microbes

Scientists in Canada trace how aquatic communities change as Quebec’s Romaine River flows into the sea.

Researchers discover that bacteria break down medicinal compounds for their nitrogen, solving a mystery that has vexed aquatic veterinarians for years.

In work that has not yet been peer-reviewed, researchers present evidence that microbes can and do live inside the venom glands of several dangerous species. It remains unclear whether they’re to blame for infections linked to bites.

By breaking down urea, the animals’ gut bacteria recycle nitrogen, which can be then used to build new molecules during prolonged fasting.

The first evidence of biologically produced elemental carbon inspires more questions than answers.  

Recent studies describe how resident microbiota appear to outcompete unwelcome visitors, either with superior weaponry or by guzzling up local resources.  

Researchers propose that some of the planet’s earliest photosynthesizers benefited from a slowing of the Earth’s rotation that allowed them to produce a surplus of oxygen and paved the way for more complex life.  

The material, now part of an African mountain range, bolsters the idea that hydrothermal veins supported early forms of life.

After controlling for high levels of bacterial contamination in their lab and reagents, researchers detect microbial genetic material in plasma samples from healthy people and cancer patients.

Brood X’s emergence tunnels—numbering in the hundreds per square meter of soil—give researchers a special opportunity to study how such extreme soil aeration affects the ecosystem.

Researchers identify live bacteria in fetal guts, skin, lungs, and placentas that activate memory T cells, indicating that early exposure to microbes could help educate the developing immune system.

Researchers find traces of SARS-CoV-2 in the stool and blood of kids with the post–COVID-19 inflammatory disorder, and signs of increased intestinal permeability.

Researchers report chemical and molecular signatures of microbial activity from millions of years ago in mineral samples from abandoned mines in Sweden and nearby countries.

Projects aimed at collecting big data about the ocean’s tiniest life forms continue to expand our view of the seas.

With multiple microbiota therapeutics in the pipeline for recurrent Clostridium difficile infection, clinicians foresee a shift in treatment options for the condition.