All plasmids deposited at Addgene enhance scientific sharing worldwide but a select few are particularly special. Over 1000 of our 60,000+ deposited plasmids have been requested more than 100 times each, thereby achieving the coveted “blue flame” status. We’re proud to honor the creativity, passion, and dedication to sharing epitomized by the creators of these plasmids with the first annual Blue Flame Awards.

This post was contributed by guest blogger, Jennifer Rivers, a research microbiologist specializing in bacteriology and drug resistance. 

It seems as though, nowadays, we cannot make it a full month without a new, drug-resistant ‘superbug’ making headlines in one part of the world or another. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is certainly a topic of great concern in healthcare today, but it doesn’t have to be some looming, abstract, convoluted scientific concept. It is imperative that we all understand what antibiotic resistance is and how it develops so that we may take an active part in our own health and the health of our loved ones, and become a positive force for public health.

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Gladys Kaba from the University of Health and Allied Sciences in Ghana will be receiving the third Addgene/Seeding Labs plasmid grant and plans to use the grant to order plasmids she can use as positive controls in PCR-based cervical cancer screens.

Read All of Our Editor's Choice Blog Posts

Last month there was plenty of excitement at Addgene. Our new viral service has begun to pick up steam (we already have over 70 orders!), we sent Outreach Scientists to Colorado, Berlin, Atlanta, Ottawa, Norwich, and Hannover, we raised money for the Superhero 5k and, of course, we had our yearly Halloween party (see all of our wonderful costumes in the pictures below, yours truly is dressed as Unikitty from The Lego Movie). October was no less busy for the Addgene blog which once again had record readership with over 75,000 views.

This post was contributed by Ryan Watkins, Professor at George Washington University and developer of wesharescience.org.

Sharing your research with the world can be challenging. After months, or years, of grueling effort to design, fund, and conduct a research project, the vast majority of what gets published in scientific journals flies under the radar and gains little notice. A 2009 research study found that 12% of articles in medicine, 27% in natural sciences, 82% in humanities, and 32% in the social sciences go uncited. Creative titles and controversial topics can garner some attention, though in reality much of our research still fails to reach our primary target audience – colleagues in our field. Secondary audiences that may also benefit, such as researchers in other countries or ot­her disciplines, are even less likely to read about our work. We therefore must discover new ways to reach our colleagues and other interested audiences quickly and concisely – video might be part of the answer.