In the field of "bottom-up" synthetic biology, we aim to build lifelike systems from inanimate building blocks. From this approach, we hope to gain deeper insights into the fundamental processes of life and develop new technological innovations. One such significant and possibly the most remarkable... click to read more

Invisible to the naked eye, we are almost always surrounded by small particles suspended in the air. They are known as atmospheric aerosols and can be made of directly emitted particles like dust, sea salt, and viruses; or formed in the atmosphere out of molecules... click to read more

The average temperature on Earth rose dramatically during the last century. This is due to human activity, which led to the increased atmospheric concentration of certain gases, typically called greenhouse gases. These gases increase the solar heat trapped by our planet. The greenhouse gas methane... click to read more

Bacteriophage T4 is one of the most common of the viruses that infects Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria that serve as the hosts. To accomplish this feat, phage T4 employs a fascinating nano-scale injection machine to first rupture the host's cell membrane and then inject... click to read more

Life, as we know it, exists thanks to membranes. As active functional barriers between a living cell and its environment, and between compartments within the cell, membranes ensure selective entry and exit of substances, energy generation, and the sending, receiving, and processing of signals essential... click to read more

Bacteria survive in an array of environments, so they are constantly exposed to a wide variety of toxic molecules. To be able to survive in different environments, bacterial cells must be able to actively protect themselves from toxins. Often they do this by breaking down... click to read more

We share an intimate mutual relationship with the microbes in our gut, which we call gut microbiome. It helps us digest and absorb nutrients from our food, and also support our immune system to develop and function properly. Despite considerable progress in our understanding of... click to read more

The discovery of antibiotics made many bacterial infections easily curable. However, today the world is facing a 'post-antibiotic era' crisis as bacteria are rapidly evolving new ways to resist antibiotics. Yearly, 700, 000 deaths are caused by bacterial infections that are untreatable with currently available... click to read more

Microbes in the human gut play essential roles in maintaining human health. Gut microbes carry out many of these roles using a large toolkit of enzymes that can metabolize and transform larger, complex compounds into smaller compounds. Microbial enzymes breakdown many compounds from the human... click to read more

Modern scientific equipment has revolutionized the study of hidden life. Advances in genetic sequencing allow us to discover mysterious worlds of diverse microbes in Earth's harshest environments or within our bodies. Life also hides from us through time. Studying long-extinct creatures can be challenging. We must... click to read more

In the 1980s it was discovered that some relatives of the bacterium Burkholderia cepacia (formerly Pseudomonas cepacia) were able to form close relationships with plant roots, and also make a range of antimicrobials capable of killing plant pathogens. Several US pesticide companies exploited this bacterium... click to read more

Therapeutic drugs are an important pillar of modern health care and often crucial for the treatment of patients. Besides their desired effects to cure diseases, drugs can also cause unwanted side effects, which often occur only in some patients. The causes of these side effects... click to read more