Medical research

A gut bacterium's guide to building a microbiome

The mammalian gut is warm, moist, and incredibly nutrient-rich—an environment that is perfect for bacterial growth. The communities of "good bacteria" in the gut, commonly referred to as the microbiome, are vital partners ...

Medical research

Ulcer-causing bacteria tamed by defect in cell-targeting ability

Without the ability to swim to their targets in the stomach, ulcer-causing bacteria do not cause the inflammation of the stomach lining that leads to ulcers and stomach cancer, according to a new study by researchers at the ...

Medical research

Neutral mutants can prevail in gut microbiota, enhancing diversity

Scientists at EPFL and Sorbonne propose a new model of the diversity and evolution of gut bacteria that shows how the gut environment helps neutral mutations become prevalent, with significant potential implications on health ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Essential factor for Lyme disease transmission identified

Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme disease, hitchhikes in ticks for dissemination to mammalian hosts—including humans. An article in the 19 December issue of PLOS Pathogens identifies HrpA, an RNA helicase, ...

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