Interesting new article from Rob Dunn’s lab about the microbial and arthopod communities associated with chimpanzee beds. The article itself is clearly pitched within a microbiology of the built environment context… highlighting the fact that we haven’t really looked much a non-human constructed artificial environments. Pretty cool stuff! The outpouring of press on the topic …
As posted in this blog last week, an article was published in the ASM Journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy on May 26 that describes the first discovery in the United States of mcr-1 gene, responsible for colistin resistance, in E. coli in a patient with a urinary tract infection. Colistin is considered an antibiotic of last resort because, …
The 4th International Conference on Responsible Use of Antibiotics in Animals is scheduled for 26-28 September in the Hague, the Netherlands. This is an important and timely topic with federal regulations changing current agricultural practices. Here is some information from the conference website: Antibiotics are used worldwide both in veterinary and human medicine. The widespread …
Sometimes efforts to be environmentally friendly can give rise to microbial challenges. This was nicely described by Katie Dahlhausen in her recent post about water quality about green buildings. Other examples include observations that Legionella pneumophila can be contracted from shower heads and the use of low flow shower heads and lower water temperatures may increase its transmission. Likewise, wastewater (e.g., Environmental and …
More good news for animal lovers! A recent study on the effects of exposure to dogs and farm animals on childhood asthma was just published in JAMA Pediatrics. The article is entitled Early Exposure to Dogs and Farm Animals and the Risk of Childhood Asthma by T. Fall, C. Lundholm, A.K. Örtqvist, K. Fall, F. Fang, Ã…. Hedhammar, O. Kämpe, E. Ingelsson, C. Almqvist. Here is the …
In response to studies showing that antibiotic resistance can spread through the food supply, the FDA has made some recent policy decisions about the use of antibiotics in livestock rearing. A public meeting will be held by the FDA on September 30, 2015, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Jefferson Auditorium, 14th and Independence …
Some of you may know that we ran a Kitty Kickstarter back in May to start a participatory research project inspired by the American Gut Project only for cats. When you sign up, kittybiome will sequence the gut microbiome of your cat and provide you with the results, so you can see how your cat compares with …
Here is a guest post by UC Berkeley junior Alex Martin who is working with us on a study of the Berkeley Animal Shelter It’s no secret that animals — including humans — serve as a nutrient-rich reservoir for microorganisms. And while the grooming habits of felines may have earned them a reputation as refreshingly …
On October 7th and 8th 2014, we held a workshop at the University of California, Davis entitled Animals in the Built Environment. The aim of this workshop was to catalyze the study of the microbiology of built environments where animals live by bringing together experts in animal health, building science and microbiology to discuss why these systems are …
Last week, Holly Ganz from microBEnet organized a workshop on “Animals in the Built Environment”, focusing on the intersections between animal care, building design, and microbial ecology. Participants included zoo staff, shelter architects, engineers, microbial ecologists, etc. More detailed meeting reports will follow, but as a teaser here is the Storify from the meeting: