- History of science ×
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Working with government during a public health crisis
June 11, 2020
During the COVID-19 pandemic, politicians are looking to experts from the scientific community to inform the government’s response to control the spread of the virus. Microbiologists have contributed to the management of many public health emergencies and we are reflecting on how members of our community have used their expertise to help manage these events. In this blog, past President of the Microbiology Society Professor Sir T. Hugh Pennington discusses his experience as Chairman of a number of Public Enquiries into outbreaks of Escherichia coli O157 in the UK.
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Has TB had its time?
September 26, 2018
In 19th century Europe, the Industrial Revolution brought on a new age of technological advancement. Cities saw an explosion in population growth. But with this came something more sinister - a mysterious disease which killed as many as one in four people. Factories opened and jobs in towns and cities grew in abundance. Urban populations boomed whilst living conditions deteriorated. There was little-to-no sanitation, and more and more people crammed into smaller living spaces; a perfect breeding ground for disease.
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A history of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14
August 6, 2018
This month, the first paper describing Pseudomonas aeruginosa UCBPP-PA14 has been re-printed in the Journal of Medical Microbiology. Pseudomonas aeruginosa UCBPP-PA14 is a unique strain. It can cause severe disease in both plants and animals. Because of this, it is becoming increasingly popular in pathogenesis research.
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Keeping up with virus taxonomy
July 16, 2018
As sequencing technologies continue to become more efficient, more and more viruses are being discovered. Until recently, classification of these new viruses still relied upon information about physical properties. The ICTV has since embraced metagenomics, using sequence data to infer biological properties and define new viruses.
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Drumming up disease? Anthrax and African drum hides
October 6, 2016
In 2006, a man in Scotland died from the first case of anthrax in Britain for 32 years. Then, in 2008, a man in London was fatally infected with the same disease. The properties of both men were sealed up while the authorities investigated where the anthrax spores had come from. The source in both cases? West African drums, made from animal hides.
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New to science: May 2016
May 31, 2016
Each month, the Microbiology Society publishes the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology (IJSEM), which details newly discovered species of bacteria, fungi and protists. Here are a few of the new species that have been discovered and the places they’ve been found. The full papers are available to journal subscribers, but the abstracts are free to read.
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Vaccines: From the cowshed to the clinic
April 14, 2016
Vaccines are an essential component of public health, keeping people safe against disease. But how do they work, how are they manufactured and what are the challenges involved? We spoke to Dr Sarah Gilbert from the Jenner Institute to find out more.
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Revisiting the Ancientbiotics project
March 22, 2016
It was this time last year at the Annual Conference that Dr Freya Harrison from the University of Nottingham gave a talk about the rediscovery she and her colleagues made of a 1,000-year-old Anglo-Saxon treatment for eye infections. A year after the announcement, we caught up with Freya to see how the research on the salve was progressing.
