More than two billion years ago, a group of microorganisms called cyanobacteria invented oxygenic photosynthesis, the process that turns light, carbon dioxide, and water into chemical energy and oxygen. Cyanobacteria are the plants of the microbial world - in fact, plants can perform photosynthesis because... click to read more

The human body lives in a relationship with trillion of microorganisms, mostly bacteria, that populate every surface of the body. Indeed, according to some estimations, only 50% of the cells that compose our body are human. This interaction is usually beneficial for both parts, as... click to read more

Since the 1940s, it has become easier to treat bacterial infections due to the discovery of antibiotics. These drugs work by corrupting active processes in bacteria, such as the ability to make DNA or proteins. By taking antibiotics when we are infected, we kill most... click to read more

The Atacama Desert in northern Chile is the driest and oldest desert on earth. It has been an arid place for the last 150 million years, and hyperarid (an extremely dry place) for the last 15 million years. In the Atacama, rain is extremely rare,... click to read more

Our work started when we discovered that Neolithic farmers from Sweden from 4,900 years ago were infected with Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that causes plague, one of the most devastating infectious diseases of all times. This finding could potentially explain, why there was an unexpectedly... click to read more