Free webinar: How living conditions can shape microbiomes
A fascinating free webinar will reveal how microbiomes are not based only on biology - but how we live. ‘Microbiomes, Inequity, and Structural Conditions: Rethinking What Shapes Health’ underlines that microbiomes don’t exist in isolation — they reflect the systems we live in.
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Faster results, harder decisions: interpreting syndromic panels in microbiological clinical practice
Every generation in diagnostic microbiology has tried to answer the same questions more quickly. Is an infection present? What is causing it? What should happen next? What has changed dramatically is how rapidly, and how broadly, laboratories can now search for answers to these questions.
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Tracking the invisible: monitoring microbial processes in freshwater ecosystems using fluorescence sensing
Rivers are dynamic ecosystems driven by microbial processes that regulate carbon and nutrient cycling, organic matter decomposition, and oxygen consumption. Despite their central role in river health, microbial processes remain mostly invisible in routine water quality monitoring programmes, which continue to focus primarily on physicochemical parameters.
How indigenous microbes could rescue the Niger Delta
Benzene contamination from decades of oil exploitation has turned the Niger Delta’s groundwater into a slow-acting poison for millions of people. Yet the solution may already be living in the contaminated sediment itself, if only the political will exists to deploy it.
Earth’s “little Marses”: how extremophiles are shaping astrobiology
There are places on our planet where the environmental conditions closely resemble those on Mars. These terrestrial analogues have become natural laboratories where scientists study the possibility of extraterrestrial life.
Under the Lens video series
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 4
The microscopic organisms living around plant roots may hold the key to reducing agriculture’s reliance on chemical fertilisers and other non-renewable inputs, according to plant microbiome researcher Dr Davide Bulgarelli.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 3
Is raw milk safe to drink? Prof Emmanuel Adukwu is joined by Prof Nicola Holden and Dr Gil Domingue for a conversation on the societal, scientific, and health implications of this pertinent question.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 2
In our second episode, Dr Callum Cooper joins Professor Emmanuel Adukwu to talk about all things bacteriophage, from alternatives to antibiotics, social impact, and regulation.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 1
In our first episode, Professor Raquel Peixoto joins Professor Jack Gilbert for a deep dive into coral reefs, microbes, and the future of our planet.
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 4
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 3
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 2
The Microbiologist: Under the Lens | Episode 1
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The Microbiologist provides detailed information on the latest research, topics, reviews, events and news on a wide variety of microbiological topics.
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How Puerto Rico’s first microbiome research center can reshape global science collaboration
AMI’s Global Ambassador for the Americas, Dr. Filipa Godoy-Vitorino, Chair of the Department of Microbiology at the University of Puerto Rico, reveals why she is spearheading the planned Puerto Rico Center for Microbiome Sciences (PR-CMS)—the first of its kind in the region.
When do human-driven changes to wildlife microbiomes become a One Health concern?
Animals live in close partnership with communities of microbes that support digestion, immune development, and defence against pathogens, but human activities are changing those partnerships, says Katherine M. Lagerstrom.
Whose culture is it? Rethinking the study of traditional fermented food microbiomes
When microbiologists study traditional fermented foods, are we simply documenting natural biodiversity, or are we also accessing a form of cultural heritage, asks Tara Spencer-Drakes, PhD.
Food and innovation: Reflections from FOODMicro 2026
AMI Food Security Advisory Group member Professor Marciane Magnani, a Full Professor of Food Science at the Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), Brazil, reflects on her experiences of FOODMICRO 2026 in Slovenia.
Horizon Award winners one year on: What are they up to?
The nominations for the Horizon Awards are in - and the judges are making their decisions. While we await the big announcement, we’ve been catching up with the superstars who won in 2025.
Meet the Global Ambassadors: our Q&A with Sanjib Bhakta
The Microbiologist gets to know our Global Ambassador for the UK, Professor Sanjib Bhakta who is Professor of Molecular Microbiology and Biochemistry at Birkbeck, University of London.
Free webinar: How living conditions can shape microbiomes
A fascinating free webinar will reveal how microbiomes are not based only on biology - but how we live. ‘Microbiomes, Inequity, and Structural Conditions: Rethinking What Shapes Health’ underlines that microbiomes don’t exist in isolation — they reflect the systems we live in.
Water stress emerges as a key driver of Xylella damage
The damage caused by Xylella fastidiosa in almond orchards may depend on far more than the bacterium itself. New research shows that drought, surrounding vegetation and pathogen-hosting shrubs can all intensify disease severity, suggesting that managing the wider landscape could be key to protecting vulnerable crops.
How E. coli eavesdrops and senses Bifidobacterium
Gut bacteria may be quietly listening in on one another’s metabolism. Researchers have discovered that E. coli can detect chemical signals released by Bifidobacterium, allowing it to sense what nearby bacteria are doing and adjust its own metabolism in response.
Food security
Two paths to healthier soils: Scientists reveal how straw and biochar store carbon differently
Researchers discovered that combining manure with straw or biochar significantly increased soil organic carbon, but through two distinct pathways. Straw primarily stimulated microbial activity and carbon transformation, while biochar improved soil structure and the physical protection of carbon.
Clean Water
New sequencing tool tracks harmful algal blooms as they emerge
A portable DNA sequencer can detect harmful algae in coastal waters in near real time, including species present at very low levels before blooms become obvious. Researchers also found that several harmful species often appear together, suggesting shared environmental triggers may help drive their growth.
Scientists discover a way to reverse coral bleaching at record speed
For the first time, scientists have observed bleached corals on the brink of death fully recover through brief contact with healthy clones. Ghostly white corals returned to full health in a laboratory setting within seven weeks, the fastest documented recovery to date, according to a study.
