Microbiology
Scientists Create Cyborg Bacteria
Bacteria with artificial hydrogel skeletons could be used as tiny robots
Microbiology34 articles archived since 1845
Microbiology
Scientists Create the Smallest-Ever Moving Cell
Just two genes get tiny synthetic cells moving, offering clues to life’s evolution
Microbiology
This Microbe Withstands an Incredible Range of Pressures
A microbial discovery could help guide the search for life beyond Earth
Microbiology
Meet the Magnificent Microbes of the Deep Unknown
These two researchers journey toward the center of Earth—via windows to the crust—to find bacteria that can breathe iron, arsenic and other metals that would kill us pretty quickly...
Microbiology
Mysterious Microbes in Earth’s Crust Might Help with the Climate Crisis
Wherever we dig and however deep we dig, we find microscopic living organisms. Could they eat the carbon we’re pumping into the air?
Evolution
Inside the Scientific Quest to Save (Most of) the World’s Parasites
Scientists are on a mission to save parasites—not to kill them. Climate change is already doing an increasingly good job at the latter, and that could be a big problem for the world...
Microbiology
Could the Zombie Fungus in TV’s The Last of Us Really Infect People?
The pandemic fungus in the television program The Last of Us is real. But an expert says other fungi are much more threatening to humans
Public Health
Antibiotic-Resistant UTIs Are Common, and Other Infections May Soon Be Resistant, Too
Urinary tract infections are increasingly becoming resistant to first-line antibiotics, and this may be a warning for our ability to treat other microbial infections
Microbiology
This Overlooked Scientist Helped Save Washington, D.C.’s Cherry Trees
Mycologist Flora Patterson helped make the USDA fungus collection into the world’s largest. She also made a mean mushroom “catsup”
Microbiology
Electric Countdown Tells Sleeping Spores When to Wake Up
Do sleeping spores dream of electric sheep?
Microbiology
Bacteria and Fungi Can ‘Walk’ across the Surface of Our Teeth
Clusters of bacteria and fungi seem to be capable of complex movement, setting tooth decay in motion
Medicine
First ‘Vagina-on-a-Chip’ Will Help Researchers Test Drugs
A new chip re-creates the human vagina’s unique microbiome
Animals
‘Mind Control’ Parasite Makes Wolves Effective Pack Leaders
The parasite Toxoplasma gondii can change the behavior of infected wolves in ways that make them more likely to be pack leaders
Microbiology
How Viruses Hop from Wild Animals to Humans
A virologist explains what it takes for a virus to leap from an animal host into humans
Plants
How to Stop Your Jack-o’-Lantern from Rotting
Prevent your jack-o’-lantern from turning into moldy, maggoty mush before Halloween
Microbiology
News Briefs from around the World: September 2022
In case you missed it
Microbiology
Predatory Bacteria Are Fierce, Ballistic and Full of Potential
Bacterial predators fight like wolves, torpedoes and vampires, and they could provide the next antibiotics
Microbiology
A Remote-Controlled Carnivorous Plant?
Researchers design an artificial neuron that can trigger closure of a Venus flytrap.
Microbiology
Marine Microbe Lures Prey into Custom Slime Traps
These organisms’ private “mucospheres” play an outsize role in the planet’s carbon cycle
Microbiology
Acne Inflammation Discovery Could Lead to New Treatments
A key player is revealed in the acne-causing immune battle
