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Losing the Earth’s bounty
Farmland degradation and soil erosion have caused food shortages and the collapse of civilizations throughout human history. Today, soil degradation is a growing driver of global threats such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and food insecurity. Loss of soil, the resource that supports production of 95% of the food supply, ...
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Bottling the extremes: culturing the hidden microbiomes of caves and deserts
Imagine an environment so extreme that most life cannot survive: a pitch-dark cave deep beneath the mountains of Northern Spain, or a hyper-arid desert in Chile where rainfall is virtually non-existent. These are not lifeless wastelands. Beneath cave walls and within the dusty top layer of desert soils, thriving communities of cyanobacteria, green algae, and fungi quietly engineer their ecosystems: fixing carbon, weathering rock, and cycling nutrients in conditions that would defeat most organisms on Earth.
Equity and the response to Covid 19 - Preparing for the next pandemic in Aotearoa New Zealand
Aotearoa New Zealand enacted an effective response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The government approach to the first few cases in March 2020 was to implement a swift ‘go hard and go early’ response. Borders were closed to non-residents, lockdowns were enforced, and infection was effectively eliminated within 76 days of ...
Clinical considerations for the next pandemic: challenges facing Japan and strategic preparedness
Multiple global pandemics over the past century – the Spanish influenza (1918), Asian influenza (1957), Hong Kong influenza (1968), H1N1 influenza (2009), and COVID‑19 (since 2019) – have increasingly underscored the necessity for healthcare systems worldwide to be resilient, rapidly responsive, and forward‑facing.
Under the Lens video series
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 3
Is raw milk safe to drink? Prof Emmanuel Adukwu is joined by Prof Nicola Holden and Dr Gil Domingue for a conversation on the societal, scientific, and health implications of this pertinent question.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 2
In our second episode, Dr Callum Cooper joins Professor Emmanuel Adukwu to talk about all things bacteriophage, from alternatives to antibiotics, social impact, and regulation.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 1
In our first episode, Professor Raquel Peixoto joins Professor Jack Gilbert for a deep dive into coral reefs, microbes, and the future of our planet.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 3
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 2
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 1
Get unlimited access to The Microbiologist
The Microbiologist provides detailed information on the latest research, topics, reviews, events and news on a wide variety of microbiological topics.
Members of Applied Microbiology International get unlimited access as a benefit. Find out more about AMI Membership
Fertile ground: The rise of soil viral ecology
Soil viral ecology has been one of the most neglected areas of microbiology, but technological advances are opening up fertile new frontiers, says AMI Healthy Land Advisory Group member and CNRS researcher Christina Hazard.
Reversing the threat: How to stop measles from spreading again
As the Global Virus Network issues a stark warning over the significant resurgence of measles in the US and globally, William J. Moss, Sten H. Vermund, and Maggie L. Bartlett set out what needs to be done if the preventable harms of the current surge are to be reversed.
Why chromogenic media matters when testing for invasive pathogens: Could the cheapest plate be an expensive decision?
Chris Armstrong, President of Microbiology, Thermo Fisher Scientific, argues that laboratories should stop judging fungal culture media on unit price alone.
A week in the life of a Parvovirus researcher
Alejandro Fernández Llorente works as a predoctoral researcher at Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBM-CSIC), a prestigious biomedical research centre located in Madrid, Spain.
From microbiome research to personalized cosmetics: The genesis of BYOME LABS
BYOME LABS was founded through the initiative of David Suissa, an entrepreneur trained at École Polytechnique and the Corps des Mines. After leading companies in the fields of perfumery and applied microbiology, he chose to structure a new approach centered on the biological evaluation of cosmetic products.
Voice of the Future: Inspiring conversations at the science-policy interface
Earlier this year, Suparna Mitra and Alan Koh took part in the Royal Society of Biology’s Voice of the Future event at Parliament, representing AMI. Here they reflect on the experience and what they took away from it.
‘Accidental’ discovery lays foundation for novel flu treatment strategies
Scientists investigating how influenza viruses replicate within cells “accidentally” discovered that different flu viruses use distinct strategies to infiltrate cells in the first place. They also found that it is possible to target specific molecules to prevent the viruses from entering new cells, thereby stopping their replication.
EU project aims to make climate-neutral plastics and cosmetics using bacteria
A European research team is aiming to revolutionize the chemical industry: as part of the CarboNcare project, scientists are developing bacteria that can produce important chemical base materials from sustainable methanol – thereby replacing fossil resources.
Engineered gut bacteria therapy emerges as scalable potential alternative to fecal microbiota transplants following clinical trial
Researchers have developed a new manufacturing platform for producing targeted mixtures of beneficial gut bacteria, an approach that could help expand access to microbiome-based therapies for patients with recurrent Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) infection.
Food security
Biochar could help make tea farming cleaner, safer, and more climate resilient
A new review examines how biochar, a carbon-rich material produced by heating biomass under limited oxygen, could become a practical tool for more sustainable tea cultivation. It focuses on five connected areas: soil properties, microbial communities, nutrient cycling, tea productivity and quality, and heavy metal detoxification.
Clean Water
New study uncovers why the Arctic’s rivers are rusting
Scientists have identified the two biggest reasons that once-pristine rivers across the Arctic are growing cloudy with toxic orange iron particles that smother insects and suffocate fish. As the climate warms, a layer of Arctic soil that had been frozen for millennia has begun to thaw.
Scientists map the ocean’s invisible workforce
A new study identifies a small set of “metabolic niches” — or functional roles — that help explain how marine microbes grow, compete for resources and recycle carbon around the globe. The microbes are incredibly diverse, but their behavior can be grouped into a manageable number of strategies.
