IBM’s annual 5 in 5 list is here. This time, all five technologies in this year’s list are designed to fix problems in every step of the food supply chain, from seed to your plate.
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Nearly 2,000 previously unknown species of gut bacteria have been discovered by using novel metagenomic data. The discovery greatly expands our knowledge of the microbial species living inside us, and establishes computational methods to help reconstruct and identify undiscovered bacterial genomes.
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When algal blooms occur in lakes, the over-abundant cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) produce a toxin known as microcystin. Now, Ohio-based scientists are using OTHER types of bacteria to neutralize that toxin, in a process that could be cheaper and more eco-friendly than the alternatives.
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In the world of gene-editing, CRISPR and Cas9 usually go hand in hand, but that might not necessarily be the best pairing. Now, researchers at UC Berkeley have tested a new candidate, CasX, which seems to have a few advantages of its own.
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For such simple organisms, bacteria are surprisingly crafty when it comes to defending themselves from antibiotics. Now researchers at Princeton have discovered a new bacterial defense mechanism, where dying bugs will “hoard” antibiotics to allow their neighbors to grow unharmed.
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A new study into the correlation between gut bacteria and depression has revealed an intriguing association between low levels of specific bacteria and increased rates of depression.
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Pancreatic cancer is not the most common of cancers, but it is one of the most deadly, often presenting as entirely asymptomatic until it is too late. A new study from a group of Chinese scientists suggests bacteria on the tongue could offer a promising way to detect the disease early.
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Researchers have revealed the discovery of antibiotic-resistant genes in remote Arctic soil samples. The genes in question were only first identified a few years ago and have rapidly spread across 100 countries, into areas thousands of miles away with almost no human presence.
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A provocative new study is suggesting the same bacteria responsible for gum disease is also the primary pathogenic cause of Alzheimer’s disease. Not only that, but a new drug developed to inhibit these bacterial toxins and treat Alzheimer’s is moving into major human clinical trials later this year.
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Water filters get less effective as bacteria builds up on their surface. Now, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have developed a new type of membrane that reduces such biofouling by actively killing bacteria with graphene – and in an interesting twist, it’s built by bacteria.
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