1 rich Libsyn https://www.libsyn.com 90 600 This episode: Prions in yeast can allow better adaptation to changing conditions! Download Episode&amp;nbsp;(9.5 MB, 13.9 minutes) Show notes: Microbe of the episode: Hepatovirus F &amp;nbsp; News item &amp;nbsp; Takeaways Prions can be deadly. They're misshapen proteins that cause a cascade of misfolding of similar proteins if they get into the nervous system, resulting in neurodegeneration in mammals. But in other organisms, they are not always so scary; some fungi use prions to regulate their behavior in varying conditions. &amp;nbsp; In this study, a prion allows yeast to switch between a fast-growing lifestyle with shorter reproductive lifespan that can be beneficial in conditions where nutrients are often plentiful, and a slower-growing but more enduring lifestyle that helps in more scarce conditions. &amp;nbsp; Journal Paper: Garcia DM, Campbell EA, Jakobson CM, Tsuchiya M, Shaw EA, DiNardo AL, Kaeberlein M, Jarosz DF. 2021. A prion accelerates proliferation at the expense of lifespan. eLife 10:e60917. Other interesting stories: Modified yeast probiotic could tune its effects as needed by sensing bowel inflammation &amp;nbsp; Email questions or comments to&amp;nbsp;bacteriofiles at gmail dot com. Thanks for listening! Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Android, or&amp;nbsp;RSS. Support the show at Patreon, or check out the show at&amp;nbsp;Twitter&amp;nbsp;or&amp;nbsp;Facebook. BacterioFiles https://www.asm.org/bacteriofiles <iframe title="Libsyn Player" style="border: none" src="//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/21602243/height/90/theme/custom/thumbnail/yes/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/a53939/" height="90" width="600" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen></iframe> https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/item/21602243