Scientists have just put the finishing touches on what they say is the first comprehensive catalog of bacteria and fungi living inside the ISS, describing a bacteria-filled environment not dissimilar to a gym or an office.
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Microorganisms keep turning up in Earth’s most extreme environments. To test whether certain hardy microbes can survive the harsh conditions of space or Mars, colonies were placed on the outside of the International Space Station (ISS) for almost 18 months – and many managed to survive.
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Humans weren’t built for space travel. The immune system takes a beating, leaving us more vulnerable to infection. Astronauts have now tested a new antimicrobial coating on board the International Space Station (ISS), and found it kept space-faring bugs at bay for well over a year.
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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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A study has taken a census of life in the “deep biosphere” beneath the Earth's surface. Among the finds are bizarre creatures that can survive at record depths, pressures and temperatures, and even “zombie” bacteria that may live (in a loose sense of the word) for millions of years at a time.
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To peer back in time at certain key steps of evolution, scientists at the Scripps Research Institute have engineered synthetic microorganisms designed to be similar to some that might have lived billions of years ago.
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A new study has now found that a healthier gut microbiome can help premature babies grow faster, reducing or potentially preventing a lifetime of chronic health problems.
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A few years ago, researchers studying stromatolites in Greenland dated them to 3.7 billion years old, making them the oldest evidence of life on Earth. However, a new study has now taken another look at the rocks and found that they probably weren’t biological in origin.
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Maintaining the right microbial balance is crucial to your health, but antibiotics and poor diet have reduced the diversity of human microbiota. To preserve that diversity before it’s gone for good, a team of scientists is now calling for the creation of a microbial “Noah’s Ark.”
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Scientists studying tough microbes called archaea may have uncovered the key to an anti-aging drug. By manipulating a “super hero” protein, the researchers found a way to “trick” cells into acting younger by keeping the DNA repairing process running much longer than usual.
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