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Microbes, Bacteria, Viruses

An up-close look at SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes the COVID-19 disease

Covid-19

COVID-19 Cases Exceed Eight Million Worldwide

The bleak milestone arrives as cases spike in South America

Bats have harbored dangerous coronaviruses that crossed to humans, like SARS-CoV-2.

Covid-19

These Scientists Hunt for Viruses in Animals Before They Strike Humans

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers were searching for potential human pathogens in wild animals. They’ve found thousands

In the United Kingdom, coronavirus lockdown measures were relaxed on June 15.

New Research

Studies Estimate That Lockdowns Slowed COVID-19 Spread and Saved Lives

Experts say the results provide evidence in support of extending these measures

A pandemic from a century ago doesn’t necessarily chart the course of the pandemic happening now.

Covid-19

Compare the Flu Pandemic of 1918 and COVID-19 With Caution

The past is not prediction

Vial and packaging for the 1957 H2N2 vaccine, at the National Museum of American History. Producing the inoculation required hundreds of thousands of fertilized chicken eggs per day.

Covid-19

How the U.S. Fought the 1957 Flu Pandemic

The story of the medical researcher whose quick action protected millions of Americans from a new contagion

The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish confirmed the hemorrhagic disease in a black-tailed jackrabbit and five desert cottontails in March.

North American Rabbits Face a Deadly Virus

The hemorrhagic virus has infected in domestic rabbits since 2018, and it’s now spreading in the wild population

A scanning electron microscope image of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

Covid-19

Why Immunity to the Novel Coronavirus Is So Complicated

Some immune responses may be enough to make a person impervious to reinfection, but scientists don’t yet know how the human body reacts to this new virus

A vial of remdesivir, an antiviral that has broad-spectrum activity, meaning it works against more than one type of virus. Remdesivir has been authorized for emergency use in the COVID-19 pandemic; it also was used to fight Ebola when there were few treatments available.

Covid-19

Remdesivir Works Against Many Viruses. Why Aren’t There More Drugs Like It?

Antivirals that work against a large number of diverse viruses would help us prepare for new diseases, but creating them is a big biological challenge

The Fox tunnel is one of only two underground facilities dedicated exclusively to the scientific study of permafrost where a visitor can actually walk around inside the frozen earth.

In a Tunnel Beneath Alaska, Scientists Race to Understand Disappearing Permafrost

What lies inside the icy cavern seems more and more like a captive, rare animal, an Earth form that might soon be lost

This yellow lab is not involved in the research, but it still a very good doggo.

Dogs Are Being Trained to Sniff Out COVID-19

Researchers are attempting to teach eight dogs to detect the pandemic, which could help quickly screen large numbers of people in public places

Honey bees, packed together in their hive, are vulnerable to infection from viruses.

New Research

Honey Bee Virus Tricks Hive Guards Into Admitting Sick Intruders

The virus tweaks bee behavior to infect new hives and may also spread other hive-killing pathogens and pests

As many home bakers who have only recently taken up sourdough making have found out, some starters are, well, non-starters.

What Does Your Sourdough Starter Smell Like? Science Wants to Know

A citizen science project aims to chart the microbial diversity present in starters all over the world

An ongoing study by the Lyon Neuroscience Research Center has found a 35 percent increase in dream recall and a 15 percent increase in negative dreams.

Covid-19

Insomnia and Vivid Dreams on the Rise With COVID-19 Anxiety

Fears around the pandemic are causing sleep patterns to change and strange dreams to linger in people’s memories

Research suggests humans can occasionally pass the new coronavirus to cats. But felines are very unlikely to be a source of transmission back to humans.

Covid-19

Why the New Coronavirus Affects Some Animals, but Not Others

While the virus seems capable of infecting some pets and wild animals, these cases probably aren’t occurring often

Folklorists remain alert to the culture (non-biological) of the coronavirus, even as we conduct our research while quarantined. Our research will certainly evolve as the pandemic itself evolves.

Covid-19

How to Detect the Age-Old Traditions of Folklore in Today’s COVID-19 Misinformation

Smithsonian folklorist James Deutsch says the fast spread of stories and memes are cultural expressions that build cohesion and support

Copper wire

Covid-19

Copper’s Virus-Killing Powers Were Known Even to the Ancients

The SARS-CoV-2 virus endures for days on plastic or metal but disintegrates soon after landing on copper surfaces. Here’s why

Nadia and her sister Azul as cubs at the Bronx Zoo in 2016. Both tigers showed symptoms of COVID-19, and Nadia tested positive for the virus.

Covid-19

A Tiger in the Bronx Zoo Tested Positive for COVID-19

Nadia, a four-year-old Malayan tiger, is the first known animal to test positive for coronavirus in the United States

A rock samples collected during a 2010 drilling expedition in the South Pacific that found microbes in the sea floor.

Microbes Living in Deep Sea Rocks Spawn More Hope for Life on Mars

Starved of resources, these hardy bacteria still eke out a living, suggesting life forms could survive in the harsh habitats on other planets

Researcher Mark Meekan swims with a whale shark, which can grow up to 60 feet long, making them the world's largest fish.

New Research

Researchers Calculated a Whale Shark’s Age Based on Cold War-Era Bomb Tests

Nuclear bomb tests caused a spike in a radioactive form of carbon that accumulated in living things

A nurse conducts a swab test for SARS-CoV-2 in Chessington, England.

Covid-19

Breaking Down the Two Tests That Could Help Contain the COVID-19 Pandemic

One detects an active infection; another signals that the virus has already left the body. Both are critical for tracking the spread of disease

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