https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Plants are a rich and renewable source of compounds used in medicines, food ingredients, and cosmetics. Since growing an entire plant just to extract a few specific compounds is rather inefficient, scientists are turning to plant cell cultures as a more sustainable alternative. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-friendly-bacteria-hidden-metabolic-pathways.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 04 Feb 2026 13:00:02 EST news689425721 Bacteria in the human gut can directly deliver proteins into human cells, actively shaping immune responses. A consortium led by researchers at Helmholtz Munich, with participation from Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU), Aix Marseille University, Inserm, and international partners, has discovered this previously unknown mechanism of communication between gut bacteria and human cells. The findings reveal a new way in which the gut microbiome can influence the human body and may help explain how changes in gut bacteria contribute to inflammatory diseases such as Crohn's disease. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-gut-bacteria-immune-responses.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 26 Jan 2026 15:25:35 EST news688663501 Whether in the human body or on surfaces, bacteria protect themselves from outside attackers using biofilms. Physicist Eleonora Secchi is researching how these slime-like protective films are formed, with the aim of making it easier to remove pathogenic bacteria. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-biofilm-streamers-harden-bacterial-infections.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 22 Jan 2026 17:04:32 EST news688323841 Early in 2025, scientists discovered a promising new antibiotic in a soil sample from a lab technician's backyard. The molecule, called lariocidin, is produced by the microbe Paenibacillus and shows broad activity against pathogenic bacteria, including several that are multi-drug-resistant. Now, the researchers report in ACS Infectious Diseases how Paenibacillus avoids harm by its own antibiotic—information that is crucial for developing lariocidin or similar compounds into new drug candidates. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-dont-antibiotic-bacteria-destruct.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 14 Jan 2026 15:01:46 EST news687625261 Has a crucial component to the development of human medicine been hiding under our feet? Auburn University Assistant Professor of Entomology Clint Penick and a team of graduate students may have found that ants are far ahead of humans in antibiotic innovation. "In our study, we tested how ants use antibiotic compounds to fight off pathogens and asked why their chemical defenses remain effective over evolutionary time," Penick said. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-ants-solution-human-superbug.html Evolution Thu, 18 Dec 2025 15:20:02 EST news685293507 As the threat of antibiotic resistance grows, a Swansea University academic has led the development of a novel technology capable of killing some of the most dangerous bacteria known to medicine—with over 99.9% effectiveness against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa). https://phys.org/news/2025-11-nanogel-technology-destroys-drug-resistant.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 19 Nov 2025 12:36:03 EST news682778161 Aminoglycosides are antibiotics effective against a wide range of bacteria including Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. Until now however, their mode of entry into bacteria has remained unknown. Scientists at the Institut Pasteur, working with teams from Inserm, the CNRS and Université Paris Cité, have recently demonstrated that aminoglycosides enter bacteria by using sugar transporters. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-sugar-boost-aminoglycoside-antibiotic-entry.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 17 Nov 2025 15:48:04 EST news682616881 Researchers at Umeå University have identified a key molecular player that helps bacteria survive the hostile environment inside the body. Their study, published in the journal mBio, reveals how the protein RfaH acts as a protective shield for bacterial genes—and points to new strategies for fighting persistent infections. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-molecular-bodyguard-bacterial-infections-persist.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 09 Oct 2025 10:27:04 EDT news679224421 Newcastle scientists have developed an efficient new model to track bacterial responses to toxic chemicals and nutrients. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-efficient-bacterial.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 07 Oct 2025 11:44:03 EDT news679056241 A new study, led by researchers at the University of Liverpool, has revealed how pathogenic bacteria construct tiny protein-based compartments, known as Eut microcompartments, which enable them to digest ethanolamine—a nutrient commonly found in the gut. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-pathogens-protein-based-microcompartments-survival.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 01 Oct 2025 15:44:03 EDT news678552241 Bacteria are constantly moving with the help of motility organs called flagella or pili to colonize new niches. Also, bacteria can exchange information, like "speaking to each other," and thus acquire new abilities through the exchange of DNA materials. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-mechanisms-bacterial-motility-dna-bacteria.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 26 Sep 2025 11:34:03 EDT news678105241 Bacteriophages, or phages for short, are viruses that infect bacteria. Using phages therapeutically could be very useful in fighting antibiotic-resistant pathogens, but the molecular interactions between phages and host bacteria are not yet sufficiently understood. Jörg Vogel's research group at the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI) and the Institute of Molecular Infection Biology (IMIB) in Würzburg has now succeeded in specifically interfering with phage reproduction using a molecular tool called antisense oligomers (ASOs). https://phys.org/news/2025-09-rna-technology-hacks-phage-replication.html Biotechnology Wed, 10 Sep 2025 15:14:03 EDT news676736041 Bacteria that cause intestinal infections typically avoid a stinky chemical—one that can kill them at high enough concentrations—inside human intestines, but they may actually swim toward it when a hearty meal is the reward. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-disease-bacteria-meal.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 15 Jul 2025 10:00:04 EDT news671792209 A research team at the University of Münster has investigated for the first time how the confrontation of bacteria with hosts that have an activated innate immune system affects the evolution of bacterial virulence. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-insect-specific-immune-priming-affects.html Evolution Fri, 20 Jun 2025 09:37:03 EDT news669631021 An interdisciplinary research team led by the Leibniz-HKI in Jena has discovered a new group of bioactive natural compounds in pathogenic bacteria of the genus Pandoraea: pandorabactins. They enable the bacteria to extract vital iron from other microorganisms and can thus influence the microbial balance in the human lung. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-iron-pandoraea-bacteria-deploy-unique.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 19 Jun 2025 14:56:04 EDT news669563761 INRAE scientists have identified seven bacteria involved in the microbiota barrier effect, which prevents pathogenic bacteria from proliferating. The study is published in the journal Microbiome. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-bacteria-microbiota-resistance-pathogens.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 28 May 2025 11:51:45 EDT news667651902 A new study by Danish researchers has demonstrated that it is possible to develop a consortium of bacteria that can inhibit bacterial pathogens in aquaculture. This could potentially reduce the use of antibiotics in aquaculture and possibly other applications. The study was published in Microbiology Spectrum. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-natural-algal-communities-inhibit-aquaculture.html Ecology Wed, 21 May 2025 11:54:03 EDT news667047242 The body defends itself against pathogens by depriving them of vital iron. However, this strategy doesn't always succeed against Salmonella. Researchers at the University of Basel have discovered that these bacteria specifically target iron-rich regions within immune cells to replicate. Their findings on how pathogens evade the immune defense are important for fighting infections. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-salmonella-survival-pathogen-iron-source.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 19 May 2025 11:52:52 EDT news666874369 A dangerous hospital superbug has been found to digest plastic—specifically the kind used in some sutures, stents and implants inside the human body. Microbiologists at Brunel University of London show the bacteria can feed on plastic to survive, potentially enabling these pathogens to survive longer in hospital wards and within patients. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-superbug-digest-medical-plastic-dangerous.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 07 May 2025 15:42:04 EDT news665851322 A consortium of researchers with multidisciplinary skills, coordinated by INRAE and including the CNRS, the Université Paris-Saclay and Inserm, has identified a molecule capable of "disarming" pathogenic bacteria in the face of the immune system, without any negative effects on the host microbiota, promising a new strategy to combat antibiotic resistance. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-molecule-pathogenic-bacteria-beneficial-microbes.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 28 Apr 2025 16:19:55 EDT news665075990 Researchers led by the University of Waterloo have discovered how to turn common bacteria into high-efficiency factories capable of producing tiny, powerful particles for drug delivery, cancer therapy, vaccine development and other biomedical uses. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-tiny-biomedical-factories-bacteria-secrete.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 09 Apr 2025 14:00:04 EDT news663426002 An AI model trained on large amounts of genetic data can predict whether bacteria will become antibiotic-resistant. The new study shows that antibiotic resistance is more easily transmitted between genetically similar bacteria and mainly occurs in wastewater treatment plants and inside the human body. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-ai-reveals-genetic-similarity-antibiotic.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 02 Apr 2025 11:18:04 EDT news662811481 Some notoriously difficult-to-treat infections may not be as resistant to antibiotics as has been thought, according to new research using a microfluidic device that more closely duplicates the fluid flow found in the body than standard cultures. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-vulnerable-body.html Biochemistry Tue, 18 Mar 2025 11:53:04 EDT news661517582 Antibiotic resistance is a major global health problem: it implies that vital drugs are no longer effective. A study led by researchers at the Institute of Hydrobiology at TUD Dresden University of Technology demonstrates that pollutants from cigarette smoke and cigarette waste can promote the growth and spread of resistant bacteria in the environment. The interdisciplinary and international research group also shows that smoking increases the spread of resistant bacteria in the human lung. The study is published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-antibiotic-resistance-cigarette-resistant-germs.html Environment Tue, 04 Mar 2025 14:44:03 EST news660321841 A study led by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne has shown that the ability to suppress plant immune responses is shared among many of the bacteria that live on healthy plant roots. This trait stabilizes bacterial communities, known as the root microbiota, against perturbations through the plant immune system. The paper is published in the journal Nature Plants. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-blocking-immune-responses-colonizing-bacteria.html Plants & Animals Wed, 19 Feb 2025 14:59:03 EST news659199542 How do bacteria—harmless ones living in our bodies, or those that cause disease—organize their activities? A new study, combining powerful genomic-scale microscopy with a technical innovation, captured which genes bacteria turn on in different situations and in different spatial environments. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-advanced-imaging-captures-bacterial-gene.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 06 Feb 2025 11:32:24 EST news658063927 Antibiotics are a double-edged sword—they should be as toxic as possible to pathogenic bacteria while being harmless to the cells of the human body. An international research team led by the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) has now developed drug candidates that achieve precisely that. HIPS is a site of the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research (HZI) in collaboration with Saarland University. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-drug-candidates-metabolic-pathway-bacteria.html Biochemistry Mon, 13 Jan 2025 11:47:04 EST news655991221 The human body is a stressful place for bacteria to live. They must defend against many chemical and physical stressors, in addition to the immune system. One major physical stressor is fluid flow, which constantly circulates in the bloodstream, urinary tract, and lungs. Research has traditionally ignored the impact of flow on bacteria because it is challenging to model in laboratory settings. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-bacteria-stress-reveals-combined-stressors.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 13 Dec 2024 11:22:04 EST news653311322 The viruses that infect bacteria are the most abundant biological entities on the planet. For example, a recent simple study of 92 showerheads and 36 toothbrushes from American bathrooms found more than 600 types of bacterial viruses, commonly called bacteriophages or phages. A teaspoon of coastal seawater has about 50 million phages. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-biology-analysis-pseudomonas-bacterial-virus.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 22 Oct 2024 10:06:25 EDT news648810381 Researchers have discovered a new group of bacterial toxins that can kill harmful bacteria and fungi, opening the door to potential new treatments for infections. These toxins, found in over 100,000 microbial genomes, can destroy the cells of bacteria and fungi without harming other organisms. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-discovery-bacterial-toxins-key-infections.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 22 Oct 2024 05:00:01 EDT news648744661