Matters Microbial #136: When Bacteria Open the Wrong Door

More from Matters Microbial All episodes →

1. 

   E140 · 7 Oct 2026 · 1 hr

   Matters Microbial #140: Out of Many, One — Coral and Jellyfish Holobionts

   Matters Microbial #140: Out of Many, One — Coral and Jellyfish Holobionts October 7, 2026 Today Dr. Monica Medina, Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCLA, joins the quality quorum to discuss how organisms are made up of myriad other organisms—the holonbiont concept. Dr. Medina and her research group focus on studying this in jellyfish and coral. Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Monica Medina Subscribe: Apple Podcasts , Spotify Become a patron of Matters Microbial! Links for this episode A link to my host city in New Zealand, Christchurch . A link to the School of…

2. 

   E139 · 23 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 1 min

   Matters Microbial #139: How Listeria Gets By With a Little Help From Its Friends

   Matters Microbial #139: How Listeria Gets By With a Little Help From Its Friends September 23, 2026 Today Dr. Jasna Kovac, Huck Chair in Microbiomes in Food Safety and Associate Professor of Food Science at Penn State University (and active member of Penn State's One Health Microbiome Center) joins the quality quorum to discuss how understanding the microbiome in food processing facilities can help reduce the incidence of food borne illnesses, including Listeria . Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Jasna Kovac Subscribe: Apple Podcasts , Spotify Become a patron of Matters Microbial! Links for this…

3. 

   E138 · 8 Sep 2026 · 57 min

   Matters Microbial #138: Sightseeing the Microbial World

   Matters Microbial #138: Sightseeing the Microbial World September 8, 2026 Today Dr. Monika Oli, Instructional Professor of the Department of Microbiology and Cell Science at the University of Florida joins the quality quorum to discuss how she teaches microbiology students to view the topic through a global lens as a study abroad program. Her approach demonstrates how travel enriches scientific understanding, broadens cultural perspectives, and prepares students to become globally engaged microbiologists equipped to address the challenges of an interconnected world. Host: Mark O. Martin…

4. 

   E137 · 25 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 7 min

   Matters Microbial #137: The Living Skin of Our Planet

   Matters Microbial #137: The Living Skin of Our Planet August 25, 2026 Today Dr. Estelle Couradeau, Assistant Professor in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management and the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at the Pennsylvania State University, joins the quality quorum today to discuss the role that the soil microbiome can play in terms of agriculture, moderating temperature, and protecting specific environments. Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Estelle Couradeau Subscribe: Apple Podcasts , Spotify Become a patron of Matters Microbial! Links for this episode The Erskine Foundation…

5. 

   E135 · 30 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 2 min

   Matters Microbial #135: Biofilms in Motion—The Adorable Zorbs

   Matters Microbial #135: Biofilms in Motion—The Adorable Zorbs July 30, 2026 Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Jo Handelsmann , Shruthi Magesh Subscribe: Apple Podcasts , Spotify Become a patron of Matters Microbial! Links for this episode Here is a link to the Etsy shop where one can buy the wonderful " THIS IS WHAT A MICROBIOLOGIST LOOKS LIKE " enamel pins. Here is a link to the World Microbiome Day website. Here is a link to the interesting work of Contamination Club . The story of Alexander Fleming 's famous contaminant that led to the discovery of penicillin. Here is a link to Dr.…

6. 

   E134 · 14 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 2 min

   Matters Microbial #134: Could Alien Life Use Different Chemistry?

   Matters Microbial #134: Could Alien Life Use Different Chemistry? July 14, 2026 Today Dr. Morgan Sobol, Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at Texas State University, joins the Quality Quorum today to discuss how microbes on early earth began interacting with elements like nitrogen, making life possible here and perhaps elsewhere in the universe! You will learn about the fundamental and amazing enzyme nitrogenase! Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Morgan Sobol Download MM134 (37 MB MP3, 62 mins) Subscribe: Apple Podcasts , Spotify Become a patron of Matters Microbial! Links for this…

7. 

   E133 · 30 Jun 2026 · 31 min

   Matters Microbial #133: The Microbial Partnerships That Help Corals Survive

   Matters Microbial #133: The Microbial Partnerships That Help Corals Survive June 29, 2026 Dr. Hannah Reich of the Department of Environmental Biology at the State University of New York's College of Environmental Science and Forestry joins the #QualityQuorum to discuss how microalgal interactions (including with bacteria) are fundamental contributors to large scale ecosystem processes including the ocean carbon pump, the duration of algal blooms, and the evolutionary success of coral reefs. Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Hannah Reich Subscribe: Apple Podcasts , Spotify Become a patron of…

8. 

   E132 · 17 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 5 min

   Matters Microbial #132: What 83,000 Generations of Bacteria Reveal About Evolution

   Matters Microbial #132: What 83,000 Generations of Bacteria Reveal About Evolution June 17, 2026 Today Dr. Jeffrey Barrick, John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor of the Department of Microbiology, Genetics, & Immunology and the Department of Entomology at Michigan State University, joins the quality quorum today to discuss how microbes can be used to study evolution itself. He will also discuss the impressive and ongoing LTEE program, the experiments that originate from it, and what they tell us about evolution. Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Jeffrey Barrick Subscribe: Apple Podcasts ,…

9. 

   E131 · 3 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 3 min

   Matters Microbial #131: What Cystic Fibrosis Reveals About Hidden Microbial Lives

   Matters Microbial #131: What Cystic Fibrosis Reveals About Hidden Microbial Lives June 3, 2026 Today Dr. Sam Brown, Professor of Biological Sciences at Georgia Tech University, joins the quality quorum today to discuss the social lives of bacterial pathogens. He will also discuss VERY recent research from his lab group exploring the specialist/generalist problem in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and thoughts on cryptic convergent specialization! Host: Mark O. Martin Guest : Sam Brown Subscribe: Apple Podcasts , Spotify Become a patron of Matters Microbial! Links for this episode An overview of…