News

Aug 21, 2020

Flavonoids' presence in sorghum roots may lead to frost-resistant crop

​Flavonoid compounds — produced by the roots of some sorghum plants — positively affect soil microorganisms, according to Penn State researchers, who suggest the discovery is an early step in developing a frost-resistant line of the valuable crop for North American farmers.​

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Aug 06, 2020

Penn State Microbiome Center and GALT enter collaboration to advance research

The Penn State Microbiome Center and General Automation Lab Technologies (GALT) announced their collaboration to advance plant pathology, environmental microbiology and human gut microbiome studies.

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Jun 30, 2020

Coral Researchers Recognized for Significant Contributions to Field

Iliana Baums and her research team were recognized by members of the coral reef community as making significant contributions to coral reef research.

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May 14, 2020

The Mighty Microbiome

Researchers in the College of Agricultural Sciences aim to put microbes to work to improve our health and environment.

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Apr 27, 2020

Iron deficiency in corals?

When iron is limited, the tiny algae that live within coral cells — which can provide the majority of a coral’s nutritional needs — change how they take in other trace metals, which could have cascading effects on vital biological functions.

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Mar 24, 2020

Developing a novel oral antibiotic to treat multidrug-resistant gonorrhea

Up to $2.86M has been awarded to a research team including Penn State scientists to develop a new oral antibiotic to treat multidrug-resistant gonorrhea, a sexually transmitted disease caused by bacteria that have developed resistance to all but one existing antibiotic.

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Mar 18, 2020

Pesticide seed coatings are widespread but underreported

​Pesticide-coated seeds — such as neonicotinoids, many of which are highly toxic to both pest and beneficial insects — are increasingly used in the major field crops, but are underreported, in part, because farmers often do not know what pesticides are on their seeds, according to an international team of researchers.​

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Mar 11, 2020

Listening to your gut: A powerful new tool on the microbiome and cell metabolism

Many aspects of our lives — not only the presence or absence of certain diseases, but conditions like obesity, sleep patterns, even mood — may be determined, to a surprising extent, by the microbes living inside of us.

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Mar 12, 2020

Gene regulatory factors enable bacteria to kill rivals and establish symbiosis

Two factors that control the expression of a key gene required by luminescent bacteria to kill competing bacterial cells have been identified. The finding, by researchers at Penn State, sheds light on the molecular mechanisms that enable different strains of bacteria to compete and establish symbiosis in the Hawaiian bobtail squid.

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Mar 02, 2020

Imtiaz Ahmad Represents Microbiome Center at Plant and Animal Genome Conference

Dr. Imtiaz Ahmad, a postdoctral researcher working in Mary Barbercheck's lab, represented Penn State's Microbiome Center last month at the annual Plant and Animal Genome Conference in San Diego.

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