Most of us are aware of the impact globalisation is having on vulnerable rainforests, apex predators and a swathe of endangered species, but little attention is paid to how human activity is affecting microorganisms across the planet. [ + ]

Chemical engineers at the University of Sydney have developed and tested a new pilot-scale spray drying system that is designed to recover more than 95% of particles. [ + ]

Scientists may not be able to stop fair-skinned redheads from getting sunburnt but they are a step closer to reducing their likelihood of certain types of skin cancer. Researchers from Boston and Edinburgh have found that triggering skin pigmentation in the laboratory can prevent mice from developing melanoma. [ + ]

An international team of researchers from Australia, the UK, Malaysia and India are developing a prototype vaccine to minimise the impact of Nipah virus (NiV) on the pig industry. [ + ]

Asian researchers have discovered a newly emerged superbug, hyper-resistant and hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae, which may cause untreatable and fatal infections in relatively healthy individuals and is apparently set to pose an enormous threat to human health. [ + ]

Sufferers of Parkinson's disease may soon be enjoying improved movement thanks to a team of researchers from Kyoto University, Japan, and some crab-eating macaques. [ + ]

Canadian researchers have found that a simple smell test may help in diagnosing those at risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. [ + ]

For some time, it has been known that people with lower levels of ascorbate (vitamin C) are at increased risk of cancer. Now, US researchers think they finally know why this is — and it all comes down to our stem cells. [ + ]

Irrespective of the type of laboratory environment, great technicians adapt and take on a few common habits that facilitate laboratory-based scientific investigations in the best way possible. [ + ]

With a relentless passion for plants, a strong desire to secure the world's food resources and numerous papers and awards under his belt, Dr Jonathan Plett from Western Sydney University is one of Australia's most promising scientists. [ + ]

Researchers have determined that mutations in the gene encoding a particular enzyme may help in the development of better treatments for a wide range of autoimmune diseases. [ + ]

Australian biotech company Ondek is on a mission to develop an immunotherapy based on the gram-negative bacterium Helicobacter pylori, which it hopes to eventually deploy as a new treatment for childhood allergy. [ + ]

Everyone knows the importance of practising good cybersecurity, but we bet you never thought your computer could be hacked using DNA. [ + ]

An international study, led by researchers from the Children's Cancer Institute and University of New South Wales, has uncovered a new way of dealing with neuroblastoma, a form of cancer that typically affects infants as young as one or two years of age. [ + ]

She arrived in Australia as an asylum seeker from the Vietnam War, with no English-speaking skills and nothing but the clothes on her back. Now, more than 20 years later, Dr Tien Huynh has been named as one of the 30 'Superstars of STEM'. [ + ]