Heme binding to a bacterial transcription factor is critical for hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) signaling, report researchers from Japan. Heme binding promotes the reaction of H₂S with the transcription ...

Just like us, bacteria are under constant threat of infection by viruses (called phages). We’ve found that many bacteria are armed with sophisticated viral defence systems powered by reverse ...

E. coli divides faster than it can replicate its genome, while simultaneously expressing its genes. Scientists recently revealed the intricate molecular coordination that makes this possible. “It’s as ...

Every living cell transcribes DNA into RNA. This process begins when an enzyme called RNA polymerase (RNAP) clamps onto DNA. Within a few hundred milliseconds, the DNA double helix unwinds to form a ...

Penn State scientists uncovered an ancient bacterial defense where dormant viral DNA helps bacteria fight new viral threats. The enzyme PinQ flips bacterial genes to create protective proteins that ...

RNA Polymerase (shown in blue) moves across a template strand of DNA (shown in purple) and transcribes it into RNA (shown in red). But DNA damage blocks the RNA polymerase, causing it to stall and ...

Tuberculosis is both curable and preventable, yet each year, it still kills more people than any other infectious disease. One reason is that current treatments hinge on rifampicin, an antibiotic that ...

This image highlights two alternatives for the ribosome to be recruited to an mRNA that is still being synthesized by RNA polymerase (RNAP). RNAP (left, red) can directly deliver the mRNA to the entry ...

Every living cell transcribes DNA into RNA. This process begins when an enzyme called RNA polymerase (RNAP) clamps onto DNA. Within a few hundred milliseconds, the DNA double helix unwinds to form a ...

Microbiologists have long known that ancient, inactive viruses known as cryptic prophages can insert their genetic material into bacterial DNA. These genetic fragments allow bacteria to use ...