Originally released in 2021, in this episode I go over anaerobes. What are some examples of anaerobes? Why can't they grow aerobically ? What is a facultative anaerobe? Tune in to learn more.
In this episode I continue talking about MALDI-TOF MS. This time I go over the advantages and disadvantages. How has MALDI-TOF helped Clinical Microbiology? How does it compare to traditional identification methods and the workflow? What about disadvantages? Tune in to find out.
This episode features a collaboration with Jame and Callum from the ID:IOTS podcast. They are two infectious disease physicians that just like Let's Talk Micro, their goal is to share information and help educate the audience. We join forces to talk about the laboratory. We start by going over what a Medical laboratory Scientist does ( I talk about what I do). We also go over questions like what do we expect to see in a laboratory requisition. Do we add media based on what the source or the requ...
Luego de un episodio introductorio , Luis y Maridaliz regresan nuevamente con un episodio para la serie en español . En este episodio discuten medios de cultivo. Qué son los medios de cultivo? Cómo estos medios ayudan a los microorganismos? Cuáles son selectivos? Cuáles son diferenciales? Sintonizen para aprender sobre estos medios, las condiciones que los microorganismos necesitan para crecer, y más.
Following the webinar on MALDI-TOF MS, we think that now it is a good time to go over MALDI-TOF MS. This topic was discussed two years ago, but since there are new listeners, now is a good time to go over it again. Are you familiar with MALDI-TOF? How does it work? How does it help Clinical Microbiology? Tune in to find out.
This episode features a conversation with Dr. Caterina Miraglia, a professor from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Dr. Miraglia published a review article about Marburg viruses in 2019, in order to educate fellow Medical Laboratory Scientists about these type of viruses. What is Marburg virus? What is Marburg virus disease? Is there any treatment or prevention? Tune in to find out.
Let's Talk Micro fue creado con el objetivo de compartir información y aprender, enseñando todo de la manera mas simple posible. Siendo fiel a esa misión , hoy comienza una serie dentro del podcast para la población que habla español . Luis Plaza, el creador y animador del podcast, se une a la Dra. Maridaliz Rodriguez para hablar de microbiología . En este episodio Luis y Maridaliz hablan de su profesión y del objetivo de esta serie.
This is a short episode to update listeners about an upcoming sub-series in Spanish. Staying true to Let's Talk Micro's goal of sharing information and learning, this sub-series is meant to do that for the Spanish speaking audience. Episodes will be released about every five weeks on a different day as regular episodes.
This episode is the one that was recorded live from ID Week 2023 in Boston. In it I talk about my favorite posters, talks, and also about my experience as a first time attendee. This episode also features a short talk with Dr. Timothy Gauthier, a Pharmacist that spends time teaching about antibiotics via a blog and publications.
This is the second part of the interview with Dr. Joel Mortensen and his experience at a hospital in Guinea. In this episode he continues talking about training laboratory personnel and teaching essential things like quality control. He also talks about issues like supplies and electricity and future plans. Are you trained in hematology and chemistry and speak French? Are you interested in helping out with training? You can email the podcast and your information will be forwarded or you can reac...
This episode features an interview with Dr. Joel Mortensen. He is the Director of the Diagnostic Infectious Diseases Testing Laboratory at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. Dr. Mortensen volunteered to train laboratory personnel to perform microbiology testing at a pediatric hospital that was being built in Guinea, West Africa. Tune in to learn about this hospital, hear about his experience, the challenges he encountered, and more. This is part one of a two part series. Link to Hope Ignited: https...
We have heard or recent cases of malaria in the United States. What better than to do an episode about it? Dr. Kenneth Gavina, from the Indiana University School of Medicine, joins the podcast to talk about it. Tune in to learn about its life cycle, transmission, prevention, its relationship to pregnancy, and more.Link to CDC's life cycle: https://www.cdc.gov/malaria/about/biology/index.html Link to Future of Malaria Research Symposium: https://publichealth.jhu.edu/malaria-research-institute/202...
Have you worked in a veterinary laboratory? What kind of training do you need? Are you able to work in one as an MLS? Have you thought about what a culture from a veterinary specimen might look like? How do you work those up? What about antimicrobials and guidelines? Kelli Maddock and Sarah Gefroh from the North Dakota State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory join the podcast to answer these questions. They are Medical Laboratory Scientists with experience in human medicine that switche...
This episode is part two of the great emerging viruses talk with Dr. Ryan Relich and Benjamin Pinsky. They talk over diagnostic tests for viruses, challenges with test development, and they share their thoughts on viruses and outbreaks. Link to the National Academies Arbovirus workshop: https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/mitigating-arboviral-threats-and-strengthening-public-health-preparedness-a-workshop Link to the Pan American Society for Clinical Virology: https://www.pascv.org/defaul...
With all the information about viruses that we see coming out, what better than an episode about emerging viruses. Dr. Benjamin Pinsky and Dr. Ryan Relich, two experienced virologists, join the podcast to talk about viruses. Tune in to learn about the different type of viruses, mode of entry, diseases, and more. This is part one of a two-part series. Link to the Clinical Virology Symposium: https://asm.org/Events/Clinical-Virology-Symposium/Home...
In this episode Dr. Ryan Relich and Dr. Kenneth Gavina join the podcast to talk about an article where Francisella tularensis spp . novicida was recovered from a blood culture. Are you familiar with this organism? What are the subspecies of Francisella tularensis ? What are the biochemicals tested on it and their results? While most of us might never see this organism in our careers, being aware and prepared to recognize it is essential. We have to be prepared and have a plan in place. Tune in t...
Season 3 kicks off with the second episode of the AMR sub-series—this time focusing on beta-lactam antibiotics. Luis and Dr. Andrea Prinzi are joined by Dr. Brian Raux, a pharmacist, to discuss beta-lactam drug classes, mechanism of action, intrinsic resistance, and CLSI guidance. A must-listen for anyone interested in antimicrobial resistance. Questions? Feedback? Send those to letstalkmicro@outlook.com Want to support the podcast? Here's how: Venmo: https://venmo.com/u/letstalkmicro Buy me a K...
Hi everyone. Just wanted to take some time to give you some previews of upcoming episodes. From viruses, to Franciscella, to the next episode of the AMR sub-series, Let's talk Micro is kicking off season 3 with some great episodes. Also don't miss the webinar that I am presenting next week on tools and resources in a Microbiology laboratory! Registration is free. Link to sign up for webinar: https://www.clinicallab.com/trends/the-transfusion-medicine-laboratory/2023-blood-microbiology-digital-fo...
This episode is a collaboration with the Microbe Mail podcast. Dr. Vindana Chibabhair and I go over yeast in cultures: appropriate sources, significance, and pathogenicity versus normal flora. We also talk about instruments used to identify yeast, antifungals, and more... Check out the Microbe Mail podcast: https://microbemail.captivate.fm
This episode features a conversation with Dr. Melissa Jamerson, chair of the Medical laboratory Sciences department at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Dr. Jamerson talks about the degrees offered for Medical Laboratory Sciences (MLS) at her institution, which include undergraduate and graduate. A new Masters degree with a concentration in Public Health Laboratories is starting this fall. What are the requirements for this degree? How does it differ from other Masters degrees in MLS? Tune...
This episode is the first episode in what is going to be an Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) sub-series. Dr. Andrea Prinzi joins me in this series. Together we breakdown this complex topic. In this episode we start with an overview of the state of AMR, Dr. Prinzi provides some history, and we explain what the series is going to be about. Learning this information can be challenging for professionals, but we are going to break it down as simple as we can. Knowing and understanding this information ...
Digital technology is part of the laboratory. We see it on instruments in Urinalysis and Hematology where images such as those of cells are produced. What about Parasitology? Can it be used for it? Dr. Bobbi Pritt, from the Mayo Clinic Laboratory , joins the podcast to talk about it. An algorithm with Artificial Intelligence has been implemented in her lab for protozoa. How did it do? What are the components? Tune in to find out.
This episode was recorded while at the American Society for Microbiology's (ASM) Microbe 2023 at Houston. I go over my favorite posters, sessions and more. It was great connecting with fellow microbiologists. Great posters such as Shewanella and oysters, frogs and potential compounds, and more. Of course, as a podcaster I had to sit through an episode of Editors in conversation.
This episode was recorded while at the American Society for Microbiology's (ASM) Microbe 2023. I went over what I liked about this conference as a first timer. I also talk more about other courses I took and my experience overall. Then I was joined by great company: Elizabeth Deyett and Jon Mitchell from the Microbe Moment, They have a podcast called the Microbe Moment with the Microbigals. They talk about the impact of microbes in life, provide historical perspectives, and more. They also atten...
In this episode I am joined by Dr. April Bobenchik, the Medical Microbiology Director at Penn State Health. She talks about the latest updates of the CLSI's M100. CLSI (Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute) publishes many documents, the M100 being one of them, which is updated yearly. What is the M100? How does it relate to the work that we do in Clinical Microbiology? What is new this year? Tune in to find out.CLSI's webpage: https://clsi.org M100 webinar from CLSI link: https://clsi.org/sta...
Some of you may be familiar with the popular Parasite Wonders blog. In this episode of Let's Talk Micro , Luis is joined by its creator, Dr. Bobbi Pritt, Director of the Parasitology Laboratory at Mayo Clinic. They dive into key questions: What specimens are typically tested for parasites? What testing methods are used? Is there a role for digital parasitology? Dr. Pritt shares her insights and expertise on all things parasitic. Curious to learn more? Tune in to this fascinating conversation! Si...
This episode is the conclusion of Dr. Wojewoda's story about her hospital's network going down. What was the overall effect of the network going down?What happened when the system came back up? Any lessons learned and advice? Tune in to find out. Questions? Feedback? Send those to letstalkmicro@outlook.com Want to support the podcast? Here's how: Venmo: https://venmo.com/u/letstalkmicro Buy me a Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/letstalkmicro...
Those of us that work in the laboratory have experienced a downtime at some point or another. They tend to be about 4 hours long. What if the downtime went on for days? How would you perform tasks such as add-on testing or referencing cultures? What if the whole system was down? Dr. Christina Wojewoda from the University of Vermont Medical Center joins the podcast to tell her "horror" story of when the network at her hospital went down. This is part 1 of 2 episodes. Questions? Feedback? Send tho...
This episodes features a conversation with Dr. Romney Humphries and Dr. April Abbott. They join the podcast to talk about a study where Piperacillin-Tazobactam (TZP) was evaluated. Testing results from automated systems were compared to a reference method. How did the systems perform? What are the challenges? What are CLSI breakpoints and FDA breakpoints? What is the MERINO trial? Tune in to find out. Link to article: https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jcm.01617-22 Questions? Feedback? Send th...
This episode features a conversation with Dr. Louise Francois Watkins and Dr. Naeemah Logan from the CDC. They join the podcast to talk about extensively drug resistant Shigella (XDR). What is Shigella ? How is it transmitted? What makes it an XDR? Tune in to find out. Resources: Health Alert Network (HAN) - 00486 | Increase in Extensively Drug-Resistant Shigellosis in the United States ( cdc.gov ) Webinar Tuesday, February 28, 2023 - Epidemiology, Testing, and Management of Extensively Drug-Res...
