News: Arizona Woman Dies After Catching Tularemia from Her Dog
On June 11, 2016, an Arizona woman died from what appeared to be several infections, including pneumonia. She likely caught at least one of these from her dog.
Active Bacteria Search Results
News: Scientists Surprised to Find New Defensive Role for Old Protein
Wound infections don't usually enter the blood and become systemic, spreading the infection throughout our bodies, and there's a good reason for that: Our bodies actively work to prevent it, according to research that discovered a new use for a protein first discovered decades ago.
News: Bandages Made of Recycled Shrimp Shells Fight Infections & Stop Bleeding
An innovative new wound dressing has been developed by a research team at Lodz University of Technology in Poland that uses crustacean shells to create a bandage that packs an antimicrobial punch — and even more potential to help solve a global problem.
News: Unique Way Gonorrhea Breaks Down the Female Body's Defenses
Usually, the mucus lining of the female genital tract presents a barrier that helps prevent infections. But, somehow, the bacteria that causes gonorrhea gets around and through that barrier to invade the female genital tract.
News: Treating Stomach Problems May Bring C. Diff Infection Back
Having a Clostridium difficile infection means stomach pains, diarrhea, fever, and loss of appetite, and if the symptoms weren't bad enough, the disease often reoccurs. Now, new research has found an increased risk of recurrence in people who take medication to treat their stomach acid, gastroesophageal reflux disease, peptic ulcer disease, or stomach discomfort.
News: Deadly Bacterial Disease Kills Multiple Dogs in New Jersey
A dangerous bacterial disease is infecting dogs in northern New Jersey, forcing owners to keep their pets inside.
News: Antibiotics in Infancy Can Have Major Harms Later in Life—A New Test Could Help Parents Avoid Them Without Worry
Antibiotic use in infants has been associated with a host of childhood conditions later in life. Yet when an infection is suspected in a newborn, usually a sample of their blood is drawn to check for the presence of bacteria and 5 to 8 percent of them receive antibiotics while the diagnosis is pending.
News: Microbes Behave Strangely—& Potentially Dangerously—In Space
Since the 1960s, bacteria have been hopping a ride into space on space vehicles and astronauts, and have been cultivated within experiments on space shuttles and the International Space Station (ISS). The extreme growing conditions and the low gravity environment on the Earth-orbiting vehicles offers a stable research platform for looking at bacteria in a different light.
News: Coffee Isn't the Only Thing Brewing in Your Nespresso—Extremophiles Could Be Living in Your Drip Tray
You just sat down, coffee in hand, and the day is ready to start. Now that you have taken a few sips, let me pose a question: What is living in that coffeemaker of yours? The answer might make you dump that coffee down the drain pronto.
How To: Plug a 2 way active PA system together
Want to mix and scratch like a professional DJ? To be a good DJ you need to understand the concepts of mixing tracks, adding cool effects, and of course you need a good sense of rhythm to line up the beats. This how to video explains how to set up a 2 way active speaker system. This video shows you how to plug a two way active PA system together by using an active cross over and two power amplifiers. This is the kit used: 1 Peavey vsx cross over, 1 KAM KXR 2000 amp, 1 KAM KXT 23600 amp, 2 x V...
News: Out Damn Spot! Researchers Discover Microbes Are the Reason for Stains on Ancient Scrolls
This is a tale about microbes, a man who became a hermit, and the parchment that carries both of their stories.
News: How Gut Bacteria Could Set Off the Immune System in Rheumatoid Arthritis
As if the swollen, painful joints of rheumatoid arthritis weren't enough, the disease is the result of our immune system turning against cells of our own body. Ever since this realization, scientists have worked to find the trigger that sets the immune system off. Scientists believe that gut bacteria may have a role in initiating the abnormal immune response. Now, a team of researchers from Boston has figured out how that might occur.
News: Skip the Antibacterial Soap — It Isn't Helping & It Could Cause Problems
The best go-to method for reducing your risk of infection is to wash your hands. Next time you reach for the soap, here is some news you can use.
News: A Protein Found in Ticks Can Help Kill MRSA Infections
As researchers from Yale searched our environment for compounds to aid in the battle against drug-resistant bacteria, they got an unlikely assist from ticks.
News: Kids' Snot Provides Unlikely Path for Superbugs to Move from Farm to Community
The noses of kids who live in areas of intense pig farming may harbor antibiotic-resistant bacteria, presumably acquired from the animals, according to a new study by scientists at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, and Statens Serum Institut in Denmark, published in Environmental Health Perspectives.
News: Sexually Confused Fish Are the Canary in the Coal Mine of Water Pollution—But Bacteria Could Come to the Rescue
Exposed to hormones, pharmaceuticals, and other chemicals, the beautiful wild fish in Canada's Grand River have taken on some pretty odd characteristics—they're turning into females. A long-term study suggests using bacteria to manage polluted water could turn the tide for feminized fish.
News: Bacteria, Viruses, Fungi ... All the Words You Need to Know to Understand Microbes
All fields of study have their own language. For people interested in learning about microbes, the language can sometimes be downright difficult — but it doesn't need to be. From antibiotics to xerophiles, we have you covered in an easy-to-understand glossary.
News: This Paper-Thin Foldable Battery Is Powered by Bacteria
In the perpetual search for a renewable and convenient energy source, our bacterial friends have once again stolen the limelight.
How To: Determine the active hand for a palm reading
Palmist and astrologer Peeter John explains the right, left, and active hand for palm-reading in this how-to video. The active hand is the dominant hand which is more important to be interpreted for palmistry. This video also suggests a method for determining which is the active hand. Watch this video palmistry tutorial from Peter John and learn how to distinguish the active hand for a palm reading.
How To: Safely use a crockpot
Next time you make dinner in your crockpot, be sure to follow these crockpot safety tips. The temperature should be at least 140 degrees. Food needs to cook at this temperature or higher to prevent the growth of bacteria. Do not put frozen foods into a crockpot. All foods should be defrosted before cooking, so the temperature can reach 140 degrees as quickly as possible. Do not lift the lid to stir, especially if you are cooking on the lowest setting. Each time you lift the lid, heat escapes ...
How To: Stock your refrigerator the right way to keep foods fresh and uncontaminated
Your refrigerator is designed to keep your food free of mold and bacteria, but they aren't perfect for the task. Storing your good in the refrigerator in the right places will make your fridge much more effective, and this video will show you how to do it.
How To: Build a Winogradsky Column
The Winogradsky column, invented by Sergei Winogradsky, is a device for culturing a large diversity of microorganisms. Pond mud and water are mixed into a column using carbon sources like newspapers and sulfur sources like egg yolks. Left in the sun for a few months, the column becomes a colony rich with microorganisms, bacteria, cyanobacteria, and algae. In this video, scientist Karen Dodson shows you how to make your own.
How To: Spot & deep clean makeup brushes
Without washing your makeup brushes, you're just spreading dirt and bacteria, aggravating your skin, and causing makeup to look worse than it should. This how-to video offers some tips for getting those brushes clean. Good brushes are very sensitive, so they require special handling. Learn how to clean makeup brushes by watching this video makeup lesson.
How To: Install ultra violet lights in your air handler
Ultra violet lights can easily be installed in your air handler to reduce the airborne bacteria and molds in your home. Check out this instructional appliance video that shows how easy it is to install one. Just follow the step by step instructions and you'll be able to install ultra violet lights in your air handler.
How To: Treat hearing loss without a loud-noise cause
If there's a sudden hearing loss without an apparent loud noise cause, an ear inflammation may be the culprit. Doctor Katz, Surgeon Director of Manhattan Eye, Ear & Throat Hospital, explains the varying causes of hearing loss such as inflammation, bacteria, and a virus, and the corresponding treatments for each cause. Watch this video tutorial to learn how a sudden hearing loss without a loud noise cause is treated.
How To: Lower the risk of salmonella from water turtles
You've heard or read about Salmonella in the media, and its dangers are often blamed on reptiles. What exactly is it? Is it dangerous? Should you be concerned about it? Watch this video for a clear and balanced orientation on this often-misunderstood bacterium.
How To: Make a USB laser air purifier lamp
Laser can refresh your air by kill the bad bacteria and fungus in the air.You can make a cool lamp too. All with the usb power.
News: The Problem with Farmed Fish — Their Food Is Spreading Antibiotic Resistance
As the fish farming industry struggles to become more environmentally friendly, it just gained another problem. Fish food loaded with antibiotic-resistant genes.
News: Unexpected Microbial Life in Glacial Clay Could Offer Antibiotic Solutions
For as long as 14,000 years, the First Nations people of the Heitsuk Nation have made their home along the Central Coast of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Among the territory's inlets, islands, rivers, and valleys lie a clay deposit on the north side of Kisameet Bay, near King Island. For as long as most can remember, the tribe has used the clay as medicine. Now science says microbes that live in that clay may have important antibacterial properties.
News: Modern Life Means Less Gut Bacteria, More Chronic Disease
When you have an infection, a doctor prescribes antibiotics to make the bacteria that causes it disappear. Sounds like a good idea, but the disappearance of microorganisms that have inhabited humans for millennia could be driving rising numbers of serious illness and debilitating conditions.
Mystery Solved: Oil-Munching Bacteria Helped Clean Up the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill that began on April 20, 2010, was the largest maritime oil spill in history. Killing 11 people and discharging 4.1 million barrels of oil and natural gas into the Gulf of Mexico, the event was an unparalleled personal, environmental, and business disaster. It was also the first major oil spill to take place in the deep ocean.
News: Long-Term Follow-Up Shows Lasting, Positive Impacts of Fecal Transplants
As unappealing as it sounds, transplants with fecal material from healthy donors help treat tough Clostridium difficile gastrointestinal infections. Researchers credit the treatment's success to its ability to restore a healthy bacterial balance to the bowels, and new research has shown that the transplanted bacteria doesn't just do its job and leave. The good fecal bacteria and its benefits can persist for years.
Don't Sweat It: New Workout Clothes Put Microbes to Work Keeping Us Cool & Dry
Microbial cells can improve the functionality of clothes in creative and useful ways, including cooling us down during a workout or making clothing glow for better visibility.
News: Step Aside Penicillin — A Deep Dive into Fungus Genes Reveals Over 1,300 Potential Antibiotics Waiting to Be Discovered
On October 17, 1943, a story in the New York Herald Tribune read "Many laymen — husbands, wives, parents, brothers, sisters, friends — beg Dr. Keefer for penicillin," according to the American Chemical Society. Dr. Chester Keefer of Boston was responsible for rationing the new miracle drug, penicillin.
News: Hong Kong Butcher in Critical Condition with Rare Strep Brain Infection Caused by Pork
The culprit probably wasn't what doctors were expecting when a 57-year-old man in Hong Kong came to the hospital. The patient was admitted to the intensive care unit in critical condition. A clue to the cause of the infection would lie in the man's profession—he was a butcher.
News: Mass Die-Off of Thousands of Ducks in Idaho Caused by Avian Cholera
Over 6,500 waterfowl—mostly ducks—have died in Canyon County, Idaho, stricken by avian cholera. The outbreak started in February, and before it's over, it may not only be Idaho's largest outbreak, but one of the largest in the country.
News: A Rare Disease Outbreak in the Bronx Linked to Eewww Source—Rat Pee
Every year, 100-200 people in the US contract leptospirosis, but usually 50% of the cases occur in Hawaii where outdoor adventurers are exposed to Leptospira bacteria found in freshwater ponds, waterfalls, streams, and mud. That's why it's so alarming that two people in the Bronx have been diagnosed with the disease and a 30-year-old man has died from it.
News: 14 Types of Bacteria & 10 Strains of Fungus Are Responsible for All the Delicious Flavors of Cheese
If you want to appreciate the value of microbes, look no further than a chunk of cheese. Because cheese roughly traces back to the Neolithic Era, we might say the earliest cheesemakers were the first humans to manipulate microbes—without even knowing it. Now, thanks to microbiologists and the long tradition of cheesemaking, we know a lot more about the microbes that make our favorite types of cheese possible.
News: New JAMA Study Shows That Testing Gut Bacteria Can Predict Risk of Heart Attack
It feels like someone reached into your chest and squeezed. Your head throbs in unison with your heartbeat. Clammy dread coats your body in sweat. Whether you call 911 or someone does it for you, the ER is your next stop.
News: Why You Should Care About the Nevada Woman Killed by the Totally Resistant Nightmare Superbug
Humanity is standing on an infection precipice. As antibacterial resistant grows, we're running out of options, and a recent scary case of total antibiotic resistance is a frighting view of our potential future. In the end, it was septic shock that took the life of a 70-year old woman with an incurable infection. One of few such cases in the US, her death could nonetheless be the shape of things to come.