Probiotics are the miracle product of the decade because of the belief they can help cultivate “intestinal flora”, whatever that is supposed to mean.  It's a $32 billion industry by 2014 but there is one species that scientists can confirm have a benefit - zebrafish.

The Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology found that feeding probiotics to baby zebrafish accelerated their development and increased their chances of survival into adulthood.

Researchers have discovered that a virus commonly found in dogs may lead to a breakthrough in human vaccine development.

Parainfluenza virus 5, or PIV5, is harmless to humans but is thought to contribute to upper respiratory infections in dogs, and is a common target for canine vaccines designed to prevent kennel cough. In a new paper, researchers describe how this virus could be used in humans to protect against diseases that have eluded vaccine efforts so far.

A community of bacteria that survives in a dark, salty and sub-freezing environment has been discovered beneath nearly 20 meters of ice in one of Antarctica's most isolated lakes.

Lake Vida, the largest of several unique lakes found in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, contains no oxygen, is mostly frozen and possesses the highest nitrous oxide levels of any natural water body on Earth. A briny liquid that is approximately six times saltier than seawater percolates throughout the icy environment that has an average temperature of minus 8 degrees Fahrenheit.

Microbiologists and geochemists have shown that marine methane oxidation coupled to sulfate respiration can be performed by a single microorganism, a member of the ancient kingdom of the Archaea, and doesn't need to be carried out in collaboration with a bacterium, as previously thought.

Researchers have discovered bacteria that transmit electrons thousands of cell lengths away.

The Desulfobulbus bacterial cells, which are only a few thousandths of a millimeter long, are so tiny that they are invisible to the naked eye. And yet, under the right circumstances, they form a multicellular filament that can transmit electrons across a distance as large as 1 centimeter as part of the filament's respiration and ingestion processes. They are living power cables.

Helicobacter is a good example in our changing understanding of the role of microbes and the human body environment.  Some may recall that this particular bacteria was introduced to the public in a rather striking experiment where it was suspected of causing stomach ulcers and gastritis.  Dr. Barry Marshall drank a petri dish containing cultured Helicobacter Pylori and within days developed gastritis.  This demonstrated a firm connection between bacteria and gastritis/stomach ulcers as well as the role of using antibiotics to treat this condition.

Helicobacter is presumed to be present in about 50% of the world's population upper gastrointestinal tract, while fully 80% of individuals harboring this organism are asymptomatic.

People love Top 10 Lists.  So a ranking system of the ten most important phytopathogenic fungi on a scientific and economic level should be a big hit. If you don't want to spend five more minutes reading, the rice blast fungus (Magnaporthe oryzae) is at the top of the list.

The results were tabulated by a survey of 495 international researchers about the most important phytopathogenic fungi. Each researcher chose three that they thought to be most significant and the most voted then formed the list.

Unless you are a microbiologist, you probably don't want to think about all of the things that are happening in your mouth right now. 

One thing you share with microbiologists is incomplete knowledge regarding what determines the specific types of microorganisms that live there. Is it genes that decide who lives in your microbial village, or your environment? In a new paper, researchers contend that environment plays a much larger role in determining oral microbiota than biology, a finding that sheds new light on a major factor in oral health.

Are you a probiotic manufacturer who has become annoyed you are not allowed to market microbes that can help cultivate “intestinal flora” for consumers? Did the European Food Safety Authority tell you to stop claiming your magic potion reduces the chances of people developing diarrhea or respiratory tract infections? Did the U.S.A. force you to stop advertising that Activia yogurt and DanActive dairywhatever helps avoid colds or flu and force you to pay $21 million as part of a class-action settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and 39 states?