'Wild Type'.

In this opinion piece, we consider the meaning of the term 'wild type' in the context of microbiology. This is especially pertinent in the post-genomic era, where we have a greater awareness of species diversity than ever before. Genomic heterogeneity, evolution/selection pressures, definition of 'the wild', the size and importance of the pan-genome, gene-gene interactions (epistasis), and the nature of the 'wild-type gene' are all discussed.

The past, present and future of polymicrobial infection research: Modelling, eavesdropping, terraforming and other stories.

Over the last two centuries, great advances have been made in microbiology as a discipline. Much of this progress has come about as a consequence of studying the growth and physiology of individual microbial species in well-defined laboratory media; so-called "axenic growth". However, in the real world, microbes rarely live in such "splendid isolation" (to paraphrase Foster) and more often-than-not, share the niche with a plethora of co-habitants.

Impact of transient acquired hypermutability on the inter- and intra-species competitiveness of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Once acquired, hypermutation is unrelenting, and in the long-term, leads to impaired fitness due to its cumulative impact on the genome. This raises the question of why hypermutators arise so frequently in microbial ecosystems. In this work, we explore this problem by examining how the transient acquisition of hypermutability affects inter- and intra-species competitiveness, and the response to environmental insults such as antibiotic challenge.

Digital health is a cultural transformation of traditional healthcare.

Under the term "digital health", advanced medical technologies, disruptive innovations and digital communication have gradually become inseparable from providing best practice healthcare. While the cost of treating chronic conditions is increasing and doctor shortages are imminent worldwide, the needed transformation in the structure of healthcare and medicine fails to catch up with the rapid progress of the medical technology industry. This transition is slowed down by strict regulations; the reluctance of stakeholders in healthcare to change; and ignoring the importance of cultural changes and the human factor in an increasingly technological world.