Alle afleveringen
367 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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366: Our Vanishing Ancient Gut Microbes
25 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 7 min
TWiM explains a bacterial antiviral defense system that uses a noncoding RNA template to build tandem-repeat DNA through a mechanism that parallels how eukaryotic telomerase extends telomeres, and genome sequencing of the Tsimane of Bolivia and the Hadza of Tanzania which reveals over a thousand gut bacterial species shared between the two populations, many now vanishing from industrialized humans, suggesting they co-migrated with our ancestors out of Africa and into the Americas. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Antiviral immunity via telomerase-like reverse transcription in bacteria (Nature)
Prehistoric global migration of vanishing gut microbes with humans (Nature)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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365: Bacteria Inside a Fungus Sabotage Plant Defenses
10 oktober 2026 · 51 min
TWiM explains how bacterial endosymbionts enhance fungal virulence by disrupting the protective rhizobiome, and the development of rationally engineered Salmonella typhimurium strains with enhanced safety and antitumor efficacy. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Plant, fungus, endosymbiont, and rhizobiome (PNAS)
Engineering S. typhimurium to kill tumors (mBio)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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364: DNA Damage as Defense Against Bee Pathogens
26 september 2026 · 47 min
TWiM wonders why archaea are not pathogenic, and reveals how a colibactin produced by a honeybee gut symbiont defends against pathogens. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Why are archaea not pathogenic? (mBio)
Archaeal viruses (Archaea)
Colibactin made in honeybee gut (Nat Micro)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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363: Why Vegetables Are Good for Your Heart
12 september 2026 · 58 min
TWiM explains the finding that Bunsen burners do not decrease deposition of microbe-containing particles, and how gut microbiota generate dinitrosyl iron complexes with cardiometabolic benefits. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Michael Schmidt
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Links for this episode:
Bunsen burners don't do what you thought they did (Micro Spectrum)
How does air circulate in passenger planes? | AFP
How germs travel on planes | Raymond Wang
Gut bacteria and cardiometabolic health (Cell)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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362: When Gut Bacteria Share Chromosomes
29 augustus 2026 · 52 min
TWiM explains how movement of DNA among gut bacteria drive large-scale genome mosaicism, and validation of a method for detection of Cyclospora cayetanensis in outbreak-linked fresh produce. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson, and Petra Levin
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Links for this episode:
Natural DNA transformation in the gut (ISME J)
The transformation factor (J Exp Med)
Validating cyclospora assay (J Food Prot)
Cyclosporiasis (CDC)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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361: Bacteria and Colon Cancer Recurrence
14 augustus 2026 · 53 min
TWiM explains the discovery of an avirulent bacterial signature associated with the development of recurrence following colorectal cancer surgery, and phage-derived proteins and conjugates that induce pilus detachment. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Petra Levin
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Links for this episode:
Bacterial signature is associated with colon cancer recurrence (Nat Comm)
Phage-derived proteins induce pilus detachment (J Bact)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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360: Nitrogen Fixation Goes Eukaryotic
31 juli 2026 · 56 min
TWiM explains major implications of the link between plastic pollution and antimicrobial resistance, and the discovery of a new organelle, the nitrogen-fixing nitroplast. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Plastic pollution and antimicrobial resistance (Appl Envir Micro)
The great Pacific garbage patch (YouTube)
Rumen microbiome (Nat Biotech)
Nitrogen-fixing organelle in marine alga (Science)
This cell just changed biology (YouTube)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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359: Kin Killing and Metal Hunger
18 juli 2026 · 48 min
TWiM explains how cannibalism shapes biofilm structure and composition in Bacillus subtilis, and the importance of manganese uptake in uropathogenic E. coli during urinary tract infection. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Cannibalism shapes biofilm structure (mBio)
Manganese and uropathogenic E. coli (mBio)
Regulation of Bacterial MntH Genes (NLM Bookshelf)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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358: Gut Microbes and ALS
5 juli 2026 · 58 min
TWiM explains the connection between inflammation caused by microbial glycogen in the gut and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and how disruption of cysteine metabolism leads to synthetic lethality and in vivo fitness impairment in Acinetobacter baumannii. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Myeloid cell gene prevents inflammatory response to microbial glycogen (Cell Rep)
Cysteine metabolism and fitness impairment in Acinetobacter baumannii (mBio)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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357: Remembering Elio at Tufts
15 juni 2026 · 56 min
TWiM visits Tufts University School of Medcine and are joined by John Coffin, Michael Malamy, and Verna Manni for a tribute to Elio Schaechter who was chair of Molecular Biology and Microbiology for 23 years. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson, and Petra Levin
Guests: John Coffin, Michael Malamy, and Verna Manni
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, RSS, or by email.
Become a Patron of TWiM!
Music used on TWiM is by Ronald Jenkees.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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TWiM 356: Nanopore to the bone
29 mei 2026 · 49 min
TWiM explains how Streptococcus mitis bacteriocins drive contact-dependent lysis of S. pneumoniae facilitating transformation, and microbial dominance in diabetic foot osteomyelitis determined with nanopore sequencing. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, RSS, or by email.
Links for this episode
Streptococcus mitis bacteriocins drive contact-dependent lysis of S. pneumoniae (mBio)
Microbial dominance in diabetic foot osteomyelitis determined with nanopore sequencing (J Inf Dis)
Diabetic foot ulcer review (World J Clin Cases)
How nanopore sequencing works (YouTube)
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Music used on TWiM is by Ronald Jenkees.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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355: Bacteria Complete Your tRNA
9 mei 2026 · 56 min
TWiM explains how an enhanced domestication method allows for growth of uncultured bacteria, and identification of the oncogene SLC35F2 as is a high-specificity transporter for the micronutrients queuine and queuosine. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson.
Guest: Mark O. Martin
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Domestication method for uncultured bacteria (ISME Comm)
Transporter for the micronutrients queuine and queuosine (PNAS)
How diet and microbiome can impact your health (UF blog)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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354: How a Gut Microbe Worsens Heart Disease
24 april 2026 · 59 min
TWiM explains a candidate signature of health in the gut microbial community, and how an intestinal bacterium exacerbates cardiac ischemia/reperfusion injury. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson and Petra Levin.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
A candidate signature of health in the gut microbiome (Cell Host Microbe)
204,938 reference genomes from the human gut microbiome (Nat Biotech)
A human gut metagenome-assembled genome catalogue spanning 41 countries (Nat Micro)
A comprehensive ruminant microbial catalog (Gigascience)
Bacteroides acidifaciens exacerbates cardiac ischemia/reperfusion injury (Cell Host Microbe)
The Great Ozempic Experiment (NY Times, paywall)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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353: Microbial Metabolism of Food Allergens
11 april 2026 · 47 min
TWiM explains how to use microbes to enhance maize yield and reduce corn rootworm damage, and how the human microbiota modulates IgE-mediated reactions to foods through allergen metabolism. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin, and Michele Swanson.
Guest: Mark O. Martin
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Harnessing Microbes for Crop Production (Phytobiome J)
Microbes take on corn rootworm (Science)
Microbial metabolism of food allergens (Cell Host Microbe)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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352: Microbial Gut Biosensors
28 maart 2026 · 1 uur
TWiM reveals the archaeal roots of eukaryotic life, and a building a gut malabsorption biosensor with bacteria. Lees meer
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
The archaeal roots of eukaryotic life (PNAS)
Building a malabsorption biosensor (Cell)
Engineering gut biosensors with microbes (Nature)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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351: Resistance Reboot
7 maart 2026 · 59 min
TWiM discusses the use of bacteriophage-loaded microneedle patches for targeted and minimally disruptive foodborne pathogen decontamination, and a conjugal gene drive-like system that efficiently suppresses antibiotic resistance in bacteria. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Bacteriophage-loaded microneedle patches for food (Sci Adv)
Gene drive to suppress antibiotic resistance (npj antimicrob and resistance)
CRISPR gene drives (Syntego)
Bier laboratory
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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350: TWiM Goes to College
14 februari 2026 · 53 min
Nancy and Maggie join TWiM to share how and why they created a freely available ebook of TWiM-based science literacy resources and classroom exercises that support teaching across key microbiology and molecular biology topics. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Podcast annotation and resources in microbiology (Iowa State U)
Curriculum guidelines for undergraduate microbiology (ASM)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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349: Punctured to Death by Spikes
1 februari 2026 · 59 min
TWiM explains how mechano-bactericidal surfaces made from diverse materials and patterned with spikes kill bacteria on contact, and virus-host evolution is reshaped by microgravity aboard the International Space Station. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Mechano-Bactericidal Surfaces (Adv Sci)
Piercing pathogens (ASM)
Natural bactericidal surfaces (Small)
Virus-host evolution in microgravity (PLoS Biol)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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348: The Bark Side of the Microbiome
21 januari 2026 · 54 min
TWiM explains the finding that owning a dog during adolescence alters the microbiota and improves mental health, and the molecular basis for multidrug efflux by an anaerobic-associated resistance-nodulation-cell division transporter. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson and Petra Levin.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Dog ownership and the microbiome during adolescence (iScience)
Molecular basis for multidrug efflux (Nat Comm)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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347: At Wound's Edge
5 januari 2026 · 55 min
TWiM explains how S. aureus pathogenicity is a dynamic, niche-specific choreography that constantly recalibrates in response to the host microenvironment, and short chain fatty acids produced by commensal microbiota reduces its competitive fitness. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson and Petra Levin.
Guest: Mark O. Martin
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Links for this episode:
Niche-specific fitness of S. aureus at the wound edge (Nat Comm)
Commensal derived short chain fatty acids attenuate S. aureus (mBio)
Ditch the term pathogen (Nature)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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346: Metabolism and Porin Permeability
13 december 2025 · 54 min
TWiM explains how competition for nutrients anticipates and potentially mitigate drug side effects on the gut microbiota, and metabolic control of porin permeability influences antibiotic resistance. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt and Petra Levin
Guest: Mark O. Martin
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Links for this episode:
Nutrient competition predicts drug effects on microbiota (Cell)
Metabolic control of porin permeability influences antibiotic resistance in E coli (Nat Micro)
Santiago Cano-Muniz
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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345: Faster Than Rocks!
22 november 2025 · 54 min
TWiM explains a biological mechanism that links sulfur and iron cycling in anoxic environments, and "swashing," a form of surface movement in which bacteria migrate without active propulsion. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson, and Petra Levin
Guest: Mark O. Martin
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, RSS, or by email.
Links for this episode
Sulfur and iron cycling in anoxic environments (Nature)
Bacterial surface migration by swashing (J Bacteriol)
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Music used on TWiM is by Ronald Jenkees.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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344: Ant Yogurt and Fine Chocolate
8 november 2025 · 1 uur 6 min
TWiM reveals the bacteria, acids, and enzymes behind yogurt made with ants, and a defined set of microbes that reproduces attributes of fine flavor chocolate fermentation Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Petra Levin
Guest: Mark O. Martin
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Links for this episode:
Making yogurt with ants (iScience)
The Alchemist Restaurant
How to make classic tuiles (MasterClass)
Defined microbes for chocolate (Nat Micro)
Microbial chocolatiers of fine flavour (Nat Micro)
Blind taste every chocolate bar (YouTube)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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343: Nucleotides to the Defense
25 oktober 2025 · 44 min
TWiM explores two different ways that bacteria defend against phages through the synthesis of cyclic nucleotides. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt and Mark O. Martin
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Links for this episode:
Decoy cyclic nucleotides in phage defense (Nature)
CRISPR defense with nucleotides (Nature)
A decoy defence molecule to set a trap for viruses (Nature)
Cyclic oligonucleotide-based antiphage signaling system immunity (Curr Opin Immunol)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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342: The Microbiome, Pancreatic Cancer, and Sleep Quality
11 oktober 2025 · 54 min
TWiM explains studies that show that the oral bacterial and fungal microbiome are risk factors for pancreatic cancer, and the gut microbiome and pyruvate metabolism of older adults are a link between sleep quality and frailty. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
Become a patron of TWiM.
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Oral microbiome and pancreatic cancer risk (JAMA Oncol)
2025 Cancer Facts & Figures (ACS)
Periodontal Disease: The Good, The Bad, and The Unknown (Front Cell Infect Micro)
Socransky's disease complexes (Microorg)
Microbiome, pyruvate metabolism, sleep quality, and frailty (Cell Rep)
Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (pdf)
How to score the sleep quality index (pdf)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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341: Sea Star Wasting Disease
27 september 2025 · 49 min
TWiM reveals a Vibrio as the causative agent of sea star wasting disease, and using microcolony-seq to uncover phenotypic inheritance from single cells. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt and Michele Swanson
Guest: Mark O. Martin
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Links for this episode:
Agent of sea star wasting disease (Nat Ecol Evol)
Sea star wasting mystery solved (Nat Ecol Evol)
Phenotypic inheritance from single cells (Cell)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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340: Microbes in Trees and Plants
13 september 2025 · 49 min
TWiM explores the varied and distinct microbiome of trees, and an array of biopesticidal metabolites against mosquito larvae isolated from a Mediterranean island. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Microbiome of trees (Nature)
Biopesticides from a Mediterranean island (Appl Environ Micro)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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339: Missing the Company of Elio
29 augustus 2025 · 59 min
TWiM pays tribute to Elio Schaechter, former TWiM host, blogger, and microbiologist extraordinaire, then reviews the finding that Archaea produce peptidoglycan hydrolases that kill bacteria - a form of competition. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson and Petra Levin.
Guest Mark O. Martin.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Elio Schaechter (Wikipedia)
Elio Schaechter Funeral Service (video)
Archaea produce peptidoglycan hydrolases that kill bacteria (PLoS Biol)
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338: Rewriting the Code of Life
16 augustus 2025 · 53 min
TWiM discusses outbreak of Legionnaires disease in Harlem NY, an automated whole genome sequencing platform for bacterial strain typing in clinical microbiology laboratories, building E. coli with a 57-codon genetic code. Lees meer
Links for this episode
Legionnaires' disease outbreak in NY (NY Health)
Automated whole genome sequencing for clinical labs (J Clin Micro)
Sequencing workflow for outbreaks (J Clin Micro)
Rewriting code of life (NYTimes)
E. coli with a 57-codon genetic code (Science)
E. coli with one stop codon (TWiM 330)
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
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337: Lifestyles of the Plasmids
31 juli 2025 · 1 uur 5 min
TWiM explains a study that examines pathogen presence in ancient humans and concludes that zoonoses emerged 6500 years ago with the domestication of livestock, and determination of universal rules that govern plasmid copy number. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson, and Petra Levin
Guests: Mark O. Martin
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Links for this episode:
Human pathogens in ancient Eurasia (Nature)
What once ailed us (NY Times)
Rules of plasmid copy number (Nature Comm)
Scaling laws of plasmids (Nature Comm)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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336: The Volatilome of Biofluids
19 juli 2025 · 56 min
TWiM explores the use of gas sensors and machine learning to identify microbes and antimicrobial resistance in clinical specimens, and how a harmful algal bloom species releases thiamin antivitamins to suppress competitors. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Microbial and antimicrobial resistance diagnostics (Cell Biomaterials)
Thiamin antivitamins suppress algal competitors (mBio)
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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335: Slip Slidin' Away
4 juli 2025 · 50 min
TWiM explains two strategies for bacterial competition for resources: by laying down a slippery lipid and pushing away competitors, or by breaking open cells with a spike, liberating essential nutrients. Lees meer
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Links for this episode:
Secreting a slippery lipid (mBio)
Lysing neighboring cells for nutrients (Science)
Underwater hockey (YouTube
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv
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334: Fungal Smuggle
20 juni 2025 · 57 min
TWiM describes how microbiological analysis of the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn has revealed an antimicrobial resistance reservoir and bioremediation potential, and fungicide resistance in Fusarium graminearum, the fungus recently smuggled into the US. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Petra Levin.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
Become a patron of TWiM.
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Microbiology of the Gowanus Canal (J. Appl. Micro)
Microbes clean up Gowanus (BrooklynPaper)
Fungicide resistance in Fusarium (Pathogens)
Couple smuggles fungal pathogen into US (NBC)
Fusarium and wheat-management strategies (Pathogens)
Laboratory Biosafety (pdf)
NIH Biosafety (NIH)
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333: When Mutualists Murder
7 juni 2025 · 58 min
TWiM explains how a mutualistic model bacterium can become lethal in a non-symbiotic host, and engineering a kill switch into a tuberculosis vaccine for improved safety. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
Become a patron of TWiM.
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
When a mutualist becomes lethal (mBio)
A lasting symbiosis (Nat Rev Micro)
A kill switch for BCG (Nat Micro)
Engineering mycobacteria for vaccination (Nat Micro)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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332: Fibromyalgia Pain and the Gut Microbiome
23 mei 2025 · 1 uur 3 min
TWiM explains a study of the unique and extreme microbial and chemical environment on the International Space Station, and the connection between the gut microbiome and pain in fibromyalgia. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
ISS chemical and microbial environment (Cell)
Gut microbiota and fibromyalgia pain (Neuron)
Gut pain eases after doses of gut microbes (Nature)
Skin innervation and fibromyalgia pain (Ann Neurol)
Altered microbiome in fibromyalgia (Pain)
Intestinal microbiome and fibromyalgia (Intl J Rheum Dis)
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331: Radar Love in Bacteria
26 april 2025 · 47 min
TWiM describes isolation of a novel bacterial species isolated from the China Space Station, and how a chemical radar allows bacteria to detect and kill predators. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Petra Levin.
Guest Mark O. Martin.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Niallia tiangongensis from the China Space Station (Int J Syst Evol Biol)
Bacterial chemical radar (Cell)
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330: More mouth Microbiology
11 april 2025 · 54 min
TWiM explains how to recode E. coli so it uses only one stop codon, and an exploration of the mechanisms of bacterial adhesion within dental plaque. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Engineering E. coli with one stop codon (Nature)
Bacterial adhesion in dental plaque (mBio)
Microbial complexes in subgingival plaque (J Clin Periodontol)
Bacterial clusters in periodontal and peri-implant diseases (Microorg)
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329: Bacteria Hunt With Grappling Hooks
17 maart 2025 · 54 min
TWiM explains Pasteur's relentless hunt for microbes in the air, and how bacteria hunt for prey by ixotrophy - using grappling hooks! Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Pasteur's hunt for microbes in the air (NYTimes)
Bacterial predation by ixotrophy (Science)
Enter the pirates (STC)
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328: Capturing Shigella With Filopodia
28 februari 2025 · 47 min
TWiM describes Shigella infection is facilitated by interaction of human enteric α-defensin 5 with a colonic epithelial receptor, and an amino acid change in RNA polymerase that leads to resistance to β-lactams by preventing dysregulation of amino acid and nucleotide metabolism Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
Become a patron of TWiM.
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
National Black HIV/AIDS awareness day (CDC)
Shigella infection and human enteric alpha-defensin 5 (Nature Microbio)
RNA polymerase amino acid change and resistance to beta-lactams (Cell Rep)
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327: Freezing and Anti-Freezing With Bacteria
6 februari 2025 · 52 min
TWiM explains the remarkable abilities of bacterial ice nucleating proteins to promote freezing of water, and cryoprotective proteins produced by worm microbiomes that prevent freezing. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Worm microbiomes produce crytoprotective proteins (Sci Adv)
Biological antifreeze in Antarctic fishes (Sciece)
Enhancement of bacterial ice nucleators (PNAS)
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326: I Have One Word For You: PETase!
24 januari 2025 · 53 min
TWiM explores the discovery of microbial enzymes, PETases, that can degrade ubiquitous plastics, and how exogenous peptidoglycan is a danger signal to trigger biofilm formation. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson.
Guest Mark O. Martin.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Discovery of PET depolymerases (Science)
Exogenous peptidoglycan triggers biofilm formation (Nat Micro)
What is a biofilm? (Vimeo)
Peptidoglycan as a PAMP/MAMP (Immunol Rev)
Light organ formation triggered by peptidoglycan (Science)
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325: Microbes Making Methane
11 januari 2025 · 42 min
TWiM reveals that record high atmospheric methane growth has been driven by microbes, and the cecum as an adaptive niche for Salmonella typhi. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Why a potent greenhouse gas is rising (WaPo)
Microbial emissions drove record high atmospheric methane growth (PNAS)
Salmonella biofilm formation in the cecum (mBio)
Typhoid Mary (The Collector)
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324: Back To School for TWiM
27 december 2024 · 1 uur 2 min
From ASMCUE 2024, the conference on undergraduate education, TWiM speaks with Becky, Melanie, and Katriana about their careers and how they use TWiM in undergraduate microbiology education. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt and Mark O. Martin
Guests: Becky Seipel-Thiemann, Melanie Melendrez-Vallard, and Katriana Popichak
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
Become a patron of TWiM.
Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Take the TWiM Listener survey!
Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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323: Better Concrete With Microbes
13 december 2024 · 1 uur
TWiM describes how to make concrete more 'green' by using microbes, and bacterial bioluminescence as an important regulator of multitrophic interactions in the soil. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson and and Mark O. Martin.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, RSS, or by email.
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Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.
Links for this episode
Construction nanobiotechnology for concrete (Appl Env Micro)
Self-healing concrete (Sci Tot Environ)
Microbe-inspired self-healing concrete (Front Struct Civil Eng)
Bacterial bioluminescence regulates multitrophic interactions in the soil (Cell Rep)
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322: Photohydrolysis Decontamination Reduces Healthcare-associated Infections
22 november 2024 · 58 min
TWiM explains how ticagrelor alters the membrane of S. aureus and enhances the activity of vancomycin and daptomycin without eliciting cross-resistance, and the development of a novel continuous disinfectant technology that decreases healthcare-associated infections in ICUs by 70%. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson.
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Links for this episode
Ticagrelor and S. aureus (mBio)
Novel disinfectant technology (Am J Inf Control)
UVC-LED to inactivate foodborne pathogens (Appl Envir Micro)
UV disinfection systems (ACS Photonics)
High-touch surfaces in specialized patient care area (CDC)
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321: The Microbes in Your Food
8 november 2024 · 1 uur
TWiM focuses on recent foodborne outbreaks of bacterial infections, and how nanopore sequencing technology can be used to identify pathogenic microbes and antimicrobial resistance genes in food products. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
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Links for this episode
Foodborne outbreaks (CDC)
Race to nourish a warming world (Gates Foundation)
Nanopore sequencing of foods (Food Microbiol)
How is Oxford Nanopore used? (YouTube)
Introduction to Nanopore sequencing (YouTube)
Methods for detecting foodborne pathogens (Appl Micro Biotech)
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320: Rockstars of USAMRIID
25 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 15 min
TWiM travels to the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases to learn how research conducted at USAMRIID leads to vaccines, drugs, diagnostics, and training programs that protect both warfighters and civilians. Lees meer
Hosts: Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
Guests: Norman Kreiselmeir, Christopher K Coat, Keersten Ricks, and Eric Nguyen
Links for this episode:
U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases
Threading the NEIDL (TWiV 200)
Unintentional importation of B. pseudomallei into US (Emerg Inf Dis)
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Links for this episode
Engineering the cow for less methane emissions (WaPo)
Precision microbiome editing (Audacious Project)
Giant viruses carry antibiotic resistance genes (Nat Commun)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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319: The Dark Side of the Rumen
11 oktober 2024 · 52 min
TWiM explains a project to engineer the cow microbiome to reduce emissions of methane, and the finding of antibiotic resistance genes in the genomes of giant viruses. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email.
Become a patron of TWiM.
Links for this episode
Engineering the cow for less methane emissions (WaPo)
Precision microbiome editing (Audacious Project)
Giant viruses carry antibiotic resistance genes (Nat Commun)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv
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318: How To Pick a Winner
28 september 2024 · 1 uur 7 min
TWiM explains how bacterial community structure can be used to predict athletic performance in racehorses, and the idea that a tiny fraction of all species forms most of Nature. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Mark O. Martin.
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Links for this episode
Microbiome picks a winner (Sci Rep)
Picking a Winner by Reading the Form
Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes by Stephen Jay Gould
How much does it cost to breed a horse?
Date of birth and purchase price as foals or yearlings and race performance
Rarity as a sticky state (PNAS)
How many species on Earth? (PLoS Biol)
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317: Bat White-nose Syndrome
15 september 2024 · 55 min
TWiM explains unique modifications in the energy conservation pathways linked to methanogenesis in an Archaeon, and mechanisms of white nose fungal invasion of cells from the Little Brown Bat. Lees meer
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Petra Levin and Michele Swanson.
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Links for this episode
Methyl-reducing methanogenesis (Nature)
Pathogenic strategies of Pseudogymnoascus destructans (Science)
Adaptive fungal invasion of bat cells (Science)
Little brown bat (Critter Catalog)
Nature Notes: Little Brown Bat (Harpswell)
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Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv