That's correct, the darkness loving, light fearing, blood sucking prince of darkness, Count Dracula was a fungus. In our recent research, we describe that just like Dracula, the fungus Aspergillus fumigatus "wants your blood". The parallels are uncanny, both prefer dark places (Dracula: a coffin,... click to read more

Mistletoe is an evergreen parasitic plant that lives on trees and steals water and nutrients from them. It features in European folklore as a symbol for fertility and vitality, is a well-known addition to Christmas and is also known to comic fans as the main... click to read more

Most plants and animals reproduce sexually. Why is sex so common? This question has intrigued scientists for generations. Even Darwin pondered its prevalence. Sex occurs when two organisms merge their genetic material. Sexual parents produce genetically distinct offspring. Many organisms, however, reproduce asexually, meaning a... click to read more

It is well established knowledge that bacteria routinely exchange genes between unrelated species, creating an extensive network of information flow independent of sexual reproduction. By acquiring new genes, each being a blueprint for a single protein, the bacteria gain also the functions the proteins perform... click to read more