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Categories: Anthropology: General, Biology: Microbiology

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A genomic analysis of ancient human remains from Morocco in northwest Africa revealed that food production was introduced by Neolithic European and Levantine migrants and then adopted by local groups.

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A new paper argues that materials like wood, bacteria, and fungi belong to a newly identified class of matter, 'hydration solids.' The new findings emerged from ongoing research into the strange behavior of spores, dormant bacterial cells.

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Newly discovered biomarker signatures point to a whole range of previously unknown organisms that dominated complex life on Earth about a billion years ago. They differed from complex eukaryotic life as we know it, such as animals, plants and algae in their cell structure and likely metabolism, which was adapted to a world that had far less oxygen in the atmosphere than today.

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Social ants are masters of cooperative disease defense. They collectively take care of each other to prevent the spread of infections within a colony. But how does an individual ant know whom it should groom? A multidisciplinary team of researchers combined experimental and theoretical approaches to get a detailed look into ants' sanitary decision-making.

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Research suggests warming temperatures will see nearly 80 per cent of coral in reefs diseased in the next 80 years.

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Could the next weapon against malaria come from a better understanding of biological clocks? A new study shows that malaria parasites sync their gene activity with the circadian rhythms of their host, like two pendulum clocks with synchronized swings. If scientists can identify the molecular signals behind this mysterious synchronicity, they might be able to develop new anti-malarial drugs that throw malaria's internal clock out of step with its host, essentially 'jet-lagging' the parasites.

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Research shows that the natural peptide, called drosocin, protects fruit flies from bacterial infections by binding to ribosomes in bacteria. Once bound, drosocin prevents the ribosome from making new proteins.

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Microscopic algae that corals need for survival harbor a common and possibly disease-causing virus in their genetic material.

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Researchers have trained a robotic 'chef' to watch and learn from cooking videos, and recreate the dish itself.

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Researchers have just made the unexpected discovery of a novel organization of muscle fibers in Parophidion vassali, a fish that lives in the Mediterranean Sea and, like many fish, uses specialized muscles to produce sounds. This is an important discovery that could well change our understanding of muscle contraction.

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Genes that make bacteria resistant to antibiotics are much more widespread in our environment than was previously realized. A new study shows that bacteria in almost all environments carry resistance genes, with a risk of them spreading and aggravating the problem of bacterial infections that are untreatable with antibiotics.

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Researchers have identified significant differences in the gut microbiome of female southern white rhinos who are reproducing successfully in captivity, as compared to females who have not reproduced successfully in captivity. The work raises questions about the role that a particular genus of gut microbes may be playing in limiting captive breeding of this rhinoceros species.

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Microbes are by far the most important factor in determining how much carbon is stored in the soil, according to a new study with implications for mitigating climate change and improving soil health for agriculture and food production.

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Governments around the world must do more to tackle the growing threat of drug-resistant infections, according to new research. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites stop responding to medicines designed to treat them. After the World Health Organization declared AMR one of the top 10 public health threats facing humanity, national action plans to tackle the threat were developed by more than 100 countries. Academics say the plans focus on designing policies to curb AMR and devising tools to implement the policies -- but they do not adequately factor in monitoring and evaluation.

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Mycorrhizal fungi are responsible for holding up to 36 per cent of yearly global fossil fuel emissions below ground -- more than China emits each year.

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New work uses cutting-edge CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing tools to reveal a gene that's critical to stony corals' ability to build their reef architectures. This research could inform coral conservation and restoration efforts.

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Researchers from 24 countries have analyzed the genomes of 809 individuals from 233 primate species, generating the most complete catalog of genomic information about our closest relatives to date. The project provides new insights into the evolution of primates, including humans, and their diversity. In baboons, for example, hybridization and gene flow between different species occurred in the past and is still ongoing in several regions of their range. This makes baboons a good model for the evolution of early human lineages within and outside Africa. In addition, using a specially designed AI algorithm, the genomic data enable new insights into the genetic causes of human diseases.

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The symbiotic organisms that live in corals and provide them with their dramatic colors contain fragments of ancient RNA viruses that are as much as 160 million years old.

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The seafloor is home to around one-third of all the microorganisms on the Earth and is inhabited even at a depth of several kilometers. Only when it becomes too hot does the abundance of microorganisms appear to decline. But how, and from what, do microorganisms in the deep seafloor live? How do their metabolic cycles work and how do the individual members of these buried communities interact? Researchers have now been able to demonstrate in laboratory cultures how small, liquid components of crude oil are broken down through a new mechanism by a group of microorganisms called archaea.

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Health professionals are in urgent need of new antibiotics to tackle resistant bacteria. Researchers have now modified the chemical structure of naturally occurring peptides to develop antimicrobial molecules that bind to novel targets in the bacteria's metabolism.