October 2022 issue of Microbiology Today: Protists now available to read online
The October 2022 edition of Microbiology Today is now available to read online. This issue, titled ‘Protists’, showcases the importance of both protistology research and engagement activities, and was curated in collaboration with Protistology-UK.
The first feature of this magazine comes from Protistology-UK committee members, Fiona Henriquez, Sonja Rueckert and Anastasios Tsaousis, who introduce the theme of this issue by providing an overview from the discovery of protists to the development of modern technologies used to understand them.
Moving the focus to the relationship protists have with bacteria, Ronnie Mooney, Elisa Giammarini, Jackie Parry and Fiona L. Henriquez explore some of the implications amoeba-resistant bacteria could have on human health, including antimicrobial resistance and reduced bacteria detection.
Using his handhold, single-lens microscopes, Leeuwenhoek was the first to share the microbial world with the public. With the development of modern microscopes and the introduction of social media, it is now easier to share the diversity of protists with the world. In their article, James Weiss and Genoveva F. Esteban share the activities they use to introduce the public to protistology.
Ciliates are a group of protists that have been especially successful at adapting to anoxic environments. William H. Lewis and Ross F. Waller take a look at the rich opportunities ciliates provide for microbial symbiosis.
Though often seen as pests, Kevin McKinley, Emma Betts, Anastasios D. Tsaousis and Sonja Rueckert share how parasites could be beneficial. In their featured article, they introduce gregarine apicomplexans and discuss how they can help us understand the evolution of parasitism.
Protists have symbiotic relationships with termites which dates back over 150 million years and since then protists have been passed down generations of termites. Gillian H. Gile looks at their coevolution and the degree of host-parasite specificity.
The final featured article of the issue comes from Nicolas Corradi, who explores the genetics of prominent plant symbionts focusing on the underground fungi called arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.
This issue also contains details of the upcoming conferences in our events programme, an Early Career Microbiologists’ Forum update, a Member Q&A with Vijay Kothari, a spotlight on our Education and Outreach Grant and more.
Image: iStock/wirOman
