More Features
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Long ReadsCould spiritual healing sites be fertile ground for new antibiotics?
Common motifs between Streptomyces and sites of spiritual healing may help with the discovery of new sites for bioprospecting. Although there may be a temptation to dismiss the spiritual nature of the healing sites, it is important that researchers begin to understand these in the appropriate cultural and spiritual context.
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FeaturesMarine-derived antibiotics: can ocean microbes help combat superbugs?
The deep expanse of the Earth’s mysterious marine habitat is teeming with opportunities for scientific discovery, including solutions to the world’s most pressing health crises. Among its rich biodiversity are tiny microbes with tremendous potential.
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FeaturesFiltering the future: how low-tech ceramic solutions bring clean water to millions
Access to clean water is one of the most pressing challenges of the 21st century. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than two billion people worldwide lack access to safely managed drinking water, with rural and underdeveloped regions bearing the brunt of this crisis.
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FeaturesBiosurfactants for oil spill bioremediation
Oil spills across large areas of seawater disturb oxygen circulation for marine organisms, cause hypothermia in birds, adversely affect navigation routes, and hinder anthropogenic actions like fisheries and tourism. Biological treatments appear to be a promising method and offer a sustainable solution.
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FeaturesThe power of biofilm engineering: one plus one does not always make two
Biofilms are ubiquitous in aquatic systems, where they play essential ecological roles in nutrient cycling, biogeochemical processes, and surface colonisation dynamics.
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FeaturesHarnessing marine microbes for bioremediation: cleaning up ocean pollutants
Ocean pollution is widespread and worsening by the day. From oil spills to garbage accumulation in the Pacific, marine ecosystems are in dire need of a solution.
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FeaturesHow microbes can detoxify heavy metal pollution in the ocean
Researchers have successfully used microbes to reduce the heavy metal toxicity of soils and wastewater through bioremediation. Could they eventually use a similar approach to target heavy metals in the ocean?
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FeaturesUrinary tract infections: addressing the gender gap and advancing microbial insights
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common bacterial infections worldwide, disproportionately affecting women and contributing to a significant healthcare burden.
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FeaturesFrom Earth to space: the journey of microbes and their survival mechanisms
What purpose could microbes have beyond the planet’s atmosphere? Discover their applications and the survival mechanisms that make microbes so powerful, even beyond Earth.
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FeaturesThe shifting landscape of the cervicovaginal microbiome in chlamydia infection
Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a remarkably common condition among women of reproductive age, affecting as many as a third of all women at any given time. Yet it remains surprisingly elusive.
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Long ReadsAdvancing microbial research in the North East Indian Himalaya: a pathway to sustainable hill agriculture
While the North East (NE) Indian Himalaya are famous for their stunning landscapes and rich biodiversity, the region faces numerous agricultural challenges that threaten environmental sustainability and food safety.
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FeaturesHow phage therapy supports One Health in the AMR fight
In the face of an escalating global health crisis, One Health demonstrates the power of collaborative, multidisciplinary action.
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FeaturesArchaea: taking biocatalysis to the extreme
Despite increasing interest, archaea remain hugely understudied in comparison to their bacterial counterparts.
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Long ReadsMeet the microbes revolutionising the sustainable recovery of critical metals
As we strive towards a Net Zero society that is based on clean, green, and renewable technologies rather than fossil fuels, we are creating a new and intensifying reliance on another essential resource: metals.
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FeaturesFrom Earth to space - exploring fungi in extraterrestrial environments
Fungi are incredible organisms in terms of plasticity, resilience, and adaptation. However, they have the potential to both help and hinder us.
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FeaturesThe birds, the bees, and the bugs: how gut microbes impact sex hormones and reproductive health
The gut microbiome has been tied to our reproductive health through its ability to produce, break down, and modify sex hormones.
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FeaturesBridging the gap: mouse breath research to advance infectious disease diagnostics
The role of VOCs in health and disease is garnering increasing attention, particularly in their use as biomarkers for a wide range of medical conditions.
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Long ReadsFree-living amoebae and emerging public health challenges in a warming world
The year 2023 was the warmest since global temperature records were established in 1850. Discover the role of free-living amoebae in the transmission of waterborne pathogens and human infection, in the context of rising global temperatures.
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FeaturesMars analogues and where to find them
“Are we alone in the universe?” is one of humanity’s oldest questions, with tremendous scientific and social ramifications. In search of answers, a great deal of attention has been focused on our closest neighbour, the red planet, Mars.
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FeaturesNature’s pesticides: unleashing the potential of microbial interactions
Discover how scientists leverage knowledge of the microbial interactions that impact plant and animal health.