Primer-Blast to Detect Multiple Species in a Natural Complex Microbial Community Using Species-Specific Primers Designed with Their Genome Sequences – Huimin Zhang – Molecular Biotechnology

Review: A critical evaluation of ecological indices for the comparative analysis of microbial communities based on molecular datasets – Rico Lucas – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

Microbes in the news

Viruses of the Human Body. Some of our resident viruses may be beneficial – Eric Delwart – The Scientist

Naval Special Warfare Trainees Face Tiny Enemy: Bacteria – Sara G. Miller – Live Science

Could a disrupted sleep also disturb your gut? – Fiona Pepper for The Health Report

Researchers think they’ve finally figured out why bacteria only causes acne in some peopleAnd how to stop it. – Fiona MacDonald – Science Alert

Microbes and the market

uBiome CEO Jessica Richman Joins Sean Parker, Maria Shriver, Arianna Huffington and Others, Speaking at Fortune Brainstorm HEALTH

Science, publishing, and career

2016 Life Sciences Salary Survey. Most researchers feel stimulated by their work but are dissatisfied with their compensation, according to this year’s results – Karen Zusi – The Scientist

October 28, 2016

Still in Albuquerque at UNM where I gave a talk today hosted by Joe Alcock. Another great example of how Twitter (at least some parts of it!) can bring scientists together.

Two studies published in Nature Genetics this month coupling variations in the human gut microbiome with genetic variations in the human genome. Also: predicting facial skin microbiome and how does Wolbachia do it?

Human skin microbiome

Sebum and Hydration Levels in Specific Regions of Human Face Significantly Predict the Nature and Diversity of Facial Skin Microbiome – Souvik Mukherjee – Scientific Reports

Human gut microbiome

Editorial: The gut microbiome—an emerging complex trait – Andrew K Benson – Nature Genetics
Association of host genome with intestinal microbial composition in a large healthy cohort – Williams Turpin – Nature Genetics
The effect of host genetics on the gut microbiome – Marc Jan Bonder – Nature Genetics

Can the composition of the intestinal microbiota predict the development of urinary tract infections? – Casper DJ den Heijer – Future Microbiology

Review: Personalized microbiome-based approaches to metabolic syndrome management and prevention – H Shapiro – J Diabetes (NCBI link)

Animal microbiome

Microbiota associated with Bactrocera carambolae and B. dorsalis (Insecta: Tephritidae) revealed by next-generation sequencing of 16S rRNA gene – Hoi-Sen Yong – Meta Gene

The microbiome of neotropical ticks parasitizing on passerine migratory birds – Khemraj Budachetri – Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases

Changes in microbial communities, photosynthesis and calcification of the coral Acropora gemmifera in response to ocean acidification – Guowei Zhou – Scientific Reports

Commentary: Open questions: how does Wolbachia do what it does? – Francis M. Jiggins – BMC Biology

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Inducing the rhizosphere microbiome by biofertilizer application to suppress banana Fusarium wilt disease – Lin Fu – Soil Biology and Biochemistry

A new primer set for DNA metabarcoding of soil Metazoa – E. Capra – European Journal of Soil Biology

Functional foods

The effect of bacteriophages on the acidification of a vegetable juice medium by microencapsulated Lactobacillus plantarum – Claude P. Champagne – Food Microbiology

More microbiology

Emergence of wheat blast in Bangladesh was caused by a South American lineage of Magnaporthe oryzae – M. Tofazzal Islam – BMC Biology

Microbes in the news

Gaining new insights into the health promoting properties of kefir – Waterford Today

Antibiotics Linked to Sepsis Risk. Disturbing healthy bacteria during hospital admission associated with later sepsis – Michael Smith – MedPage Today

 

October 27, 2016

Kavli Foundation grants, mycobiome of root canal infections, post-stroke infections,  Thai vegetarians, antibiotic treatment of gorillas, licorice plants under salt stress, and bacterial camouflage on Crustaceans. Greetings from New Mexico!

Jobs and grants

Open Positions at NC State University: Microbiomes and Complex Microbial Communities

Uniting Diverse Sciences to Tackle the Microbiome – Kavli Foundation

Human oral microbiome

The mycobiome of root canal infections is correlated to the bacteriome – Ilona F. Persoon – Clinical Oral Investigations

Near-sterile human body sites

Comprehensive detection and identification of bacterial DNA in the blood of patients with sepsis and healthy volunteers using next-generation sequencing method – the observation of DNAemia – T. Gosiewski – European Journal of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases

Human respiratory microbiome

Translocation and dissemination of commensal bacteria in post-stroke infection – Dragana Stanley – Nature Medicine

Bacteria in the respiratory tract—how to treat? Or do not treat? – Cristina Prat – International Journal of Infectious Diseases

Human gut microbiome

Human Microbiome Fusobacterium Nucleatum in Esophageal Cancer Tissue Is Associated with Prognosis – Kensuke Yamamura – Clinical Cancer Research

Microbial Community of Healthy Thai Vegetarians and Non-Vegetarians, Their Core Gut Microbiota, and Pathogen Risk – Supatjaree Ruengsomwong – Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology

Effect of Bifidobacterium breve on the Intestinal Microbiota of Coeliac Children on a Gluten Free Diet: A Pilot Study – Andrea Quagliariello – Nutrients

Review: Rethinking Diet to Aid Human–Microbe Symbiosis – Muriel Derrien – Trends in Microbiology

Review: Feeding the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis: Diet, Microbiome and Neuropsychiatry – Kiran V. Sandhu – Translational Research

Review: Microbiota dysbiosis: a new piece in the understanding of carcinogenesis puzzle – Valeria García-Castillo – Journal of Medical Microbiology

Review: The evolving role of the microbiome in liver failure and liver transplantation – Kymberly D. Watt – Liver Transplantation

Animal models

Effect of Antibiotic Treatment on the Gastrointestinal Microbiome of Free-Ranging Western Lowland Gorillas (Gorilla g. gorilla) – Klára Vlčková – Microbial Ecology

Commensal Microbe-specific Activation of B2 Cell Subsets Contributes to Atherosclerosis Development Independently of Lipid Metabolism – Lin Chen – EBioMedicine

Commentary: Intestinal Microbiome and Atherosclerosis – J. David Spence – EBioMedicine

A distinct microbiota composition is associated with protection from food allergy in an oral mouse immunization model – Susanne C. Diesner – Clinical Immunology

Kinetic changes of intestinal microbiota in the course of intestinal sensitization – Liang Xiao – Oncotarget

Animal microbiome

Keeping it in the family: Coevolution of latrunculid sponges and their dominant bacterial symbionts – Gwynneth F. Matcher – Microbiology Open

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Divergent responses of β-diversity among organism groups to a strong environmental gradient – Micael Jonsson – Ecosphere

Phylogenetic congruence between subtropical trees and their associated fungi – Xubing Liu – Ecology and Evolution

Microbial cooperation in the rhizosphere improves liquorice growth under salt stress – Dilfuza Egamberdieva – Bioengineered

Extremophile microbiome

Extremophiles: Life at the deep end – Sonja-Verena Albers – Nature

Built environment microbiome

Dynamic change of surface microbiota with different environmental cleaning methods between two wards in a hospital – Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology

Bioreactor microbiology

In vitro study of soil arsenic release by human gut microbiota and its intestinal absorption by Caco-2 cells – Naiyi Yin – Chemosphere

Probiotics

Probiotic With or Without Fiber Controls Body Fat Mass, Associated With Serum Zonulin, in Overweight and Obese Adults—Randomized Controlled Trial  – Lotta K. Stenman – EBioMedicine

More microbes

Nanostructures and Monolayers of Spheres Reduce Surface Reflections in Hyperiid Amphipods – Laura E. Bagge – Current Biology

Press: Crustaceans in the ocean’s ‘twilight zone’ wear CAMOUFLAGE: Bacteria coating helps creatures avoid a predator’s gaze – Sarah Griffiths – Daily Mail

Microbes in the news

Videos from Microbiomes of the Built Environment NAS meeting posted – Jonathan Eisen – MicroBEnet

Iron-Loving Bacteria a Model For Mars Life – Elizabeth Howel –  Space.com

Dogs go on poop patrol to sniff out fecal bacteria. Rescue dogs trained to detect human fecal matter – Barbara Besteni – Local 10

Bacteria Sent In Space Could Be Potentially Infectious, Harmful – Elaine Hannah – Science World Report

Florida’s orange groves are being wiped out by tree-killing bacteria – CBS News

Rio fights Zika with biggest release yet of bacteria-infected mosquitoes. Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes will be widely deployed in two South American cities to combat viral infections – Ewen Callaway – Nature

Cranberries crush bacteria’s communication networks – Lisa-Ann Lee – New Atlas

Neonatal vaccination of mice with bacteria prevents cockroach-induced asthma as adults – News Medical

Bacteria and bugs in guts and gallbladders – Claire O’Connell – The Irish Times

October 20, 2016

Events

2016-2017 Dannon Gut Microbiome, Yogurt and Probiotics Fellowship Grant Application Form
Also see: Leading Yogurt Company Challenges Students to Unearth New Data on the Gut Microbiome, Yogurt and Probiotics with $50K Grant Program. Dannon® will award two $25K grants to further scientific research – PR Newswire

Third Annual Microbiome Symposium – Penn Vet – October 26 and 27, 2016
Penn’s microbiome conference turns eye toward antibiotic use in livestock
Text by Katherine Unger Baillie – Penn Current

Q4 microbiome conferences roundup: Are you looking for a good scientific microbiome research symposium? Over the next three months, you have six exciting microbiome conferences from which to choose. – Megan M. MacBride – Taconic

Disappointing lack of diversity here: #YAMMM: 29 speakers, 4 women. Microbiome Drug Development Summit, 24-26 January 2017, Paris, France

General microbiome

An introduction to microbiome analysis for human biology applications – Katherine R. Amato – American Journal of Human Biology

Human oral microbiome

Evaluation of oral microbiota in undernourished and eutrophic children using checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization – M. Testa – Anaerobe

Human respiratory microbiome

Role of microbiome in the pathophysiology and disease course of asthma – Singanayagam A – Curr Opin Pulm Med

Human skin microbiome

Review: Topographical and physiological differences of the skin mycobiome in health and disease – Jay-Hyun Jo – Virulence

Human vaginal microbiome

A fruitful alliance: the synergy between Atopobium vaginae and Gardnerella vaginalis in bacterial vaginosis-associated biofilm – Liselotte Hardy – Sexually Transmitted Infections

Human gut microbiome

Prevalence and genetic diversity of Blastocystis in family units living in the United States – Pauline D. Scanlan – Infection, Genetics and Evolution

Similar Fecal Microbiota Signatures in Patients With Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Patients With Depression – Yixuan Liu – Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology

Review: Roles for Intestinal Bacteria, Viruses, and Fungi in Pathogenesis of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases and Therapeutic Approaches – R. Balfour Sartor – Gastroenterology

Review: The Microbiome and Human Disease Pathogenesis: How do you do what you do to me …? – Edward N. Janoff – Translational Research

Animal models

Evaluating the association between body weight and the intestinal microbiota of weaned piglets via 16S rRNA sequencing – Geon Goo Hana – Veterinary Microbiology

Alterations of the Host Microbiome Affect Behavioral Responses to Cocaine – Drew D. Kiraly – Scientific Reports

Animal microbiome

Developmental and ecological benefits of the maternally transmitted microbiota in a dung beetle – Daniel B. Schwab – The American Naturalist

Microbiome analysis shows enrichment for specific bacteria in separate anatomical regions of the deep-sea carnivorous sponge Chondrocladia grandis – Joost T.P. Verhoeven – FEMS Microbiology Ecology Letters

Metabarcoding and metabolome analyses of copepod grazing reveal feeding preference and linkage to metabolite classes in dynamic microbial plankton communities – Jessica L. Ray – Molecular Ecology

Spatial Microbial Composition Along the Gastrointestinal Tract of Captive Attwater’s Prairie Chicken – Yan Zhang – Microbial Ecology

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Nestedness in Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Communities along Soil pH Gradients in Early Primary Succession: Acid-Tolerant Fungi Are pH Generalists – Ai Kawahara – PLOS ONE

Review: Microbially Mediated Plant Salt Tolerance and Microbiome-based Solutions for Saline Agriculture – Yuan Qin – Biotechnology Advances

Water microbiome

Defining boundaries for the distribution of microbial communities beneath the sediment-buried, hydrothermally active seafloor – Katsunori Yanagawa – ISME J

More microbiology

CorrespondenceImproving Microbiology Research: the Problems Are Less Statistical and More Biological – Dennis F. Lawler – mBio

What’s in a Name? New Bacterial Species and Changes to Taxonomic Status from 2012 through 2015 – Erik Munson – Journal of Clinical Microbiology

Microbes in the news

Tasmanian devil milk fights superbugs – BBC News
Tasmanian devil milk kills several deadly superbugs that are resistant to existing drugs – Science Alert

There’s a breast microbiome, and it’s different in women with breast cancer – Erin Blakemore – Washington Post

Research Highlight: A protective protozoan in mucosal infection – Katrina Ray – Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology

Outbreak of Biofilm-Forming Achromobacter xylosoxidans Due to Environmental Transmission – Infection Control Today

The Emergent Microbiome: A Revolution for the Life Sciences – Part VII, The Microbiome and Immunotherapy I – Dilworth IP – Lexology

New science museum exhibit explores ‘the secret world’ inside us: N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences in downtown Raleigh opens a new special exhibit this weekend – WRAL.com

Vedanta Biosciences Granted First European Patent Broadly Covering Pharmaceutical Compositions for Microbiome Therapeutics Based on Bacterial Consortia – Business Wire

Science, publishing, and career

Married to the(ir) job: living with an academic. Scholars and their significant others share the good, the bad and the ugly – Times Higher Education

Investigation Finds Pathologist Guilty of Systemic Misconduct – Bob Grant – The Scientist

Women need to be seen and heard at conferences. A neuroscience initiative is boosting the number of female invited speakers at meetings. Other disciplines should do the same – Nature

The Bearded Lady Project . Q&A: Lexi Jamieson Marsh and Ellen Currano: Face to face – Alexandra Witze – Nature