Turning the switch on biofuels

Plant cell walls contain a renewable, nearly limitless supply of sugar that can be used in the production of chemicals and biofuels. However, retrieving these sugars isn't all that easy.

Using MRSA's strength against it

Antibiotic-resistant infections cause more than 30,000 deaths annually in the U.S. alone. The majority of those are caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, more commonly known as MRSA, which can turn routine ...

Protein synthesis, ATP unnecessary for bacterial spore germination

Spores of Bacillus bacteria can survive for years in a dormant state, and then germinate in minutes. But it has long been unclear whether germination required protein synthesis, or cellular energy packets, which are known ...

Genes found in H. pylori that influence biofilm formation

Most bacteria cannot survive in the acidic environment of the human stomach, but Helicobacter pylori, a major cause of ulcers, thrives under such circumstances. Now research has shown that one of that bacterium's regulatory ...

C. difficile needs iron, but too much is hazardous

Those bacteria that require iron walk a tightrope. Iron is essential for their growth, but too much iron can damage DNA and enzymes through oxidation. Therefore, bacteria have machinery to maintain their intracellular iron ...

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