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Dozens of researchers, including myself, worked for years to uncover that swine flu had leapt to humans from a pig in Mexico in 2009. We learned a lot about influenza evolution, pig farming, and outbreak risk along the way.

A year and a half into the pandemic, the long-term effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection are garnering more research attention as millions of long COVID patients emerge.

Bacteria in the gut influence the production of antibodies and themselves secrete metabolites. In a pregnant woman, these compounds may influence immune development of her fetus.

With human research trials resulting in dozens of successful deliveries in the US and abroad, doctors move toward offering the surgery clinically, while working to learn all they can about uterine and transplant biology from the still-rare procedure.

Understanding biology’s software—the rules that enable great plasticity in how cell collectives generate reliable anatomies—is key to advancing tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

While questions still outnumber answers, new findings from archaeology, genetics, and other disciplines are revealing surprising insights into the early cultures of the most recently populated continent.

A handful of factors tip the scales in making a virus more likely to trigger a disruptive global outbreak. Right now, scientists tend to rank influenza, coronaviruses, and Nipah virus as the biggest threats.

Rats and equations help researchers develop a theory of how our brains keep track of when events took place.

Strategies to make lab animals forget, remember, or experience false recollections probe how memory works, and may inspire treatments for neurological diseases.

Studies point to a role for physical activity in fighting malignancies, improving treatment outcomes, and fostering overall health in patients.

It’s now clear that gene transcripts can be constructed in various ways, yet many questions remain about the process.

Scientists are using social media to track diseases and understand how people respond to them.

Extracellular webs expelled by neutrophils trap invading pathogens, but these newly discovered structures also have ties to autoimmunity and cancer.

From making ribosomes to protecting the integrity of the genome, these membraneless compartments play important roles in the cell. Their behavior is rooted in basic physics.

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

Hanging in front of the abdomen like an apron, the depot of visceral fat known as the omentum helps regulate immune responses.

The loss of darkness can harm individual organisms and perturb interspecies interactions, potentially causing lasting damage to life on our planet.

Just 20 years ago, scientists didn’t even realize muscles had their own circadian clocks. Now they are beginning to appreciate their importance in health. 

Researchers untangle the multifarious nature of muscle aging. So far, the only reliable treatment is exercise.