Bacteria adapt syringe apparatus to changing conditions
Some of the best-known human pathogens—from the plague bacterium Yersinia pestis to the diarrhea pathogen Salmonella—use a tiny hypodermic needle to inject disease-causing proteins into their host's cells, thereby manipulating them. This needle i.....»»
Cybercrime’s constant rise is becoming everyone’s problem
Cybercrime in recent years shows no signs of slowing down, with phishing attacks surging and ransomware tactics becoming more advanced, forcing organizations to constantly adapt their defenses. The rise of deepfake technology, especially in creating.....»»
How the Malleus maleficarum fueled the witch trial craze
Invention of printing press, influence of nearby cities created perfect conditions for social contagion. Between 1400 and 1775, a significant upsurge of witch trials swept across.....»»
A method to switch between optical pulling and pushing forces by altering the shape of Fermi arcs in Weyl systems
Optical forces, which act like an invisible "hand," are capable of precisely controlling tiny particles. Optical tweezers, a well-known tool, use this force to capture and manipulate small objects such as cells, bacteria, and viruses. This effect is.....»»
Biofilms study reveals how multiple bacteria species manage to coexist
Biofilms—slimy communities of bacteria—grow on all sorts of surfaces: from glaciers and hot springs to plant roots, your bathtub and fridge, wounds, and medical devices such as catheters. Most biofilms are composed of multiple bacterial species,.....»»
Catching prey with grappling hooks and cannons: The unusual weapons arsenal of a predatory marine bacterium
Countless bacteria call the vastness of the oceans home, and they all face the same problem: the nutrients they need to grow and multiply are scarce and unevenly distributed in the waters around them. In some spots they are present in abundance, but.....»»
Stem carbohydrate richness in two cycad species
Terrestrial plants have developed strategies to cope with suboptimal conditions. Storage of nonstructural resources is one of those strategies. Nonstructural carbohydrates (NSCs) of plants are primarily sugars and starch, and have been studied extens.....»»
Pathogenic system found on Providencia rustigianii has virulence gene akin to Salmonella"s
Salmonella and E. coli are well-known bacteria that cause food poisoning, but less understood are species of Providencia, another causative agent of serious symptoms......»»
GPT-4-based AI agents show promise for detecting antimicrobial resistance
Researchers at the University of Zurich (UZH) have used artificial intelligence (AI) to help identify antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The team led by Adrian Egli, UZH professor at the Institute of Medical Microbiology, is the first to investigate how.....»»
Mangrove microbes show potential for breaking down plastics
A way to select a suite of mangrove bacteria that can transform plastic has been developed that potentially offers a new strategy in the global toolkit of plastic waste cleanup. Researchers have assessed the impact of polyethylene terephthalate (PET).....»»
Defenders must adapt to shrinking exploitation timelines
A new report from Mandiant reveals that the average time-to-exploit vulnerabilities before or after a patch is released has plunged to just five days in 2023, down from 32 days in 2021 in 2022. One reason for this is the fact that, in 2023, exploitat.....»»
Resilience over reliance: Preparing for IT failures in an unpredictable digital world
No IT system — no matter how advanced – is completely immune to failure. The promise of a digital ring of steel may sound attractive, but can it protect you against hardware malfunctions? Software bugs? Unexpected environmental conditions? Cybers.....»»
Targeting bacteria: Auxiliary metabolic genes expand understanding of phages and their reprogramming strategy
Viruses that infect bacteria—known as bacteriophages—could be used in a targeted manner to combat bacterial diseases. They also play an important ecological role in global biogeochemical cycles. Recent research by researchers at the University of.....»»
Bacteria discovered in healthy vertebrate brains point to a potential role in brain function
Researchers at the University of New Mexico have identified the presence of bacteria in the healthy brains of fish. Understanding this connection between bacteria and animal brains could have future implications for the study of Alzheimer's disease......»»
New bacteria-based therapy shows promise for fighting cancer
Even as cancer remains a leading cause of death globally, bacteria-based cancer therapy presents an exciting and innovative treatment option. Owing to their ability to penetrate the rigid stromal barrier, bacteria can naturally target solid tumors an.....»»
Cars, chlamydia threaten Australian koalas
Clinging to a fluffy toy twice her size, orphaned koala joey Ajooni made a snuffling noise as she drank milk from a tiny syringe......»»
New temperature conditions found in two thirds of key tropical forests
Two thirds of Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) in tropical forests are experiencing new temperature conditions as our climate changes, research shows......»»
How "vaccinating" plants could reduce pesticide use and secure global food supplies
In a growing and changing world, we need to find ways of putting food on everyone's table. Pesticides have enabled mass cultivation on an incredible scale, but they can have harmful secondary effects on humans and wildlife, and pests are rapidly evol.....»»
Changing watering practices to improve tomato plant health
Some people believe that talking to your plants makes them thrive. While there's limited scientific support for sound improving plant health, there's a growing amount of evidence about the benefits of mechanical stimulation, like touch, wind or rain......»»
Calcium transport protein in bacteria offers insights for drug development and food safety
Researchers at Umeå University have revealed details on how bacteria use calcium to regulate vital processes in a way that differs from human cells. This breakthrough is significant in the fight against antibiotic resistance and for increasing safet.....»»
Adaptability of trees persists after millions of years of climate change, finds study
Seven of the most common forest trees in Europe have been shown to be able to shelter their genetic diversity from major shifts in environmental conditions. This is despite their ranges having shrunk and the number of trees having fallen sharply duri.....»»