Microbes
- Health & Medicine
The FDA has approved the first-ever vaccine for RSV
GSK’s shot, for those 60 and over, can protect against severe respiratory syncytial virus. Other vaccines, including to protect newborns, are in the works.
- Health & Medicine
Here’s what we know about upcoming vaccines and antibodies against RSV
New vaccines and monoclonal antibodies may be available this year to fend off severe disease caused by respiratory syncytial virus.
- Animals
Urchins are dying off across the Caribbean. Scientists now know why
A type of single-celled microorganism associated with coral diseases is behind a sea urchin die-off in the Caribbean.
By Anna Gibbs - Health & Medicine
U.S. cases of a deadly fungus nearly doubled in recent years
Though numbers are still small, clinical cases of Candida auris in the jumped 95 percent from 2020 to 2021, a CDC survey finds.
- Life
Chemical signals from fungi tell bark beetles which trees to infest
As fungi break down defensive chemicals in trees, some byproducts act as signals to bark beetle pests, telling them which trees are most vulnerable.
By Freda Kreier - Life
Fungi don’t turn humans into zombies. But The Last of Us gets some science right
Fungi like those in the post-apocalyptic TV show are real. But humans’ body temperature and brain chemistry may protect us from zombifying fungi.
- Microbes
Some ‘friendly’ bacteria backstab their algal pals. Now we know why
The friendly relationship between Emiliana huxleyi and Roseobacter turns deadly when the bacteria get a whiff of the algae’s aging-related chemicals.
By Elise Cutts - Microbes
Scientists have found the first known microbes that can eat only viruses
Lab experiments show that Halteria ciliates can chow down solely on viruses. Whether these “virovores” do the same in the wild is unclear.
- Microbes
Meet some of the microbes that give cheeses flavor
Knowing which genus of bacteria is responsible for which flavor could open the door to new types of cheese.
- Microbes
The ancestor to modern brewing yeast has been found hiding in Ireland
Previously found in Patagonia and elsewhere, the brewing yeast Saccharomyces eubayanus has been found in Europe for the first time.
- Health & Medicine
Louis Pasteur’s devotion to truth transformed what we know about health and disease
Two centuries after his birth, Louis Pasteur's work on pasteurization, germ theory and vaccines is as relevant as ever.
- Health & Medicine
Here’s how mysterious last-resort antibiotics kill bacteria
Scientists are finally getting a grip on how a class of last-resort antibiotics works — the drugs kill bacteria by crystallizing their membranes.
By Elise Cutts