Professor Matthew Stott co-leads a team of researchers from Canterbury and Waikato universities that has identified an endemic genus of geothermal microorganisms—a discovery believed to be a world-first.

One of the ways cells in different kinds of tissue communicate is by exchanging RNA molecules. In experiments with roundworms of the species Caenorhabditis elegans, researchers at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in Brazil found that when this c

Springtime brings native wildflowers to bloom in the Santa Monica Mountains, northwest of Los Angeles. These beauties provide food for insects, maintain healthy soil and filter water seeping into the ground—in addition to offering breathtaking displays of

Researchers can engineer cells to express new genes and produce specific proteins, giving the cells new parts to work with. But, it's much harder to provide cells with instructions on how to organize and use those new parts. Now, new tools from Universit

In a study published last month in mSystems, researchers from Osaka University revealed that the interaction between two common types of oral bacteria leads to the production of a chemical compound that is a major cause of smelly breath.

Extreme wind and rain may lead to bigger and worse desert locust outbreaks, with human-caused climate change likely to intensify the weather patterns and cause higher outbreak risks, a new study has found.

Researchers at the University of Nevada, Reno have completed one of the most extensive river resilience studies, examining how river ecosystems recover following floods. They developed a novel modeling approach that used data from oxygen sensors placed in

Toxoplasmosis is an infectious disease found worldwide, caused by the single-celled parasite Toxoplasma gondii. In humans, infection poses a particular risk to pregnant women, as it can lead to birth defects. Like the closely related malaria pathogen—Plas

Increasing access to water in extremely arid parts of sub-Saharan Africa can help nomadic livestock farmers in the short term. However, in the long run, it may lead to serious consequences for their livelihoods. This is shown by new research from Uppsala

Wageningen researchers have discovered a molecular self-destruct mechanism in a bacterium living on seaweed. With this mechanism the bacteria sacrifice themselves when they are infected, thus protecting their brothers and sisters from infections. By repro

Plant leaves come in many different shapes, sizes and complexities. Some leaves are large and smooth, while others are smaller and serrated. Some leaves grow in single pieces while others form multiple leaflets. These variations in leaf structure play a c

Despite the pronounced seasonality in their habitat, the bacterial community in Arctic sediments is taxonomically and functionally very stable.