Anne Madden (biologist)

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Anne Arnold Madden is an American biologist, inventor, and science communicator who advocates for finding "microbial solutions to human problems." [1]

Contents

Madden’s research on microscopic life is often featured in the press, particularly her studies on the microbial community of food, [2] [3] using advanced DNA techniques to create the first atlas of arthropods in USA homes, [4] [5] [6] investigating the microscopic life in dust, [7] and using insect yeasts for ethanol production and beer brewing. [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

Her research on insect-associated microorganisms lead to a patent application on the use of the yeast Lachancea thermotolerans for beer brewing [14] and the first commercialization of primary souring yeasts for making sour beer. She first isolated the yeast from wasps and bumblebees. [15] This technology formed the basis of the biotechnology company Lachancea LLC.

Madden discovered and named the species Mucor nidicola, a fungus that lives inside the nests of wasps. [16] Madden presented at the TED2017 conference in Vancouver, BC. [17] She has also presented at other TED events such as TEDxCharlotte [18] and TEDxGateway. [19] She was featured in the award-winning science documentary film "The Kingdom: How Fungi Made Our World." [20]

She is the founder of The Microbe Institute, an interdisciplinary resource for microbial discovery with a focus on education, art and discovery. The Microbe Institute also features a fellowship program that supports individuals in pursuing short (typically < 6 month) interdisciplinary projects related to microbes.

She has some of the most famous hair in science, as the Luxuriant Flowing Hair Club for Scientists—a group associated with the Ig Nobel Award [21] —named her woman of the year in 2015. [22]

Selected publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microorganism</span> Microscopic living organism

A microorganism, or microbe, is an organism of microscopic size, which may exist in its single-celled form or as a colony of cells.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sourdough</span> Type of sour bread

Sourdough or sourdough bread is a bread made by the fermentation of dough using wild lactobacillaceae and yeast. Lactic acid from fermentation imparts a sour taste and improves keeping qualities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frass</span> Waste from insects

Frass refers loosely to the more or less solid excreta of insects, and to certain other related matter.

Microbial genetics is a subject area within microbiology and genetic engineering. Microbial genetics studies microorganisms for different purposes. The microorganisms that are observed are bacteria and archaea. Some fungi and protozoa are also subjects used to study in this field. The studies of microorganisms involve studies of genotype and expression system. Genotypes are the inherited compositions of an organism. Genetic Engineering is a field of work and study within microbial genetics. The usage of recombinant DNA technology is a process of this work. The process involves creating recombinant DNA molecules through manipulating a DNA sequence. That DNA created is then in contact with a host organism. Cloning is also an example of genetic engineering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fermentation in food processing</span> Converting carbohydrates to alcohol or acids using anaerobic microorganisms

In food processing, fermentation is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohol or organic acids using microorganisms—yeasts or bacteria—under anaerobic (oxygen-free) conditions. Fermentation usually implies that the action of microorganisms is desired. The science of fermentation is known as zymology or zymurgy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Food microbiology</span> Study of the microorganisms that inhibit, create, or contaminate food

Food microbiology is the study of the microorganisms that inhabit, create, or contaminate food. This includes the study of microorganisms causing food spoilage; pathogens that may cause disease ; microbes used to produce fermented foods such as cheese, yogurt, bread, beer, and wine; and microbes with other useful roles, such as producing probiotics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SCOBY</span> Symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast

Symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) is a culinary symbiotic fermentation culture (starter) consisting of lactic acid bacteria (LAB), acetic acid bacteria (AAB), and yeast which arises in the preparation of sour foods and beverages such as kombucha. Beer and wine also undergo fermentation with yeast, but the lactic acid bacteria and acetic acid bacteria components unique to SCOBY are usually viewed as a source of spoilage rather than a desired addition. Both LAB and AAB enter on the surface of barley and malt in beer fermentation and grapes in wine fermentation; LAB lowers the pH of the beer/wine while AAB takes the ethanol produced from the yeast and oxidizes it further into vinegar, resulting in a sour taste and smell. AAB are also responsible for the formation of the cellulose SCOBY.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brewery</span> Business that makes and sells beer

A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of beer has taken place since at least 2500 BC; in ancient Mesopotamia, brewers derived social sanction and divine protection from the goddess Ninkasi. Brewing was initially a cottage industry, with production taking place at home; by the ninth century, monasteries and farms would produce beer on a larger scale, selling the excess; and by the eleventh and twelfth centuries larger, dedicated breweries with eight to ten workers were being built.

Oral ecology is the microbial ecology of the microorganisms found in mouths. Oral ecology, like all forms of ecology, involves the study of the living things found in oral cavities as well as their interactions with each other and with their environment. Oral ecology is frequently investigated from the perspective of oral disease prevention, often focusing on conditions such as dental caries, candidiasis ("thrush"), gingivitis, periodontal disease, and others. However, many of the interactions between the microbiota and oral environment protect from disease and support a healthy oral cavity. Interactions between microbes and their environment can result in the stabilization or destabilization of the oral microbiome, with destabilization believed to result in disease states. Destabilization of the microbiome can be influenced by several factors, including diet changes, drugs or immune system disorders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microbiology</span> Study of microscopic organisms

Microbiology is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being of unicellular (single-celled), multicellular, or acellular. Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, protistology, mycology, immunology, and parasitology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antarctic microorganism</span>

Antarctica is one of the most physically and chemically extreme terrestrial environments to be inhabited by lifeforms. The largest plants are mosses, and the largest animals that do not leave the continent are a few species of insects.

<i>Jiuqu</i> East Asian fermentation starter

Jiuqu, also simply known as qu is a type of dried fermentation starter used in the production of traditional Chinese alcoholic beverages. The word jiuqu specifically refers to a type of yeast used to make alcohol such as huangjiu, baijiu and jiuniang.

Microbial food cultures are live bacteria, yeasts or moulds used in food production. Microbial food cultures carry out the fermentation process in foodstuffs. Used by humans since the Neolithic period fermentation helps to preserve perishable foods and to improve their nutritional and organoleptic qualities. As of 1995, fermented food represented between one quarter and one third of food consumed in Central Europe. More than 260 different species of microbial food culture are identified and described for their beneficial use in fermented food products globally, showing the importance of their use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tanpopo mission</span> 2015–18 ISS astrobiology experiment

The Tanpopo mission is an orbital astrobiology experiment investigating the potential interplanetary transfer of life, organic compounds, and possible terrestrial particles in the low Earth orbit. The purpose is to assess the panspermia hypothesis and the possibility of natural interplanetary transport of microbial life as well as prebiotic organic compounds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mycobiome</span> The fungal community in and on an organism

The mycobiome, mycobiota, or fungal microbiome, is the fungal community in and on an organism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human interactions with microbes</span> Overview of human–microbe interactions

Human interactions with microbes include both practical and symbolic uses of microbes, and negative interactions in the form of human, domestic animal, and crop diseases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Industrial microbiology</span> Branch of biotechnology

Industrial microbiology is a branch of biotechnology that applies microbial sciences to create industrial products in mass quantities, often using microbial cell factories. There are multiple ways to manipulate a microorganism in order to increase maximum product yields. Introduction of mutations into an organism may be accomplished by introducing them to mutagens. Another way to increase production is by gene amplification, this is done by the use of plasmids, and vectors. The plasmids and/ or vectors are used to incorporate multiple copies of a specific gene that would allow more enzymes to be produced that eventually cause more product yield. The manipulation of organisms in order to yield a specific product has many applications to the real world like the production of some antibiotics, vitamins, enzymes, amino acids, solvents, alcohol and daily products. Microorganisms play a big role in the industry, with multiple ways to be used. Medicinally, microbes can be used for creating antibiotics in order to treat infection. Microbes can also be used for the food industry as well. Microbes are very useful in creating some of the mass produced products that are consumed by people. The chemical industry also uses microorganisms in order to synthesize amino acids and organic solvents. Microbes can also be used in an agricultural application for use as a biopesticide instead of using dangerous chemicals and or inoculants to help plant proliferation.

A state microbe is a microorganism used as an official state symbol. Several U.S. states have honored microorganisms by nominating them to become official state symbols. The first state to declare an Official State Microbe is Oregon which chose Saccharomyces cerevisiae as the Official Microbe of the State of Oregon in 2013 for its significance to the craft beer industry in Oregon. One of the first proponents of State Microbes was microbiologist Moselio Schaechter, who, in 2010, commented on Official Microbes for the American Society for Microbiology's blog "Small Things Considered" as well as on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Griffith's sourdough starter</span> Sourdough culture

Carl Griffith's sourdough starter, also known as the Oregon Trail Sourdough or Carl's starter, is a sourdough culture, a colony of wild yeast and bacteria cultivated in a mixture of flour and water for use as leavening. Carl's starter has a long history, dating back at least to 1847, when it was carried along the Oregon Trail by settlers from Missouri to Oregon. It was then passed down as an heirloom within the family of Carl Griffith, who shared it via Usenet in the 1990s. Since 2000, it has been maintained and shared by a dedicated historical preservation society; its volunteers keep the starter alive, feeding the organisms flour and water, and mail free samples worldwide on request for use by bakers in seeding their own cultures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bee hotel</span> Artificial bee shelter

Bee hotels are a type of insect hotel for solitary pollinator bees, or wasps, providing them rest and shelter. Typically, these bees would nest in hollow plant stems, holes in dead wood, or other natural cavities; a bee hotel attempts to mimic this structure by using a bunch of hollow reeds or holes drilled in wood, among other methods. Bee hotels can possibly support native bee and wasp populations by adding nesting resources to a habitat. However, some activists have criticized bee hotels for being ineffective at rehabilitating native bee populations and possibly harming them by providing homes to invasive species and creating grounds where bees can transmit diseases to one another.

References

  1. Madden, Anne (11 August 2017), Meet the microscopic life in your home -- and on your face , retrieved 2019-01-19
  2. "Secrets of Sourdough". Gastropod. 2017-12-18. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  3. "Sourdough Hands: How Bakers And Bread Are A Microbial Match". NPR.org. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  4. "DNA in dust reveals truth about bugs lurking in our homes". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  5. "The first nationwide map of the many insects that live in our houses". Newsweek. 22 November 2016.
  6. "Scientists just completed a census of the creepy crawlies that live in our homes". Washington Post.
  7. "What's hiding in my dust?". BBC News. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  8. Mickle, Tripp (9 October 2015). "Tough Day? How About a Frosty Schooner of Pizza or Pond Scum?". Wall Street Journal.
  9. "Your next happy hour buzz, brought to you by bees". PBS NewsHour. 16 June 2017.
  10. "The Beers and the Bees: Pollinators Provide a Different Kind of Brewer's Yeast". Scientific American.
  11. Mickle, Tripp (2015-10-09). "Tough Day? How About a Frosty Schooner of Pizza or Pond Scum?". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  12. "Walk on the Wild Side With Beer Made From Wasp Yeast". National Geographic. 2015-09-29. Archived from the original on January 20, 2019. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  13. Biba, Erin (2018-06-29). "A Cocktail of Bugs and Yeast Could Make the Ultimate Biofuel" . Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  14. "TEDx Gateway 2018: Microorganisms are source of our solutions, not problems, says microbiologist Dr Anne Madden". Free Press Journal. 3 February 2018.
  15. Rimler, Rose (11 August 2015). "Yeast from bees makes nice beer". Waterloo Region Record.
  16. "The secret lives of wasps". The Tufts Daily. 27 November 2011.
  17. Madden, Anne (11 August 2017), Meet the microscopic life in your home -- and on your face , retrieved 2018-09-14
  18. TEDx Talks, Your new favorite flavor is going to come from yeast in insects | Anne Madden | TEDxCharlotte , retrieved 2019-01-19
  19. "Dr. Anne Madden". TEDxGateway [2 Dec 2018, Mumbai] Independently Organized TED Event. Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  20. Smith&Nasht (2018-02-08), Watch THE KINGDOM - How Fungi Made Our World Online | Vimeo On Demand , retrieved 2019-01-19
  21. "Improbable Research" . Retrieved 2019-01-19.
  22. "Improbable Research » Blog Archive". 13 January 2015. Retrieved 2019-01-19.