One Health Microbiome Center

Identification of a Burkholderia Species Causing Onion Bulb Rot Disease | Plant Disease This short communication reports two bacterial strains (22PA0099 and 22PA0106) of a previously undescribed Burkholderia species causing bulb rot in onion. These strains were recovered from symptomatic...

New findings from Dr. Verónica Román-Reyna and colleagues:

Burkholderia species (strains 22PA0099 & 22PA0106) has been confirmed as the cause of onion bulb rot. Their work highlights the need for updated diagnostic tools and vigilance in bulb crop management.

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YouTube video by One Health Microbiome Center at Penn State Investigation of Bile Salt Hydrolase Activity in Human Gut Bacteria | Lauren Lucas

Check out our most recent Seminar Series speaker, Lauren Lucas's talk on the Investigation of Bile Salt Hydrolase Activity in Human Gut Bacteria!

Watch here: youtu.be/cVZI6BtCOLw?...

Low Prevalence and Concentrations of Campylobacter Detected on Retail Chicken Breasts Since 2014, Campylobacter has been the leading bacterial cause of foodborne illness in the United States, resulting in millions in economic losses eac…

New from @kovaclab.bsky.social: Campylobacter — a leading cause of foodborne illness — was detected on only 1.9% of retail skinless, boneless chicken breast samples.

Low prevalence + low concentrations = positive trend for poultry safety 🐔

🔗: sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0362028X25001875

One Health Microbiome Center announces 2026 symposium, keynote speaker lineup | Penn State University The One Health Microbiome Center will host its third biennial symposium at Penn State University Park on May 13 and 14, 2026. The symposium will feature keynote speakers from environmental, human and ...

Check out the press release for our upcoming OHMC Symposium - happening May 13-14, 2026 at Penn State!

www.psu.edu/news/huck-in...

Q&A: How does processed fiber impact human health? | Penn State University In this Q&A, Vishal Singh, associate professor of nutritional physiology and microbiome, discussed how processed fiber found in a variety of food products and supplements affects human digestive healt...

New insight from @vishal-singh.bsky.social explores how processed fibers — like inulin & guar gum — affect human health.

Isolated fibers → gut microbiome shifts → possible liver stress → questions about fiber fortification.

Whole-food fiber still reigns supreme.

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www.psu.edu/news/researc...

The One Health Microbiome Center, @pennstatescience.bsky.social, and @psubiodept.bsky.social
would like to welcome @ashley17061.bsky.social to Penn State as an Academic Affiliate Professor!

Read on to learn about Dr. Shade's accomplishments:

We’re beyond honored to announce our final keynote speaker for the OHMC 2026 Symposium: Dr. Arturo Casadevall!

A global leader in infectious disease and immunology, Dr. Arturo Casadevall will join us May 13–14, 2026 at Penn State.

👉 Register today: huck.psu.edu/institutes-a...

Wet Lab Protocols Matter: Choice of DNA Extraction and Library Preparation Protocols Bias Ancient Oral Microbiome Recovery Ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis of archaeological dental calculus has provided a wealth of insights into ancient health, demography and lifestyles. However, the workflow for ancient metagenomics is still...

New findings from @lauraweyrich.bsky.social's lab and colleagues🚨

In ancient-DNA studies, the choice of DNA extraction and library preparation workflows can drastically shift how much endogenous DNA is retrieved. That means your lab protocol might be as important as your downstream analyses.

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New microorganism survival commission aims to fill critical conservation gap | Penn State University For the first time, the International Union for Conservation of Nature is formally including all microbial life in its framework by establishing a Microbial Conservation Specialist Group, which includ...

For the first time, microbes are part of global conservation efforts. 🌍🧫

The IUCN’s new Microbial Conservation Specialist Group— including @symbionticism.bsky.social —aims to protect the unseen majority of life on Earth.

Read more:
www.psu.edu/news/eberly-...

New clues in how plant microbiomes protect against bacterial speck disease | Penn State University Bacterial speck is a common disease affecting tomatoes that can result in lower yields for growers. A new study led by researchers at Penn State gives new clues on how a plant’s microbiome can be used...

🌱🧬 Penn State’s @hockettlab.bsky.social and team discovered how tomato leaf microbiomes can suppress bacterial speck disease.

Xanthomonas & Pseudomonas → less disease → possible microbial tools to protect crops.

🔗 Read more: www.psu.edu/news/agricul...

Patterson to lead Penn State center on environment and health | Penn State University Andrew Patterson has been named director of Penn State’s Center for Molecular Toxicology and Carcinogenesis, a research hub that investigates how environmental exposures affect human health.

📢 Big news: Dr. Andrew Patterson has been named Director of Penn State’s Center for Molecular Toxicology & Carcinogenesis!

He’ll lead research on how environment, diet, & the microbiome impact health.

🔗 Read more: psu.edu/news/research/story/patterson-lead-penn-state-center-environment-and-health

We’re excited to announce our next keynote speaker for the OHMC 2026 Symposium: Dr. Martin Wiedmann!🎉

An international leader in food safety and the ecology of foodborne pathogens, Dr. Wiedmann will join us May 13–14, 2026 at Penn State.

👉Register today: huck.psu.edu/institutes-a...

YouTube video by MicrobeTV Matters Microbial #108: Neanderthal Oral Health, Ancient Bacteria and DNA

🦠 New Matters Microbial with @markowenmartin.bsky.social!

Guest Dr. @lauraweyrich.bsky.social shares how ancient dental plaque DNA reveals:

– Neanderthal diets & health
– Early “medicine” use
– Microbes shared with humans

🎧 www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Bc5...

YouTube video by MicrobeTV Matters Microbial #108: Neanderthal Oral Health, Ancient Bacteria and DNA

Another week, another episode of #MattersMicrobial podcast! This time, @lauraweyrich.bsky.social of Penn State discusses what bacterial DNA from ancient dental plaque can tell us. Please spread the #GoodMicrobialWord. @univpugetsound @asmicrobiology @microbe.tv

youtu.be/6Bc5jhCDWg8?...

We’re thrilled to announce our first keynote speaker for the OHMC 2026 Symposium: Dr. Joy Bergelson 🎉

A pioneer in plant–microbe interactions & coevolution, Dr. Bergelson will join us May 13–14, 2026 at Penn State.

Register today!

www.huck.psu.edu/institutes-a...

A group of people standing on a staircase in a well-lit room.

With rigorous training, mentorship, and professional development, these fellows are shaping the future of microbiome science. 💡🧫🌍

Learn more about BIOMS and meet our fellows!

This $2.6M NIH training grant supports 11 outstanding doctoral students working across four departments and two campuses on topics ranging from amphibian disease ecology to the gut microbiome’s role in Parkinson’s disease.

One Health Microbiome Center awards 11 inaugural doctoral training fellows | Penn State University The One Health Microbiome Center at Penn State has awarded the first cohort of doctoral students to receive the Biotechnological and Integrative Opportunities in Microbiome Sciences (BIOMS) doctoral t...

🎉 Big news from the One Health Microbiome Center!

We’re thrilled to announce the inaugural cohort of BIOMS (Biotechnological and Integrative Opportunities in Microbiome Science) doctoral fellows at Penn State.

tinyurl.com/nvrczx37

Evolutionary Diversification and Functions of the Candidate Male Killing Gene wmk Abstract. Symbiont-mediated male killing (MK) is a mechanism that selectively eliminates male offspring, often by disrupting sex-specific developmental pro

🧬🔬 New from @symbionticism.bsky.social Lab:

The male-killing gene wmk in Wolbachia shows 5 phylogenetic Types across 32 genomes.

Lepidoptera have more copies & diversity than Drosophila (Types I & III).

Expression levels shape male-biased lethality.

Read → academic.oup.com/gbe/advance-...

Maternal emulsifier consumption alters the offspring early-life microbiota and goblet cell function leading to long-lasting diseases susceptibility - Nature Communications Here, Delaroque et al. show that maternal intake of dietary emulsifiers alters offspring microbiota early in life, which, associated with perturbation of goblet cell function, promotes increased susce...

🔬 A July study from Dr. Andrew Patterson and colleagues reveals:

Maternal emulsifier intake (CMC, P80) leads to→
• Early microbiota changes in offspring
• Premature GAP closure
• Greater long-term disease susceptibility

🔗 Read more:

Common mycorrhizal networks facilitate plant disease resistance by altering rhizosphere microbiome assembly Common mycorrhizal networks (CMNs) facilitate chemical communication between plants. Zhang et al. demonstrate the transfer of jasmonic acid via CMN from Botrytis cinerea-infected donor plants to healt...

Interesting findings from @fdiniandreote.bsky.social & colleagues:

🌱 Plants use underground fungal highways to share defense signals.

CMNs transfer jasmonic acid from infected → healthy plants, reshaping rhizosphere microbes (like Streptomyces) that fight off pathogens.

Read more👉

Hologenomic structure of bacterial and fungal community composition in the West Nile virus vector Culex tarsalis Background Microbiota play a crucial role in determining the ability for arthropod disease vectors to transmit pathogens. Microbial community structure can be heavily influenced by microbe-microbe int...

🦟 New study from @vectorgen.bsky.social and colleagues:

Natural populations of Culex tarsalis (West Nile virus vector) show clear links between host genetics, geography & microbiome structure.

🌍 Microbiota clusters may help explain variation in disease transmission.

🔗Read more:

Repeated thermal stress exposure in Aedes aegypti co-infected with Wolbachia and dengue virus | mSphere Dengue virus (DENV), spread by the mosquito Aedes aegypti, is a major global health threat affecting millions of people. This study examines how repeated exposures to heat stress affect the thermal to...

📢🦟 New study from Dr. Beth McGraw and colleagues:

Heatwaves make Aedes aegypti co-infected with Wolbachia + dengue virus twice as heat-sensitive.
🌡️ Extended heat lowered dengue loads, while Wolbachia remained stable.

Findings highlight climate change impacts on vector control.

Read more➡️ 🔗

OHMC's @symbionticism.bsky.social & colleagues launch the Microbial Conservation Specialist Group (MCSG)!

Over the next 5 years they’ll:
• Map threatened microbial habitats
• Build a diverse global network
• Develop Red List criteria for microbes

Read more: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Registration is now open! 🎉

Be part of the 2026 One Health Microbiome Center Symposium at Penn State (May 13–14). Explore microbiomes across health & ecosystems and connect with top researchers.

Sign up here:

www.eventbrite.com/e/2026-one-h...

Whole-genome sequence of 19 Listeria monocytogenes, isolated from municipal wastewater in State College, Pennsylvania | Microbiology Resource Announcements Wastewater-based surveillance (WBS) is a powerful tool for public health monitoring, offering a more comprehensive view of pathogen prevalence than traditional methods (1–6). Listeria monocytogenes, a major foodborne pathogen, infects ~1,600 Americans annually, leading to 260 deaths (7).

New from OHMC faculty Edward Dudley & @kovaclab.bsky.social & colleagues:

Whole-genome sequencing of 19 Listeria from State College wastewater.

3 isolates closely matched human cases, highlighting wastewater surveillance as a tool for tracking outbreaks.

🔗 journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

The activity of soil microbial taxa in the rhizosphere predicts the success of root colonization | mSystems Most soil microbes are dormant, so they must exit dormancy to have the potential to carry out plant-beneficial functions. It is unclear if dormant microbes revive in proximity to plant-produced resources and if overcoming dormancy in the soil is important ...

New study from OHMC faculty Liana Burghardt & @stl.bsky.social and colleagues:

First use of BONCAT on plant roots reveals microbes are 10× more active the endosphere than in soil — and that activity drives colonization.

A big step for sustainable ag!

Read: journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Incorporating microbiomes into the One Health Joint Plan of Action | mBio One Health is a well-established concept that is now more crucial than ever in tackling modern challenges of zoonotic diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and climate- and environment-related health th...

New work from OHMC faculty Dr. Estelle Couradeau and colleagues calls for the UN’s One Health Joint Plan of Action (2022–2026) to include microbiomes—key players in ecosystem, animal & human health. @stl.bsky.social

A must-read perspective: journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Congratulations to OHMC faculty member Dr. @jordanbisanz.bsky.social on receiving the 2025 @asm.org Award for Early Career Applied & Biotechnological Research! 🎉

A well-deserved recognition of his innovative contributions to microbiome science.

asm.org/press-releas...

Interdisciplinary Innovation Fellowship awards six trainee-led projects | Penn State University The One Health Microbiome Center (OHMC) of the Huck Institutes for Life Sciences at Penn State has selected six candidates to receive the 2025 Interdisciplinary Innovation Fellowship, a competitive fu...

Excited to share that the One Health Microbiome Center has selected six fellows for the 2025 Interdisciplinary Innovation Fellowship! 🌍🧫

From tropical peatlands to oral microbiomes, their projects represent the breadth of Penn State’s microbiome research.

www.psu.edu/news/huck-in...