Microbiology News

January 21, 2026

Top Headlines

Scientists Sent Viruses to Space and They Evolved in Surprising Ways

Jan. 18, 2026 When scientists sent bacteria-infecting viruses to the International Space Station, the microbes did not behave the same way they do on Earth. In microgravity, infections still occurred, but both viruses and bacteria evolved differently over time. ...

Forest Loss Is Driving Mosquitoes’ Thirst for Human Blood

Jan. 15, 2026 In the rapidly disappearing Atlantic Forest, mosquitoes are adapting to a human-dominated landscape. Scientists found that many species now prefer feeding on people rather than the forest’s diverse wildlife. This behavior dramatically raises the ...

A New Test Reveals Which Antibiotics Truly Kill Bacteria

Jan. 12, 2026 Some antibiotics stop bacteria from growing without actually killing them, allowing infections to return later. Scientists at the University of Basel created a new test that tracks individual bacteria to see which drugs truly eliminate them. When ...

Coral Reefs Have a Hidden Daily Rhythm Scientists Just Discovered

Jan. 9, 2026 Coral reefs appear to run a daily timetable for microscopic life in nearby waters. Scientists found that microbial populations above reefs rise and fall over the course of a single day, shaped by feeding, predation, and coral-driven processes. Some ...

A Hidden World Inside DNA Is Finally Revealed

Jan. 8, 2026 DNA doesn’t just sit still inside our cells — it folds, loops, and rearranges in ways that shape how genes behave. Researchers have now mapped this hidden architecture in unprecedented detail, showing how genome structure changes from cell to ...

Breakthrough Lets Scientists Watch Plants Breathe in Real Time

Jan. 7, 2026 Scientists have created a new way to watch plants breathe—live and in high definition—while tracking exactly how much carbon and water they exchange with the air. The breakthrough could help unlock crops that grow smarter, stronger, and more ...

The Invisible Microbes That Help Keep Us Healthy

Jan. 4, 2026 Not all microbes are villains—many are vital to keeping us healthy. Researchers have created a world-first database that tracks beneficial bacteria and natural compounds linked to immune strength, stress reduction, and resilience. The findings ...

This Tiny Plant Is Helping Solve Crimes

Jan. 1, 2026 Moss may look insignificant, but it can carry a hidden forensic fingerprint. Because different moss species thrive in very specific micro-environments, tiny fragments can reveal exactly where a person has been. Researchers reviewing 150 years of ...

We Are Living in a Golden Age of Species Discovery

Dec. 24, 2025 The search for life on Earth is speeding up, not slowing down. Scientists are now identifying more than 16,000 new species each year, revealing far more biodiversity than expected across animals, plants, fungi, and beyond. Many species remain ...

Scientists Found Climate Change Hidden in Old Military Air Samples

Dec. 21, 2025 Old military air samples turned out to be a treasure trove of biological DNA, allowing scientists to track moss spores over 35 years. The results show mosses now release spores up to a month earlier than in the 1990s. Even more surprising, the ...

A New Way to Prevent Gum Disease Without Wiping Out Good Bacteria

Dec. 16, 2025 Scientists are uncovering a surprising way to influence bacteria—not by killing them, but by changing how they communicate. Researchers studying oral bacteria found that disrupting chemical signals used in bacterial “conversations” can shift ...

A Grad Student’s Wild Idea Triggers a Major Aging Breakthrough

Dec. 14, 2025 Senescent “zombie” cells are linked to aging and multiple diseases, but spotting them in living tissue has been notoriously difficult. Researchers at Mayo Clinic have now taken an inventive leap by using aptamers—tiny, shape-shifting DNA ...

Latest Headlines

updated 1:20pm EST

The Hidden Microbes That Decide How Sourdough Tastes

Jan. 21, 2026 The microbes living in sourdough starters don’t just appear by chance—they’re shaped by what bakers feed them. New research shows that while the same hardy yeast tends to dominate sourdough ...

How the Frog Meat Trade Helped Spread a Deadly Fungus Worldwide

Jan. 19, 2026 A deadly fungus that has wiped out hundreds of amphibian species worldwide may have started its global journey in Brazil. Genetic evidence and trade data suggest the fungus hitchhiked across the ...

Scientists “resurrect” Ancient Cannabis Enzymes With Medical Promise

Jan. 15, 2026 Scientists have uncovered how cannabis evolved the ability to make its most famous compounds—THC, CBD, and CBC—by recreating ancient enzymes that existed millions of years ago. These early ...

A Devastating Cotton Virus Lurked Undetected in U.S. Fields for Nearly 20 Years

Jan. 13, 2026 A damaging cotton virus thought to be a recent invader has actually been hiding in U.S. fields for nearly two decades. New research shows cotton ...

Scientists Find a Natural Sunscreen Hidden in Hot Springs Bacteria

Jan. 13, 2026 Researchers studying cyanobacteria from hot springs in Thailand have discovered a new natural UV-blocking compound with impressive antioxidant power. Unlike conventional sunscreens, it’s ...

A Never-Before-Seen Creature Has Been Found in the Great Salt Lake

Jan. 10, 2026 Scientists have identified a brand-new species of worm living in the Great Salt Lake, marking only the third known animal group able to survive its extreme salinity. The species, named ...

The 4x Rule: Why Some People’s DNA Is More Unstable Than Others

Jan. 9, 2026 A large genetic study shows that many people carry DNA sequences that slowly expand as they get older. Common genetic variants can dramatically alter how fast this expansion happens, sometimes ...

A Hidden Chemical War Is Unfolding Inside Spruce Trees

Jan. 8, 2026 Spruce bark beetles don’t just tolerate their host tree’s chemical defenses—they actively reshape them into stronger antifungal protections. These stolen defenses help shield the beetles from ...

Ancient Skeletons Reveal Viruses Embedded in Human DNA

Jan. 7, 2026 Researchers have reconstructed ancient herpesvirus genomes from Iron Age and medieval Europeans, revealing that HHV-6 has been infecting humans for at least 2,500 years. Some people inherited the ...

Scientists Replayed Evolution and Found a Surprise

Dec. 30, 2025 Environmental change doesn’t affect evolution in a single, predictable way. In large-scale computer simulations, scientists discovered that some fluctuating conditions help populations evolve ...

Your Body Feels Cold in Two Different Ways

Dec. 18, 2025 Researchers have uncovered that the body uses different molecular systems to sense cold in the skin versus internal organs. This explains why surface chills feel very different from cold experienced ...

A Silent Ocean Pandemic Is Wiping out Sea Urchins Worldwide

Dec. 12, 2025 A sudden, unexplained mass die-off is decimating sea urchins around the world, including catastrophic losses in the Canary Islands. Key reef-grazing species are reaching historic lows, and their ...

This “mushroom” Is Not a Fungus, It’s a Bizarre Plant That Breaks All the Rules

Dec. 20, 2025 Balanophora is a plant that abandoned photosynthesis long ago and now lives entirely as a parasite on tree roots, hidden in dark forest undergrowth. Scientists surveying rare populations across East ...

Gut Molecule Shows Remarkable Anti-Diabetes Power

Dec. 8, 2025 Researchers revealed that the microbial metabolite TMA can directly block the immune protein IRAK4, reducing inflammation and improving insulin sensitivity. The molecule counteracts damage caused by ...

A Flesh-Eating Fly Once Eradicated Is Moving Back Toward the U.S.

Dec. 17, 2025 California researchers are preparing for the possible return of the New World screwworm, a parasitic fly that feeds on living flesh and once devastated U.S. livestock. By monitoring traps and ...

Scientists Capture Most Detailed Look Inside DNA Droplets

Dec. 8, 2025 High-resolution imaging has revealed the internal layout of chromatin condensates, showing how DNA fibers fold and interact within these droplet-like structures. The findings connect molecular ...

Hornet-Eating Frog Shows Remarkable Venom Resistance

Dec. 4, 2025 Experiments reveal that pond frogs can eat highly venomous hornets without suffering noticeable damage, even after repeated stings. Most frogs successfully consumed hornets, including the notorious ...

Scientists Capture Flu Viruses Surfing Into Human Cells in Real Time

Dec. 4, 2025 Scientists have captured a never-before-seen, high-resolution look at influenza’s stealthy invasion of human cells, revealing that the cells aren’t just helpless victims. Using a groundbreaking ...

Earth’s Early Oceans Hid the Secret Rise of Complex Life

Dec. 6, 2025 Scientists have discovered that complex life began evolving much earlier than traditional models suggested. Using an expanded molecular clock approach, the team showed that crucial cellular features ...

Doomed Ants Send a Final Scent to Save Their Colony

Dec. 3, 2025 Ant pupae that are fatally sick don’t hide their condition; instead, they release a special scent that warns the rest of the colony. This signal prompts worker ants to open the pupae’s cocoons ...

The Deep Ocean Is Fixing Carbon in Ways No One Expected

Dec. 10, 2025 Researchers have uncovered surprising evidence that the deep ocean’s carbon-fixing engine works very differently than long assumed. While ammonia-oxidizing archaea were thought to dominate carbon ...

A Tiny Ocean Worm Just Revealed a Big Secret About How Eyes Evolve

Dec. 2, 2025 Scientists found that adult bristleworm eyes grow continuously thanks to a rim of neural stem cells similar to those in vertebrate eyes. This growth is surprisingly regulated by environmental light ...

Bird Flu’s Surprising Heat Tolerance Has Scientists Worried

Nov. 28, 2025 Researchers discovered why bird flu can survive temperatures that stop human flu in its tracks. A key gene, PB1, gives avian viruses the ability to replicate even at fever-level heat. Mice ...

Fossil Brain Scans Show Pterosaurs Evolved Flight in a Flash

Dec. 9, 2025 Ancient pterosaurs may have taken to the skies far earlier and more explosively than birds, evolving flight at their very origin despite having relatively small brains. Using advanced CT imaging, ...

Tiny Yellowstone Quakes Ignite a Surge of Hidden Life Underground

Nov. 25, 2025 Researchers studying Yellowstone’s depths discovered that small earthquakes can recharge underground microbial life. The quakes exposed new rock and fluids, creating bursts of chemical energy that ...

Ancient Wolves Could Only Have Reached This Island by Boat

Dec. 29, 2025 Scientists have uncovered ancient wolf remains on a small Baltic island where wolves could only have been brought by humans. These animals weren’t dogs, but true wolves that ate the same marine ...

Why Consciousness Exists at All

Dec. 15, 2025 Consciousness evolved in stages, starting with basic survival responses like pain and alarm, then expanding into focused awareness and self-reflection. These layers help organisms avoid danger, learn ...

This Tiny Plant Survived the Vacuum of Space and Still Grows

Nov. 24, 2025 Moss spores survived an extended stay on the outside of the ISS and remained capable of germinating once back on Earth. Their resilience to vacuum, extreme temperatures, and UV radiation surprised ...

Scientists Capture Stunning Real-Time Images of DNA Damage and Repair

Nov. 23, 2025 Scientists have created a live-cell DNA sensor that reveals how damage appears and disappears inside living cells, capturing the entire repair sequence as it unfolds. Instead of freezing cells at ...

This Engineered Fungus Cuts Emissions and Tastes Like Meat

Nov. 21, 2025 Scientists used CRISPR to boost the efficiency and digestibility of a fungus already known for its meatlike qualities. The modified strain grows protein far more quickly and with much less sugar ...