5,519 results
- Earth
Deep Squeeze: Experiments point to methane in Earth’s mantle
Although today's fossil fuel reserves reside in Earth's crust, a new study suggests that hydrocarbon fuel might also nestle deep in the mantle, at depths of 100 kilometers or more.
- Earth
Toxic cleanups get a boost
Researchers have developed and field-tested a new technique that identifies specific soil microbes that can break down environmental pollutants.
- Earth
Two microbes team up to munch methane
Aggregates of two different microorganisms in methane-bearing ocean sediments collected off the Oregon coast appear to collaborate to consume methane despite a lack of oxygen.
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Two-handed protein may protect DNA
An unusually shaped protein may help a bacterium thrive in tough times.
- Health & Medicine
Formula for Failure
A bacterium that has been known to cause rare, yet fatal infections in infants appears to be more widespread than scientists have realized.
- Health & Medicine
Compound in salsa kills off Salmonella
Cilantro, one of the key ingredients of salsa, harbors an antibacterial compound that attacks Salmonella bacteria.
- Health & Medicine
‘Harmless’ Alga Indicted for Mussel Poisoning
A common algal species turns out to be a serious food-poisoning agent.
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Calcium Makes Germs Cluster: Ion dilution leads cholera bacteria to disperse
A protein on the surface of cholera-causing bacteria enables the pathogens to clump together in seawater and to scatter when they enter fresh water, perhaps facilitating seasonal outbreaks of cholera in coastal areas.
- Health & Medicine
How Carbs Can Make Burgers Safer
Though meats can develop carcinogens during grilling, adding potato starch before cooking can limit the carcinogens' formation and possibly uptake by the body.
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DNA Bar Codes
Scientists are using a small piece of DNA as a molecular bar code, a unique identifier to separate organisms into species.
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Microbe exhibits out-of-body activity
New evidence indicates that anthrax bacteria may sometimes live freely and reproduce in soil, perhaps exchanging genes with other bacteria, instead of staying dormant in spores.
- Plants
Bean plants punish microbial partners
In a novel test of how partnerships between species can last in nature, researchers have found that soybeans punish cheaters.
