Peat beds around the world hold huge quantities of carbon and keep it from warming the planet. But rising temperatures and over-use could turn them from a brake on climate change into an accelerant.

If so, then the possibility of planetary super-heating in future has just become much more real.

Study suggests sea ice blocks the flow of carbon both into and out of the ocean, in roughly equal measure.

How ancient microbes survived in a world without oxygen has been a mystery. Scientists discovered a living microbial mat that uses arsenic instead of oxygen for photosynthesis and respiration.

Microbes in the gut aren't just important for digesting your food. In pregnant women, these gut microbes are producing chemicals that are essential for proper brain development of the fetus.

Shortening carbohydrates in the bacterial cell wall makes them more vulnerable to certain drugs.

Bacteria linked to Crohn’s disease are difficult to grow in the lab, but MIT engineers have found a way.

Emily Balskus has won the Alan T. Waterman Award, the National Science Foundation's most prestigious prize for scientists under 40 in the United States.