With the ongoing challenges associated with large-scale testing for COVID-19—including test kit shortages, stringent testing criteria and the inherent limitations of current tracking systems on mildly symptomatic and asymptomatic populations, scientists are looking for alternate methods to boost testing in order to predict the spread of the disease. Crystal Hepp, an assistant professor in NAU’s School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber… Read more
DNA
NAU team awarded prestigious Chan Zuckerberg grant to build global community around bioinformatics software
Even as NAU associate professor Greg Caporaso and his team were putting the final touches on their QIIME 2™ paper, published earlier this year, he was already planning several major enhancements to this open source and free bioinformatics software that enables scientists to perform microbiome analysis from increasingly large amounts… Read more
NAU audiologist collaborates with industry partner to develop novel therapy for noise-induced hearing loss
More than 700 million people worldwide suffer from some degree of hearing loss, including an estimated 20 percent of Americans over the age of 12, according to medical experts. In fact, the World Health Organization predicts that more than 1 billion teenagers and young adults are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) by using personal listening devices at hazardous volume levels.
Treating and preventing NIHL is complicated,… Read more
QIIME 2™: NAU team reengineers bioinformatics software for next generation of microbiome science
Over the last 20 years, rapid advances in DNA sequencing and bioinformatics technologies have significantly improved scientists’ understanding of the microbial world. Examples include increased knowledge about the vast diversity of microorganisms; how microbiota and microbiomes impact disease and medical treatment; how microorganisms impact the health of our planet; and the potential for… Read more
NAU disease ecologist receives $2.25 million grant to study potential biological warfare agent
Francisella tularensis is one of the most infectious pathogenic bacteria known to science—so virulent, in fact, that it is considered a serious potential bioterrorist threat. Humans can contract respiratory tularemia—a rare and deadly disease—by inhaling as few as 10 airborne organisms.
Northern Arizona University professor David Wagner, director of the Pathogen and Microbiome Institute’s (PMI) Biodefense and Disease… Read more
NAU entomologist launches landmark study of the desert darkling beetle
From the blue death-feigning beetle of the American Southwest to the fog-basking beetles found in the Namib Desert of southern Africa, darkling beetles inhabit deserts all over the world. More than 20,000 different species have been identified, but thousands more are still awaiting discovery. And scientists have yet to fully understand their evolutionary history.
With $879,000 in funding… Read more