Microbiology

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New Study Finds Primates Are at Greater Risk of Picking Up Human Diseases Thanks to Deforestation

For the first time researchers have found evidence that monkeys are catching human Hepatitis B virus (HBV) in the Amazon and deforestation could be making the problem much worse.

20 May 2026

Novel Synthetic Molecules Attack Cell Membranes to Prevent Severe Bacterial Infections

In a new study, researchers show how so‑called TriPcides can target the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, including antibiotic‑resistant strains such as MRSA. The compounds disrupt the bacteria's ability to cause infection and can also kill dormant bacterial cells, which are often difficult to treat with existing antibiotics.

20 May 2026

Study Maps Molecular Arrangement of Powerful Ice-Growing Bacteria on Non-Organic Surfaces

Bacteria from the Middle East have caused precipitation all the way out in California. The same bacteria, which are known to attack plants, have also been found embedded within lumps of hail in West Africa.

20 May 2026

Microbes Switch Functional States Without Genetic Mutations to Withstand Stress

Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and collaborators have discovered that many gut bacteria use a flexible survival strategy to withstand disruptions such as antibiotics and diet changes.

20 May 2026

Groundbreaking Light Trick Corrals Thousands of Dangerous Bacteria From Liquid Samples

How to collect what you can barely find? Concentrate it.

19 May 2026

Comprehensive Wastewater Genomics Detects All Oncogenic Viruses Concurrently

A study published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology is the first comprehensive approach to detect all known cancer-causing or oncogenic viruses concurrently by analyzing viral genomes in wastewater.

15 May 2026

RNA Modularity Explains Emergence of Human-Infective Cholera Strains

Scientists from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have uncovered what gives Vibrio cholerae, the bacterium that causes cholera, the ability to colonize the human gut.

15 May 2026

Supercomputer Simulations Map Sodium Pumping in Pathogenic Bacteria

The Na+-NQR enzyme is vital for energy production in pathogenic bacteria like the one that causes cholera, making it a highly promising target for new antibiotics.

15 May 2026

New Data Suggest Ready-to-Eat Meats Rarely Reach Illness-Linked Bacterial Levels

The study found that Clostridium perfringens was occasionally detected in raw or not-ready-to-eat meat products, but rarely appeared at concerning levels in cooked ready-to-eat meats. Even products linked to cooling deviations did not exceed 2 log CFU/g, suggesting that illness-associated growth during commercial stabilization is highly unlikely.

13 May 2026

HIV Mutations Undermine Broadly Neutralizing Antibody Treatments Across Strains

Broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) are among the most promising new treatments for HIV, offering the potential to forego traditional daily dose of antiretroviral drugs.

12 May 2026

New Analysis Uncovers Evolutionary Adaptations Within Human Gut Bacteria

The human gut harbors a complex ecosystem of trillions of microorganisms (the microbiome), which influences digestion, the immune system and metabolism.

8 May 2026

Scientists Discover Viral Strategy That Disables Bacterial CRISPR Immunity

Bacteria fend off invading viruses with molecular scissors that slice up viral DNA - a system called CRISPR that's become indispensable to gene editing.

8 May 2026

How Genetic Bonuses Help Gut Bacteria Adapt to Industrialization

Billions of microorganisms-primarily bacteria, viruses, and fungi-colonize our gut. This complex community is known as the microbiome.

7 May 2026

Advances in DNA Assembly Enable Efficient Microbial Cell Factories

A review in Quantitative Biology demonstrates that scientists can now reliably build and combine very large pieces of DNA, making it much easier to redesign microbes such as yeast and bacteria to act as efficient "cell factories."

7 May 2026

New Single-Cell Technique Reveals Why Bacteria Survive Antibiotics

SinBactM's innovative approach to single-bacterium metabolomics reveals distinct metabolic states, enhancing understanding of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.

6 May 2026

AI Designs New Antibiotics That Reduce MRSA Infections In Mice

SyntheMol-RL integrates reinforcement learning for antibiotic design, producing synthesizable candidates that show efficacy against MRSA in preclinical models.

5 May 2026

Engineered Bacteriophage Speeds up the "Training" of Plastic-Eating Bacteria

Millions of tons of plastic waste build up in landfills and oceans each year. One promising approach is to engineer microbes to break plastic down into useful chemical building blocks.

4 May 2026

Genomic Tool TRACS Improves Tracking of Microbial Transmission Patterns

The research, published today (24 April) in Nature Microbiology, describes how the new tool, called TRAnsmision Clustering of Strains (TRACS), uses genomics to distinguish between closely related bacterial strains.

4 May 2026

Host Genetics and Sex Shape Evolution of Viral Virulence

During the early stages of a pandemic, viruses tend to evolve in ways that enhance their ability to reproduce and spread, rather than to evade the host's immune system.

4 May 2026

Key Protein Switch Activates Leptospira Virulence and Disease Spread

During infection, pathogens must adapt quickly to the conditions to thrive inside the body. A research team at the University of Basel, Switzerland, has uncovered how a key protein switches on the machinery that enables Leptospira pathogens to survive and cause disease.

28 Apr 2026