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Automatic sample pretreatment microsystem operates through speech recognition

People use smart voice assistants to get quick answers or to play their favorite music. This same technology has the potential to make laboratories safer for scientists and technicians who work with potentially infectious samples.

2 Feb 2023

Novel chemical tool reveals how bacteria adapt to the host environment

A research team guided by Professor Xiang David Li of The University of Hong Kong’s (HKU) Department of Chemistry created a new chemical tool to unveil how bacteria adjust to the host environment and control host cells.

1 Feb 2023

Genomic study helps retrace origin and spread of Shigellosis outbreak in Seattle

A genomic study of a sustained, multidrug-resistant Shigellosis outbreak in Seattle enabled scientists to retrace its origin and spread.

1 Feb 2023

Experts urge to recognize the need for more rational discourse around the future of virology

The study of viruses is under renewed scrutiny, say more than 150 experts in a new commentary published today in mSphere, mBio and the Journal of Virology, journals of the American Society for Microbiology.

27 Jan 2023

Scientists receive $10 million from HHMI for research on using viruses as therapeutic agents

Taking a bold step into a new era of biology, a team of scientists from the University of California San Diego, the J. Craig Venter Institute and Yale University has been awarded $10 million by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to support research on using viruses as new therapeutic agents.

27 Jan 2023

Researchers discover new transporter for recycling of bacterial cell wall

A transporter which some bacteria use to recycle fragments of their cell wall has been discovered by researchers at Umeå University, Sweden.

27 Jan 2023

Highly potent antibiotic candidate identified

One of the most promising new antibiotic candidates in decades is a powerful plant toxin that harbors a novel way of killing hazardous bacteria.

26 Jan 2023

New revelations on the immune system’s defenses against infections

Cells competing for a place in a germinal center confront a tough admissions process. Germinal centers, which form following exposure to a pathogen or vaccine, serve as a kind of immune system training academy, assisting B cells in refining their response to the threat.

18 Jan 2023

Detecting the extent of natural selection over time

Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, the CNRS, and the Collège de France researchers have employed paleogenomics to trace 10,000 years of human immune system evolution. They examined the genomes of over 2,800 individuals who lived in Europe over the past 10 millennia.

From Institut Pasteur 18 Jan 2023

Structure of the complete virion of S. epidermidis–infecting phage revealed

Scientists from the University of Alabama at Birmingham used cryo-electron microscopy to reveal the structure of a bacterial virus in extraordinary detail.

20 Dec 2022

The potential of cellular “glue” in regenerative medicine

Scientists at UC San Francisco have created molecules that function as “cellular glue,” enabling them to precisely control how cells adhere to one another. The discovery is a significant step toward regenerative medicine’s long-term goal of creating new tissues and organs.

14 Dec 2022

Molecular regulation underlying emergency hematopoiesis uncovered

If the body’s emergency hematopoiesis program activates, it signifies an alert state of the immune system and serves two functions: In comparison to “normal mode” hematopoiesis, the emergency program results in enhanced replacement of immune cells consumed during infections or inflammations.

12 Dec 2022

Insight into the treatment for Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus

The Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus can be prevented by therapeutically relevant human monoclonal antibodies, according to research led by the University of California, Riverside.

30 Nov 2022

Adaptation to climate change in plants aided by epigenetic memories

Animals are able to quickly adapt to changing environmental conditions and survive. There is growing evidence that plants can, too.

21 Nov 2022

New framework for developing ecological countermeasures to prevent pandemics

Preserving and restoring natural habitats could prevent pathogens that originate in wildlife from spilling over into domesticated animals and humans, according to two new companion studies.

17 Nov 2022

Black death and the development of immune genes

The Black Death, which wiped off up to 50% of the European population in less than five years, was the single-worst mortality catastrophe in recorded history.

21 Oct 2022

Discovering H2O2 sensing capacity in plants that control immunity

All aerobic organisms produce the molecule hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). When present in low concentrations, it acts as a crucial secondary signal to control a variety of biological processes, including but not limited to plant-microbe interactions, abiotic stress tolerance, pollen tube growth, root hair formation, leaf cell expansion, and Casparian strip formation.

20 Oct 2022

Innovative method opens myriad new avenues for understanding the biology behind COVID-19

A highly innovative method using the latest technology has generated a comprehensive list of SARS-CoV-2 viral and human proteins that interact with each other, with one such interaction showing the virus directly influencing proteins that regulate the human immune system.

18 Oct 2022

Delicate strategy employed by pathogens to suppress pyroptosis

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the bacteria that causes tuberculosis (TB), continues to be a major infectious threat to global public health.

18 Oct 2022

The influence of fatty acid metabolism on plant immunity

Most people do not realize that fatty acids can be found in a nutritious salad. Although fatty acids, lipids, and fats may seem unappealing, they are essential to human life and to the plants that are consumed.

17 Oct 2022