Category Archives: microbiology

Nancy Moran awarded the 2017 Molecular Ecology Prize

The 2017 Molecular Ecology Prize will go to Professor Nancy Moran of the University of Texas at Austin. The Prize is awarded by the Editorial Board of Molecular Ecology to recognize “an outstanding scientist who has made significant contributions to … Continue reading

Posted in Coevolution, community, evolution, microbiology, Molecular Ecology, the journal | Tagged , | 4 Comments

A sponge and its symbionts, using genomics to unravel complex relationships

The ocean is full of interesting organisms and even more fascinating (as well as difficult to tease apart) are the interactions among them. From deep sea giant tube worms, to the adorable bobtail squid, symbioses have a central role, and … Continue reading

Posted in Coevolution, community ecology, genomics, metagenomics, microbiology | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Dishing out Art: “Soiling” our microbiology curriculum

Sarah Adkins wrote this post as a final project for Stacy Krueger-Hadfield’s Science Communication course at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She is a MS student working with Dr. Jeffrey Morris at UAB. They are looking at how microbes (i.e., phytoplankton and E. … Continue reading

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How much wood would a termite chuck…if it was missing its microbial symbionts

Termites get a pretty bad rap, probably because we think of our houses disintegrating when they move in. Ironically, we have a lot to learn from these critters, and their mounds have served as an inspiration for modern architecture. Either … Continue reading

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When microbes can move mountains, studying microbial communities on glaciers

Bacteria are amazing, and as a recent article by Ambrosini and colleagues reminds us, they are quite literally, just about everywhere. Before reading this article, I have to admit, I was a little rusty on my definition of cryoconite holes, … Continue reading

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I do not think it means what you think it means: "relic DNA" can obscure microbial diversity studies

Although microbes are small, they play an important part in both biogeochemical cycles in the ocean as well as on land. However, as they are not so easy to observe by eye, and in many cases can’t be cultured in … Continue reading

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When the going gets hot the dinoflagellates (sometimes) get going, how viruses might affect coral symbionts

Corals represent more than meets the eye, they host intricate and interesting communities composed of dinoflagellates (also referred to as zooxanthellae), and a suite of microbes that include bacteria, archaea, fungi, protists, and viruses. One such dinoflagellate that often shares … Continue reading

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Diving into chilly California waters, understanding genomic differentiation and the role of gene transfer in marine cyanophages

At this point, it’s clear: microbes are everywhere, there are a lot of them, and they are important. In fact, they are more abundant, more diverse and older than any other organism we have on this planet. In particular, cyanobacteria … Continue reading

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The importance of culturing the uncultured, delving into the microbial consortia in the human gut

The molecular side of ecology has grown by leaps and bounds in recent decades. The review we covered not too long ago, did a nice job of summarizing many key aspects highlighting the importance of this relatively new molecular view … Continue reading

Posted in community ecology, genomics, medicine, metagenomics, microbiology | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

There are more microbes than meet the eye: exploring the genomic diversity in an aquifer

First: it’s Tuesday, November 8th, 2016 – before you even think about putting your feet up and reading this post, I hope you’ve managed to wrangle yourself one of those highly prized “I voted” stickers. Now, on to more microbial … Continue reading

Posted in bioinformatics, community ecology, metagenomics, microbiology, next generation sequencing | Tagged , , | 1 Comment