Briefing Chat: Penguins pick up PFAS pollution Hear the biggest stories from the world of science | 17 April 2026

🔊 This week, the team discuss penguins picking up PFAS pollution

go.nature.com/4sG9rVI

A social media card with a photo of fermented food and the text "Research Scientist (Data Science) to investigate how novel fermented plant-based foods influence the human gut microbiome, Salary: £37.500 to £43,350, Contract length: 2 years, Apply by 17 May 2026"

🆕 Vacancy! We’re looking for a Research Scientist (Data Science) to join Professor @bioinf.bsky.social 's group to investigate how novel fermented plant-based foods influence the human gut microbiome 📊

💷 £37,500 to £43,350
🗓️ Apply by 17 May 2026
➡️ buff.ly/X88I01N

Kathrin Wippel (UvA): Bacterial interactions influencing microbiome composition and plant performance
#NIME2026

Conceptual diagram summarising the immunometabolic gatekeeping hypothesis in conjunction with canonical understanding of the link between high metabolism and cancer.

More immune cells should mean better outcomes.
Yet in kidney cancer, glioma, uveal melanoma - it doesn’t.

We think tissue metabolism is the missing variable.

Immunometabolic gatekeeping - preprint out now 🔗
arxiv.org/abs/2511.20883

Prebiotics reverse effects of anti-depressants on the gut microbiome - Quadram Institute Scientists from the University of Ottawa and Beijing Institute of Lifeomics found that SSRIs, SNRIs and Tricyclic Antidepressants, commonly prescribed anti-depressants that target the…

"These findings reinforce the urgent need to understand how drugs and other xenobiotics affect the gut microbiome."

💬 Our Director, Professor @dfigeys.bsky.social

An exciting opportunity to join my group @quadraminstitute.bsky.social to contribute to the development of our work on #microbiome#food interactions using cutting edge anaerobic fermentation models

A digital illustration of the gut microbiome with the text "Funded PhD, Evolutionary and Ecological Impact of the Western Lifestyle on the Gut Microbiome, with Dr Falk Hildebrand, Apply by 2 December 2025"

🎓 #PhDPosition !

🍔 Evolutionary and Ecological Impact of the Western Lifestyle on the Gut Microbiome with Dr Falk Hildebrand @bioinf.bsky.social

📅Apply by 2 December

➡️ buff.ly/Pf6wmqO

From clonality to complexity: a journey through microbial ecology and evolution Nature Reviews Genetics, Published online: 30 October 2025; doi:10.1038/s41576-025-00910-6Jaime Martinez-Urtaza reflects on two papers by Smith et al., who found that bacteria exist along a continuum from clonal to recombining populations, and introduced the concept of an ‘epidemic’ microbial population structure.

New online! From clonality to complexity: a journey through microbial ecology and evolution

PhD position advertisement that reads "Funded PhD. Exploring the genetics of gut microbiomes spatially resolved in IBD patients. With Professor Falk Hildebrand. Apply by 6 January 2026."

🆕We’re looking for a motivated candidate to explore the evolution of the gut microbiome in patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease, working on cutting-edge metagenomics with clinical translation 🧬

🗓️ Apply by 6 January 2026
➡️ buff.ly/dFWnLv7

@bioinf.bsky.social

There was great energy in #Southampton for our recent launch event 🌟

Want to catch up on the highlights from an exciting day?

Check out our new event report 👇
www.giba-uk.org/highlights

🚀 AIBIO-UK x L2D Training Scholarships

25 fully funded spots for biosciences researchers to learn:
🔹 Python
🔹 Data handling
🔹 ML & AI

🗓️ Apply by 21 Oct: forms.office.com/e/rVf0Q2H9a5

🔗 Info: aibio.ac.uk/opportunitie...

#AIBIOUK #AIinBiosciences #L2D #Scholarships

TIRIS Postdoc fellowship call will soon be open in Toulouse! If you're interested in plant microbiota, or plant-plant interactions or experimental evolution, the ECOGEN team at the @lipme-toulouse.bsky.social would be happy to support and help with your application!

Exciting to see this launch today! This research is an excellent example of using plant science to improve human health, and highlights the value of BBSRC’s long-term investment in plant and nutritional science🍅🔬

Excited to share our @cp-cellhostmicrobe.bsky.social led by Magda showing how Bif has co-evolved with different animal hosts 🐒🐭🐷🐦

Key takeaways:
🔹 Host ancestry + diet shape Bif evolution
🔹 Mammals enriched for carb-busting enzymes
🔹 Untapped diversity in non-human hosts = new probiotic potential

Meta-analysis of the uncultured gut microbiome across 11,115 global metagenomes reveals a new candidate biomarker of health The human gut microbiome plays an important biological role in host health, yet over 60% of gut species remain uncultured and hence inaccessible to experimental manipulation. Here we analysed 11,115 h...

🚨 New pre-print from the lab! We performed a large-scale meta-analysis of the uncultured gut #microbiome in >10,000 metagenomes enabling us to identify a new candidate biomarker of health. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

An illustration of a network with the text "Metagenomics Research Scientist, to join Falk Hildebrand's group to study the diet impact on the gastrointestinal microbiome. Salary: £37,500 to £42,000, Contract length: 2.5 years, Apply by 30 September 2025"

🆕 Vacancy! We’re looking for a #Metagenomics Research Scientist to join the Laboratory of Dr Falk Hildebrand @bioinf.bsky.social to study diet impact on the gastrointestinal microbiome.

💷 £37,500 - £42,000
🗓️ Apply by 30 September 2025
➡️ buff.ly/uwqGQQm

How do we digest beans? - Quadram Institute PhD candidate Glória Máté-Koncz explains the science of how we digest beans and how we study the digestion process here at the Quadram Institute.

🆕 Blog! PhD student Glória Máté-Koncz explains the science of how we digest beans and how we study the digestion process here at the Quadram Institute 🫘
buff.ly/xuq1lcB

Presenting new research at an international conference: using microphysiological systems (MPS) to study microbial infections Dr Emily Jones visits Brussels to share her latest findings and network with researchers from around the world.

Check out this week's blog from Dr Emily Jones at the @quadraminstitute.bsky.social to hear about her trip to Brussels for the Microphysiological Systems World Summit 2025. Great to see microbiology research in Norwich being shared with international audiences!

www.cmi-norwich.ac.uk/presenting-n...

Plant-associated fungi co-opt ancient antimicrobials for host manipulation Evolutionary histories of effector proteins secreted by fungal pathogens to mediate plant colonization remain largely elusive. While most functionally characterized effectors modulate plant immunity, ...

📣 NEW PREPRINT 📝

We identified evolutionary origins of many fungal effectors!
We show that fungi secrete lots of antimicrobial proteins, and that some of them were repurposed by plant pathogens for host immune suppression.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

cc @teamthomma.bsky.social

To promote the collection, I’ve launched a designer clothing line where synthetic biology meets aesthetics.

I will give out 100 free limited edition shirts to the first who retweet and order with their handle in the name! Available here → nickdesnoyer.com 🧵(6/7)

Introducing the 1,000 Flower Collection 🧬🌹

I’m creating 1,000 genetically designed flowers each crafted with new colors, patterns, and shapes.

Here’s how I’m making it happen… and how you can join me on this journey 🧵(1/7)

The Genetic Basis of Bacterial Adaptation to Hosts Microbes colonize and interact with diverse multicellular hosts using specialized genes, many of which remain unidentified. Better understanding of host-associated gene functions is a key aspect of mi...

📢 New preprint alert!
We used comparative genomics on 72,000+ bacterial genomes to uncover the genetic basis of microbial adaptation to multicellular hosts—plants and animals alike.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Pseudomonas intra-genus competition determines the protective function of synthetic bacterial communities in Arabidopsis thaliana The plant microbiome can protect its host against detrimental bacterial strains. This study shows that competition among Pseudomonas bacteria in synthetic bacterial communities determines how well the...

Our paper on Pseudomonas intra-genus competition in SynComs on Arabidopsis roots is now out @plosbiology.org ! 🎉
If you want to chat about the story, visit poster 374 tomorrow, Thursday #2025ISMPMI

journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...

A photo looking down a bowl full of cous-cous, kale, olives and almonds. Around the edge of the bowl is kale and utensils, on a blue table.

Our researchers are running a study to assess different ways of helping vegans increase their daily intake of essential nutrients 🌿

✅ If you’d like to help us, register to take part

📣 Please RT and share!
➡️ buff.ly/4c2yGsP

Some gut microbes can absorb and help expel ‘forever chemicals’ from the body, research shows Previously, the only way to reduce levels of Pfas was by bloodletting or a drug with unpleasant side effects * Sign up for the Detox Your Kitchen newsletter Certain kinds of gut microbes absorb toxic Pfas “forever chemicals” and help expel them from the body via feces, new first-of-its-kind University of Cambridge research shows. The findings are welcome news as the only options that exist for reducing the level of dangerous Pfas compounds from the body are bloodletting and a cholesterol drug that induces unpleasant side effects. Continue reading...

Some gut microbes can absorb and help expel ‘forever chemicals’ from the body, research shows

Human gut bacteria bioaccumulate PFAS

Excited to share some key details on our latest research in @natmicrobiol.nature.com reporting intra-cellular accumulation of #PFAS (aka forever chemicals) by certain human gut bacteria. #microsky #mevosky #microbiomesky
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Human gut bacteria bioaccumulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances - Nature Microbiology Human gut bacteria bioaccumulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as forever chemicals, in intracellular aggregates. Colonization of gnotobiotic mice with bioaccumulating bac...

Gut bacteria to the rescue! 🦠✨
They can shield us from harmful chemicals—and the latest study from Kiran Patil's lab (@kiranrpatil.bsky.social)
uncovers how. We’re proud to have contributed to this exciting work!
#Microbiome #Detox
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Human gut bacteria bioaccumulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances - Nature Microbiology Human gut bacteria bioaccumulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as forever chemicals, in intracellular aggregates. Colonization of gnotobiotic mice with bioaccumulating bac...

Beautiful work from my friend @kiranrpatil.bsky.social . Gut bacteria can accumulate Forever chemicals and help us get rid of them! Happy we could contribute! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Certain species of microbe found in the human gut can absorb PFAS PFAS have been linked with a range of health issues including decreased fertility, developmental delays in children, and a higher risk of certain cancers and cardiovascular diseases.

🔍 Read: Within minutes of exposure, these bacterial species tested soaked up between 25% and 74% of the introduced PFAS.

phys.org/news/2025-06...

Gut Bacteria Can Protect Against Forever Chemicals Scientists have discovered that certain microbes living in our intestines can absorb toxic "forever chemicals" called PFAS, potentially offering a natural defense against these widespread pollutants. Researchers at the University of Cambridge found that specific gut bacteria can soak up between 25% and 74% of PFAS within minutes, storing the chemicals in dense clusters inside their cells while continuing to grow normally.

Gut Bacteria Can Protect Against Forever Chemicals

Scientists have discovered that certain microbes living in our intestines can absorb toxic "forever chemicals" called PFAS, potentially offering a natural defense against these widespread pollutants. Researchers at the University of Cambridge…