Nit of human louse showing the cement covering the egg shell and hair shaft, including a human cell (nucleus, arrow). Fluorescence microphotograph in the UV light, specimen prepared with a ...

Scientists have long debated whether human body lice might have helped drive the rapid spread of the bacteria responsible for the deadly plague in the Middle Ages, known as the Black Death.

In a recent study published in the journal PLOS Biology, researchers adapt a strain of human body lice to a membrane feeder to study its infection dynamics with Yersinia pestis, the causative ...

Head lice infestation is a fairly common problem globally, with 6–12 million cases in children ages 3–11 reported annually in the US alone, [1] and is typically observed in the school-aged ...