All Research News articles – Page 29
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NewsThe fog is alive - with tiny helpers
What if fog isn’t just misty air, but a living ecosystem? This question hung over cloud researcher Thi Thuong Thuong Cao. As a PhD student at Arizona State University, her curiosity led her from knocking on the doors of microbiologists and chemists, to sampling fog before sunrise in Pennsylvania, to ...
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NewsBody weight affects your gut microbiota
A new study demonstrates that there is a correlation between gut microbiota and body weight. Researchers also observed that having a high BMI is detrimental to gut microbiota.
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NewsNo-till, new rules: Soil microbes thrive in conservation farming
Long-term conservation tillage (CT) is transforming the way soil microbes responsible for nitrogen fixation behave and interact. Compared to conventional tillage, CT fosters a less competitive yet more robust microbial ecosystem, with soil depth and nitrogen levels playing pivotal roles.
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NewsDoes agriculture and climate affect feeding activities of soil animals?
An international research team has shown that soil animal communities have greater trophic diversity in agricultural ecosystems and in tropical regions. Animals that feed on microorganisms – such as nematodes, springtails and mites – had higher trophic diversity than those that feed on dead organic matter or live as predators.
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NewsProtists and bacteria form secret alliance to stop fusarium wilt
Scientists have uncovered how phagotrophic protists team up with beneficial bacteria to suppress watermelon Fusarium wilt. Through microbial sequencing and ecological network analysis, they found that nutrient imbalance disrupts these partnerships, allowing the fungal pathogen to spread.
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NewsInvasion, restoration, and the surprising season for soil life
Microbes beneath our feet quietly orchestrate the health of ecosystems, but their seasonal rhythms remain a mystery—especially in coastal wetlands. A new study uncovers a surprising twist: microbial diversity and interaction networks are richer and more intricate in winter than in summer.
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NewsAging immune systems show reduced ability to clear tuberculosis during treatment
Immunosenescence increases susceptibility to infectious diseases like tuberculosis (TB) in older adults and hinder effective containment of Mycobacterium tuberculosis during therapeutic intervention.
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NewsSoil science reimagined: From farmland to the final frontier
A new perspective offers a compelling call to reimagine the future of soil science. The article outlines a conceptual framework for “nontraditional soil science,” encompassing diverse fields from urban engineering to forensic soil analysis and planetary exploration.
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NewsCommentary: Dengue viral infection and associated liver disease
A new commentary highlights the time course of serological and liver enzyme elevations in mild versus severe dengue, emphasizes early recognition of progression to acute liver failure, and reviews current vaccination and prevention strategies.
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NewsMicrofossils interpreted as animal traces were actually algae and bactéria
A reexamination of microfossils found in Brazil shows that the marks previously interpreted as traces of worms or other small oceanic animals are actually communities of fossilized microscopic bacteria and algae.
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NewsStudy reveals how strawberries and raspberries were ambushed by fungal parasites
Plant diseases often arise when the pathogens that cause disease are introduced into new territories where native plants don’t recognize the pathogen and therefore may have minimal defenses against it. But how often does the reverse happen?
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NewsFrom ocean to gut: The bacteria that shape both human health and marine carbon cycling
A group of researchers has discovered that Akkermansia bacteria are not unique to our guts, but can also be found in the ocean. In both habitats they use similar skills to ensure their survival and success. They seem to carry an old and widespread survival toolkit.
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NewsScientists discover ‘hidden switch’ in immune cells that helps the body kill deadly fungus
Scientists have discovered a “control switch” inside our immune cells that helps the body destroy dangerous fungal infections. A protein called RAB5c helps white blood cells kill Aspergillus fumigatus – an airborne fungus that can cause life‑threatening lung infections in people with weakened immune systems.
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NewsSelf-renewing bacteria offer new hope for heavy metal cleanup
Scientists have revealed a powerful bacterial defense strategy against Cd toxicity. The team found that Stenotrophomonas sp. H225 sheds Cd-laden cell wall fragments and rebuilds new protective layers through a process involving the mtgA gene.
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NewsStudy reveals common mutation linked to autoimmune diseases may protect people from viral infections
New research shows a “risk gene” linked to higher odds of developing autoimmune diseases such as diabetes or lupus may also provide a survival advantage fighting viral infections like coronavirus. The gene PTPN22 carries a mutation, 1858C>T (R620W), found in roughly one in 10 people in North America.
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NewsData hidden in tuberculosis screening tests sheds light on patients’ overall mortality
Researchers have uncovered a tool to study immune function of larger populations of patients, using a lab test that physicians already use regularly: tuberculosis screening tests called interferon gamma release assays (IGRAs). It could indicate how well an immune system can mount a response to an array of threats.
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NewsCRISPR system inhibits hepatitis E virus
Researchers have developed a novel antiviral concept - using the CRISPR/Cas13 system, they were able to specifically suppress the replication of the hepatitis E virus in human cells.
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NewsTen years on, the Nagoya Protocol on sharing genetic resources is still confusing scientists - so here’s some much-needed guidance
More than a decade after the Nagoya Protocol, which aims to fairly share the benefits of utilizing genetic resources, became law, scientists still face practical challenges and confusion. A new guide provides universally applicable frameworks for anyone working with biological resources.
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NewsResearchers track the mutations that allow HIV-1 to escape broadly neutralizing antibodies
Scientists have established the most comprehensive view to date of how HIV-1 can escape broadly neutralizing antibodies. They have discovered viral mutations that make HIV-1 strains resistant to two bNAbs, 3BNC117 and 10-1074.
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NewsResearchers develop next-generation CRISPR biocontainment technology for controlling microbial survival without DNA cleavage
Researchers have employed a CRISPR-dCas9-based base editing system capable of introducing precise nucleotide changes without inducing DNA double-strand breaks. The researchers targeted the start codons of essential genes and irreversibly disrupted their function, permanently blocking cell survival.