This Week in Microbiology
This Week in Microbiology is a podcast about unseen life on Earth hosted by Vincent Racaniello and friends. Following in the path of his successful shows 'This Week in Virology' (TWiV) and 'This Week in Parasitism' (TWiP...
Insights from recent episode analysis
On the show
- Mark O. Martin5 eps
- Nancy1 ep
- Maggie1 ep
Also: John Coffin, Michael Malamy, Verna Manni
Audience Interest
Podcast Focus
Publishing Consistency
Insights are generated by CastFox AI using publicly available data, episode content, and proprietary models.
Most discussed topics
Brands & references
Total monthly reach
Based on 1 signal.
Built from
By chart position
- 🇺🇸United States · Life SciencesHOME#31118K to 626K
- 🇩🇪Germany · Life Sciences#1125K to 131K
- 🇯🇵Japan · Life Sciences#1112K to 66K
- 🇨🇦Canada · Life Sciences#1910K to 56K
- 🇵🇱PL · Life Sciences#87.2K to 38K
- Per-Episode Audience
Est. listeners per new episode within ~30 days
219K to 1.2M🎙 Weekly cadence·363 episodes·Last published 2w ago - Monthly Reach
Unique listeners across all episodes (30 days)
438K to 2.3M🇺🇸54%🇩🇪11%🇯🇵6%+17 more - Active Followers
Loyal subscribers who consistently listen
241K to 1.3M
Market Insights
Platform Distribution
Reach across major podcast platforms, updated hourly
Total Followers
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Total Plays
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Total Reviews
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* Data sourced directly from platform APIs and aggregated hourly across all major podcast directories.
| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/10/26 |  365: Bacteria Inside a Fungus Sabotage Plant Defenses | TWiM explains how bacterial endosymbionts enhance fungal virulence by disrupting the protective rhizobiome, and the development of rationally engineered Salmonella typhimurium strains with enhanced safety and antitumor efficacy. Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Plant, fungus, endosymbiont, and rhizobiome (PNAS) Engineering S. typhimurium to kill tumors (mBio) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] | 51m 09s | ||||||
| 9/26/26 |  364: DNA Damage as Defense Against Bee Pathogens | TWiM wonders why archaea are not pathogenic, and reveals how a colibactin produced by a honeybee gut symbiont defends against pathogens. Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Why are archaea not pathogenic? (mBio) Archaeal viruses (Archaea) Colibactin made in honeybee gut (Nat Micro) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] | 47m 03s | ||||||
| 9/12/26 |  363: Why Vegetables Are Good for Your Heart | TWiM explains the finding that Bunsen burners do not decrease deposition of microbe-containing particles, and how gut microbiota generate dinitrosyl iron complexes with cardiometabolic benefits. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello and Michael Schmidt Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Bunsen burners don't do what you thought they did (Micro Spectrum) How does air circulate in passenger planes? | AFP How germs travel on planes | Raymond Wang Gut bacteria and cardiometabolic health (Cell) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] | 58m 04s | ||||||
| 8/29/26 |  362: When Gut Bacteria Share Chromosomes | TWiM explains how movement of DNA among gut bacteria drive large-scale genome mosaicism, and validation of a method for detection of Cyclospora cayetanensis in outbreak-linked fresh produce. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, Michele Swanson, and Petra Levin Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Natural DNA transformation in the gut (ISME J) The transformation factor (J Exp Med) Validating cyclospora assay (J Food Prot) Cyclosporiasis (CDC) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] | 51m 38s | ||||||
| 8/14/26 |  361: Bacteria and Colon Cancer Recurrence | TWiM explains the discovery of an avirulent bacterial signature associated with the development of recurrence following colorectal cancer surgery, and phage-derived proteins and conjugates that induce pilus detachment. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Petra Levin Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Bacterial signature is associated with colon cancer recurrence (Nat Comm) Phage-derived proteins induce pilus detachment (J Bact) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] Take the TWiM Survey | 53m 14s | ||||||
| 7/31/26 |  360: Nitrogen Fixation Goes Eukaryotic | TWiM explains major implications of the link between plastic pollution and antimicrobial resistance, and the discovery of a new organelle, the nitrogen-fixing nitroplast. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson Become a patron of TWiM. Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Links for this episode Plastic pollution and antimicrobial resistance (Appl Envir Micro) The great Pacific garbage patch (YouTube) Rumen microbiome (Nat Biotech) Nitrogen-fixing organelle in marine alga (Science) This cell just changed biology (YouTube) Take the TWiM Listener survey! Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to [email protected] | 56m 29s | ||||||
| 7/18/26 | cannibalismbiofilm structure+4 | — | Bacillus subtilisE. coli+2 | — | cannibalismbiofilm+5 | — | 48m 03s | ||
| 7/4/26 | gut microbesamyotrophic lateral sclerosis+3 | — | Acinetobacter baumanniiCell Rep+1 | — | gut microbesALS+3 | — | 58m 06s | ||
| 6/15/26 | microbiologytribute+4 | John CoffinMichael Malamy+1 | Tufts University School of Medicine | — | Elio SchaechterTufts University+4 | — | 55m 42s | ||
| 5/28/26 | bacteriocinscontact-dependent lysis+3 | — | Streptococcus mitisS. pneumoniae+4 | — | Streptococcus mitisS. pneumoniae+5 | — | 49m 08s | ||
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| 5/9/26 | bacteriatRNA+5 | Mark O. Martin | ISME CommPNAS+1 | — | bacteriatRNA+7 | — | 56m 00s | ||
| 4/24/26 | gut microbiomeheart disease+4 | — | Cell Host MicrobeNat Biotech+3 | — | gut microbiomeheart disease+5 | — | 59m 15s | ||
| 4/11/26 | microbial metabolismfood allergens+4 | Mark O. Martin | TWiMPhytobiome J+2 | — | microbesmaize+5 | — | 46m 53s | ||
| 3/28/26 | microbial biosensorsgut health+3 | — | PNASCell+1 | — | microbiologybiosensors+5 | — | 59m 47s | ||
| 3/6/26 | bacteriophagemicroneedle patches+4 | — | Bier laboratorySci Adv+3 | — | bacteriophagemicroneedle patches+5 | — | 59m 21s | ||
| 2/14/26 | science literacymicrobiology+3 | NancyMaggie | Iowa State UASM | — | microbiologyscience education+3 | — | 53m 16s | ||
| 2/1/26 | mechano-bactericidal surfacesbacteria+3 | — | International Space StationAdv Sci+3 | — | bacteriamicrogravity+3 | — | 58m 42s | ||
| 1/21/26 | microbiomedog ownership+4 | — | iScienceNat Comm | — | microbiotamental health+4 | — | 53m 37s | ||
| 1/5/26 | S. aureuspathogenicity+4 | Mark O. Martin | Nat CommmBio+1 | — | S. aureuspathogenicity+4 | — | 55m 00s | ||
| 12/13/25 | metabolismporin permeability+3 | Mark O. Martin | CellNat Micro | — | metabolismporin permeability+3 | — | 53m 55s | ||
| 11/22/25 | sulfur cyclingiron cycling+3 | Mark O. Martin | NatureJ Bacteriol | — | sulfuriron+5 | — | 53m 31s | ||
| 11/8/25 | 344: Ant Yogurt and Fine Chocolate | TWiM reveals the bacteria, acids, and enzymes behind yogurt made with ants, and a defined set of microbes that reproduces attributes of fine flavor chocolate fermentation Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Petra Levin Guest: Mark O. Martin Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Making yogurt with ants (iScience) The Alchemist Restaurant How to make classic tuiles (MasterClass) Defined microbes for chocolate (Nat Micro) Microbial chocolatiers of fine flavour (Nat Micro) Blind taste every chocolate bar (YouTube) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] | 1h 06m 22s | ||||||
| 10/25/25 | 343: Nucleotides to the Defense | TWiM explores two different ways that bacteria defend against phages through the synthesis of cyclic nucleotides. Hosts: Michael Schmidt and Mark O. Martin Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Decoy cyclic nucleotides in phage defense (Nature) CRISPR defense with nucleotides (Nature) A decoy defence molecule to set a trap for viruses (Nature) Cyclic oligonucleotide-based antiphage signaling system immunity (Curr Opin Immunol) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] | 43m 57s | ||||||
| 10/11/25 | 342: The Microbiome, Pancreatic Cancer, and Sleep Quality | TWiM explains studies that show that the oral bacterial and fungal microbiome are risk factors for pancreatic cancer, and the gut microbiome and pyruvate metabolism of older adults are a link between sleep quality and frailty. Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michael Schmidt, and Michele Swanson. Subscribe to TWiM (free) on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, RSS, or by email. Become a patron of TWiM. Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Links for this episode Oral microbiome and pancreatic cancer risk (JAMA Oncol) 2025 Cancer Facts & Figures (ACS) Periodontal Disease: The Good, The Bad, and The Unknown (Front Cell Infect Micro) Socransky's disease complexes (Microorg) Microbiome, pyruvate metabolism, sleep quality, and frailty (Cell Rep) Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (pdf) How to score the sleep quality index (pdf) Take the TWiM Listener survey! Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to [email protected] | 53m 37s | ||||||
| 9/27/25 | 341: Sea Star Wasting Disease | TWiM reveals a Vibrio as the causative agent of sea star wasting disease, and using microcolony-seq to uncover phenotypic inheritance from single cells. Hosts: Michael Schmidt and Michele Swanson Guest: Mark O. Martin Become a patron of TWiM. Links for this episode: Agent of sea star wasting disease (Nat Ecol Evol) Sea star wasting mystery solved (Nat Ecol Evol) Phenotypic inheritance from single cells (Cell) Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission. Send your microbiology questions and comments to [email protected] | 48m 35s | ||||||
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Chart history for This Week in Microbiology
Peaked at #8 in PL, top 10 in 1 of 50 tracked markets, currently #8 in PL.
| Market | Genre | Peak | Current | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PL | — | #8 | #8 | — |
| Germany | — | #11 | #11 | — |
| Japan | — | #11 | #11 | — |
| HU | — | #12 | #12 | — |
| TH | — | #12 | #12 | — |
| SA | — | #13 | #13 | — |
| NG | — | #14 | #14 | — |
| CL | — | #17 | #17 | — |
| AR | — | #18 | #18 | — |
| Canada | — | #19 | #19 | — |
| MY | — | #19 | #19 | — |
| RO | — | #22 | #22 | — |
| South Korea | — | #23 | #23 | — |
| CH | — | #24 | #24 | — |
| PE | — | #24 | #24 | — |
| IL | — | #25 | #25 | — |
| VN | — | #25 | #25 | — |
| CZ | — | #28 | #28 | — |
| SG | — | #28 | #28 | — |
| Australia | — | #30 | #30 | — |
Chart Positions
50 placements across 45 markets.
Chart Positions
50 placements across 45 markets.