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.

Meet some of the people featured in the August 2021 issue of The Scientist.

The microbiota helps align a mouse’s innate immune system with its feeding patterns, prepping the animal to fend off infection when it’s most likely to be eating.

The temporary loss of olfaction stops the flies from eating any more of whatever it is that made them sick.

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.

Bacteria that live in the digestive tracts of animals may influence the adaptive trajectories of their hosts.

Swabbing infants born by Cesarean-section with a gauze harboring their mother’s vaginal fluids made their skin and gut microbiota more closely resemble that of vaginally born babies.

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.

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

Cammie Lesser will discuss how she turns a probiotic into a drug-delivering machine, while Andrew Y. Koh will describe the connection between the gut microbiota and cancer immunotherapy efficacy.

The researchers found thousands of species not previously documented.

The Centenary University professor studies the far-reaching effects of changes in the gut bacteria of mosquitos and other species.

Explore how microbes shape health, disease, and the world beyond

Cammie Lesser describes her research developing designer probiotics to deliver protein-based therapeutics to the gut.

From a loss of taste to dementia, infectious agents cause an array of neurological symptoms.

Altered gut microbiome composition in obese mice and human patients is linked with severity of disease after bone marrow transplantation, a study found.

A study of human populations around the world detects differing rates of horizontal gene transfer in the microbiome depending on what kind of society those people live in.

The results from two Phase 1 trials bolster the case that the gut microbiome plays a role in response to the drugs.

Recent research shows that the insect’s microbial community is central to protecting the hive from invaders—both big and small.