Biological sciences faculty paper chosen as Editor-in-Chief Spotlight Pick

Dr. Krassi Hristova, professor, and Dr. Chris Marshall, associate professor, both of the Department of Biological Sciences in the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences, have had a paper chosen as the Editor-in-Chief Spotlight Pick by Applied and Environmental Microbiology, a journal of the American Society for Microbiology.

Their paper, "Acinetobacter spp. with lower susceptibility to quaternary ammonium compounds enriched in microbial communities of frequently used sinks," was published on March 17.

The paper reflects a study which looked at sink-drain biofilm microbiomes in academic buildings. Researchers sampled 16 sinks from two buildings, which are cleaned daily with widely used quaternary ammonium compound disinfectants, during periods of low and high student traffic across winter, spring and summer. Their findings suggest that even regularly disinfected sink drains can still serve as persistent reservoirs of diverse microorganisms and the antibiotic genes that these populations contain (and are essentially selecting for) can also be transmitted through our water supplies and spread through the environment.

Read their paper online at ASM.org.

The AEM Edito​​r-in-Chief Spotlight identifies a few exemplary articles from each issue for this achievement.

About the American Society for Microbiology

Established in 1899, ASM is the home for microbial scientists from around the globe to connect, learn, discover and prepare for the future.

ASM and its over 38,000 members partner with global organizations to solve the world's most pressing challenges. ASM connects with millions of experts and harness their science to serve humanity. From climate change, antimicrobial resistance, industrial, basic and applied microbiology, ASM is a leader in scientific publishing, stands for open science and advocates for evidence-based public policies.