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From parasites to plastics: new microbes discovered this month
January 30, 2023
Each month, the Microbiology Society publishes the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, which details newly discovered species of bacteria, fungi and protists. Here are some of the new species that have been discovered and the places they've been found.
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Microbiology Today: the impact of air pollution on bacteria
June 11, 2021
In this episode of Microbe Talk, Laura speaks with Lillie Purser, PhD student at the University of Leicester. Lillie’s research explores how air pollution can affect the way bacteria behave, specifically strains of bacteria involved in the health condition chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
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The microbial risks of UK urban flooding
June 3, 2021
I am a currently studying in the department of civil and structural engineering, supervised by Dr Isabel Douterelo Soler, Dr James Shucksmith, and Dr Henriette Jensen. As my undergraduate degree was in Biology, working in the engineering department has definitely been a big change. However, it’s really exciting to see how biology can be applied to civil engineering to help investigate complex problems, such as the risk posed by floods to public health.
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Why should we study Astrobiology?
January 11, 2021
Astrobiology is the study of life throughout our universe, but why is it worth studying?
In the second instalment of the two-part Space and Microbiology video series, Dr André Antunes takes us through the importance of studying astrobiology.
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How will the COVID-19 pandemic impact a sustainable future?
November 27, 2020
COVID-19 has had huge, potentially lasting impacts on all aspects of our daily lives. Yet what long-term effects the pandemic will have not only on our day-to-day living, but also on the environment, is still unclear.
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Breaking bottles: microbial degradation and remediation of PET plastic
November 24, 2020
Microplastic pollution is currently at the forefront of public interest in environmental science, with widespread effort to curb plastic usage in order to mitigate environmental catastrophe. In this blog, Jack Henderson discusses the role microbes have to play in solving the plastic pollution problem.
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Why is soil microbiology important?
August 28, 2020
As part of our ‘A Sustainable Future’ policy project, we spoke to Professor Matthew Goddard from the University of Lincoln about his research into the soil microbiome. In this video he tells us more about the importance soil microbes in agriculture, the impact of chemical fungicides and why microbes are vital for more sustainable food production, and thus achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
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Microbe Talk: Microbial genomics amidst the Arctic crisis
July 17, 2020
On this month’s Microbe Talk, Matt talks to Dr Arwyn Edwards; an Arctic microbiologist based at Aberystwyth University. Dr Edwards recently published a paper in Microbial Genomics entitled ‘Microbial genomics amidst the Arctic crisis’. Dr Edwards and Matt discuss the paper, the challenges of working in the Arctic and how Arctic microbial research is changing.