3rd International Blastocystis Conference

I'm extremely pleased to inform you about the launching of the website for the 3rd International Blastocystis Conference in 2021, which can be accessed here.

There is already quite a lot of information on the site, and the website will be developed and updated continously.

One big thing for me would be to try and attract as many students as possible to the conference, since Blastocystis is a remarkable parasite to learn from. It's one of the few parasites that can be cultured (from both humans and animals), and cultures can serve as basis for extensive molecular work.

Another big thing would be to establish a working group that could assist researchers with analysing 'tricky' subtype data.

I'm very thankful to be part of the International Blastocystis Network, and I would like to take the opportunity to wish everyone interested in Blastocystis a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

PhD positition in beautiful Norway

If you're dreaming of doing PhD-related research in beautiful Norway (Stavanger) and if you're curious about the gut microbiome, please see this call.

You'll get to work with Mark van der Giezen, whom I've had the pleasure of working with on numerous occasions. He has been key to stimulating my continued interest in the role of gut commensal micro-organisms in human health and disease.

PhD position: Inflammatory bowel disease and the intestinal eukaryome

Come work in beautiful #Norway: #PhDStudent position to work on the human intestinal #Eukaryome of #IrritableBowelDisease. A joint project between @sus_no and @UniStavanger.

Apply by December the 20th.https://t.co/BfVvCSuhuQ

— Mark van der Giezen (@MitoRem) November 8, 2019

Again: Case Control Study links Blastocystis to a Healthy Gut Microbiome

Dullaert-de Boer and colleagues reveal data from a large case-control study in The Netherlands indicating that both #Blastocystis and #Dientamoeba are indicative of a healthy gut microbiome #microbiota #gutmicrobiota #parasitology #Parasiteshttps://t.co/6iObEjCOIy

— International Blastocystis Network (IBN) (@Blastocystis) October 30, 2019

Blastocystis ST10 and/or ST14 - collaboration

Is anyone working with Blastocystis ST10 and/or ST14? If so, we'd be happy to hear from you for collaboration. Espeically looking for DNA from culture or stool. #Blastocystis #research #ibn #molecularepidemiology #parasitology #intestinal parasites #geneticvariation #publichealth

— International Blastocystis Network (IBN) (@Blastocystis) October 25, 2019

Tropical Parasitology: An email interview with Dr. Christen Rune Stensvold

I was invited to give an email interview to Tropical Parasitology. I hope that especially a few young researchers will find it inspiring. You can read it here

You'll hear me explain why I think young parasitologists should spend some time with Blastocystis....

Thank you!

With WHO in a village in Laos - in the middle of the jungle. The WHO were carrying out a biannual deworming programme. Picture taken in 2003 courtesy of Dr Hanne Strandgaard. The children were educated on the parasites for which they got treatment and on how to prevent them.

Parasite Course: Concepts in Parasitology (Australia)

For those interested:

There will be a two-week specialist course for PhD students and earlycareer researchers (ECRs), 

run by the Australian Society for Parasitology (ASP) called Concepts in Parasitology.
  
The course is running again this year from the 25^th of November to the 8^th of December 2019 in New South Wales (Kioloa Coastal Campus), and the deadline for applications is the 13^th of July 2019. 

Details of the course are here.

OPPORTUNITY!

For those interested in and working with
1) new technological and bioinformatic approaches to detecting and differentiating intestinal parasites
2) the role of Blastocystis and other common luminal intestinal parasitic protists
 there are currently a few interesting calls:

Mark van der Giezen (with whom I've had the pleasure of working with on a couple of projects) recently tweeted:

Funded #PhD studentship available in my new lab @UniStavanger to study the role of the #eukaryotic microbial #microbiome (the #eukaryome) on #InflammatoryBowelDisease. A collaboration between the University and Academic Hospital in #Stavanger in #Norway.https://t.co/k9YcuGvyZk

— Mark van der Giezen (@MitoRem) April 28, 2019

For more information, please go here.

He also tweeted:

Interested in your own personal fellowship and work on #mitochondrial #evolution and #microbial #eukaryotes in my new lab @UniStavanger in beautiful #Norway? Then check out the just announced Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships!https://t.co/8ISNs3EiF1

— Mark van der Giezen (@MitoRem) April 26, 2019

Moving on to special issues in journals, I would like to highlight that Parasite Epidemiology and Control (PEC) is planning to publish two special issues of particular interest to our community:


Special Issue: 2nd International Blastocystis Conference

As the readers of this blog will know, the 2nd International Blastocystis Conference took place in Bogotá, Colombia only half a year ago. A special issue in PEC will be dedicated to this conference. It welcomes papers on Blastocystis also from those of our colleagues who could not attend the conference. You can read more here.

Guest editors: Juan David Ramirez Gonzalez (Editor of PEC), Funda Dogruman-Al and myself.


Special Issue: Novel Technologies and Approaches for Detecting Intestinal Parasites

Together with Juan David Ramirez Gonzalez I look very much forward to editing a special issue on new technologies and approaches to detecting intestinal parasites. I'm thinking metagenomics, amplicon-based sequencing, etc. Of course, also papers describing non-DNA-based methods are welcome. You can read more here.


Special Issue: Recent Advances in the Controverisal Human Pathogens Pneumocystis, Microsporidia, and Blastocystis

Finally, I'd like to highlight a special issue call from Frontiers in Microbiology on Pneumocystis, microsporidia, and Blastocystis - the odd ones out. Please go here for more information. The special issue is edited by Olga Matos, Lihua Xiao, and myself.

Blastocystis PhD position available with Tasos

Hi all,

Just spreading the word: 

There is a funded PhD opportunity (!!!) in Dr Tsaousis' lab on Blastocystis:

'Identifying the parasitic or passenger role of Blastocystis, in patients with gastrointestinal disease'

available for September 16th start!  

 

Deadline for applications is 22 April.

Find more info here

Special issue on Blastocystis, Pneumocystis and microsporidia in 'Frontiers'

The online journal 'Frontiers in Microbiology - Infectious Diseases' will be publishing a special issue on Blastocystis, Pneumocystis and microsporidia as opportunistic eukaryotes and controversial pathogens.

Please go and see the call for papers here.

Topics editors include Olga Matos, Lihua Xiao and myself.

(Blastocystis images towards the right courtesy of Marianne Lebbad)

Eukaryome - upcoming conference in Paris

Just a heads-up regarding the 'Eukaryome' conference in Paris later this year... looks interesting!

You can find the website here.

The role of Blastocystis and other 'apathogenic' gut parasites in health and disease - how to proceed?

If you're interested in reading my most recent paper

Pinning down the role of common luminal intestinal parasitic protists in human health and disease – status and challenges

published recently in Parasitology, you can read it for free here.

Thank you for taking an interest.