Binning Singletons With Joseph James

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1. 

   E166 · 15 Jul 2025 · 48 min

   How FMTs, Coprophagia and the Milk Microbiome Inform Wildlife Conservation With Sally Bornbusch

   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:…

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   E165 · 30 May 2025 · 42 min

   Agnostic Diagnostics and the Future of ASM Health With Dev Mittar

   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…

3. 

   E164 · 9 May 2025 · 38 min

   Implementing a National Action Plan to Combat AMR in Pakistan With Afreenish Amir

   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…

4. 

   E163 · 14 Mar 2025 · 49 min

   Discovering Fossilized Microbes in Antarctic Ice Cores With Manuel Martinez Garcia

   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…

5. 

   E162 · 16 Jan 2025 · 52 min

   Revenge of the Microbes With Brenda Wilson and Brian Ho

   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…

6. 

   E160 · 11 Nov 2024 · 50 min

   Biorisk Assessment and Management With Saeed Khan

   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…

7. 

   E159 · 27 Sep 2024 · 31 min

   From Hydrothermal Vents to Cold Seeps: How Bacteria Sustain Ocean Life With Nicole Dubilier

   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:…

8. 

   E158 · 23 Aug 2024 · 56 min

   When Proteins Become Infectious: Understanding Prion Disease With Neil Mabbott

   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.

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   E157 · 28 May 2024 · 49 min

   Trillion Dollar Microbes Make the Bioeconomy Go Round With Tim Donohue

   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…

10. 

    E156 · 7 May 2024 · 55 min

    Rabies: The Diabolical Virus With Many Symptoms and Hosts With Rodney Rohde

    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…