Bacterial species, even the strains within a bacterial species, can display very different gene inventories (1, 2). Bacterial genomes are tightly packed with genes, and there is an almost uniform asso...

Fe(III) oxide reduction is an important biogeochemical process influencing the cycling of carbon, nutrients, trace metals, and contaminants in anaerobic soils and sediments. The capacity for Fe(III) o...

Bacterial species, even the strains within a bacterial species, can display very different gene inventories (1, 2). Bacterial genomes are tightly packed with genes, and there is an almost uniform association between genome size and gene number across species—from the 0.1-Mb genome of Nasuia deltocephalinicola to the 16-Mb genome of Minicystis rosea—with an average size of about one gene per kilobase (3).

Bingwa mara mbili wa michezo ya Olimpiki katika mbio za Marathon, Eliud Kipchoge kutoka Kenya, ameshinda mashindano yake ya kwanza ya kimataifa baada ya miaka mitatu.

The development of mRNA vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically reduced hospitalization and death rates for infected individuals. However, booster vaccinations were required to achieve high...

Synthesis of peptidoglycan (PG) in the opportunistic gut pathogen Clostridioides difficile depends mostly on 3-3 crosslinks formed by L,D-transpeptidases (LDTs). Here, we converted C. difficile from a...

Read the full paper: IFI207 promotes antiviral responses by modulating STING ubiquitination and degradation

Read the full paper: The bacterial pH gradient contributes to persistence in Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Read the full paper: Impaired envelope integrity in the absence of SanA is linked to increased lipid II availability and an imbalance of septal peptidoglycan synthesis

Read the full paper: Two closely related β-1,2-xylosyltransferases differentially impact cryptococcal glycan synthesis

The version of the central dogma of molecular biology as popularized by James Watson states that “DNA → RNA → protein” (1). This oversimplified framework has since been challenged by the discovery of ...

Read the full paper: A structural bridge between dengue virus tandem xrRNAs facilitates coordination of exonuclease resistance

Read the full paper: NAT10 is critical to block RNA sensing-induced IFN-β transactivation in viral infection

Read the full paper: An inducible CRISPRi system for phenotypic analysis of essential genes in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Read the full paper: HIV-1 Vpr induces an NFAT-controlled transcriptional program in primary CD4+ T cells

Read the full paper: YhcB mediates growth-phase control of fatty acid biosynthesis through regulation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase

Read the full paper: HCMV promotes viral reactivation through the coordinated regulation of Notch signaling by UL8 and miR-UL36

Read the full paper: PRRSV suppresses FTO-dependent m6A demethylation to reprogram STAT signaling and innate immunity

Read the full paper: Differentiation-independent activation of HPV genome replication by the lncRNA DINO

Antimicrobial resistance requires new therapeutics to treat drug-resistant infections. Novel antimicrobial compounds can be discovered in polymicrobial communities, where bacterial natural products promote competitive fitness. The oral cavity hosts a microbial consortium, and we investigated interactions between oral streptococci and Enterococcus faecalis, a common cause of root canal infections. We demonstrate antibacterial activity of streptococcal mutanobactin against gram-positive pathogens, including antibiotic-resistant isolates. We further show that the E. faecalis virulence factor gelatinase promotes recovery from mutanobactin-mediated reduction in viability, and that mutanobactin prevents and kills E. faecalis biofilms. By probing interactions between bacteria that occupy the same niche and characterizing antibacterial activity of a bacterial product, this work contributes to broader efforts to identify and develop antibiotics to treat clinically relevant drug-resistant infections.

Utilization of synthetic biology approaches to enhance current plastic degradation processes is of crucial importance, as natural plastic degradation processes are very slow. For instance, the predict...

Mutations that provide antibiotic resistance in bacterial pathogens often disrupt key cellular processes. The effects of these disruptions on cellular physiology are poorly understood, especially with...