All Microbial Genetics articles
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NewsScientists discover and engineer ChCas12b for precise genome editing
Researchers have developed a highly specific Cas12b nuclease—ChCas12b-D496A, capable of distinguishing single-base mutations. This expands the targeting range of gene editing and demonstrates broad prospects for gene therapy applications.
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NewsMutation could facilitate H5N1 bird flu virus infection and potential transmission in humans
A recent study reveals that a single mutation in the H5N1 bird flu virus that has recently infected dairy cows in the U.S. could enhance the virus’ ability to attach to human cells, potentially increasing the risk of passing from person to person.
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NewsThe viral puzzle of why humans are susceptible to hepatitis B - but monkeys are not
Scientists collaborated to reveal the structural features of hepatitis B viral receptor homologue in macaques that restrict viral entry into their cells.
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NewsScientists implicate a novel cellular protein in hepatitis A infection
Viruses have thrived in humans for tens of thousands of years, evolving to take advantage of the machinery of cells to replicate and survive inside us. Some can slip past our defenses and invade without even causing symptoms. Source: Shirasaki et al. (2024) (Left) Liver cells infected with ...
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NewsAncient viral DNA in human genome linked to multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
New research has revealed a connection between ancient viral DNA embedded in the human genome and the genetic risk for two major diseases that affect the central nervous system.
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NewsBacterial ‘flipping’ allows genes to assume different forms
A new study has shown that inversions, which cause a physical flip of a segment of DNA and change an organism’s genetic identity, can occur within a single gene, challenging a central dogma of biology — that one gene can code for only one protein.
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NewsDeeper corals may help shallow reefs recover in the Florida keys
Using the blushing coral star (Stephanocoenia intersepta), found throughout the Western Atlantic, researchers have investigated how coral populations at different depths and locations may be related or ‘connected’ to each other.
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NewsCells ‘repress’ genomic remnants of ancient viruses
Researchers have identified key cellular control sites that regulate gene expression and prevent the activation of ‘cryptic’ genomic regions, including ancient viral sequences.
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NewsCofitness network connectivity determines a fuzzy essential zone in open bacterial pangenome
Based on a robust Tn-seq analysis of independent mariner transposon insertion libraries of Sinorhizobium strains, scientists have identified a strain-dependent variation in the fitness network of the Sinorhizobium pangenome under a nutrient-rich condition.
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NewsShedding light on the mechanism of yeast DNA repair
Researchers investigate the central role of Sae2, a protein in budding yeast, in regulating the DNA repair mechanism in yeast.
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NewsScientists unveil first complete image of the PARIS system
A new study explores the PARIS immune system, which bacteria use to protect themselves against viral infections and which stands for Phage Anti-Restriction Induced System.
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NewsNext time you beat a virus, thank your microbial ancestors
When you get infected with a virus, some of the first weapons your body deploys to fight it were passed down to us from our microbial ancestors. Two key elements of our innate immune system came from a group of microbes called Asgard archaea.
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NewsCRISPR gene scissors switch off with built-in timer
Researchers have discovered a timer integrated into the CRISPR gene scissors that enables the gene scissors to switch themselves off.
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NewsNew genetic editing technique could modify wild populations with less risk
A new technique developed by researchers from Macquarie University and the California Institute of Technology described in Nature Communications on 13 August could allow scientists to more simply and controllably alter the genetic makeup of wild populations than with the use of gene-drives. Coral in Nagoya Aquarium Japan. ...
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NewsBacteria encode hidden genes outside their genome - so do we?
A new study shows that bacteria can create free-floating and ephemeral genes, raising the possibility that similar genes exist outside of our own genome.
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NewsNovel nanosensing technique offers quality control of viral vectors in gene therapy
Researchers report a novel nanosensing technique to measure viral vector characteristics, measuring the ionic current that flows through a nanopore opening when a voltage differential is applied to a solution containing adeno-associated virus.
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NewsWhen it comes to DNA replication, humans and baker’s yeast are more alike than different
Humans and baker’s yeast have more in common than meets the eye, including an important mechanism that helps ensure DNA is copied correctly, reports a pair of studies.
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FeaturesMicrobiology’s role in sustainable gastronomy
Designated on 21 December 2016 by the UN General Assembly, Sustainable Gastronomy Day is about the celebration of the food that sustains our lives regardless of culture and geology.
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NewsMystery CRISPR unlocked: A new ally against antibiotic resistance?
CRISPR-Cas systems are bacterial adaptive immune systems that target and cut the nucleic acids (DNA/RNA) of invading genetic parasites like bacteriophages (phages); viruses that infect - and eventually kill - bacterial cells. They consist of two main components; the CRISPR array, which stores immune memory of past ...
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NewsBiophysicist F. William Studier awarded Merkin prize in biomedical technology
F. William Studier, a senior biophysicist emeritus at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory, has won the 2024 Richard N. Merkin Prize in Biomedical Technology for his development in the 1980s of an efficient, scalable method of producing RNA and proteins in the laboratory. Source: ...
