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Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion test of gut bacteria: Paper sheets soaked with antibiotics are placed on a petri dish. The antibiotic concentration decreases with increasing distance. The closer bacteria grow to the test sheets, the more resistant they are (red circles). If the gradients of two different antibiotics meet, their effectiveness can increase (yellow arrows). (Source: UZH)
AI in Healthcare

AI Helps to Detect Antibiotic Resistance

Researchers have developed an AI system to interpret the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion test, which helps identify which antibiotics are effective against bacterial infections. While still requiring refinement, the AI system shows promise in supporting doctors by speeding up the identification of resistance to life-saving antibiotics.

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Galleries

On the left, a Vibrio cholerae strain that produces the antimicrobial Mvcc (center) outcompetes a surrounding V. cholerae strain that does not produce an antidote to the antimicrobial. This creates a zone of exclusion between the two strains (dark ring). On the right, neither strain produces an antimicrobial and so neither has a competitive advantage.  (Source: Bryan Davies/University of Texas at Austin)
Health

Discovery of New Antimicrobial Could Help Treat Cholera

Researchers see promise in a class of natural antimicrobials called microcins, which are produced by bacteria in the gut and help them compete with rival bacteria. The researchers also identify the first known microcin that targets the strains of bacteria that cause cholera and describe a method for finding microcins in bacterial genomes with the help of artificial intelligence.

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Is it possible to close the texture gap between plant-based meat and animal meat? Ellen Kuhl and her lab are trying. From left: Skyler St. Pierre, Marc Levenston, Ellen Kuhl, Reese Dunne, Ethan Darwin, Valerie Perez Medina, and Divya Adil pose with the meat and plant-based meat they analyzed.  (Source: Kurt Hickman/ Stanford University)
Mimicking Animal Meat

Can AI Improve Plant-Based Meats?

Stanford engineers are tackling the challenge of plant-based meat development with a fresh perspective: mechanical texture testing combined with machine learning. Their innovative method mimics human taste testers and could accelerate the creation of convincing meat alternatives, paving the way for more sustainable diets without sacrificing texture or taste.

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