Blow up a long balloon and two things happen: it gets longer and it gets wider. Now imagine a living cell that inflates itself under enormous pressure and yet only grows longer, never adding width.

Researchers from Umeå University, Sweden, and Cornell University, U.S., have discovered a widespread mechanism in bacteria that enhances the bacteria's defense against environmental threats. The ...

Some bacterial membrane transporters work almost like freight elevators to transport substances through the cell membrane into the interior of the cell. The transporter itself spans the bacterial ...

Bacteria are experts at evolving resistance to antibiotics. One resistance strategy is to cover their cell walls in sticky and gooey biofilm that antibiotics cannot penetrate. A new discovery could ...

We often hear about bacteria, but what exactly are they? A bacterium is a living organism that consists of a single cell (unicellular). It has ...

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American Quick, can you describe your grandparents?