Viruses are the most diverse and abundant biological entities: they are widely known, fast-evolving, and have adapted to be able to infect all life forms. Despite this, their origin and evolutionary ...

In the early, uncertain days of the coronavirus pandemic, scientists delivered one comforting pronouncement: The virus that caused COVID mutates rather slowly. If that remained true, the virus would ...

Some viruses mutate more rapidly than others. Learn more about why that is and what that means for your health.

The influenza (flu) virus is constantly undergoing a process of evolution and adaptation through acquiring new mutations. Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have added a new layer of ...

In July 2021, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention presentation obtained by the press noted that the delta variant of COVID-19 “is as transmissible as chickenpox.” As some researchers have ...

D imaging reveals ancient phages virus with features dating back billions of years - and potential to fight today’s dangerous ...

Viruses acquire genes from eukaryotes — organisms whose cells store their DNA in a nucleus — and use them for their own function. Conversely, eukaryotes acquire genes from viruses to bring new ...

Mr. Quammen is a science writer and the author of the forthcoming book “Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus.” The Covid-19 pandemic has been a lesson in speed — the speed at which ...

A seasonal flu virus suddenly mutated in the summer. It appears to evade some of our immunity, has kick-started a flu season ...

Marine viruses deploy a sophisticated Trojan horse maneuver that enables them to dismantle the energy systems of ocean ...

In July 2021, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention presentation obtained by the press noted that the delta variant of COVID-19 “is as transmissible as chickenpox.” As some researchers have ...