Erin Garcia de Jesús

Staff Writer

Erin Garcia de Jesús is a staff writer at Science News. She holds a Ph.D. in microbiology from the University of Washington, where she studied virus/host co-evolution. After deciding science as a whole was too fascinating to spend a career studying one topic, she went on to earn a master’s in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her writing has appeared in Nature News, Science, Eos, Smithsonian Voices and more, and she was the winter 2019 science writing intern at Science News.

All Stories by Erin Garcia de Jesús

  1. Health & Medicine

    What do COVID-19 vaccines mean for daily life in the months ahead?

    Effective COVID-19 vaccines are a ray of hope. But masks and distancing are still necessary, especially with contagious variants spreading.

  2. Health & Medicine

    How coronavirus variants may pose challenges for COVID-19 vaccines

    Some coronavirus mutations may make vaccines less effective, but the immune system is multifaceted and vaccines can be updated.

  3. Physics

    50 years ago, scientists poked holes in the existence of polywater

    In 1971, scientists were casting doubt on an anomalous form of water. Fifty years later, water’s odd properties are still mysterious.

  4. Animals

    Some bacteria are suffocating sea stars, turning the animals to goo

    For years, researchers thought an infectious pathogen was behind sea star wasting disease. Instead, bacteria deplete the starfishes’ oxygen.

  5. Health & Medicine

    The more contagious coronavirus variant may soon be the U.S.’s dominant strain

    More rigorous efforts to vaccinate, wear masks and social distance are needed to curb the variant’s spread, CDC says.

  6. Health & Medicine

    Could delaying a second vaccine dose lead to more dangerous coronavirus strains?

    Some experts worry extending the time between vaccine doses could help the virus evolve in potentially harmful ways, but viral evolution is complex.

  7. Health & Medicine

    The new U.K. coronavirus variant is concerning. But don’t freak out

    A new version of the coronavirus may be better at spreading from person to person, but there’s still a lot scientists don’t know.

  8. Health & Medicine

    How does the newly authorized Moderna COVID-19 vaccine compare to Pfizer’s?

    The FDA has granted emergency use authorization to Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine, bringing the number of vaccines available in the United States to two.

  9. Animals

    A mink in Utah is the first known case of the coronavirus in a wild animal

    A U.S. mink is so far the only known free-ranging animal to have contracted the coronavirus and likely got infected from a nearby mink farm.

  10. Health & Medicine

    How some ticks protect themselves from deadly bacteria on human skin

    A gene that ticks acquired from bacteria 40 million years ago may help the arachnids keep potential pathogens at bay while feeding on blood.

  11. Health & Medicine

    Immunity to COVID-19 may persist six months or more

    Even after recovery, the body continues to improve its antibody response to the coronavirus — perhaps thanks to viral bits hiding in the intestine.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Moderna says its COVID-19 vaccine is nearly 95 percent effective

    Another coronavirus vaccine appears to be very effective in preventing people from developing COVID-19 symptoms.