Latest Biofilm Stories

A study examining the prevalence of the fungus Fusarium in bathroom sink drains suggests that plumbing systems may be a common source of human infections. In the first extensive survey of its kind, researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences sampled nearly 500 sink drains from 131 buildings -- businesses, homes, university dormitories and public facilities -- in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and California. They...

Ultimate goal: Tailings water treatment plants for all oil sands operations Alberta's oilsands have water challenges. Oilsands development uses a vast amount of water and even though it's recycled multiple times, the recycling concentrates the toxins and metals leftover from extracting and upgrading the bitumen, resulting in tailings ponds that are both a lightning rod for controversy and a significant risk to the environment. A research project underway between biologists at the...

Scientists have discovered a new signal that helps invading bacteria communicate but also helps targeted rice plants coordinate defensive attacks on the disease-causing invaders, a finding that could lead to new methods of combating infection not just in plants, but in humans. Findings from the study, conducted by a team of researchers led by a University of California, Davis, scientist, will be reported in the Dec. 12 issue of the journal PLoS ONE and in the journal Discovery Medicine....

Single-celled bacteria communicate with each other using coded messages to coordinate attacks on their targets. Until now, the diversity of codes employed by these invading bacteria was thought to be extremely limited. However, a new report published Dec. 12 in PLoS ONE reveals bacterial communication by a novel, previously undescribed signal type – and, as is often the case in evolutionary stories, some plants have evolved a complementary cypher-breaking detection system that intercepts...

Research presented at ASCB annual meeting New fluorescent labeling technology that distinguishes in a single image the population size and spatial distribution of 15 different taxa has uncovered new taxon pairings that indicate unsuspected cooperation -- and standoffishness -- between members of the microbe biofilm that covers teeth, according to a presentation on Dec. 7, at the American Society for Cell Biology's Annual Meeting in Denver. Members of the genera Prevotella and...

VISTA, Calif., Dec. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The holidays are a festive time of gift giving and reflection where family members often gather to celebrate. It can also mean multiple houseguests. While it's important to bring family together, a group of people sharing your home can mean limited time for friskiness for you and your partner. However, the experts at Astroglide have advice on finding the time for making your own private holiday cheer. Here are some tips for those...

Interfering with the ability of biofilm-forming bacteria to sense starvation increases their susceptibility to antibiotics Many infections, even those caused by antibiotic-sensitive bacteria, resist treatment. This paradox has vexed physicians for decades, and makes some infections impossible to cure. A key cause of this resistance is that bacteria become starved for nutrients during infection. Starved bacteria resist killing by nearly every type of antibiotic, even ones they have never...

Work Holds Implications for Future Bioremediation Efforts Critical genetic secrets of a bacterium that holds potential for removing toxic and radioactive waste from the environment have been revealed in a study by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). The researchers have provided the first ever map of the genes that determine how these bacteria interact with their surrounding environment. “Knowing how bacteria...

A vampire-like bacteria that leeches onto specific other bacteria – including certain human pathogens – has the potential to serve as a living antibiotic for a range of infectious diseases, a new study indicates. The bacterium, Micavibrio aeruginosavorus, was discovered to inhabit wastewater nearly 30 years ago, but has not been extensively studied because it is difficult to culture and investigate using traditional microbiology techniques. However, biologists in the University of...

Study shows cranberry juice is better than extract at fighting bacterial infections With scientific evidence now supporting the age-old wisdom that cranberries, whether in sauce or as juice, prevent urinary tract infections, people have wondered if there was an element of the berry that, if extracted and condensed, perhaps in pill form, would be as effective as drinking the juice or eating cranberry sauce. A new study from researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute helps to answer that...