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Judith Behnsen

@judith-behnsen.bsky.social

Microbiologist. Associate Professor at University of Illinois Chicago studying microbe-microbe interactions. Loves fungi and bacteria.

25 Posts559 Follower 278 Folgt

ISME - International Society for Microbial Ecology @isme-microbes.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Meet the editorial team of ISME Host Microbe! Led by EiCs Mike Taylor, Nichole Broderick and Arturo Casadevall, and supported by senior editors with expertise across e.g. microbial ecology and host-associated interactions. We are excited to invite your submissions! lnkd.in/eTe9rJjw

Teresa O'Meara @teresaomeara.bsky.social · 7mo ago

Candida albicans is usually hanging out with bacterial neighbors, so what happens to the fungus during co-culture? The bacteria secrete metabolites that induce massive cell wall remodeling that change immune recognition and drug resistance. Read more in our new paper: www.cell.com/current-biol...

graphical abstract. Left is a fungal cell surrounded by bacteria, and the Hog1 cascade is turned on. Right is a fungal cell covered in mannan fibrils that prevent IgA and caspofungin and increase CLR recognition by macrophages

Mark A. Hanson @hansonmark.bsky.social · 9mo ago

We wrote the Strain on scientific publishing to highlight the problems of time & trust. With a fantastic group of co-authors, we present The Drain of Scientific Publishing: a 🧵 1/n Drain: arxiv.org/abs/2511.04820 Strain: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/... Oligopoly: direct.mit.edu/qss/article/...

A table showing profit margins of major publishers. A snippet of text related to this table is below.

1. The four-fold drain
1.1 Money
Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for
whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who
created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis,
which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024
alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit
margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher
(Elsevier) always over 37%.
Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most
consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial
difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor &
Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American
researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The
Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3
billion in that year.

A figure detailing the drain on researcher time.

1. The four-fold drain

1.2 Time
The number of papers published each year is growing faster than the scientific workforce,
with the number of papers per researcher almost doubling between 1996 and 2022 (Figure
1A). This reflects the fact that publishers’ commercial desire to publish (sell) more material
has aligned well with the competitive prestige culture in which publications help secure jobs,
grants, promotions, and awards. To the extent that this growth is driven by a pressure for
profit, rather than scholarly imperatives, it distorts the way researchers spend their time.
The publishing system depends on unpaid reviewer labour, estimated to be over 130 million
unpaid hours annually in 2020 alone (9). Researchers have complained about the demands of
peer-review for decades, but the scale of the problem is now worse, with editors reporting
widespread difficulties recruiting reviewers. The growth in publications involves not only the
authors’ time, but that of academic editors and reviewers who are dealing with so many
review demands.
Even more seriously, the imperative to produce ever more articles reshapes the nature of
scientific inquiry. Evidence across multiple fields shows that more papers result in
‘ossification’, not new ideas (10). It may seem paradoxical that more papers can slow
progress until one considers how it affects researchers’ time. While rewards remain tied to
volume, prestige, and impact of publications, researchers will be nudged away from riskier,
local, interdisciplinary, and long-term work. The result is a treadmill of constant activity with
limited progress whereas core scholarly practices – such as reading, reflecting and engaging
with others’ contributions – is de-prioritized. What looks like productivity often masks
intellectual exhaustion built on a demoralizing, narrowing scientific vision.

A table of profit margins across industries. The section of text related to this table is below:

1. The four-fold drain
1.1 Money
Currently, academic publishing is dominated by profit-oriented, multinational companies for
whom scientific knowledge is a commodity to be sold back to the academic community who
created it. The dominant four are Elsevier, Springer Nature, Wiley and Taylor & Francis,
which collectively generated over US$7.1 billion in revenue from journal publishing in 2024
alone, and over US$12 billion in profits between 2019 and 2024 (Table 1A). Their profit
margins have always been over 30% in the last five years, and for the largest publisher
(Elsevier) always over 37%.
Against many comparators, across many sectors, scientific publishing is one of the most
consistently profitable industries (Table S1). These financial arrangements make a substantial
difference to science budgets. In 2024, 46% of Elsevier revenues and 53% of Taylor &
Francis revenues were generated in North America, meaning that North American
researchers were charged over US$2.27 billion by just two for-profit publishers. The
Canadian research councils and the US National Science Foundation were allocated US$9.3
billion in that year.

The costs of inaction are plain: wasted public funds, lost researcher time, compromised
scientific integrity and eroded public trust. Today, the system rewards commercial publishers
first, and science second. Without bold action from the funders we risk continuing to pour
resources into a system that prioritizes profit over the advancement of scientific knowledge.

Toby Baril @tobybarilbio.bsky.social · 9mo ago

1/ Ever needed to annotate TEs in a fungal genome, but didn't know where to start? We have released #MycoMobilome, a community-focused non-redundant database of transposable element consensus sequences for the fungal kingdom, constructed from >4,000 fungal genomes! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Ákos T Kovács @evolvedbiofilm.bsky.social · 9mo ago

One transcript, two functions: the emerging roles of dual-function RNAs microLIFE review by @lizmarialuke.bsky.social and Kai Papenfort at @uni-jena.de academic.oup.com/microlife/ad...

One transcript, two functions: the emerging roles of dual-function RNAs

Abstract. Bacteria use small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) and small proteins to change gene expression and modulate cellular processes in response to changing e

academic.oup.com

Heran Darwin, PhD @heran.bsky.social · 10mo ago

We're hiring! Check out our ad and please re-post or forward to interested #Microbiology parties: apply.interfolio.com/174783

Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio

apply.interfolio.com

Shabaana Khader @khadershabaana.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Dear #microbiology and #immunology community- I took a break from social media after I deleted my Twitter account, but am back here. Please help me rebuild my community by following me and amplifying this message- I will follow you back. Thank you and I look forward to our many interactions!

Mark Mandel @markjmandel.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Another great @mmpconference.bsky.social wraps up… 👏 to organizers Jonathan Allen and Abby Kroken! @akroken.bsky.social

Opening session of the MMPC conference with Abby Kroken and Jonathan Allen on stage and a slide displayed.

Leibniz-HKI @leibniz-hki.de · 10mo ago

Dose makes the difference! #Candidaalbicans uses the toxin #candidalysin not only to cause infections but also to quietly colonize the mouth – too little fails, too much triggers immune defense. @natmicrobiol.nature.com @mpm-hki.bsky.social picture credits: Erik Böhm, @leibniz-hki.de

Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 10mo ago

This paper does a great job with a "It's a Wonderful Life" scenario about NIH, supposing the consequences of the bottom 40% of the funding NIH grants never existed. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... tl:dr The world would lose a lot, but directly and indirectly

What if NIH had been 40% smaller?

Replaying history with less NIH funding shows widespread impacts on drug-linked research

science.org

Joanne Flynn @joanneflynn19.bsky.social · 12mo ago

We are hiring! The Dept of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics is looking for faculty at the Assistant or Associate professor level (tenure track). Please consider joining our vibrant microbiology and immunology community at the University of Pittsburgh School of medicine

Igor Brodsky @brodskyigorlab.bsky.social · 11mo ago

Abstract submissions are open for the Midwinter Conference of Immunologists @midwinter-immun.bsky.social!! www.midwconfimmunol.org The Early Bird Registration deadline is Nov 14, 2025. There will be lots of Selected Abstract talks so submit an abstract to be considered!

Midwinter Conference of Immunologists

The Midwinter Conference of Immunologists was founded in 1961 by a small group of Immunologists, among them Drs. Dan Campbell and Ray Owen. The goal of the Midwinter Conference is to provide a forum w...

midwconfimmunol.org

Judith Behnsen @judith-behnsen.bsky.social · 11mo ago

The short summary and behind-the-scenes of our paper in this Research Briefing article out today: www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A common gut fungus worsens infection with the food-borne bacterium Salmonella

Interactions between the fungus and the bacterium weaken the host’s immune response.

nature.com

Judith Behnsen@judith-behnsen.bsky.social · 11mo ago

Excited to share our new publication, out today in Nature! www.nature.com/articles/s41.... @kanchanj.bsky.social led this fascinating fungal-bacterial interaction project. We are grateful for our wonderful collaborators Brian Peters and David Underhill.

Judith Behnsen @judith-behnsen.bsky.social · 11mo ago

Commensal yeast promotes Salmonella Typhimurium virulence - Nature

Commensal Candida albicans enhances the virulence and dissemination of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium.

nature.com

Slavica Janevska @slavi-jan.bsky.social · 11mo ago

A little more than 2 weeks to apply for a Postdoc position in our lab @leibniz-hki.de 👇🏻

Slavica Janevska@slavi-jan.bsky.social · last yr.

📣 I’m recruiting a #Postdoc to help us further our understanding on the infection strategies of our human fungal pathogen. If you’re enthusiastic about research, our interdisciplinary group @leibniz-hki.de will be a good fit for you! Please share! jobs.hki-jena.de/jobs/Postdoc...

Nature Microbiology @natmicrobiol.nature.com · 11mo ago

#News&Views A mycovirus drives the fitness of the lung-infecting fungus Aspergillus fumigatus under stress, helping it to survive within immune cells, and thus shaping its pathogenesis. #MicroSky www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Mycoviruses steer fungal fitness - Nature Microbiology

A mycovirus drives the fitness of the lung-infecting fungus Aspergillus fumigatus under stress, helping it to survive within immune cells, and thus shaping its pathogenesis.

nature.com

Mark A. Hanson @hansonmark.bsky.social · 12mo ago

A reminder you/your lab can support FlyBase at Cambridge through the following link. Every bit helps. Please share if you yourself can't donate. www.philanthropy.cam.ac.uk/give-to-camb...

Drosophila Genetic Database

The Drosophila Genetic Database, FlyBase, is on the brink of collapse due to the sudden termination of the FlyBase NIH grant, which includes salaries for 5 literature curators based at the University ...

philanthropy.cam.ac.uk

Dr Sian Gramates@drglam.bsky.social · 12mo ago

News via The Transmitter www.thetransmitter.org/community/ha...

Lauren Palmer @laurenpalmer.bsky.social · last yr.

Super excited to share our paper online 🚨today🚨 in Cell Host & Microbe‬! Xiaomei Ren @xiaomeiren.bsky.social and Mason Clark @rmasonclark.bsky.social‬ co-led discovery of ecological factors for Acinetobacter baumannii carriage in the gut, a reservoir for pathogen spread. 🎉 tinyurl.com/443kfefk

Cell Host & Microbe@cp-cellhostmicrobe.bsky.social · last yr.

Amino acid competition shapes A. baumannii gut carriage Acinetobacter baumannii uses ornithine to compete w/ microbiota & persist in gut. Amino acid supplementation & differences in diet promote A. baumannii gut colonization in mice & humans @laurenpalmer.bsky.social‬ www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...

Francis Alonzo @francisalonzo12.bsky.social · last yr.

Happy to share Iván’s first-author pub from the lab! www.cell.com/cell-reports...

Staphylococcus aureus exploits lipoic acid salvage to combat host oxidative stress

Acosta et al. find that ADP-ribosylation of the lipoic acid carrier protein GcvH-L promotes Staphylococcus aureus resistance to oxidative burst and facilitates infection. ADP-ribosylation leads to a s...

cell.com

Andreas Bäumler @abaumler.bsky.social · last yr.

Infection and Immunity is now welcoming nominations for highly promising scientists at the assistant professor level (or equivalent) to submit research to the next New Voices in Microbiology Collection! Please nominate by the August 18 deadline using the below link: app.asm.org/account/logi...

The MRC Centre for Medical Mycology @mrccmm.bsky.social · last yr.

Join us this week for #MycoTalks with James Konopka @jkonopka.bsky.social and Jane Usher @jusher.bsky.social 📅 Thursday 24 July 🕓 16:00 (UK time) 💻 Via Zoom Register for FREE here: universityofexeter.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Andreas Bäumler @abaumler.bsky.social · last yr.

The new open access policy of NIH will take effect next week (July 1st). All NIH funded research 🔬🧪🧬accepted after July 1st must be open access upon publication. Worried about fees? 💸 Check out how IAI stacks up against other journals—you might be surprised. #OpenAccess #SciComm #Microbiology

Abby Kroken, PhD @akroken.bsky.social · last yr.

MMPC was the first conference I attended as a new graduate student. Hard to believe I'm serving as a co-chair for it this year! Hoping Jon Allen and the rest of our micro faculty here at Loyola can put on a great event for all of you... and that future MMPC chairs are among the attendees! 😊

Midwest Microbial Pathogenesis Conference@mmpconference.bsky.social · last yr.

Registration for MMPC 2025 opens today! We can’t wait to see you in St. Charles, IL, for the first MMPC hosted by Loyola University Chicago! www.mmpconference2025.com/registration

Leigh Knodler @leighknodler.bsky.social · last yr.

Just a few spots remaining for the GRC Salmonella Biology and Pathogenesis meeting to be held in August. The final program is now online. www.grc.org/salmonella-b... Apply now to hear about the latest scientific discoveries about Salmonella, meet up with old friends, make new friends......

Tim Clancy @viewfromarchstreet.com · last yr.

The full FY 2026 budget request for the National Science Foundation was released this afternoon. Proposed cuts to NSF research directorates range from -75% to -43%. NSF education -75% [pdf] full request here: nsf-gov-resources.nsf.gov/files/00-NSF...

National Science Foundation Summary Table
FY 2026 Budget Request to Congress

Andreas Bäumler @abaumler.bsky.social · last yr.

Great meeting coming up next May www.keystonesymposia.org/conferences/...

Beyond Antibiotics: Emerging Strategies for Combating Bacterial Infection | Keystone Symposia

Join us at the Keystone Symposia on Beyond Antibiotics: Emerging Strategies for Combating Bacterial Infection, May 2026, in Breckenridge, with field leaders!

keystonesymposia.org

Felipe H Santiago-Tirado @felipehst.bsky.social · last yr.

Dear Midwest friends and colleagues, please save the day for #MNID25 to be held August 22-23 at Case Western Reserve University. More info here: biology.case.edu/2025mnid/

Dr. Michael D. L. Johnson @copperbae.bsky.social · last yr.

Are you able to mentor a summer student and have a good project that can be virtually administered, sign up to be an NSURP mentor today! If you can't, hit that share button please and thank you! #NoLabNoProblem #NSURP uarizona.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

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uarizona.co1.qualtrics.com

Marine Biological Laboratory @mblscience.bsky.social · last yr.

What made the fungus such a good friend? 🤔 He had great morels 🍄 Calling all fungal folks—there may not be mushroom left on your calendars, but save some time to apply for the MBL's 2025 Molecular Mycology course! Read more: bit.ly/41m0JAq #ScienceStartsHere

Alt US Coast Guard @altcoast.altgov.info · last yr.

(1/5) Updated Suicide Prevention Resources - please reach out if you're struggling! National Crisis Line: 988 For Veterans: 988, press 1 National Text Line: text "HOME" to 741741 The above lines are the only ones tied into the National 988 network. All the rest in this thread are not.