cell & molecular biology, microbiology

A pathogenic amoeba species ingests parts of human cells and steals human cell membrane proteins to display on its own surface.

Microbes, traditionally thought to lack organelles, get a metabolic boost from geometric compartments that act as cauldrons for chemical reactions. Bioengineers are eager to harness the compartments for their own purposes.

These icosahedral structures are composed of proteins with unique geometric properties, which enable bacteria to employ them in a variety of situations.

From journeys into mines to explorations of volcanoes on the ocean floor, deep voyages reveal the richness of the planet’s deep biosphere.

A new study ignites debate on the cause of pistachio bushy top syndrome, a disease that has crippled farms in California, Arizona, and New Mexico.

Photosynthesis can happen in more than one way.  

What we can know about biology before the last universal common ancestor is limited—and we should be circumspect in filling in the gaps.

The microbiologist was known for his work on bacterial antibiotic resistance and infectious disease.

Proteins and RNA aggregate into “membraneless organelles” due to liquid-liquid phase separation.

A device dubbed the “mother machine” enables real-time observation of mutagenesis in single bacterial cells.  

After discovering a novel organelle found in protozoan parasites, the University of Pennsylvania’s Roos created a widely used eukaryotic pathogen database.

The findings more than double the number of known defense mechanisms, piquing the interests of molecular biology tool developers.

The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researcher’s work will help predict how the Arctic is responding to climate change—and the global effects of those changes.

Two new techniques allow researchers to manipulate the activity of gut bacteria. 

The new findings, obtained from cell culture experiments, could explain the link between infection with the virus during pregnancy and infant microcephaly.

Viruses within Salmonella rapidly spread genes throughout the bacterial population during a gut infection, scientists show.

Scientists present evidence of bacteria-driven mating in flagellate eukaryotes at the American Society for Cell Biology annual meeting.

Researchers have designed a screen to find unique molecules, called riboswitches, that determine whether transcription will proceed.

Dictyostelium discoideum produce extracellular nets that can kill bacteria, just as phagocytes in people and other higher animals do, according to a study.