Juan Pellico secured a €2M ERC Consolidator Grant to develop a “Biological GPS” to fight cancer. He will develop NanoFLOW, a project that will study how tumour cells are fed and travel around the body by using radioactive nanoparticles.
NN researcher Muling Zeng has just published a article in the open-access journal The Innovation Life. This study is a part from a very wide collaboration with 28 more institutions.
This paper reviews how microbiomes influence both environmental systems and human health, highlighting the importance of microbial diversity and stable communities. It outlines the latest technologies for microbiome analysis, examines the connection between microbial ecology and rising antimicrobial resistance, and explores emerging bioengineering approaches for environmental and biotechnological applications.
Title
DOI: 10.59717/j.xinn-life.2026.100208
Abstract
Microbiome, representing the collection of commensal microorganisms and the active substances, exert profound influences on environmental biogeochemical cycles and the maintenance of human physiological homeostasis. Their metabolic activities are indispensable for nutrient recycling, climate regulation, and ecosystem resilience. Concurrently, complex microbial communities colonizing human niches are fundamental to digestion, immune responses, and protection against pathogens. Crucially, the functional outcomes of these interactions are largely dictated by microbial diversity and community equilibrium. This review comprehensively summarizes the current understanding of the pivotal roles played by both beneficial and detrimental microbiomes across diverse environmental matrices and human systems. The state-of-the-art technologies enabling comprehensive microbiome analysis are discussed, including high-throughput sequencing and metagenomics, which are revolutionizing microbiome detection and functional characterization. Furthermore, the escalating global crisis of antimicrobial resistance intrinsically linked to microbial ecology and human practices is examined as a critical cross-domain challenge. Finally, the review explores the transformative potential of advanced microbiome bioengineering strategies for targeted environmental remediation, sustainable biotechnology, and biomanufacturing. This comprehensive analysis underscores the intricate interdependence between microbial communities, environmental integrity, and human health, emphasizing the paramount importance of preserving and harnessing microbiome diversity.
Amanda Muñoz-Juan and Anna Laromaine have published a new video in the on-line video journal JoVE. It has been done in close collaboration with Víctor J. Yuste and Esther Dalfó. Both are from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, and Dalfó, from the University of Vic, too.
The research team has assessed the gastrointestinal motility of the worm C.elegansto study Parkinson's Disease. The video explains how the research was done and the results stemming from it.