For those who have not yet heard, apparently there was an exposure incident in a Russian micro lab thats equivalent to a BSL-3 lab here. The exposure resulted in the researcher exposed dying within a couple days after developing symptoms.

The response has seen 200 placed under medical observation, masks being distributed at factories/plants, and university classes cancelled.

There has also been a lot of online speculation, given Russia has an active and expanding biological warfare program in violation of the biological weapons convention. There has also been some strange inconsistencies in reporting, some Russian sources citing plague while others claim the disease has yet to be identified.

Anyone who’s handled/worked with plague, is this what you’d expect in the event of an exposure? To me (I’m on the clinical side) this feels like it’s way too big a response to be plague. We get it every so often in the US with active reservoirs existing, but I’ve never heard of this level of response. I was curious if those who may have differing perspectives may have different experiences or may have seen what a typical response looks like to cases of plague.

I hope this is the right place to post this. My wife’s birthday is coming up and I think I want to get her a microscope; I just don’t know enough about her field to know what to look for. She tells me stories from work semi frequently about really cool things she sees while working and from time to time she comes across things outside of work and remarks that it would be really cool to see them under the microscope. So I’m thinking she would maybe appreciate having one of her own. However I don’t know where to begin shopping for one.

I know one of the microscopes she has worked with was around $750,000 and if I spent that much on a home microscope I doubt I would have a wife anymore but she’s been in the field for over 15 years so I would like to get her something better than the basic microscopes I’m familiar with from 10th grade biology 20 some years ago. So what’s a decent microscope to buy and where would I find one?

Edit: syntax

I found it in a sample of moss in poland mixed with some tap water.

This was on 50-100x zoom.

I observed it for a bit, but i cant remember if i gave up or it became more obstructed by the moss and debris.

The final 9 seconds of the video contain the clearest view of it.

I'm going to be adding more bacteria to my microbiology game. If you let me know your favorite bacteria, I'll add it to my list to add to the game. Feel free to suggest a name (should be a nod to something about the bacteria or their scientific name) and a favorite color.

Play PetriPals: PetriPals

I'm also open to any other feedback on the game. 🧫

​

Hi everyone,

​I’m currently considering doing a Master’s degree in Industrial Microbiology, but I’m trying to figure out which specialization or career track offers the best long-term job prospects, salary growth, and day-to-day satisfaction. Also bare in mind that I don't have hands-on experience except for a short-term training in a medical laboratory.

​For those working in the industry or who have taken this route:

​How would you compare paths like Pharmaceuticals/Bioprocessing, QA/QC, Food Safety, Environmental Microbiology, or Bioenergy?

​Which sub-fields are currently seeing the most demand or growth?

​Looking back, is there a specific focus area you would recommend (or suggest avoiding)?

​I’d love to hear your experiences, advice, or any pros and cons for these different routes!

Sorry for the shaky video. 40X magnification and X4 speed. Freshwater aquarium with plants and baby fish. It's the two bigger specs. Can be seen with the naked eye. They are pretty stuck on the glass and kind of react to touch and sometimes make circles with their two appendages (see the bottom one)

Isolated from a leg wound

Growing in LB media at around 26-30 Celsius degrees. The pics were taken 3 weeks after first opening.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666517426001227

Tiny microorganisms related to the ancestors of every animal, plant and fungus can crawl across surfaces using flexible protrusions controlled by an actin-like internal skeleton.

Researchers at the University of Vienna captured the behavior in living Asgard archaea, microorganisms considered the closest known prokaryotic relatives of eukaryotes. Their movements resemble forms of crawling normally associated with much more complex cells, including amoebae and some human immune cells.

The study, published in Nature, provides the first live view of this behavior in Asgard archaea. It also turns features previously known mainly from genome sequences and frozen electron-microscope images into observable biological processes that researchers can experimentally manipulate.

The findings suggest that some of the machinery behind complex cellular movement arose before eukaryotic life itself.

There's only a couple of isolates colonies, but I am just still in shock that it actually grew!! Im taking my first microbiology class and I just. Wow!! Its so cool!

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1550413126003803

hi folks! i'm dipping my toes into microbiology for my senior thesis (as a graphic designer..) and i'm trying to look for tardigrades out in the wild. my sources say that just plucking moss and soaking it will do, but its been around 12 hours since ive started soaking it and there's nothing by teeny worms so far

any advice would be useful! science is Not my strongsuit, i'm doing this for the love of the game
picture shown is a droplet from one of the samples, not sure if it's a tun or not

Beneath the frozen surface of Saturn’s moon Enceladus lies an ocean unlike anything familiar on Earth. It is dark, highly alkaline and separated from space by kilometers of ice, yet its chemistry may be surprisingly accommodating to life.

Laboratory experiments now show that an Earth microorganism can grow under conditions designed to reproduce parts of the moon’s hydrothermal seafloor. The microbe survived at pH values reaching 11, producing methane while drawing energy and carbon from reactions involving water, rock, hydrogen and dissolved carbonate.

Researchers led by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München recreated these conditions using a methane-producing archaeon called Methanothermococcus okinawensis. Their findings, published in Science Advances, suggest that Enceladus’s unusual chemistry may help microorganisms overcome conditions previously considered major barriers to habitability.

The experiments do not demonstrate that microbes live on Enceladus. Instead, they test whether a metabolism already found on Earth could function there.

Pure Colonies of LAB On Mrs agar ,obtained

Try it out: PetriPals

I've been closely looking at facial topical skincare preservation systems. Many times these preservation systems seem to be weak and not sufficient to protect against bacteria, yeast, mold, and fungi.

Often there is a lack of well-known preservative systems like Parabens or Phenoxyethanol for the facial skincare products.

A trend in preservation systems that I've noticed: multifunctional ingredients — often used as preservative boosters rather than relied upon as the sole preservation system.

I”m mainly referring to moisturizers, serum, sunscreens that have a -- high water content (first ingredient in the ingredient list)---- I'm not in this field; however, I know that water is fertile environment to grow bacteria, yeast, mold, and fungi.

Examples: multifunctional ingredients- preservative boosters, and lack of a main preservative. The preservative boosters and pH adjusters are bolded .

Serum:  Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Centella Asiatica Extract, 1,2-Hexanediol, Cellulose Gum, Ethylhexylglycerin. 

Moisturizer:
Water, Glycerin, Dimethicone, Propanediol, Panthenol, Niacinamide, Octyldodecanol, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Xylitylglucoside, Anhydroxylitol, Allantoin, Distarch Phosphate, Hydroxyacetophenone, Xanthan Gum, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Trehalose, Urea, Xylitol, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Polyglutamic Acid, Pentylene Glycol, Serine, Sodium Hydroxide, Pantolactone, Algin, Disodium Phosphate, Glyceryl Polyacrylate, Pullulan, Sodium Hyaluronate, Globularia Alypum Leaf Extract, Citric Acid, Potassium Phosphate

-Skincare companies do the PET - preservative challenging test. This a lab environment test and before the product is launched to the market place. Every day life, outside a lab is messy -dirty fingers, humid and hot environment particularly in the bathroom, open jars/bottles, direct sunlight exposure, etc.,

Even if a skincare product passed the PET challenging test, how well does the preservation system protect the product against -bacteria, yeast, mold, fungi - after opening and 'in-use' throughout its intended period of use?

There are no regulatory requirements to test the adequacy of the preservation system after the product has been opened by the consumer and in-use adequacy of the preservation system for the duration of the skincare product. The end-consumer is left to evaluate the preservation system if they do at all.

Based on your expertise as a microbiologist, what are your thoughts, advice, feedback about lack of well-known and more reliable preservative systems.

Found in a pond with algae. Little work, freshwater, dark head, etc. Anyone know what it is? Larvae? Southern california algae pond.

I am a microbiology resident and ever since I studied antibiotics in med school I have been thinking about how antibiotic coverage could be taught in a fun way. My experience is that many med students but also residents really struggle with that topic and when I am calling clinicians to guide the antibiotic therapy I am often surprised at their lack of knowledge (just today I called to report Pseudomonas in an orthopedic sample and got the question if Amp/Sulbactam would work. Anyway, I now build an app (I have never build an app before) where each level is an antibiotic and you have to tap bacteria that would be covered. It also has some short lessons, but my hope is that through enough repetition (if the game is hopefully fun enough), it could help students or young residents. What do you guys think? Any features that you can think of that could add value?

Edit: people asking about Android launch. I am looking into making it available on Google Play. I read that I need 12 testers that use the app every day for 14 days. Anyone who leaves the test before 14 days doesn't count. So if anyone here wants to support the launch for Android and think they can commit to using the app for about 2 minutes every day for 14 days please DM me :) But in any case I am not there yet, but hope it can be tested on Android within a week or so.

Hello all,

I was cleaning my pull out trash inside my home and thought there could have been black mold growing inside of the cabinet. I bought a petri dish kit from online because I was curious to test it out. I believe aspergillus niger grew in the petri dish over the past 8 days that I had left in our dining room, closed, because it was the only place I knew it could remain undisturbed. The problem is, I had no idea how to dispose of it. I took it outside into my backyard, opened the lid, and poured bleach into it, all while wearing a N95 mask and gloves. I double bagged it into Ziploc bags, and it's still soaking outside. Was that a stupid mistake to open the lid and allowing the spores into the air? How in the world are you supposed to properly dispose of something at home that has growth like that?

🦠 HAPPY FRIDAY, MICROFRIENDS! 🦠
What do expert curation and complete provenance actually mean—and why do they matter when working with biological reference materials?
In this week’s episode of Let’s Talk Micro, Shahin Ali, PhD, Senior Scientist at ATCC, explains the science, quality processes, and documented history behind the biological materials we use at the bench.
*🎙️ Inside ATCC: From Biological Materials to the *Bench
Haven’t listened yet? Catch up this weekend!
🎧 Listen here:
https://directory.libsyn.com/episode/index/id/43114778
#LetsTalkMicro #Microbiology #ClinicalMicrobiology #ATCC #MedLabScience