Synthetic biology

9 eye-opening facts about antibiotic resistance — and 1 hopeful approach to overcoming it

Imagine, for a moment, living in a world where strep throat wasn’t treatable. Where getting a cut or a blister could be life-threatening, even for people in countries with well-...

Gallery: The most beautiful bacteria you’ll ever see

Synthetic biologist Tal Danino manipulates microorganisms in his lab to create eye-catching, colorful patterns. Here’s a look at the process he uses to turn “Oh, yuck” into “Oh,...

The ongoing quest to build life from scratch

A synthetic biologist has created artificial cells that can “talk” to natural cells — but are they really alive? How does one go about building a living cell from non-living com...