Health & Medicine
By taking on poliovirus, Marguerite Vogt transformed the study of all viruses
She pioneered the field of molecular virology with her meticulous lab work and “green thumb” for tissue culture.
Microbes
More Stories in Microbes
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Paleontology3.42-billion-year-old fossil threads may be the oldest known archaea microbes
The structure and chemistry of these ancient cell-like fossils may hint where Earth’s early inhabitants evolved and how they got their energy.
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MicrobesMissing Antarctic microbes raise thorny questions about the search for aliens
Scientists couldn’t find microbial life in soils from Antarctica, hinting at a limit for habitability on Earth and other worlds.
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Health & Medicine50 years ago, scientists found a virus lurking in human cancer cells
In 1971, scientists were building a case for viruses as a cause of cancer. Fifty years later, cancer-preventing vaccines are now a reality.
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MicrobesThese climate-friendly microbes recycle carbon without producing methane
A newly discovered group of single-celled archaea break down decaying plants without adding the greenhouse gas methane to the atmosphere.
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AgricultureNanoscale nutrients can protect plants from fungal diseases
Applied to the shoots, nutrients served in tiny metallic packages are absorbed more efficiently, strengthening plants’ defenses against fungal attack.
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Health & MedicineThe latest Ebola outbreak may have started with someone infected years ago
Rather than stemming from a virus that jumped from an animal to a person, this outbreak might have originated from someone who had a dormant virus.
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MicrobesArchaea microbes fold, twist and contort their DNA in extreme ways
Single-celled archaea open and close their Slinky-like genetic material in a clamshell motion, possibly providing easy access to their genes.
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AnimalsSome 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.
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Health & MedicineHow 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.