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Unique Antibody Pattern Discovered in COVID-19 ICU Patients May Be Key to Predicting Severe Outcomes
While news of promising COVID-19 vaccine trials is heartening, the fight to control infection rates and develop effective treatments will be an ongoing challenge for science for years to come. Gene Tan, PhD and his collaborators are working on identifying testing models and tools that will allow more labs to safely work on the disease, identifying varying inflammatory responses to the disease for more targeted testing and treatment plans, and identifying...
About Nacyra Assad-Garcia
Nacyra Assad-Garcia is a Staff Scientist who joined the JCVI in 2002 from Celera. For the past 15 years she has been a microbiologist specializing in Mycoplasma genomics. She is an integral member of the synthetic biology team with expertise in manipulating and transplanting mycoplasma genomes (up to 1.1 Mb). This technology enables the changing of one mycoplasma species into another and is essential for the creation of synthetic and minimized cells.
Antibiotic Resistance in Plague
March 20, 2007 ROCKVILLE, MD — A small piece of DNA that helps bacteria commonly found in US meat and poultry resist several antibiotics has also been found in the plague bacillus Yersinia pestis, gene sequence researchers report. The ability to resist many of the antibiotics used against plague has been found so far in only a single case of the disease in Madagascar . But because the same ability is present in other kinds of bacteria from a broad range of livestock, antibiotic...
Bacterial Translocation and Changes in the Intestinal Microbiome in Mouse Models of Liver Disease
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, mortality associated with chronic liver disease ranks as the 12th most common cause of death in the U.S., but may be as high as 8th if obesity-related fatty liver disease, viral hepatitis, and liver cancer are included in the equation. Patients with later stages of chronic liver disease (e.g. fibrosis, cirrhosis) have bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine, and translocation of gut bacteria and their...
The Great Blizzard Sample of Lake Redon!
May15th 2010 We decided to do the 3 lakes in the Banyoles area first because the weather in the Pyrenees was so bad that we wouldn't have been able to get up the mountain to sample Lake Redon. Lake Redon is a pristine Alpine lake that is sampled weekly by Spanish researchers. On Tuesday May 11th the weather prediction for the next few days in the Pyrenees said clear skies, so we loaded up the van and Chris, Emilio, Maria and myself took off on the 341 kilometer (211 miles) drive....
Scientists set a path for field trials of gene drive organisms
The modern rise of gene drive research, accelerated by CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology, has led to transformational waves rippling across science. Gene drive organisms (GDOs), developed with select traits that are genetically engineered to spread through a population, have the power to dramatically alter the way society develops solutions to a range of daunting health and environmental challenges, from controlling dengue fever and malaria to protecting crops against plant pests....
Characterization of Burkholderia Persistence Determinants and Antibiotic Resistance
Melioidosis, a serious disease endemic to tropical regions of Southeast Asia, northern Australia, Africa, the Middle East, China, India, and South America is caused by the motile Gram-negative bacterium, Burkholderia pseudomallei (Bp). Bp is intrinsically resistant to many antibiotics. Additionally, surviving a melioidosis infection confers no immunity to subsequent challenge with Bp nor are there vaccines that are protective against melioidosis. A major concern in the management of...
New wiki on salivary proteins may transform diagnostic testing and personalized medicine
A diagram that shows the interconnectedness of the thousands of salivary proteins originating from blood plasma, parotid glands, and submandibular and sublingual glands. The diagram is one of many tools available to researchers and clinicians through the Human Salivary Proteome Wiki. By Marcene Robinson BUFFALO, N.Y. – To improve the development of new saliva-based diagnostic tests and personalized medicine, the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research...
Research Impact: Accelerating Efforts to Contain and Prevent the Zika Virus (ZIKV)
The rapidly developing Zika virus (ZIKV) outbreak has research groups, government agencies, and industry is all striving to develop a response plan to contain and ultimately prevent ZIKV spread. Currently JCVI is working with both private and public sector funders to sequence and analyze historical and current ZIKV strains. Work at JCVI is geared toward developing sensitive ZIKV diagnostics, significantly increasing the number of ZIKV genomic sequences available, and performing cutting-edge...
Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation identifies 16 leading scientists to pursue high-risk research in marine microbial ecology
Palo Alto, Calif. — The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation announced its Marine Microbiology Initiative investigator awards today, providing 16 scientists from 14 different institutions a total of up to $35 million over five years to pursue pioneering research in the field of marine microbial ecology. The funding will enable researchers to explore how the trillions upon trillions of microscopic organisms at the base of the ocean’s food webs interact with each other and...