Ten parasites that sound like they belong in science fiction—but are actually real. From fungi that manipulate ant behavior ...

Balanophora shed one third of its genes as it evolved into a streamlined parasitic plant -- an extreme degree of genome shrinkage even among parasites. Along the way this subtropical plant developed ...

The "Artificial External Environment" Created by HumansThe survival behaviors of living creatures are rooted in instinct and ...

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have shown that the Cryptosporidium parasite exports a protein into infected intestinal cells, altering the gut environment and enabling the parasite to ...

Parasites are a major global health problem, underlying many human diseases worldwide. For example, Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite responsible for malaria, plays a well-established role; however, ...

Host–parasite interactions are fundamental ecological processes in which parasites exploit host resources for their own survival, growth and reproduction, often to the detriment of host fitness. These ...

Brazilian researchers have genetically characterized the snake parasite Caryospora jararacae for the first time and defined a ...

Sickle cell trait is associated with distinct malaria parasite genotypes, potentially explaining reduced disease risk despite ...

A large genomic study in Cameroon finds that people with sickle cell trait are infected almost exclusively by a genetically ...

If you happen to come across plants of the Balanophoraceae family in a corner of a forest, you might easily mistake them for fungi growing around tree roots. Their mushroom-like structures are ...