Category Archives: Clinical and Medical Microbiology

Review: ‘Resistance’ on BBC Radio 4

Posted on March 3, 2017 by

Today, BBC Radio 4 broadcast the first episode of Resistance – a three-part drama series written by Val McDermid and developed through the ‘Experimental Stories’ collaboration between the BBC and the Wellcome Trust. Here, we post a mini-review of the … Continue reading →

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Podcast: Bacteria from the ancient city of Troy

Posted on February 28, 2017 by

Everyone knows the story of the Trojan horse. The Greeks, in a war against the Trojans, hid some soldiers inside a giant wooden horse and left it outside the city of Troy. Thinking that they’d won, the Trojans dragged the … Continue reading →

Posted in Clinical and Medical Microbiology, Podcast | Tagged | 2 Comments

How concerned should we be about H7N9 flu?

Posted on February 24, 2017 by

The past few weeks have seen an increasing amount of coverage about an ongoing outbreak of the H7N9 strain of avian influenza in China (often called ‘bird flu’). Reports suggest that in January almost 200 people were confirmed as being … Continue reading →

Posted in Clinical and Medical Microbiology, Virology | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Bacterial freeloaders: An unexpected mechanism of resistance

Posted on February 21, 2017 by

Bacteria are very good at evolving resistance to our drugs. Once all-powerful wonder-cures, antibiotics are steadily becoming less effective. If antibiotic resistance continues to spread, reports suggest that by 2050, 10 million people could die every year from infections we … Continue reading →

Posted in Clinical and Medical Microbiology, Microbial Evolution and Diversity, Video | Tagged , | 2 Comments

You can’t stop an outbreak without breaking a few eggs

Posted on February 15, 2017 by

Last year, a paper from Microbial Genomics described how scientists used molecular detective work to get to the bottom of an outbreak across Europe. In June 2014, there was an outbreak of Salmonella at a hospital in Birmingham. Thirty-two people were affected, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Clinical and Medical Microbiology, Food Microbiology, Microbial Evolution and Diversity | Tagged | 1 Comment

What is Herd Immunity?

Posted on February 3, 2017 by

When you think of a herd, you probably think of cows, wildebeest or buffalo. In the animal world, there is safety in numbers – more pairs of eyes to look out for predators, for example. As humans, we don’t generally have … Continue reading →

Posted in Clinical and Medical Microbiology, Epidemiology, Video | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Antibiotic spider silk that can heal wounds

Posted on January 12, 2017 by

Spider silk is pretty much the world’s coolest material. It’s extremely flexible, tougher than Kevlar, and weight for weight it’s stronger than steel. If that isn’t enough, there’s even evidence that some spider silks might have antimicrobial properties.

Posted in Clinical and Medical Microbiology, Technology | 1 Comment

On the Horizon: Monkeypox

Posted on January 4, 2017 by

On 8 May 1980, after a global vaccination campaign, the WHO declared that smallpox had been eradicated. Wiping out this viral disease, which has claimed the lives of hundreds of millions of people throughout history, should be considered one of … Continue reading →

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On the Horizon: Rift Valley fever

Posted on November 15, 2016 by

In 1930, a new disease was reported in sheep on a farm near the town of Naivasha, in the central Rift Valley region of Kenya. This disease caused mass spontaneous abortions among pregnant ewes and the death of newborn lambs. … Continue reading →

Posted in Animal Microbiology, Clinical and Medical Microbiology, Emerging Diseases, On the Horizon, Virology | Tagged | 1 Comment

Nations and leaders commit to tackle antimicrobial resistance

Posted on October 4, 2016 by

Over the last few months there has been a plethora of commitment at the highest level across the world to working together to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Firstly, at the G7 Ise-Shima Summit in Japan on 26 and 27 May … Continue reading →

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