In this episode of the Bioinformatics Lab Podcast, Zachary Konkel shares his journey from studying chemistry to specializing in mycology and bioinformatics. He discusses the significance of fungi in medicine, particularly in producing antimicrobial compounds, and the challenges faced in fungal genomics. Zach highlights the development of mycotools (https://github.com/xonq/mycotools) as a solution for analyzing fungal genomes and the importance of phylogenetics in understanding fungal pathogens like Candida auris.
The conversation also touches on the growing concern of antifungal resistance and the potential for next-generation sequencing to improve outbreak detection. Finally, Zach shares his passion for mushroom foraging, connecting his scientific interests with personal hobbies.
All content for the bioinformatics lab is the property of The Bioinformatics Lab and is served directly from their servers
with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.
In this episode of the Bioinformatics Lab Podcast, Zachary Konkel shares his journey from studying chemistry to specializing in mycology and bioinformatics. He discusses the significance of fungi in medicine, particularly in producing antimicrobial compounds, and the challenges faced in fungal genomics. Zach highlights the development of mycotools (https://github.com/xonq/mycotools) as a solution for analyzing fungal genomes and the importance of phylogenetics in understanding fungal pathogens like Candida auris.
The conversation also touches on the growing concern of antifungal resistance and the potential for next-generation sequencing to improve outbreak detection. Finally, Zach shares his passion for mushroom foraging, connecting his scientific interests with personal hobbies.
Kalamari GitHub: https://github.com/lskatz/Kalamari
& Public Health Announcement: https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mra.00963-24
Summary
In this episode of the Bioinformatics Lab podcast, Kevin Libuit and Andrew Page discuss a public health announcement regarding the Kalamari database, a curated reference database for public health pathogenomics. They explore the importance of high-quality genomic data, the implications of mobile genetic elements, and the various applications of the database in public health. The conversation highlights the collaborative efforts of experts in the field and the significance of reliable data in making informed public health decisions.
Takeaways
The Kalamari database is a curated resource for public health.
High-quality genomic data is essential for accurate pathogen identification.
Public health decisions rely on the accuracy of genomic data.
Mobile genetic elements complicate species typing in bioinformatics.
The collaboration of experts enhances the quality of the database.
The database allows for effective quality control in laboratories.
Understanding plasmids is crucial for outbreak investigations.
The CDC's involvement underscores the importance of public health infrastructure.
The database is accessible and user-friendly for public health applications.
This initiative represents a significant advancement in pathogen genomics.
the bioinformatics lab
In this episode of the Bioinformatics Lab Podcast, Zachary Konkel shares his journey from studying chemistry to specializing in mycology and bioinformatics. He discusses the significance of fungi in medicine, particularly in producing antimicrobial compounds, and the challenges faced in fungal genomics. Zach highlights the development of mycotools (https://github.com/xonq/mycotools) as a solution for analyzing fungal genomes and the importance of phylogenetics in understanding fungal pathogens like Candida auris.
The conversation also touches on the growing concern of antifungal resistance and the potential for next-generation sequencing to improve outbreak detection. Finally, Zach shares his passion for mushroom foraging, connecting his scientific interests with personal hobbies.
