Why antibiotics may soon fail to curb the plague bacterium - and where we can find new strategies
A new review shows that while most infections caused by the Yersinia plague bacterium can currently be treated with antibiotics, concerns about rising antimicrobial resistance mean that we need to come up with new ways to disarm the bacteria instead of killing them.
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Clinical considerations for the next pandemic: challenges facing Japan and strategic preparedness
Multiple global pandemics over the past century – the Spanish influenza (1918), Asian influenza (1957), Hong Kong influenza (1968), H1N1 influenza (2009), and COVID‑19 (since 2019) – have increasingly underscored the necessity for healthcare systems worldwide to be resilient, rapidly responsive, and forward‑facing.
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Clear but not clean: the hidden life of drinking water in Nigeria
In many communities across Nigeria, clear water is assumed to be safe. Transparency, both literal and visual, has become shorthand for purity. My recent research in Ede, southwestern Nigeria, began with a simple but uncomfortable question: what are people actually drinking?
Can we make a vaccine against the next Disease X in 100 days?
The COVID-19 pandemic was one of the deadliest events in modern history. Estimated to have killed over 25 million people worldwide and caused trillions of dollars in economic damage, the devastation caused by this virus was both astronomical and unforgettable.
A journey to run a polymerase chain reaction in the kitchen
Did you know an air fryer can thermocycle?
Under the Lens video series
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 3
Is raw milk safe to drink? Prof Emmanuel Adukwu is joined by Prof Nicola Holden and Dr Gil Domingue for a conversation on the societal, scientific, and health implications of this pertinent question.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 2
In our second episode, Dr Callum Cooper joins Professor Emmanuel Adukwu to talk about all things bacteriophage, from alternatives to antibiotics, social impact, and regulation.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 1
In our first episode, Professor Raquel Peixoto joins Professor Jack Gilbert for a deep dive into coral reefs, microbes, and the future of our planet.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 3
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 2
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 1
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Reversing the threat: How to stop measles from spreading again
As the Global Virus Network issues a stark warning over the significant resurgence of measles in the US and globally, William J. Moss, Sten H. Vermund, and Maggie L. Bartlett set out what needs to be done if the preventable harms of the current surge are to be reversed.
Why chromogenic media matters when testing for invasive pathogens: Could the cheapest plate be an expensive decision?
Chris Armstrong, President of Microbiology, Thermo Fisher Scientific, argues that laboratories should stop judging fungal culture media on unit price alone.
Disease X and the limits of voluntary multilateralism
Disease X is less a biological uncertainty than a governance stress test. The real question is whether the WHO Pandemic Agreement has corrected the failures exposed during COVID-19.
From microbial processes to biofilm control: our interview with LAM deputy editor Marciane Magnani
We catch up with food microbiologist Professor Marciane Magnani of the Federal University of Paraíba in Brazil who has just been appointed as a Deputy Editor of Letters in Applied Microbiology.
From one bench to another: Representing early-career scientists at Parliament’s Voice of the Future
Tyler Myers, an MPhil Candidate at the University of Cambridge, reports back from the Royal Society of Biology’s Voice of the Future event at Parliament, where he served as a guest panelist representing Applied Microbiology International.
Q&A: Meet Letters in Applied Microbiology junior editor Daniel Jesuwenu Ajose
We caught up with Daniel Jesuwenu Ajose, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the School of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Mpumalanga in South Africa, who is one of the newest Junior Editors with Letters in Applied Microbiology
Gut microbes actively support immunity in people living with HIV
A new study shows that gut microbes help bolster immunity in people living with HIV – and that, one day, these microbes may be harnessed to protect this population from infections driven by immune deficiency.
Researchers uncover three families of ‘sponge’ proteins deployed by phages
Using an innovative research approach that combines artificial intelligence with experimental biology, researchers have uncovered new families of sponge proteins in phage genomes that disrupt immune communication in bacteria.
Researchers identify natural compound that disarms drug-resistant bacteria
Scientists studying MRSA discovered that geranylgeranoic acid (GGA) – a naturally occurring fatty acid found in plants like ginger and turmeric – interferes with the bacteria’s virulence, its ability to infect, spread, defend itself, and cause disease.
Food security
Why antibiotics may soon fail to curb the plague bacterium - and where we can find new strategies
A new review shows that while most infections caused by the Yersinia plague bacterium can currently be treated with antibiotics, concerns about rising antimicrobial resistance mean that we need to come up with new ways to disarm the bacteria instead of killing them.
Clean Water
Scientists uncover how pathogens switch on their virulence
A research team has uncovered how a key protein switches on the machinery that enables Leptospira pathogens to survive and cause disease. The findings provide new insights into how pathogens regulate their virulence and may open new avenues for therapeutic interventions.
New study could help scientists produce more accurate records of past ocean change
Tiny plankton shells used to reconstruct past polar ocean temperatures may contain two different chemical stories, a new study has found.
