Collaborate Disseminate
Name a type of organic matter and chances are some type of organism has evolved to eat it. Plants, meat, algae, insects and bacteria are all consumed by different creatures, but now scientists have discovered something new on the menu – viruses.Continu… Continue reading First “virovore” discovered: An organism that eats viruses
Scientists have discovered a completely new branch on the tree of life. This “supergroup” contains an incredibly diverse range of predatory microbes that are extremely different genetically from any other form of life on Earth.Continue ReadingCategory:… Continue reading New branch on Tree of Life contains organisms unlike any others on Earth
Humans might not be the first lifeforms in the solar system to face the threat of their own activity changing the climate of their home planet. A new model suggests that ancient Mars was once habitable enough to support methane-producing microbes, and … Continue reading Ancient Martian life may have died out in self-induced climate change
If you needed more motivation to brush your teeth regularly, this could do the trick. Scientists have discovered that cavity-causing bacteria and fungi in saliva can team up to form “superorganisms” that can actually sprout limbs to crawl and even leap… Continue reading Cavity-causing microbe “superorganisms” grow limbs to leap across teeth
Texan company Cemvita is promising clean hydrogen at less than US$1/kg, after testing a fascinating new technique in the lab and the field. The idea is to pump specially developed microbes into depleted oil wells, where they’ll eat oil and excrete hydr… Continue reading Oil-eating microbes excrete the world’s cheapest “clean” hydrogen
A commonly used cancer drug called vinblastine is sourced from certain flowers, but unfortunately it takes literally tons of plant matter to make each gram of the drug. To find an alternative source, scientists have now engineered yeast to produce the … Continue reading Engineered yeast produces complex cancer drug, saving tons of flowers
Whether or not there’s life on Venus is the subject of much debate among scientists, but a new study may close the case. Researchers at Cambridge have analyzed the Venusian atmosphere and found no sign of the chemical fingerprints microbes would be exp… Continue reading Chemical analysis may close the case on life on Venus
Well, whaddya know? It seems that E. coli, the bane of Romaine and spinach everywhere, has at least one practical use. Researchers at Harvard have created a kind of 3D-printable …read more Continue reading It’s Printable, It’s Programmable, It’s E. coli
Microbial fuel cells are a promising new technology for generating electricity, but so far they’re plagued by inefficiency. Now, researchers at UCLA have found a way to wring more energy out of them, by feeding the bacteria silver to make them more con… Continue reading Silver-infused bacteria build more efficient microbial fuel cells
Sadly agriculture isn’t the most efficient process, requiring huge amounts of land and resources, and as the human population grows, our food supply will be put under increasing stress. But a new study has shown that farming protein from microbes could… Continue reading Microbes anyone? Study outlines huge potential of solar-powered protein