Tags: microbiology

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Jacinta Smith: a Journey from UGA to Public Health Leadership

Jacinta Smith (BS Microbiology,`01, MS Medical Microbiology,`04) heard science calling from a young age. Now working for the CDC as well as the U.S. Public Health Service, she credits UGA in honing her interest in the sciences throughout her college years and into adulthood. “When I was in the 9th grade, I participated in a program at Fernbank Science Center called Scientific Tools and Techniques, which exposed me to many different fields of…

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NIH renews support of studies of bacterial metabolism and physiology

The National Institutes of Health awarded $3.5M to UGA faculty member Jorge Escalante to continue his studies of the metabolic capabilities of prokaryotic cells.  The award is known as the ‘Maximizing Investigator’s Research Award’ (MIRA), which has a duration of 5 years. Escalante, UGA Foundation Distinguished Professor in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of microbiology, received his first MIRA in 2019 and successfully…

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Downs named Regents’ Professor

Diana Downs, Distinguished Research Professor in the department of microbiology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences,  is one of two University of Georgia faculty members named Regents’ Professors for the widespread reach and impact of their scholarship and creative activity.  Regents’ professorships are the highest professorial recognition bestowed by the University System of Georgia Board of Regents. Known as an expert in…

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All roads lead through Franklin

The UGA Mentor program will host a virtual panel on October 25 featuring College of Pharmacy alumnus Kevin Hatcher. UGA Mentor Program Ambassador Caroline Batson details his mentoring experience below. Hatcher's academic journey – like those of so many UGA students and alumni – ran through arts and sciences. Market Health & Wellness Director for Walmart based in East Tennessee and current mentor for the UGA Mentorship Program, Hatcher (…

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Model mycology: UGA scientists fight fungi for the rest of us

It starts out with a cough and slightly slurred speech. Then come the muscle spasms and dramatic mood shifts. In HBO’s hit show “The Last of Us,” these are the beginning signs that a human has contracted a fungal infection that turns people into zombies and rips through the fabric of modern society. The premise may sound improbable, but it is based on a very real fungus that really does infect brains and bodies, turning its victims into mindless…

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Three professors elected into National Academy of Inventors

The National Academy of Inventors has selected three University of Georgia faculty as 2023 NAI Senior Members. NAI Senior Members are faculty, scientists and administrators selected for their proven ability to invent and innovate. The UGA representatives of the 2023 class are Christine Szymanski, Hitesh Handa and Leidong Mao. With their selections, UGA now has 11 Senior Members overall: Szymanski is a professor, associate head of…

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Ellison receives Breakthrough Scientist award

The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation announced that University of Georgia faculty member Courtney Ellison is one of seven new recipients of the Damon Runyon-Dale F. Frey Award for Breakthrough Scientists.  The Dale F. Frey award recognizes Damon Runyon Fellows who have exceeded the Foundation’s highest expectations and are most likely to make paradigm-shifting breakthroughs that transform the way we prevent, diagnose, and…

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Leaky infrastructure driving antibiotic resistant pathogens in local waters

Could your old septic tank be driving a growth in antimicrobial resistant bacteria? It’s possible, say the authors of a University of Georgia study that identified aging sewer lines and septic systems as the primary drivers of antibiotic resistant bacteria contamination in their samples. This finding flips the script on the assumption that agriculture runoff or treated wastewater outflows are the main ways antibiotic resistant bacteria are…

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Westpheling to receive SIMB Charles Porter Award

Janet Westpheling, professor in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of genetics, has been selected to receive the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB) Charles Porter Award. The award recognizes meritorious service to the Society as exemplified by Charles Porter, co-founder of the SIMB. Dr. Janet “Jan” Westpheling is a dedicated and active member, volunteer, and leader within the SIMB community. As a…

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New study: Microbial metabolites in the marine carbon cycle

A new study led UGA Foundation Distinguished Professor in the department of marine sciences and member of the National Academy of Sciences Mary Ann Moran describes the current 'state of the art' of studying microbial metabolites, and sets out some new approaches for further investigation. The new paper was published last week in the journal Nature Microbiology: One-quarter of photosynthesis-derived carbon on Earth rapidly cycles through a set of…

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Four UGA faculty members named AAAS Fellows

Four University of Georgia faculty members, three from the Franklin College, have been named Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), an honor bestowed by their peers for “scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.” These four faculty members are among 489 new AAAS Fellows who will receive an official certificate and a gold and blue—representing…

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Krause receives IOM honor

The International Organization of Mycoplasmology has selected Duncan Krause as the 2020 Emmy Kleineberger-Nobel award for research in Mycoplasmology. The award for Dr. Krause, Professor Emeritus in the department of microbiology, was announced by the IOM in June.  Emmy Klieneberger-Nobel (February 15, 1892 – September 11, 1985) was a German Jewish microbiologist and a founder of mycoplasma bacterial research. She…

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Experts warn of connections between microorganisms and climate change

As scientists improve their understanding of the impacts of microorganisms on the broad systems and that keep global biological cycles in balance, responses to a changing climate by microbes on land and sea across the Earth have become key indicators. Now, more than 30 microbiologists from 9 countries have issued a warning to humanity – they are calling for the world to stop ignoring an ‘unseen majority’ in Earth’s biodiversity and ecosystem…

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NIH provides long-term funding for Escalante microbiology lab

The National Institutes of Health announced a Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA) granted to UGA Foundation Distinguished Professor Jorge C. Escalante-Semerena of the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of microbiology. MIRA grants are designed to increase the efficiency of NIH funding by providing investigators with greater stability and flexibility, thereby enhancing scientific productivity and the chances…

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New study on heme synthesis for red blood cells

A plenary paper featuring students and faculty from the UGA department of biochemistry and molecular biology and the department of microbiology was recently published, highlighted, and given commentary in the journal Blood, the publication of the American Society for Hematology. The paper, which originated in the lab of professor emeritus Harry Dailey, addresses how erythroid cells acquire sufficient carbon for heme synthesis…

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Westpheling elected SIMB president

Professor of genetics Janet Westpheling has been elected president of the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology in the 2018 SIMB Board of Directors election. The Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB) is a nonprofit, international association dedicated to the advancement of microbiological sciences, especially as they apply to industrial products, biotechnology, materials, and processes. Founded in…

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Noted and quoted, January 2018

From the downside of smart phones to the promise of a 'super yeast' for biofuels to the creation a new island off the Georgia coast, Franklin faculty have been ready and willing to lend their expertise on the full range of issues and current events. A sample from this month: Less smartphone time equals happier teenager, study suggests – article reference research by professor of psychology Keith Campbell in Los Angeles Times, India…

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Use of dispersants in oil spills

The complexity of what happened in the Deepwater Horizon/BP drilling platform explosion and resulting sea-floor oil gusher that flowed for 87 days is only dwarfed by what has happened in the time since. The clean-up, which began immediately, has been a Herculean effort that continues to this day. But a new perspective article in Nature by Samantha Joye and her colleagues brings attention to one problematic aspect of the clean-up: the use of…

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Franklin faculty in the media

Faculty representing thirteen different departments within the Franklin College were quoted and thier work referenced across a wide variety of international media. A sampling of the terrific public engagement by our experts: Five things to know about tornadoes – Front-page feature in today’s Athens Banner-Herald quotes associate professor of geography John Knox UGA researchers growing trees faster and easier to turn into fuel, reports the Athens…


Joye: Deepwater Horizon spill effects require long-term study

A new study in Nature Geoscience by UGA marine scientist Samantha Joye questions the fate of methane released from the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf and provides evidence that microbes may not be capable of removing contaminants as quickly and easily as once thought. "Most of the gas injected into the Gulf was methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to global climate change, so we were naturally concerned that this potent greenhouse…


Assessing the Gulf

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