News tagged with bacterial biofilms

Garlic constituent blocks biofilm formation, could benefit CF patients and others

E Pluribus Unum, the motto of the United States, could just as well apply to biofilm-forming bacteria. Bacterial biofilms are far more resistant than individual bacteria to the armories of antibiotics we have devised to combat ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created May 22, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

New methods for better purification of wastewater

Before wastewater reaches recipient waters, nutrients must be removed in order to avoid eutrophication and large algal blooms, which may result in serious damage to animal and plant life. Robert Almstrand at the University ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 05, 2012 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Mighty mesh: Extracellular matrix identified as source of spreading in biofilms

New research at Harvard explains how bacterial biofilms expand to form slimy mats on teeth, pipes, surgical instruments, and crops.

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Jan 23, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Researchers develop new method of cleaning toxins from the oilsands

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 ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Dec 21, 2011 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (5) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Tiny protein helps bacteria 'talk' and triggers defensive response in plants

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 ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Dec 12, 2011 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Bacterial attachment mimics the just-in-time industrial delivery model

(PhysOrg.com) -- In the human world of manufacturing, many companies are now applying an on-demand, just-in-time strategy to conserve resources, reduce costs and promote production of goods precisely when ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Nov 30, 2011 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Genetic difference in staph offers clues as to why some patients get infections from cardiac implants

New research suggests that some patients develop a potentially deadly blood infection from their implanted cardiac devices because bacterial cells in their bodies have gene mutations that allow them to stick ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Oct 24, 2011 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (5) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Bacteria use Batman-like grappling hooks to 'slingshot' on surfaces

Bacteria use various appendages to move across surfaces prior to forming multicellular bacterial biofilms. Some species display a particularly jerky form of movement known as "twitching" motility, which is made possible by ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Jul 18, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Key regulators for biofilm development discovered

They can be found everywhere -- organized communities of bacteria sticking to surfaces both inside and outside the body. These biofilms are responsible for some of the most virulent, antibiotic-resistant infections in humans; ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Jun 24, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Endogenous proteins found in a 70-million-year-old giant marine lizard

(PhysOrg.com) -- With their discovery, the scientists Johan Lindgren, Per Uvdal, Anders Engdahl, and colleagues have demonstrated that remains of type I collagen, a structural protein, are retained in a mosasaur ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created May 02, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (8) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

New method attacks bacterial infections on contact lenses

Researchers at National Jewish Health and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have discovered a new method to fight bacterial infections associated with contact lenses. The method may also have applications ...

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Jan 25, 2011 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Bacterial diversity of Tablas de Daimiel studied for first time

Researchers from the University of Valencia (UV) and the Biomedical Research Centre Network (CIBER) in Epidemiology and Public Health studied the structure of the bacterial community in four types of environments ...

Biology / Ecology

created Jul 06, 2010 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Researchers find compound effective in destroying antibiotic-resistant biofilms

Researchers at North Carolina State University have found a chemical compound that, when used in conjunction with conventional antibiotics, is effective in destroying biofilms produced by antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria ...

Medicine & Health / Medical research

created Apr 08, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 2

A molecular brake for the bacterial flagellar nano-motor

Researchers at the University of Basel, Switzerland, have discovered that Escherichia coli bacteria harness a sophisticated chemosensory and signal transduction machinery that allows them to accurately control ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Mar 19, 2010 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Making more efficient fuel cells

Bacteria that generate significant amounts of electricity could be used in microbial fuel cells to provide power in remote environments or to convert waste to electricity. Professor Derek Lovley from the University of Massachusetts, ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Sep 07, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 1