All USA & Canada articles
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NewsPhage-encoded enzymes show promise against drug-resistant Mycobacterium abscessus
Researchers have characterized a set of phage-encoded enzymes that can rapidly kill a broad range of Mycobacterium abscessus clinical strains when administered on their own in laboratory tests. These lysterases help phages disrupt mycobacterial cells by cleaving ester bonds involving mycolic acids in the cell envelope.
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NewsDietary creatine shows little independent effect on the oral microbiome
Dietary creatine does not appear to have a meaningful independent effect on the oral microbiome. In a nationally representative study of more than 3,800 US adults, initial associations largely disappeared after researchers accounted for demographic factors and the wider diet.
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NewsEven parasites have parasites - intracellular fungus infecting mildew more common than previously thought
Ampelomyces, an intracellular fungus that infects the plant disease powdery mildew, is far more common than previously known. By screening museum samples of powdery mildews up to around 150 years old, researchers discovered that not only is Ampelomyces quite common, but many specimens labeled as Ampelomyces are misidentified.
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NewsTiny cracks and a nine-volt battery could help fight deadly superbugs
Scientists have uncovered an unlikely ally in the fight to prevent infections before they take hold. They have found that carefully controlled microscopic cracks can enhance the performance of an antibacterial coating, which helps destroy dangerous bacteria when activated with a small electrical charge.
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NewsScientists recently discovered a novel relationship between a shelled amoeba and an unknown flagellate using single-cell transcriptomics
A new study is the first to report a shelled microbial eukaryote housing a flagellated microbial eukaryote. This shows there is much we do not know about the microbial world.
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NewsNIH awards $57.5m to strengthen emerging infectious disease research
Boston University’s high-containment infectious disease laboratory has received $57.5 million in new federal funding to strengthen research on emerging pathogens. The five-year award will support work on vaccines, diagnostics and treatments for threats including Ebola, Marburg, dengue and other high-risk viruses.
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NewsScientists breed a ‘pan-African’ malaria parasite to build a better whole-parasite malaria vaccine
Researchers have created a hybrid malaria parasite that combines the manufacturing advantages of the strain used in every current whole-parasite malaria vaccine with the much higher liver infectivity of a parasite collected recently in East Africa.
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NewsWastewater bacteria could offer a window into community health
Wastewater may reveal much more about a community than which viruses are circulating. Researchers found that gut-associated bacterial patterns in sewage were linked with rates of chronic disease, health behaviours and socioeconomic conditions across several Ohio communities.
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NewsNew microscopy technique brings cellular detail into deeper focus
A new microscopy technique resolves structures smaller than 100 nanometers, roughly a thousand times thinner than a human hair, without giving up the ability to image deep into intact samples.
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NewsCARB-X funds UNSW Sydney to develop novel antibiotic targeting drug-resistant Gram negative bacterial infections
Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X) is awarding US$853k to UNSW Sydney to support the development of synthetic darobactin analogues, a new class of antibiotic designed to kill multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria.
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NewsHorizon Awards 2026: Professor Stephen Obaro named as winner of Christiana Figueres Award
Professor Stephen Obaro, Professor of Pediatrics and Senior Scientist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA , has been named as the winner of the Christiana Figueres Policy to Practice Award.
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NewsFree webinar: Antimicrobial resistance is shaped by conflict, systems, and shared microbial worlds
Antimicrobial resistance is not just biological — it is shaped by conflict, systems, and shared microbial worlds. That’s the idea that will be explored in the latest FREE webinar from the fascinating Microbes and Social Equity 2026 Speaker Series, entitled ’Microbial Worlds in Crisis Inequality and the Politics of Resistance’.
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NewsDeadly soil bacterium spreads into new regions, including the US
Melioidosis, once considered mainly a tropical disease, is appearing in new regions including the continental United States. A new study shows that antibodies against Burkholderia pseudomallei can persist for years after infection, a finding that could improve how scientists interpret blood tests and track the pathogen’s spread.
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NewsStudy identifies single amino acid change that alters Andes virus protein behavior in human cells
Researchers have identified a single amino acid difference between rodent- and human-derived Andes virus isolates that changes how a key viral protein behaves inside human cells. The findings help explain biological differences between closely related virus isolates.
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NewsClues to combating global warming found in methane-munching microbes
Methane-consuming Archaea help remove much of the methane produced in the world’s oceans, yet scientists have struggled to understand how these microbes transfer electrons during the process. Researchers have now revealed the atomic structure of distinctive protein nanowires that help Archaea recycle methane in oxygen-deprived environments.
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NewsQ&A: How do infections get past the placenta’s defenses?
For nine months, the placenta is the primary support system of the fetus, providing both nourishment and protection. Within hours of birth, it is usually discarded as medical waste. But this organ carries clues for the child’s future health and additional pregnancies for the mother.
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NewsINRS and the Pasteur Network bring together scientists from 25 countries in Québec to strengthen the fight against pandemics
Held in North America for the first time, the Pasteur Network Annual Meeting highlighted how artificial intelligence and emerging technologies can advance global health preparedness and response.
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OpinionMaybe Vitamin C isn’t just expensive urine after all
“Expensive urine” has become a convenient way of dismissing vitamin supplements taken in doses beyond what our bodies have an immediate need for. But if some unabsorbed vitamin C remains in the gastrointestinal tract, it raises an interesting question about how it could be interacting with the gut microbiome.
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NewsPortable test detects Zika and hepatitis C without a laboratory
Researchers have developed a portable test that can detect RNA viruses such as Zika and hepatitis C directly from whole blood without conventional laboratory purification. Using only a small heater and a handheld fluorescence reader, the method could bring sensitive molecular testing closer to patients in resource-limited settings.
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NewsHidden microbial ecosystems of leatherback turtles offer new insights for Caribbean marine conservation
Scientists studying leatherback sea turtles in Puerto Rico have uncovered distinct microbial communities on the animals, their eggs, and the sand surrounding their nests.