We humans have an exceptional age structure compared to other animals: Our children remain dependent on their parents for an unusually long period and our elderly live an extremely long time after they have stopped procreating.

The inaugural MicroTAS Video Competition, run by microfluidics specialist Dolomite and Lab on a Chip, and supported by the Chemical and Biological Microsystems Society, saw first prize awarded to an enterprising – and highly creative – entry submitted by Tijmen Hageman from the Korean Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) Europe GmbH in collaboration with the Unviersity of Twente.

One of the most mysterious forms of life may turn out to be a rich and untapped source of antibacterial drugs.

If it were the end of the world as we know it, we’d be fine, according to Michigan Technological University professor Joshua Pearce.

University of Illinois microbiology professor Isaac Cann and his colleagues found bacterial enzymes in the human gut that can rival those of the cow rumen in their ability to break down the plant fiber hemicellulose for biofuels production.

Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are the first team to sequence the entire genome of the Clostridium autoethanogenum bacterium, which is used to sustainably produce fuel and chemicals from a range of raw materials, including gases derived from biomass and industrial wastes.

By tracking down how bacterial defense systems work, the scientists can potentially fight infectious diseases and genetic disorders.

Forgotten smallpox samples found in July leads to search of other government labs, finding more samples of other deadly pathogens.

When they are not busy attacking us, germs go after each other. But when viruses invade bacteria, it doesn’t always spell disaster for the infected microbes: Sometimes viruses actually carry helpful genes that a bacterium can harness to, say, expand its diet or better attack its own hosts.

 Home Microbiome Project announces results of study on household microbes