Entries in Microbiology (6)

Tuesday
Dec072010

Green Slime

A week or two ago, I came across this lump of green jelly-like substance in the Wilderness.  It was on a dead leaf on the ground just below this slime-covered log:

I suspect that this slime is blue-green algae (Cyanobacteria), possibly a  Nostoc sp.  In particular, it looks like the amorphous terrestrial form shown at the foot of this page at Down Garden Services.

Photos taken in the Wilderness, Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2010-11-23.

Sunday
Dec052010

Microbiologist brings NASA down to Earth

... NASA's shameful analysis of the alleged bacteria in the Mars meteorite made me very suspicious of their microbiology, an attitude that's only strengthened by my reading of this paper.  Basically, it don't present ANY convincing evidence that arsenic has been incorporated into DNA (or any other biological molecule). ...

... If this data was presented by a PhD student at their committee meeting, I'd send them back to the bench to do more cleanup and controls. ...

From this blog post by Dr Rosie Redfield (who runs a microbiology research lab at the University of British Columbia).

Sunday
Mar142010

Microbiological Manga

I have often suspected that the Japanese were deeply weird.

From the Wikipedia page for Moyasimon:

Moyasimon: Tales of Agriculture, known in Japan as Moyashimon (もやしもん), is a manga series created by Masayuki Ishikawa. ... The series follows Tadayasu Sawaki, a first-year college student at an agricultural university, who has a unique ability to see and communicate with bacteria and other micro-organisms.

From the list of characters:

Tadayasu Souemon Sawaki (沢木 惣右衛門 直保, Sawaki Souemon Tadayasu)
Voiced by: Daisuke Sakaguchi
Tadayasu Souemon Sawaki is the main protagonist of Moyasimon and attends an agricultural university in Tokyo as a freshman. His middle name is the yagō of his family home; it is usually omitted, and he is called "Tadayasu Sawaki". He is a childhood friend of Kei Yūki and his parents run a mold-starter producer (種麹屋, tane-kōji-ya). He is able to see and communicate with bacteria and other microorganisms.

Kei Yūki (結城 蛍, Yūki Kei)
Voiced by: Mitsuki Saiga
Kei is a childhood friend of Sawaki and, like him, a freshmen. His parents run a sake brewery (making them customers for the mold starter from Sawaki's parents). It is revealed after a brief disappearance by Kei from the main plot, that Kei is gender dysphoric, and that he has stronger feelings for Sawaki than initially let on.

From the list of micro-organisms:

Hiochi Kin (火落菌)
Lactobacillus homohiochi, the "bad guy" of the series. A fructivoran which makes sake go bad.

Lactobacillus yogurti (L.ヨグルティ, L. yoguruti)
Voiced by: Miu Nakamura
Used to make Japanese yoghurt. Speaks in a very formal accent.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S.セレビシエ, S. serebishie)
Voiced by: Misa Tamagawa
Creates alcohol out of sugars. Hangs around Kei in the anime.

I rest my case.

Saturday
Dec012007

Arcyria Slime Mould

arcyria

Another wonderful slime mould photo from Kim Fleming (alias myriorama).

Friday
Oct272006

Slime Mold Hemitrichia

Slime mold Hemitrichia

This is one of several wonderful photos of slime molds taken by Kim Fleming (alias myriorama).  Slime molds are strange beings that come somewhere between fungi and protozoa in the tree of life.  They are sort of fungi that have a mobile stage in their life cycle.  I will certainly be keeping an eye out for them when I go for my next walk around the Reading University grounds.  I would expect that, with this warm wet autumn we have been having, there should be lots about.  I will also try to read up on them if I can find a decent book.