Bacteria

A new immunization strategy against microbes that invade the gastrointestinal tract may someday offer an alternative to antibiotics.

A new approach against Salmonella and other pathogens

Immunization strategy could prevent gastrointestinal disease.

November 7, 2016

A team of researchers at MIT, the University of Brasilia, and the University of British Columbia has now engineered an antimicrobial peptide that can destroy many types of bacteria, including some that are resistant to most antibiotics.

Engineers design a new weapon against bacteria

Antimicrobial peptides can kill strains resistant to existing antibiotics.

November 2, 2016

Manoshi Datta, a postdoc in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, pipettes bacterial samples in the lab.

MIT researchers prove fast microbial evolutionary bursts exist

Study reveals closely related microbes can diversify rapidly via horizontal gene transfer.

September 22, 2016

A team of MIT scientists has developed a strategy for delivering large numbers of beneficial bacterial to the human gut. The strategy involves coating bacteria with polymer layers that protect them from the acids and bile salts found in the digestive tract.

Delivering beneficial bacteria to the GI tract

Method that transports microbes through the stomach to the intestine may benefit human health.

September 14, 2016

A new technique invented at MIT can precisely measure the growth of many individual cells simultaneously. “The device provides new insights into how cells grow and respond to drugs,” MIT professor Scott Manalis says.

Microchip enables fast, precise measurement of single-cell growth

Device that measures growth of many individual cells simultaneously could lead to rapid tests for antibiotics.

September 5, 2016

Ginkgo Bioworks staff members Ramya Prathuri (left) and Nate Tedford work at the mass spectrometer in the Ginkgo foundry.

Hacking microbes

Startup’s engineered yeast helps clients produce fragrances and flavors more efficiently.

August 25, 2016

Mars’ Valles Marineris canyon, pictured, spans as much as 600 kilometers across and delves as much as 8 kilometers deep. The image was created from over 100 images of Mars taken by Viking Orbiters in the 1970s.

New technique may help detect Martian life

A novel interpretation of Raman spectra will help the 2020 Mars rover select rocks to study for signs of life.

August 15, 2016

A new, portable production system is designed to manufacture a range of biopharmaceuticals on demand. The principal component of the microbioreactor is a plastic chip with microfluidic circuits (green), optical sensors (red and blue circles) for monitoring oxygen and acidity, and a filter to retain the cells while the therapeutic protein is extracted (white circle).

Portable device produces biopharmaceuticals on demand

System would use microbes for manufacturing small amounts of vaccines and other therapies.

July 29, 2016

Researchers at MIT and the University of California at San Diego have delivered artificial genetic circuits into bacteria, allowing the microbes to kill cancer cells in three different ways. Here, an image of a motherboard has been micropatterned using programmable probiotic bacteria. The bright lines are composed of dots made of bacteria. This technique was developed in the lab of MIT professor S...

Cancer-fighting bacteria

Engineers program E. coli to destroy tumor cells.

July 20, 2016

MIT and Broad Institute postdoc Ilana Brito sampled not only the human microbiome in the remote villages in Fiji she studied, but also the reservoirs of microbes in the community.

Microbiome genes on the move

Largest metagenomic view of the developing world uncovers “mobile genes” that reveal how culture shapes the human microbiome.

July 14, 2016

Gene circuits in live cells can perform complex computations

Technique combines analogue and digital processes in engineered cells.

June 3, 2016

Mutualism, a phenomenon in which different species benefit from their interactions with each other, can help bacteria form drug-resistant communities. Pictured is an artist’s interpretation of mutualism among bacteria.

Teamwork enables bacterial survival

Strains of E. coli resistant to one antibiotic can protect other bacteria growing nearby.

May 16, 2016

MIT chemical engineering postdoc Amit Kumar PhD '10 (left) and Professor Gregory Stephanopoulos

3 Questions: Amit Kumar and Gregory Stephanopoulos on turning waste gases into biofuels

Research conducted by Kumar, along with a team led by Professor Greg Stephanopoulos, looks to the future of emissions reduction and recycling.

May 2, 2016

Katharina Ribbeck (left) and Jesse Thaler

Biobarrier explorer and dark matter theorist win MIT’s prestigious junior faculty award

Katharina Ribbeck and Jesse Thaler named recipients of the Harold E. Edgerton Award.

April 20, 2016

MIT spinout Synlogic is re-programming bacteria found in the gut as "living therapeutics" to treat major diseases and rare genetic disorders.

Reprogramming gut bacteria as “living therapeutics”

Daily doses of synthetic biotics developed by startup Synologic may sense, treat metabolic diseases.

April 5, 2016

MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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