by Elio — We recently posted a piece on organellar division and – for some mitochondria – fusion. We emphasized that in the cells of many organisms (which contain more than single organelles) the mitochondria lack permanent identity. Rather, mitochondria fuse with one another and later divide. During division, they get... Read more →
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Retrospective, September 2007
by Elio — Previous posts to this blog may be hard to find. We present here a lightly annotated list of our "mini-essays." You can also find them under "Categories" in the right-hand column of the Web page... Read more →
Our Hundredth Post
by Elio — The previous post was number 100 in the short life of this blog. We started the blog on December 1, 2006, so we have averaged slightly over 10 posts a month, which seems... Read more →
Talmudic Question #21
Unlike many bacteria, which undergo undergo fancy morphological development (spores, hyphae, prosthecae, etc.), archaea do not. Why do you suppose this is? Read more →
Il Duomo di Milano
by Elio — Grime on old buildings is a microbiological concern – not because microbes cause it, but because they can help get rid of it. The gray pall shrouding old buildings comes from the conversion of chalky stone such as marble (calcium carbonate) to gypsum (calcium sulfate), a result of atmospheric pollution. Not only is gypsum... Read more →
Microbial Endocrinology: An Update
by Elio — No sooner had we posted a piece on the emerging field of Microbial Endocrinology than a pertinent and interesting paper appeared. The authors report that E. coli O157:H7 is attracted to the hormones epinephrine and norepinephine and is repelled by... Read more →
Microbes at Sea
by Elio — 'Deep-Sea News' is featuring a 'Microbial Week', September 9–15, 2007, during which time they will be posting articles highlighting the many roles of microbes in the deep sea. An interesting excursion... Read more →
A Tale of Three Yeasts
by Merry Youle — This is a story of three species of yeast, three closely related Saccharomyces. For each of them, the entire genome sequence is known. So closely related are they that more than 99.95% of their genes are conserved. In other taxa, they would be considered... Read more →
Recent Blog Items We've Enjoyed
by Elio — Some of our favorite blogs of microbiological interest and their recent topics... Read more →
From Free-Living Bacterium to Cellular Citizen
by Elio — Given the heritage of cell organelles, microbiologists may well be entitled to a familial concern for how their "bacteria" are faring now. Witness a lapel button we saw at an ASM meeting that said "Free the Organelles." Mitochondria, chloroplasts, and others have drifted considerably away from their ancestors... Read more →