Amelia Randich
@ameliarandich.bsky.social
Molecular evolution of cell morphology and growth mechanisms in alphaproteobacteria 👾 Assoc Prof of Biology at The U of Scranton 🥟
Reposted by Amelia Randich
We are looking to hire a microbiology laboratory research technician here at NC State in Raleigh, NC. If you have experience in microbiology and/or LC-MS/MS please consider applying. Please repost!
jobs.ncsu.edu/postings/234...
jobs.ncsu.edu/postings/234...
Microbiology Laboratory Research Technician
The Kleiner Lab at North Carolina State University is seeking a Research Technician to support research focused on complex microbial communities, microbial symbioses, and metaproteomics. Reporting to ...
jobs.ncsu.edu
September 8, 2026 at 10:11 PM
We are looking to hire a microbiology laboratory research technician here at NC State in Raleigh, NC. If you have experience in microbiology and/or LC-MS/MS please consider applying. Please repost!
jobs.ncsu.edu/postings/234...
jobs.ncsu.edu/postings/234...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Chair in Bacteriology in Cambridge Department of Medicine. A great opportunity. Please circulate.
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...
Research Professor in the field of Bacteriology
Strengthening Cambridge's leadership in bacteriology research Bacterial infection and antimicrobial resistance remain among the most pressing global health challenges of our time. At Cambridge, the De...
www.cam.ac.uk
September 8, 2026 at 8:53 AM
Chair in Bacteriology in Cambridge Department of Medicine. A great opportunity. Please circulate.
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/researc...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Kurt Füchslin captured this video of frozen methane bubbles in Sihlsee (Lake Sihl) in Switzerland.
Deep in the depths, bacteria break down decaying organic matter, producing bubbles of methane.
As they reach the thickening surface ice, they're trapped as flammable fart pancakes/ice art.
Deep in the depths, bacteria break down decaying organic matter, producing bubbles of methane.
As they reach the thickening surface ice, they're trapped as flammable fart pancakes/ice art.
September 7, 2026 at 12:50 PM
Kurt Füchslin captured this video of frozen methane bubbles in Sihlsee (Lake Sihl) in Switzerland.
Deep in the depths, bacteria break down decaying organic matter, producing bubbles of methane.
As they reach the thickening surface ice, they're trapped as flammable fart pancakes/ice art.
Deep in the depths, bacteria break down decaying organic matter, producing bubbles of methane.
As they reach the thickening surface ice, they're trapped as flammable fart pancakes/ice art.
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Wow: Flagellar toxicity: Flagellar synthesis is lytic for Bacillus subtilis in the absence of PBP1!
👇
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
@pnas.org #subtiwiki #subtilis
👇
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
@pnas.org #subtiwiki #subtilis
Flagellar toxicity: Flagellar synthesis is lytic for Bacillus subtilis in the absence of PBP1 | PNAS
Flagella are large transenvelope nanomachines but how they transit the peptidoglycan
in gram-positive bacteria is poorly understood. A recent model...
www.pnas.org
September 3, 2026 at 7:01 AM
Wow: Flagellar toxicity: Flagellar synthesis is lytic for Bacillus subtilis in the absence of PBP1!
👇
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
@pnas.org #subtiwiki #subtilis
👇
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
@pnas.org #subtiwiki #subtilis
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Defining the order of assembly of the Clostridioides difficile divisome complex
#microbiology #Clostridia #MicroSky
@asm.org
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
#microbiology #Clostridia #MicroSky
@asm.org
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Defining the order of assembly of the Clostridioides difficile divisome complex | Journal of Bacteriology
Bacterial cell division has been extensively studied in model systems, but little
is known about how this essential process occurs in the clinically important pathogen
Clostridioides difficile. Studie...
journals.asm.org
September 7, 2026 at 7:09 AM
Defining the order of assembly of the Clostridioides difficile divisome complex
#microbiology #Clostridia #MicroSky
@asm.org
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
#microbiology #Clostridia #MicroSky
@asm.org
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
A beautiful piece of detective work by @honour.bsky.social + colleagues revealing the origins of Ralstonia disease of bananas on Martinique. As so often, ICEs (ICERs!) prove to be extraordinary capacitors for evolutionary change. Evolution for evolution's sake 🤔
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
Interspecies Exchange of Mobile Genetic Elements During a Plant Disease Outbreak
Abstract. Outbreak sequencing provides insight into the origin and evolutionary processes acting on emerging pathogens. Sequencing a historic multihost out
doi.org
September 7, 2026 at 7:35 AM
A beautiful piece of detective work by @honour.bsky.social + colleagues revealing the origins of Ralstonia disease of bananas on Martinique. As so often, ICEs (ICERs!) prove to be extraordinary capacitors for evolutionary change. Evolution for evolution's sake 🤔
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
doi.org/10.1093/gbe/...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
🧫 In 1886, Theodor Escherich was studying bacteria from children with diarrhoea.
Among the organisms he saw were strange, curved bacteria.
He could see them under the microscope.
But he couldn't grow them.
It would take almost a century before we understood quite how important they were.
🧵
Among the organisms he saw were strange, curved bacteria.
He could see them under the microscope.
But he couldn't grow them.
It would take almost a century before we understood quite how important they were.
🧵
August 28, 2026 at 9:21 AM
🧫 In 1886, Theodor Escherich was studying bacteria from children with diarrhoea.
Among the organisms he saw were strange, curved bacteria.
He could see them under the microscope.
But he couldn't grow them.
It would take almost a century before we understood quite how important they were.
🧵
Among the organisms he saw were strange, curved bacteria.
He could see them under the microscope.
But he couldn't grow them.
It would take almost a century before we understood quite how important they were.
🧵
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Cool study – #Mtb is notoriously slow growing, but inside macrophages, a subpopulation replicates fast and in doing so, actually evade #antibiotics better than the slow-growers - which is counter-intuitive (multiple theories discussed)
#MicroSky #Tuberculosis #Tb
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#MicroSky #Tuberculosis #Tb
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Fast-growing intracellular Mycobacterium tuberculosis populations evade antibiotic treatment - Nature Communications
The slow growth displayed by Mycobacterium tuberculosis has been historically associated with pathogen’s persistence and drug tolerance. Unexpectedly, here the authors identify a rare subpopulation of...
www.nature.com
August 29, 2026 at 7:44 AM
Cool study – #Mtb is notoriously slow growing, but inside macrophages, a subpopulation replicates fast and in doing so, actually evade #antibiotics better than the slow-growers - which is counter-intuitive (multiple theories discussed)
#MicroSky #Tuberculosis #Tb
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#MicroSky #Tuberculosis #Tb
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
My final PhD chapter is now published in Microbiome (@microbiomej.bsky.social)!
Using metabarcoding, photochemical measurements, and the first scRNAseq of a bleaching coral, we examined the microbial ecology of coral bleaching at the single-cell level! 🪸🔥 #CoralReefs
🔗 rdcu.be/zWHQ92WqZQUa
Using metabarcoding, photochemical measurements, and the first scRNAseq of a bleaching coral, we examined the microbial ecology of coral bleaching at the single-cell level! 🪸🔥 #CoralReefs
🔗 rdcu.be/zWHQ92WqZQUa
Single-cell ecology of coral-algal symbiosis breakdown - Microbiome
Background The symbiosis between corals and dinoflagellate algae is disrupted by heat stress, leading to bleaching and subsequent coral mortality, devastating reef habitats. Despite its planetary-scal...
link.springer.com
August 31, 2026 at 2:06 PM
My final PhD chapter is now published in Microbiome (@microbiomej.bsky.social)!
Using metabarcoding, photochemical measurements, and the first scRNAseq of a bleaching coral, we examined the microbial ecology of coral bleaching at the single-cell level! 🪸🔥 #CoralReefs
🔗 rdcu.be/zWHQ92WqZQUa
Using metabarcoding, photochemical measurements, and the first scRNAseq of a bleaching coral, we examined the microbial ecology of coral bleaching at the single-cell level! 🪸🔥 #CoralReefs
🔗 rdcu.be/zWHQ92WqZQUa
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Rethinking the origin of life at seafloor hydrothermal vents
#evolution #OriginOfLife #MicroSky
@pnas.org
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
#evolution #OriginOfLife #MicroSky
@pnas.org
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
September 1, 2026 at 8:19 AM
Rethinking the origin of life at seafloor hydrothermal vents
#evolution #OriginOfLife #MicroSky
@pnas.org
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
#evolution #OriginOfLife #MicroSky
@pnas.org
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
🚨🪲🧬🦠 We have a new preprint out!
Link: doi.org/10.64898/202...
Insects and microbes are more connected than we realize. Some insects owe part of their ability to feed on plants to genes acquired from bacteria millions of years ago 🤯
See what we found about glycoside hydrolases in leafhoppers.
Link: doi.org/10.64898/202...
Insects and microbes are more connected than we realize. Some insects owe part of their ability to feed on plants to genes acquired from bacteria millions of years ago 🤯
See what we found about glycoside hydrolases in leafhoppers.
July 31, 2026 at 2:16 AM
🚨🪲🧬🦠 We have a new preprint out!
Link: doi.org/10.64898/202...
Insects and microbes are more connected than we realize. Some insects owe part of their ability to feed on plants to genes acquired from bacteria millions of years ago 🤯
See what we found about glycoside hydrolases in leafhoppers.
Link: doi.org/10.64898/202...
Insects and microbes are more connected than we realize. Some insects owe part of their ability to feed on plants to genes acquired from bacteria millions of years ago 🤯
See what we found about glycoside hydrolases in leafhoppers.
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Bacteriology-Focused Assistant Professor Position in Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Michigan
Application deadline: August 15, 2026
Come be my colleague!
Application deadline: August 15, 2026
Come be my colleague!
July 29, 2026 at 6:23 PM
Bacteriology-Focused Assistant Professor Position in Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Michigan
Application deadline: August 15, 2026
Come be my colleague!
Application deadline: August 15, 2026
Come be my colleague!
Reposted by Amelia Randich
My alma mater (College of the Atlantic) is hiring faculty in Field Ecology, Agroecology, and Chemistry. If you're looking for a very cool small liberal arts college on the coast of Maine with a strong environmental focus, check it out (happy to answer questions!): www.coa.edu/human-resour...
Career Opportunities | College of the Atlantic
Career opportunities at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor Maine.
www.coa.edu
July 28, 2026 at 8:46 PM
My alma mater (College of the Atlantic) is hiring faculty in Field Ecology, Agroecology, and Chemistry. If you're looking for a very cool small liberal arts college on the coast of Maine with a strong environmental focus, check it out (happy to answer questions!): www.coa.edu/human-resour...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
1. We—@eduede.bsky.social, @mjcrockett.bsky.social, Kevin Gross, and I—have a new preprint on the arXiv today, based on ideas that emerged during an @sfiscience.bsky.social workshop in November 2024:
The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science.
The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science.
The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science
As a labor-augmenting technology, large language models (LLMs) have the potential to accelerate scientific activity across the research pipeline. But even if LLMs perform on par with human experts at ...
arxiv.org
July 21, 2026 at 3:19 PM
1. We—@eduede.bsky.social, @mjcrockett.bsky.social, Kevin Gross, and I—have a new preprint on the arXiv today, based on ideas that emerged during an @sfiscience.bsky.social workshop in November 2024:
The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science.
The unintended consequences of large language models as a labor-augmenting technology in science.
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Development and Evaluation of Exosporium-Anchored Bioluminescent and Fluorescent Reporters for Tracking Clostridioides difficile Spores Formed In Vivo | ACS Synthetic Biology pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... #teamluciferase
Development and Evaluation of Exosporium-Anchored Bioluminescent and Fluorescent Reporters for Tracking Clostridioides difficile Spores Formed In Vivo
Clostridioides difficile is an anaerobic spore-forming pathogen and a major cause of hospital-acquired and antibiotic-associated colitis. C. difficile spores are key for persistence and transmission o...
pubs.acs.org
May 15, 2026 at 12:46 PM
Development and Evaluation of Exosporium-Anchored Bioluminescent and Fluorescent Reporters for Tracking Clostridioides difficile Spores Formed In Vivo | ACS Synthetic Biology pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/... #teamluciferase
Reposted by Amelia Randich
The Social Lives of Viruses is coming to Vancouver, Canada, from 4th-8th August 2026!
This is a free meeting dedicated to all aspects of virus-virus interactions & evolution.
To apply: socialviruses.zoology.ubc.ca
@sociovirology.bsky.social #socialviruses #evosky #lovevirology #virosky
This is a free meeting dedicated to all aspects of virus-virus interactions & evolution.
To apply: socialviruses.zoology.ubc.ca
@sociovirology.bsky.social #socialviruses #evosky #lovevirology #virosky
April 14, 2026 at 1:52 PM
The Social Lives of Viruses is coming to Vancouver, Canada, from 4th-8th August 2026!
This is a free meeting dedicated to all aspects of virus-virus interactions & evolution.
To apply: socialviruses.zoology.ubc.ca
@sociovirology.bsky.social #socialviruses #evosky #lovevirology #virosky
This is a free meeting dedicated to all aspects of virus-virus interactions & evolution.
To apply: socialviruses.zoology.ubc.ca
@sociovirology.bsky.social #socialviruses #evosky #lovevirology #virosky
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Across scales from cells🦠 to atoms⚛️ – We reveal how anaerobic #bacteria break down very stable aromatic compounds found e.g. in oil spills 🛢️ #Bioremediation #TeamTomo 🧪 🧶🧬 🔬
Awesome collab with Lena, Matthias, @schullerjm.bsky.social @rnfr2d2.bsky.social @tomaspascoa.bsky.social @tamb-o.bsky.social
Awesome collab with Lena, Matthias, @schullerjm.bsky.social @rnfr2d2.bsky.social @tomaspascoa.bsky.social @tamb-o.bsky.social
April 14, 2026 at 3:31 PM
Across scales from cells🦠 to atoms⚛️ – We reveal how anaerobic #bacteria break down very stable aromatic compounds found e.g. in oil spills 🛢️ #Bioremediation #TeamTomo 🧪 🧶🧬 🔬
Awesome collab with Lena, Matthias, @schullerjm.bsky.social @rnfr2d2.bsky.social @tomaspascoa.bsky.social @tamb-o.bsky.social
Awesome collab with Lena, Matthias, @schullerjm.bsky.social @rnfr2d2.bsky.social @tomaspascoa.bsky.social @tamb-o.bsky.social
Reposted by Amelia Randich
My latest for @sciam.bsky.social is all about the real biology, ecology, and climate science that is used to create the world of Pokémon, and how scientists use it to teach science in the real world.
This is just about the most fun I’ve ever had interviewing anyone, and I hope you enjoy! 🧪🌎
This is just about the most fun I’ve ever had interviewing anyone, and I hope you enjoy! 🧪🌎
The Pokémon universe goes hard on ecology and climate science
The Pokémon franchise, including its recent game Pokémon Pokopia, is inspired by real animals and their ecology. It’s no surprise that so many scientists love to try and “catch ’em all”
www.scientificamerican.com
April 14, 2026 at 1:12 PM
My latest for @sciam.bsky.social is all about the real biology, ecology, and climate science that is used to create the world of Pokémon, and how scientists use it to teach science in the real world.
This is just about the most fun I’ve ever had interviewing anyone, and I hope you enjoy! 🧪🌎
This is just about the most fun I’ve ever had interviewing anyone, and I hope you enjoy! 🧪🌎
Reposted by Amelia Randich
🆒 new pub!
Rapid evolution of Klebsiella pneumoniae biofilms in vitro -> adaptations selected during infection by @gretazabo.bsky.social & Linus Sandegren
*hypermucoidy evolves via 📈c-di-GMP, overlaps w/ mutations in UTI and wound isolates.
*pleasure to advise this!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Rapid evolution of Klebsiella pneumoniae biofilms in vitro -> adaptations selected during infection by @gretazabo.bsky.social & Linus Sandegren
*hypermucoidy evolves via 📈c-di-GMP, overlaps w/ mutations in UTI and wound isolates.
*pleasure to advise this!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Rapid evolution of Klebsiella pneumoniae biofilms in vitro delineates adaptive changes selected during infection - Nature Communications
Biofilm formation on implanted medical devices facilitates infection by the pathogen Klebsiella pneumoniae. Here, Zaborskytė et al. use experimental evolution to show that the bacteria rapidly evolve ...
www.nature.com
April 13, 2026 at 5:36 PM
🆒 new pub!
Rapid evolution of Klebsiella pneumoniae biofilms in vitro -> adaptations selected during infection by @gretazabo.bsky.social & Linus Sandegren
*hypermucoidy evolves via 📈c-di-GMP, overlaps w/ mutations in UTI and wound isolates.
*pleasure to advise this!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Rapid evolution of Klebsiella pneumoniae biofilms in vitro -> adaptations selected during infection by @gretazabo.bsky.social & Linus Sandegren
*hypermucoidy evolves via 📈c-di-GMP, overlaps w/ mutations in UTI and wound isolates.
*pleasure to advise this!
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Molecular kinetics dictate population dynamics in CRISPR-based plasmid defense | PNAS https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2525424123
Molecular kinetics dictate population dynamics in CRISPR-based plasmid defense | PNAS
Understanding and manipulating the spread of mobile genetic elements represents a great challenge with potential benefits across synthetic biology,...
www.pnas.org
April 8, 2026 at 6:10 AM
Molecular kinetics dictate population dynamics in CRISPR-based plasmid defense | PNAS https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2525424123
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Our ms on re-sampling 4 years apart vibrio phage in natural environments is now out with some improvements. First, clearer evidence of cryptic population dynamics between phage and vibrio, presumably because of genetic diversity. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
April 8, 2026 at 12:41 PM
Our ms on re-sampling 4 years apart vibrio phage in natural environments is now out with some improvements. First, clearer evidence of cryptic population dynamics between phage and vibrio, presumably because of genetic diversity. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
A star scientist showed that better genetics lessons could reduce racism. It was the death knell for his career
The loss of Brian Donovan’s grants and job speak volumes about federal funding priorities — and academia
www.statnews.com/2026/04/07/b...
The loss of Brian Donovan’s grants and job speak volumes about federal funding priorities — and academia
www.statnews.com/2026/04/07/b...
www.statnews.com
April 7, 2026 at 7:18 PM
A star scientist showed that better genetics lessons could reduce racism. It was the death knell for his career
The loss of Brian Donovan’s grants and job speak volumes about federal funding priorities — and academia
www.statnews.com/2026/04/07/b...
The loss of Brian Donovan’s grants and job speak volumes about federal funding priorities — and academia
www.statnews.com/2026/04/07/b...
Reposted by Amelia Randich
Out Now! Local peptidoglycan composition defines division site selection in Streptococcus pneumoniae #MicroSky
Local peptidoglycan composition defines division site selection in Streptococcus pneumoniae
Nature Microbiology, Published online: 07 April 2026; doi:10.1038/s41564-026-02322-6Sequential peptidoglycan carboxylase activity of DacA and DacB generates a local peptidoglycan signature that recruits MapZ and establishes the division site at the Streptococcus pneumoniae cell equator.
go.nature.com
April 7, 2026 at 6:41 PM
Out Now! Local peptidoglycan composition defines division site selection in Streptococcus pneumoniae #MicroSky
Reposted by Amelia Randich
"The real threat is a slow, comfortable drift toward not understanding what you're doing. Not a dramatic collapse. Not Skynet. Just a generation of researchers who can produce results but can't produce understanding."
Hey, I wrote a thing about AI in astrophysics
ergosphere.blog/posts/the-ma...
ergosphere.blog/posts/the-ma...
The machines are fine. I'm worried about us.
On AI agents, grunt work, and the part of science that isn't replaceable.
ergosphere.blog
April 2, 2026 at 5:30 PM
"The real threat is a slow, comfortable drift toward not understanding what you're doing. Not a dramatic collapse. Not Skynet. Just a generation of researchers who can produce results but can't produce understanding."