Today, Sarah Bordenstein, Associate Research Professor of Biology & Entomology at Penn State University and Director of Discover the Microbes Within! The Wolbachia Project joins the  #QualityQuorum to tell us about the most successful pandemic on the planet, the fascinating endosymbiotic bacterium Wolbachia, and how she has used this fascinating system to teach young people about molecular biology, bioinformatics, and evolution.

Host: Mark O. Martin

Guest: Sarah Bordenstein

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Become a patron of Matters Microbial!

Links for this episode

• An overview about trilobites.
• The story of Beecher’s Quarry.
• An article about the fine work of Markus Martin.
• The microbially influenced glass art of Jane Hartman.
• An overview of metagenomics as a scientific field.
• An article about finding antibiotic resistance genes in unexpected places.
• A popular article on Wolbachia by Ed Yong
• Another popular article on Wolbachia, describing the effects on their host.
• A more scientific review about Wolbachia.
• A quick video overview of the program that Professor Bordenstein and colleagues use to teach about Wolbachia and STEM.
• The “Wolbachia Project” website.
• The “Wolbachia Project Database” website.
• The Bordenstein Laboratory website.
• A prestigious award to Professor Bordenstein.
• Sarah Bordenstein’s faculty website at Penn State

Intro music is by Reber Clark

Send your questions and comments to [email protected]