Siouxsie Wiles

Contributing writer

Dr Siouxsie Wiles is an Associate Professor and head of the Bioluminescent Superbugs Lab at the University of Auckland. She and her team make nasty bacteria glow in the dark to find new medicines and to study how bacteria evolve to cause disease. Siouxsie recently published her first book, Antibiotic Resistance: the End of Modern Medicine? She is also a keen blogger, tweeter and podcaster and was a finalist for the 2018 Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year.

Science

Feb 3, 2020

As NZ bans arrivals from China, has the coronavirus really infected 100,000?

The WHO has declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. Here's the latest news and the latest science.

Science

Jan 28, 2020

The Wuhan coronavirus is highly likely to arrive in NZ, but please don't freak out

In the case of the coronavirus outbreak in China, I’ve gone from not being too alarmed, to thinking, oh, crap! But that still doesn’t mean we should all panic.

Science

Jan 24, 2020

Is this... snake flu?! What we know about the source of the Wuhan coronavirus

It looks like it could be one of two snakes, the many-banded krait or the Chinese cobra. Or, perhaps, the Chinese rufous horseshoe bat.

Science

Apr 6, 2019

Where do I draw the line? Stuffing a jade ‘egg’ into my vagina

Most bacteria are completely harmless. But a porous piece of jade, as once promoted by Gwyneth Paltrow’s wellness empire Goop, could be harmful and deliver a potentially nasty infection

Science

Feb 8, 2019

Slip slop scrap: On the Cancer Society vs Consumer NZ sunscreen fight

As two trusted groups go into battle on SPF ratings, microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles explains what the numbers mean, and how they’re measured

Science

Jul 5, 2018

How genetic modification helps the Impossible Burger take flight

Genetic engineering is central to success of the synthetic meat that has been embraced by Air NZ and caused a flap among MPs

Science

Jun 13, 2018

A brilliant woman is our new chief scientist, and the timing couldn’t be better

Siouxsie Wiles celebrates the announcement that Juliet Gerrard will be the next prime minister's chief science advisor

Science

Apr 26, 2018

Why a rinse won’t do: on menstrual cups, bacteria, and toxic shock syndrome

A new study shows that menstrual cups and cotton tampons may not be as safe as people are being led to believe.

Science

Jan 12, 2018

Enough is enough. Academics must stand up against this bullshit

Shocking revelations around a clinical trial of a new tuberculosis vaccine are just the tip of the iceberg. Maintaining public trust in science depends on a new approach to transparency.

Science

Dec 29, 2017

Summer Reissue: Sorry Paleo Pete, but I’ll take medical qualifications over your ‘common sense’ any day

Every time celebrity chef Pete Evans talks about his 'wellness' beliefs, scientists and doctors line up to counter them with peer-reviewed research and established facts. That's because Evans' 'common sense' sounds a lot like utter nonsense, writes Dr Siouxsie Wiles.

Science

Jul 3, 2017

A message to Whakatāne about Vaxxed, from a microbiologist and parent

Dr Siouxsie Wiles writes an open letter to the people of Whakatāne (and the rest of Aotearoa New Zealand), where vaccination rates are dismal and an anti-vaxxer propaganda film is screening tonight.

Science

May 20, 2017

Why is an antibiotic-chasing scientist going cap in hand to the crowd?

Siouxsie Wiles explains why she’s using crowdfunding to bankroll her lab’s effort in response to the global crisis of antimicrobial resistance

Science

May 6, 2017

Cold discomfort pharma: what does the science say on whether the drugs work?

Consumer NZ says over-the-counter cold-and-flu remedies are mostly useless. The industry strongly disagrees. Siouxsie Wiles takes a look at the studies.

Science

Apr 7, 2017

On Auckland’s typhoid outbreak, the flooding theory, and the ‘homeopathy remedy’

As the number of cases of typhoid in Auckland approaches 20, some people are asking if the outbreak is related to all the heavy rain and flooding we’ve been having. It’s a good question, and the answer is almost certainly no. Dr Siouxsie Wiles explains why.

Science

Apr 3, 2017

Sorry Paleo Pete, but I’ll take medical qualifications over your ‘common sense’ any day

Every time celebrity chef Pete Evans talks about his 'wellness' beliefs, scientists and doctors line up to counter them with peer-reviewed research and established facts. That's because Evans' 'common sense' sounds a lot like utter nonsense, writes Dr Siouxsie Wiles.

Science

Apr 2, 2017

A typhoid outbreak is hitting Auckland. Where did it come from and what can we do?

At least 10 people in NZ's biggest city have reportedly been hospitalised with typhoid, and health officials say we can expect more cases. Siouxsie Wiles explains what typhoid is and the 'super-shedder' scenario

Science

Mar 8, 2017

Today and every day we salute you: the brilliant, invisible women of science

We recently asked a class of first-year students, most of them young women, to think of a scientist, writes Siouxsie Wiles. And who do you think they chose?

Science

Dec 26, 2016

Summer reissue: Who needs scientists when Mike Hosking is here to school us?

Facts and ‘cloistered’ expertise were well and truly been put in their place by the Seven Sharp host this year. Siouxsie Wiles on a unique brand of smug bullshit

Science

Nov 25, 2016

Calling a vagina a vagina: why cutesy code words are terrible for our sexual health

New Zealand's rates of sexually transmitted infections like chlamydia are some of the highest in the Western world. That's the bad news, says Siouxsie Wiles – the good news is that we can begin fixing the problem just by being more frank about our genitalia and what it does.

Science

Nov 21, 2016

In the fight against the superbug apocalypse, don’t fall for the idea that infectious diseases only happen somewhere else

With antibiotics’ power on the wane, infectious diseases are increasingly hard to combat. And it is much more than just as a third world problem, writes Siouxsie Wiles

Science

Jun 10, 2016

An open letter to Maureen Pugh, the new National MP who ‘doesn’t believe in pharmaceutical drugs’

Prompted by news that National's new list MP "doesn't believe in pharmaceutical drugs", Siouxsie Wiles drops her a line

Science

Jun 1, 2016

Who needs scientists when Mike Hosking is here to teach us how things are?

Facts and ‘cloistered’ expertise have well and truly been put in their place by the Seven Sharp host and his unique brand of smug bullshit, writes Siouxsie Wiles

Science

May 17, 2016

A herbalist anti-vaxxer on Morning Report? I’d laugh if I weren’t so bloody furious

RNZ needs to do some serious soul-searching about its decision to give a platform to non-scientific nonsense, writes Dr Siouxsie Wiles

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