Podcast · Tech & Science
by Ashley Hagen, M.S. · English · Tech & Science
Who is microbiology? Meet the Microbiologist (MTM) introduces you to the people who discover, innovate and advance the field of microbiology. Go behind-the-scenes of the microbial sciences with experts in virology, bacteriology, mycology, parasitology and more! Share in their passion for microbe
19 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 5 min
John Warhol, Ph.D., blends his Periodic Table of Microbes with rock music, movies, and state-microbe petitions to bring microbes' most unforgettable stories to light. Watch this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZYEBfo4nHc
E175 · 14 Aug 2026 · 58 min
Stanley Malloy and Jack Gilbert unpack how AI tools are reshaping the microbial sciences—from genomics and microbial communities to manuscripts, peer review and publishing ethics—highlighting AI's power, potential and pitfalls for public trust in science. Episode Links: JMBE Collection: Practical and Positive Uses of AI in STEM Education MtM Survey: asm.org/mtmsurvey
E174 · 11 May 2026 · 51 min
Glen McGugan, Ph.D., Director of ASM's Mechanism Discovery Unit, discusses how curiosity‑driven research—from parasite virulence to CRISPR and complex microbial systems—drives tomorrow's breakthroughs. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways Mechanism discovery,encompasses all of the foundational basic research across the microbial sciences and is essential for all advances in microbial science. Many transformative technologies (e.g., CRISPR) originated from curiosity-driven, basic research rather than immediate practical goals. McGugan's experience as a Program Officer at NIH provided him with a broad…
E173 · 17 Apr 2026 · 44 min
Andrea Prinzi, Ph.D., MPH, SM(ASCP) , and Rodney Rohde, Ph.D.,SM(ASCP)CM, SVCM , trace how passion‑driven, nonlinear paths in clinical microbiology led them from hospital benches and public health labs to academia and industry leadership. Their stories converge on a shared mission: to use diagnostics, outcomes research and lived experience to make microbiology relevant, contextual and approachable for patients, policymakers and the broader public. Links for This Episode: View Prinzi's ASM articles. View Rohde's ASM articles. Volunteer to write for ASM. Take the MTM listener survey!
E172 · 28 Mar 2026 · 42 min
Moon Nahm, M.D., professor emeritus at UAB Department of Medicine and Director of the World Health Organization's Pneumococcal Serology Reference Laboratory at UAB, discusses his career in pneumococcal immunology. From uncovering the WU2 reference strain and other hidden serotypes to pioneering Multiplexed Opsono-Phagocytosis Assay (MOPA) to measure the functional activity of anti-pneumococcal antibodies, Nahm's contributions have facilitated development of advanced vaccines with broader protection and accessibility. Links for This Episode UAB Spotlight on Moon Nahm . Discovery and…
E171 · 13 Feb 2026 · 36 min
From leading R&D at a biotech startup company to conducting environmental monitoring for NASA, Veronica Garcia, Ph.D. , Scientific Director of the ASM Applied and Environmental Microbiology unit shares how experiences throughout her career have informed her appreciation for microbes and their real-world applications. She also discusses how the ASM AEM unit will support scientists around the globe by fostering collaboration and advocating for scientific advancements in areas like climate change, water systems and food production. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways Prior to her role as Scientific…
E170 · 24 Jan 2026 · 46 min
Marlene Belfort, Ph.D., a distinguished professor at the University at Albany and author of Mommy, Can Boys Also Be Doctors? , discusses her journey in science, balancing personal and professional life, the importance of fundamental research and the discovery of introns in bacteriophage. Links for This Episode Mommy, Can Boys Also Be Doctors?: A Message to Young Scientists and Other Humans .
E169 · 24 Oct 2025 · 43 min
Episode Summary Sue Ishaq, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Microbiomes at the University of Maine, discusses how gut microbes transform seemingly inert plant compounds—like glucosinolates found in broccoli—into powerful anti-inflammatory agents such as sulforaphane. Her research dives into the fascinating interplay between diet, cooking methods and the diversity of the gut microbiota, revealing how these factors influence the body's ability to produce health-promoting molecules. Links for This Episode mSystems paper: Early life exposure to broccoli sprouts confers stronger protection against…
E168 · 25 Sep 2025 · 59 min
Karl Matthews, Ph.D., Professor of Microbial Food Safety at Rutgers University, discusses ways to eliminate pathogens like Salmonella , E. coli O157:H7 and Listeria from fresh fruits and vegetables. He highlights the importance of preventative measures from farm to table, including the use of water antimicrobials, like chlorine, and photosensitizers, like curcumin. Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/6Wkef9RyUVE Ashley's Biggest Takeaways We consume billions of microorganisms in the food that we eat each day. Fresh fruits and vegetables that are not thermally processed are likely to carry a…
E167 · 22 Aug 2025 · 40 min
Michael Lynch, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Mechanisms of Evolution at Arizona State University and Vaughn Cooper, Ph.D., professor of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine, examine the origins and trajectory of early microbial life (EML) and discuss the collaborative report between the American Academy of Microbiology and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, which explores the journey of life on Earth, from non-living chemical compounds to early unicellular life, to the vast diversity of organisms we see today. This episode is brought…
E166 · 15 Jul 2025 · 48 min
Sally Bornbusch, Ph.D., is an NSF postdoctoral fellow in biology conducting microbial ecology research in animal care and conservation at the Smithsonian National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. She discusses how FMTs are being used to mitigate health concerns in wild animals in captivity, shares key findings about the milk microbiome from the Smithsonian milk repository, the largest collection of exotic animal milks in the world, and explains the science behind eating poo (Coprophagia). Links for This Episode Why Do Animals Eat Poop? (And Why It Might Be a Good Thing). Faeces as food:…
E165 · 30 May 2025 · 42 min
Dev Mittar, Ph.D ., Scientific Director of the ASM Health Scientific Unit discusses the use of metagenomic next generation sequencing to develop agnostic diagnostic technology, giving scientists and clinicians alike, a tool to diagnose any infectious disease with one single test. He also discusses how the ASM Health Unit is empowering scientists and leveraging microbial science innovations to address critical global health challenges and improve lives worldwide. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways The Division of Research, Innovation and Ventures is a small entrepreneurial arm of BARDA that takes on…
E164 · 9 May 2025 · 38 min
Episode Summary Afreenish Amir, Ph.D. , Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Project Director at the National Institute of Health in Pakistan, highlights significant increases in extensively drug-resistant typhoid and cholera cases in Pakistan and discusses local factors driving AMR in Asia. She describes the development and implementation of a National Action Plan to combat AMR in a developing country, emphasizing the importance of rational antimicrobial use, surveillance and infection control practice. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways AMR is a global and One Health issue. Pakistan has a huge disease…
E163 · 14 Mar 2025 · 49 min
Manuel Martinez Garcia, Ph.D., a professor of microbiology in the Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology Department at the University of Alicante in Spain, paints a picture of what microbial life looked like thousands of years ago by analyzing microbial genomic signatures within ice cores collected from the Antarctic ice shelves in the 1990s. Links for the Episode New avenues for potentially seeking microbial responses to climate change beneath Antarctic ice shelves – mSphere paper. Viruses under the Antarctic Ice Shelf are active and potentially involved in global nutrient cycles – Nature…
E162 · 16 Jan 2025 · 52 min
Episode Summary Mother-Son duo, Brenda Wilson, Ph.D., professor of microbiology and the Associate Director of Undergraduate Education in the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and Brian Ho, Ph.D., researcher and lecturer at the Institute of structural and molecular biology, a joint institute between the Department of structural and molecular biology at the University College of London and the Department of Biological Sciences at Birkbeck University of London discuss the inspiration and motivation for their recent book, Revenge of the…
E161 · 6 Jan 2025 · 56 min
Joseph James, biologist at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, discusses his career trajectory and the creation of Binning Singletons, a unique mentorship program built on peer-to-peer networking at scientific meetings and conferences and was first implemented in 2019 at ASM Microbe. Links for the Episode Binning Singletons and Peer-to-Peer Networking Learn more about Binning Singletons . Contact Joe James: [email protected] Follow Binning Singletons on Bluesky. Binning Singletons: Mentoring through Networking at ASM Microbe 2019 —mSphere article. Binning Singletons: Tackling…
E160 · 11 Nov 2024 · 50 min
Saeed Khan, Ph.D., Head of the Department of Molecular Pathology at Dow diagnostic research and reference laboratory and President of the Pakistan Biological Safety Association discusses the importance and challenges of biosafety/biosecurity practices on both a local and global scale. He highlights key steps for biorisk assessment and management and stresses the importance of training, timing and technology. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways Adequate biosafety and biosecurity protocols depend on a thorough understanding of modern challenges, and scientists must be willing and able to respond to new…
E159 · 27 Sep 2024 · 31 min
Nicole Dubilier, Ph.D., Director and head of the Symbiosis Department at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, has led numerous reserach cruises and expeditions around the world studying the symbiotic relationships of bacteria and marine invertebrates. She discusses how the use of various methods, including deep-sea in situ tools, molecular, 'omic' and imaging analyses, have illuminated remarkable geographic, species and habitat diversity amongst symbionts and emphasizes the importance of discovery-driven research over hypothesis-driven methods. Watch this episode:…
E158 · 23 Aug 2024 · 56 min
From Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), Neil Mabbott, Ph.D., has worked for nearly 2 decades on understanding the mechanisms by which prion proteins become infectious and cause neurological disease in humans and animals. He discusses the remarkable properties of prions and addresses complexities surrounding symptoms, transmission and diagnosis of prion disease.
E157 · 28 May 2024 · 49 min
Episode Summary Timothy Donohue, Ph.D. —ASM Past President, University of Wisconsin Foundation Fetzer Professor of Bacteriologyand Director of the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) calls genomics a game-changer when it comes the potential of microbes to create renewable resources and products that can sustain the environment, economy and supply chain around the world. He also shares some exciting new advances in the field and discusses ways his research team is using microorganisms as nanofactories to degrade lignocellulose and make a smorgasbord of products with high economic…
E156 · 7 May 2024 · 55 min
Rodney Rohde, Ph.D. , Regents' Professor and Chair of the Medical Laboratory Science Program at Texas State University discusses the many variants, mammalian hosts and diverse neurological symptoms of rabies virus. Take the MTM listener survey! Ashley's Biggest Takeaways: Prior to his academic career, Rohde spent a decade as a public health microbiologist and molecular epidemiologist with the Texas Department of State Health Services Bureau of Laboratories and Zoonosis Control Division , and over 30 years researching rabies virus. While at the Department of Health Lab, Rohde worked on virus…
E155 · 9 Mar 2024 · 35 min
ASM's Young Ambassador, Aureliana Chambal, discusses the high incidence of tuberculosis in Mozambique and how improved surveillance can help block disease transmission in low resource settings. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways: Mozambique is severely impacted by the TB epidemic, with one of the highest incidences in Africa (368 cases/ 100,000 people in the population). Human-adapted members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) belong to 7 different phylogenetic lineages . These 7 lineages may vary in geographic distribution, and have varying impacts on infection and disease outcome.…
E154 · 26 Jan 2024 · 59 min
The scientific process has the power to deliver a better world and may be the most monumental human achievement. But when it is unethically performed or miscommunicated, it can cause confusion and division. Drs. Fang and Casadevall discuss what is good science, what is bad science and how to make it better. Get the book! Thinking about Science: Good Science, Bad Science, and How to Make It Better
E153 · 11 Dec 2023 · 44 min
Dr. James Morton discusses how the gut microbiome modulates brain development and function with specific emphasis on how the gut-brain axis points to functional architecture of autism. Watch James' talk from ASM Microbe 2023: Using AI to Glean Insights From Microbiome Data https://youtu.be/hUQls359Spo
E152 · 31 Oct 2023 · 44 min
Dr. Michael ginger, Dean of the School of Applied Sciences in the Department of Biological and geographical Science at the University of Huddersfield, in West Yorkshire, England discusses the atypical metabolism and evolutionary cell biology of parasitic and free-living protists, including Leishmania, Naegleria and even euglinids.
E151 · 22 Sep 2023 · 32 min
Dr. Maria Eugenia Inda-Webb , Pew Postdoctoral Fellow working in the Synthetic Biology Center at MIT builds biosensors to diagnose and treat inflammatory disorders in the gut, like inflammatory bowel disease and celiac disease. She discusses how "wearables," like diagnostic diapers and nursing pads could help monitor microbiome development to treat the diseases of tomorrow. Subscribe (free) on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , Google Podcasts , Android , RSS or by email . Ashley's Biggest Takeaways Biosensors devices that engineer living organisms or biomolocules to detect and report the presence…
E150 · 1 Sep 2023 · 41 min
Dr. Gary Procop, CEO of the American Board of pathology and professor of pathology at the Cleveland Clinic, Lerner School of Medicine discusses the importance of early detection and diagnosis in order to prevent fungal invasion leading to poor outcomes, particularly in immunocompromised patients. He emphasizes the importance of thinking fungus early, shares his passion for mentoring and talks about key updates in the recently released 7th Edition of Larone's Medically Important Fungi. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways Many invasive fungal infections are angiotrophic, meaning they actually grow…
E149 · 28 Jul 2023 · 52 min
From antifungal resistance to disaster microbiology and tales of visible mold growing across the skin of patients following a tornado in Joplin, Missouri, Dr. Shawn Lockhart, Senior Clinical Laboratory Advisor in the Mycotic Diseases Branch at the CDC talks all things fungi—complete with references to pop TV shows and the recently released 7th Edition of Larone's Medically Important Fungi. Links mentioned: Larone's Medically Important Fungi: A Guide to Identification, 7th Edition (Use code: MCR20 at checkout for 20% off) CDC's Mycotic Diseases Branch conducts an annual training course on the…
E148 · 14 Jul 2023 · 38 min
Dr. Kate Howell , Associate Professor of Food Chemistry at the University of Melbourne, Australia discusses how microbes impact the flavor and aroma of food and beverages and shares how microbial interactions can be used to enhance nutritional properties of food and beverage sources. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways Saccharomyces means sugar-loving fungus. Humans have similar olfactory structures and mechanisms as insects and are similarly attracted to fermenting or rotting fruits produced by Saccharomyces . Research has shown that insects (and humans) prefer yeasts that produce more esters and…
E147 · 2 Jun 2023 · 42 min
Dr. Steve Diggle, ASM Distinguished Lecturer and Microbiology Professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia and Dr. Freya Harrison, Associate Microbiology Professor at the University of Warwick in Coventry, U.K., discuss the science behind medieval medical treatments and the benefits of interdisciplinary research. Ashley's Biggest Takeaways Diggle and Harrison met in Oxford, where Harrison was finishing up her Ph.D. and Diggle was doing background research for his work studying evolutionary questions about quorum sensing. When Diggle began searching for a postdoc,…
Who is microbiology? Meet the Microbiologist (MTM) introduces you to the people who discover, innovate and advance the field of microbiology. Go behind-the-scenes of the microbial sciences with experts in virology, bacteriology, mycology, parasitology and more! Share in their passion for microbe
Meet the Microbiologist is a English tech & science podcast from Ashley Hagen, M.S.. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.
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