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Gut microbial catalog reveals systemic inflammation drivers in spinal injury

Scientists exploring the links between a spinal cord injury, inflammation and immune function have turned their attention to a genome-level analysis of the gut microbial community, with early study results offering hints at potential new approaches to aid healing.

30 Oct 2026

Evolutionary changes in key enzyme help bacteria fine-tune protein synthesis

Evolutionary changes in key protein synthesis enzyme, isoleucyl-tRNA synthetase (IleRS), may help bacteria fine-tune how quickly proteins are made, report researchers from Institute of Science Tokyo, Japan; the University of Zagreb Faculty of Science, Croatia; and ETH Zürich, Switzerland.

29 Oct 2026

Study redefines picobirnavirus as a bacteria hunting virus

Thriving alongside trillions of bacteria in the human digestive tract is a vast population of viruses. Ever since one such denizen of the gut microbiome, known as picobirnavirus, was first spotted decades ago, researchers thought it directly infected human tissue and played a role in gastrointestinal illness.

29 Oct 2026

New study identifies potential targets for KRAS-related treatment resistance

Decoding of messenger RNA (mRNA) occurs during translation, the vital cellular process that builds proteins. Errors in this process are known to lead to cancer growth.

29 Oct 2026

Hospital sewers promote antibiotic resistant bacteria, new study finds

Antibiotics excreted by patients promote antibiotic-resistant bacteria in hospital sewers, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

29 Oct 2026

Amino acid restores power to last-resort antibiotics

Worldwide, antibiotic resistance is associated with millions of deaths every year, and the World Health Organization warns that the number of resistant infections is rising.

29 Oct 2026

Researchers tested an unexpected addition to vaginal treatment: oxygen

Researchers investigated the effects of topical vaginal oxygen treatment, alone or combined with antimicrobials, on the vaginal microbiota of 22 women with bacterial vaginosis or vaginitis. The combined treatment reduced the relative abundance of strict anaerobes and increased Lactobacillus abundance, but the absence of an antimicrobial-only control group prevented researchers from establishing whether oxygen contributed independently to these changes.

28 Oct 2026

Review highlights essential neurological considerations for gender dysphoria care

Gender dysphoria involves distress caused by a mismatch between a person's gender identity and sex assigned at birth.

28 Oct 2026

Semaglutide changes gut bacteria in rats beyond what eating less explains

Researchers compared semaglutide-treated male and female rats with pair-fed animals receiving the same amount and type of food to distinguish drug-associated microbiome changes from those linked to reduced eating. Semaglutide altered bacterial richness and community composition, with some changes absent from the pair-fed groups and uncertain consequences for health.

26 Oct 2026

Beer and liquor show more oral bacteria links than wine in a large US study

Researchers analyzed beverage intake and oral microbiome data from 5,598 adults across three US cohorts and found that alcohol consumption showed the strongest associations with oral bacterial diversity and composition among the beverages examined. Higher alcohol intake was associated with greater bacterial richness and differences in genera linked to oral health, but the cross-sectional preprint could not establish whether alcohol caused these differences or influenced disease risk.

26 Oct 2026

The vaginal microbiome may relate to more than reproductive health

Researchers analyzed vaginal microbiota, metabolites, and psychological questionnaire scores in 105 young Italian women and found associations between microbial community types and reward responsiveness, motivational drive, and behavioral inhibition. Exploratory models identified statistical links involving vaginal GABA and valine, but the cross-sectional study could not establish whether microbiome changes influence psychological functioning or the reverse.

26 Oct 2026

Airborne ESKAPE bacteria pose severe risks to immunocompromised patients

At a clinic in South Africa, researchers have identified airborne ESKAPE bacteria which survive most antibiotic medicines. The clinic is in a densely populated inner-city area.

26 Oct 2026

Taurine helps regulate inflammation linked to aging, Yale study finds

Sustained low-level inflammation is a hallmark of the aging process. The accumulating damage persistently activates the innate immune system-the body's first line of defense-leading to what is known as inflammaging, functional decline and chronic diseases of old age.

23 Oct 2026

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

Discover how omics is transforming life sciences with expert insights from Dr. Shi-Qi An on multiomics, single-cell research and drug discovery.

23 Oct 2026

Scientists studied one million immune cells and found clues to future disease risk

Researchers developed a single-cell atlas of one million human neutrophils, identifying distinct immune cell populations and gene-expression patterns across tissues, infections, cancer, and other health conditions. Certain neutrophil signatures were associated with metabolic dysfunction, cancer outcomes, and mortality, while higher routine neutrophil counts, even within the normal range, were linked to an increased risk of chronic disease.

22 Oct 2026

Obesity impairs key immune cells but bariatric surgery reverses damage

New Maynooth University (MU) research led by the Department of Biology's Dr Ciara Flynn, working within the research group of Prof Andrew Hogan at the Kathleen Lonsdale Institute for Human Health Research has found that obesity can impair key immune cells that help protect the body against infection and cancer.

22 Oct 2026

Discovery of new bacteria opens fresh avenues for prostate cancer research

University of East Anglia researchers have discovered the genetic blueprints of 18 new bacterial species collected from prostate cancer patients.

20 Oct 2026

New AI model detects hidden diseases in routine CT scans

When analyzed by a new artificial intelligence model developed at Penn Medicine, CT scans reveal much about a patient's health beyond the specific condition they were originally ordered for, according to a new study published in NPJ Digital Medicine.

20 Oct 2026

Could eating whey protein before meals help reduce blood sugar spikes?

A narrative review of 57 randomized trials found that milk and dairy products have inconsistent effects on long-term blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes. Whey protein consumed before meals more consistently reduced short-term blood sugar spikes, but further research is needed to establish whether these benefits persist over time.

19 Oct 2026

Researchers capture clear images of complex cancer drug building enzyme

A joint research group led by Ryo Tanifuji and Hiroki Oguri from the University of Tokyo and Yoshikazu Tanaka from Tohoku University has successfully visualized SacC, an enzyme that plays a key role in building the complex five-ring core of safracin B.

19 Oct 2026