Julian’s Bug Blog

New research has shown that the bacteria in our gut can be a cause of obesity. The human gut is filled with health-giving bacteria, which provide energy, nutrients and digestive aids. Research has now demonstrated that the amount and type of bacteria in your digestive tract can reduce obesity, and not just improve digestion. A [...]

The following is the article discussed: http://www.boston.com/business/healthcare/articles/2010/03/15/researchers_trying_to_outwit_undead_germs_that_may_cause_chronic_infections/ This is the paper in the Public Library of Science which the article discusses: http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pbio.1000317 We’ve learned that when the survival of a bacteria is threatened it can retreat in effect to a dormant stage, which will allow it to become active once more in the future, and protect [...]

The article I chose was from The New York Times website: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/06/science/space/06yeast.html?_r=1&scp=28&sq=microbes&st=cse I found further information on the project and its results from the NASA website linked here: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/smallsats/pharmasat/main/index.html The point of the experiment was essentially to measure the influence of microgravity on yeast resistance to an anti-fungal agent.  Previous experiments had indicated that some [...]

Soap is better at killing germs than hand sanitizer  A study at the University of Ottawa says that hand sanitizers claiming to kill 99.9% of germs actually kill much fewer in real-world conditions. Although the statement of 99.9% effectiveness may be true in lab settings, in ordinary life using soap and water is a much [...]

The article can be found on the website of the Globe and Mail via the following link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/your-business/business-categories/innovation/pinpointing-lethal-bacteria-within-minutes/article1284589/ I think that such a test would greatly enhance food security and hence have important impacts on society. The need for better and faster control has been demonstrated yesterday: The Canadian Food Inspection Agency had to issue [...]

asknature.org: This is where I initially found information and got interested about my subject. What Asknature.org is, is an open source project that gathers ideas, and inventions that try to incorporate or emulate natures functional design and strategies into their own synthetic models.  The website assumes that nature, through the process of evolution and natural [...]

Bacteria As Art Biophysicists Grow Pretty Bacteria In Petri Dishes To Find Antibiotics The daily science news article can be found at: http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2008/1211-bacteria_as_art.htm. But the real interesting stuff is at the arcane Dr. Eshel Ben-Jacob’s homepage: http://star.tau.ac.il/~eshel/index.html.  This website displays both his artwork and a selection of his academic writing.  One particularly interesting paper, from [...]

CBC News Glowing methane has been detected in the upper atmosphere of a Jupiter-sized planet orbiting very closely to its star. This artist’s drawing shows the Jupiter-sized planet HD 189733b orbiting very closely to its star. (ESA, NASA and G. Tinetti/University College London) The planet, called HD 189733b, is orbiting a star about 63 light-years [...]

Global Update Microbes: Fighting Mosquito-Transmitted Viruses With Bacteria That Infect Many Insects By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr. Published: January 4, 2010 A type of bacteria that infects many insects may make mosquitoes more resistant to viruses that can be dangerous to humans, researchers have found. Andy Klevorn/Ludington Daily News, via Associated Press The discovery could [...]

Here’s the link to the article I read about showerheads containing the Mycobacerium Avium bacteria= http://www.chicagodefender.com/article-6487-showerheads-may-harbor-bacteria-dangerous-to-some.html My thoughts about this article is that the sample size (45 showers, 4 in rural areas) was too small and that the researchers confused correlation with causation. It seems to me that the lack of mycobacterium in rural areas [...]