New viruses related to both giant viruses and herpesviruses

Metagenomic data from Tara Oceans on marine plankton has enabled the discovery of a major group of DNA viruses found abundantly from the equator to the poles: mirusviruses. These viruses play a role in regulating plankton ...

Self-cleaning spacecraft surfaces to combat microbes

Astronauts live and work in orbit along with teeming populations of microorganisms, which could present a serious threat to health—and even the structural integrity of spacecraft. To help combat such invisible stowaways, ...

CRISPRing the microbiome is just around the corner

To date, CRISPR enzymes have been used to edit the genomes of one type of cell at a time: They cut, delete or add genes to a specific kind of cell within a tissue or organ, for example, or to one kind of microbe growing in ...

Woodrat microbiomes: It's who you are that matters most

Every mammal hosts a hidden community of other organisms—the microbiome. Their intestines teem with complex microbial populations that are critical for nutrition, fighting disease and degrading harmful toxins. Throughout ...

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