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Microbiology

  1. March 06, 2020

    COVID-19 Sample Collection Kits for Upper Respiratory Tract Specimens

    Due to the recent 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, we have
    been getting many inquiries about what type of swabs, media, and kits
    should be used for COVID-19 sample collection prior to testing. Below we
    have a short guide on which COPAN products meet the Centers for Disease
    Control and Prevention (CDC) Interim...

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  2. February 21, 2020

    Can filters add or decrease the bacterial count?

    According to the USGS, the Earth's surface is comprised of about 71% water (1); however, only a modicum of this supply is potable. Fortunately, modern marvels of mankind are making this supply increasingly accessible through the desalination of salt water and filtration of contaminated water, to name a few. Unlike salt water, the consumption of contaminated drinking water is a major cause for outbreaks...

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  3. January 16, 2020

    Hitting Pay Dirt- New Soil-Derived Antibiotics

    Antibiotic resistance has been an emerging critical threat that, according to the CDC, results in more than 2.8 million antibiotic-resistant infections in the U.S each year, of which 35,000 are fatal (1).

    To date, most every antibiotic at our disposal has been discovered in the dirt; these compounds exist as natural products that...

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  4. November 08, 2019

    Top 10 Germs in Cannabis That Can Make You Sick

    Many people are concerned about what kinds of microorganisms
    might be lurking in their cannabis products. Growers and cultivators are trying
    their best to understand how these contaminants, or “bugs,” may be getting into
    their products. Testing labs are working hard to properly screen and identify
    the worst offenders, even when they are not required to by the local
    ...

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  5. October 31, 2019

    The Life of Louis Kelso: Father of the ESOP

    “There is no future
    for those who cannot or will not think.”

    (Louis O. Kelso, In Lectures and Conversation)

    Louis Kelso is often credited as the man who invented the ESOP. Hardy Diagnostics owes Louis Kelso a lifetime of gratitude for...

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  6. September 04, 2019

    Hardy Diagnostics aboard the ISS!

    In total silence, a nearly 463 ton marvel is traveling at 17,000 miles per hour, but it garners little attention from those on Earth. In a modern age where...

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  7. March 28, 2019

    Preservation of Art Masterpieces from Microbial Dangers

    Art masterpieces should be protected from
    microbial damages by applying preventive action.

    Although human occupancy is known as the main source
    of airborne bacteria and molds in closed environments like hospitals and schools,
     art masterpieces in museums are often
    not considered in this respect...

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  8. April 27, 2018

    Bacteria in Unexpected Places: The Breast Microbiome

    In recent years, greater appreciation for microbes inhabiting human body sites has emerged. In the female mammary gland, milk has been shown to contain bacterial species, reaching the ducts from the skin. Researchers have also discovered a diverse population of bacteria within tissue collected from sites all around the breast in women ages 18 to 90, not all of whom had a history of lactation...

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  9. March 30, 2018

    The Incredible Indestructible Tardigrade

    What doesn’t need water, can freeze solid and come back to life, survives intense radiation, and stays alive in the vacuum of space? 

    Although the answer isn’t a cinematic horror, it certainly looks the part. The humble tardigrade (also known as a moss piglet or water bear) is a small-scale animal that rarely grows larger than half a millimeter in length. It is quite poss...
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  10. February 12, 2018

    A New Weapon Against Resistant Gram Negatives

    Antibiotic development has had its challenges recently; and while the concern of drug-resistant Gram-negative has been vastly described since the past couple of decades, there is a growing light at the end of the tunnel with the recent approval of the broad spectrum antimicrobials between 2015-17. Even more encouraging is the potential regulatory filing and approval of several antimicrobial candidates...

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  11. February 02, 2018

    Are bananas, as we know them, becoming extinct?

    Bananas are the world’s most exported fruit and have become a dietary staple for many people and cultures. Of the 114 million tons produced annually, 85% are produced for consumption in the United States [1]. Unfortunately, the most popular fruit in the world may be under threat by a lethal fungal disease. Fusarium wilt of banana, or Panama disease, affects the seedless Cavendish banana, which is b...
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  12. January 19, 2018

    iChip and the 99%


    A new device called the iChip, short for isolation chip, may unlock the potential to culture the majority of microbes that still remain undiscovered. 

    So far, standard microbiology culture methods have only been able to grow about 1% of microbial species in vitro on synthetic media (1). Beginning in 2002, the iChip was designed

    ...
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  13. January 12, 2018

    The Illness in our Pockets; Cellphones and the Spread of Disease.

    Think of your daily morning routine. You wake up, shower, get dressed, eat, gather your belongings, and make your way out the door to work or wherever the day takes you. Most everyone has a mental checklist of the items we can’t forget in order to function properly throughout the day. I can’t speak for everyone, but most of our lists  follow these general guidelines; “Phone, keys, wallet, beverage of cho...

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  14. December 22, 2017

    The Life of Robert Koch

    At the age of five, Robert Koch astounded his parents by telling them that he had taught himself to read with the aid of a newspaper. This feat merely foreshadowed the intelligence and tenacity which were to be so characteristic of Koch in his adult life. The son of a mining authority, Robert Koch was born on December 11, 1843 at Clausthal in the Upper Harz Mountains in the northwestern region of Germany...

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  15. December 01, 2017

    Is it Viral or Bacterial?

    In an attempt to reduce the inappropriate use of antibiotics, researchers at the University of Rochester have developed a tool that physicians can use to distinguish between a bacterial or viral infection in a patient that is suffering from an infection. Antibiotics are useless in treating viral infections; sadly, bacterial resistance is stimulated by the indiscriminate and often unnecessary use of...

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