Microbes, Bacteria, Viruses | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/microbes-bacteria-viruses/RSS feed for Microbes, Bacteria, VirusesenTue, 13 Oct 2026 13:00:00 +0000Did Industrialization Gut Our Microbiomes? A New Study on Rural Foraging Communities in South America and Africa Hints the Answer Is Yeshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/did-industrialization-gut-our-microbiomes-a-new-study-on-rural-foraging-communities-in-south-america-and-africa-hints-the-answer-is-yes-180989658/Two groups—the Tsimane forager-horticulturists in Bolivia and the Hadza hunter-gatherers in Tanzania—remarkably share more than 1,200 gut microbe species. However, around 60 percent of them are rare or absent in people living in industrialized places, according to researchersTue, 13 Oct 2026 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/did-industrialization-gut-our-microbiomes-a-new-study-on-rural-foraging-communities-in-south-america-and-africa-hints-the-answer-is-yes-180989658/Flu Season Started Early in Parts of the U.S., and Experts Say You Should Consider Getting the Seasonal Jab ASAP. Here's What to Knowhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/flu-season-started-early-in-parts-of-the-us-and-experts-say-you-should-consider-getting-the-seasonal-jab-asap-heres-what-to-know-180989639/The season usually starts in October or November. But some western states, including California, Washington, Alaska and Hawaii, began seeing a rise in flu cases as early as AugustThu, 08 Oct 2026 15:24:59 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/flu-season-started-early-in-parts-of-the-us-and-experts-say-you-should-consider-getting-the-seasonal-jab-asap-heres-what-to-know-180989639/Could Saturn's Moon Enceladus Host Alien Life? Earth Microbes Can Live in Its Simulated Environment, Boosting Its Potential Habitabilityhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/could-saturns-moon-enceladus-host-alien-life-earth-microbes-can-live-in-its-simulated-environment-boosting-its-potential-habitability-180989589/Enceladus is covered in ice, but that layer might hide a subsurface ocean. Researchers have long wondered if the salty body of water has the right conditions to host life, and now, a team suggests that an Earthly, heat-loving organism could thrive thereWed, 30 Sep 2026 18:00:14 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/could-saturns-moon-enceladus-host-alien-life-earth-microbes-can-live-in-its-simulated-environment-boosting-its-potential-habitability-180989589/Anthropic Says Its A.I. Discovered a New Enzyme System That Resembles the Revolutionary Gene-Editing Tool CRISPRhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/anthropic-says-its-ai-discovered-a-new-enzyme-system-that-resembles-the-revolutionary-gene-editing-tool-crispr-180989578/Experts at the company don't know what the newfound system does, so its potential utility in biology—if any—remains unclear. But the work marks a major advancement because the A.I. made this discovery mostly on its ownTue, 29 Sep 2026 18:16:27 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/anthropic-says-its-ai-discovered-a-new-enzyme-system-that-resembles-the-revolutionary-gene-editing-tool-crispr-180989578/This Massive, Deep-Sea Roly Poly Can Go Years Without Food Thanks to a Huge Stomach and a Stolen Gene, Study Suggestshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-massive-deep-sea-roly-poly-can-go-years-without-food-thanks-to-a-huge-stomach-and-a-stolen-gene-study-suggests-180989562/The ancestors of the giant isopod Bathynomus jamesi—a seafloor-dwelling creature that resembles a huge pill bug—acquired the snippet of DNA from bacteria more than 16 million years ago, according to a new study. The gene helps the animal slow its metabolismMon, 28 Sep 2026 19:53:41 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-massive-deep-sea-roly-poly-can-go-years-without-food-thanks-to-a-huge-stomach-and-a-stolen-gene-study-suggests-180989562/Meet the 'Fire Amoeba,' a Newfound Blobby Organism That's Defying Expectations About How Much Heat Complex Life Can Handlehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-the-fire-amoeba-a-newfound-blobby-organism-thats-defying-expectations-about-how-much-heat-complex-life-can-handle-180989557/The newly described species, found in Northern California's Lassen Volcanic National Park, can still reproduce at 145 degrees Fahrenheit and move around at 147 degrees, according to a new studyMon, 28 Sep 2026 14:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-the-fire-amoeba-a-newfound-blobby-organism-thats-defying-expectations-about-how-much-heat-complex-life-can-handle-180989557/The Ancient DNA of a Deadly Animal Virus Has Been Lurking in Medieval Manuscripts for Centuries, Researchers Findhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-manuscripts-preserved-traces-of-a-deadly-virus-for-centuries-180989522/A new analysis of teeth and parchment suggests that the devastating sheep pox virus has been infecting livestock for 3,700 yearsFri, 18 Sep 2026 15:10:43 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-manuscripts-preserved-traces-of-a-deadly-virus-for-centuries-180989522/Scientists Used A.I. to Design New Viruses. The Technology Could Be a Boon for Medicine, but Experts Worry About Harmful Pathogenshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-used-ai-too-design-new-viruses-the-technology-could-be-a-boon-for-medicine-but-experts-worry-about-harmful-pathogens-180989336/The findings represent the first genomes, or complete genetic instruction books, designed entirely with generative A.I. The resulting viruses attack only bacteria, which could one day help overcome the problem of antibiotic-resistant microbesMon, 24 Aug 2026 16:08:42 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-used-ai-too-design-new-viruses-the-technology-could-be-a-boon-for-medicine-but-experts-worry-about-harmful-pathogens-180989336/