In order to combat the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, a group of scientists from MIT are using artificial intelligence to discover new and effective antibiotics. They were able to predict a powerful new antibiotic compound that is effective against many dangerous pathogens. Continue reading Artificial Intelligence – our new MVP against infections?
Mucus is not just the awful phlegm from your cough, it actually has the ability to tame bacteria infection! Scientists at MIT recently discovered that the glycans on our mucus can actually trigger biochemical responses that protect us from pathogens. Read Wei Li’s article to learn more. Continue reading The Key to Taming Bacteria: Mucus Sugars
Cable bacteria are made of of thousands of cells that form centimeter-long conductive fibers, and can potentially replace implantable electronics and enable new bio-electronic applications. Read Anqi Zhang’s article to learn more about cable bacteria! Continue reading Electrical cables made of living bacteria
Recently, scientists revealed that bacteria were able to produce a climate cooling gas, which could be useful in mitigating climate change Continue reading New AC for the summer? Bacteria produces climate-cooling gas
A group of scientists uncovered a commensal gut bacteria, Akkermansia muciniphila, that can significantly ameliorate ALS symptoms in mice, and also prolong their lifespan. Their results highlight the potential of modulating the gut microbiome to treat ALS. Continue reading The Next Ice Bucket Challenge: Modulating Your Gut Microbiome to Treat ALS
Helping malnourished kids recover means we can’t just feed only them – we also have to feed their bacteria. And the bacteria are picky eaters. Continue reading Malnourished children don’t just need more food—they also need more microbes
Bacteria in the human gut can modify the ingested drugs rendering them useless. Scientists discovered how the gut bacteria degrade a Parkinson’s disease medicine and found a way to stop them from stealing our drugs. Continue reading Hey, those bacteria are stealing our drugs!
by Valentina Lagomarsino figures by Hannah Zucker When scientists first studied the structure of nerve cells that comprise the human brain, they noted their strong resemblance to trees. In fact, dendrites, the term to describe projections from a nerve cell, comes from the Greek word Dendron, for “tree.” While the connection in the appearance of nerve cells was made to trees, the comparison may have been more … Continue reading Exploring The Underground Network of Trees – The Nervous System of the Forest
Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia. It progressively worsens multiple aspects of health over time, from short-term memory loss to behavioral changes to loss of bodily functions. The actual cause of Alzheimer’s is currently unknown. One widely-accepted hypothesis proposes that Alzheimer’s is caused by the accumulation of misfolded proteins in the brain. Unfortunately, many drugs targeting misfolded proteins perform poorly in clinical trials, … Continue reading Oral bacteria may be responsible for Alzheimer’s disease
In each human gut, a community of trillions of bacteria help digest food and make certain nutrients. Some of these bacteria are associated with disease such as diabetes and Crohn’s, while some prevent disease. The composition of bacteria varies from one person to another, with diet and geographical location contributing to the diversity. In modern times, where millions of people migrate around the globe, their … Continue reading Refugees’ Gut Bacteria Become Westernized After Moving to the US