genomics
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceThe Phylogenomic Diversity of Herbivore-Associated Fibrobacter spp. Is Correlated to Lignocellulose-Degrading PotentialThe herbivore gut microbiome is incredibly diverse, and a functional understanding of this diversity is needed to more reliably manipulate this community for specific gain, such as increased production in ruminant livestock. Microbial degraders of plant cell wall polysaccharides in the herbivore gut, particularly Fibrobacter spp., are of fundamental importance to their hosts for digestion of a diet consisting primarily of...
Research Article | Applied and Environmental ScienceRegulation of Yeast-to-Hyphae Transition in Yarrowia lipolyticaMany yeasts undergo a morphological transition from yeast-to-hyphal growth in response to environmental conditions. We used forward and reverse genetic techniques to identify genes regulating this transition in Yarrowia lipolytica. We confirmed that the transcription factor Ylmsn2 is required for the transition to hyphal growth and found that signaling by the...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionImproving Our Understanding of Salmonella enterica Serovar Paratyphi B through the Engineering and Testing of a Live Attenuated Vaccine StrainWe developed a live attenuated Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi B vaccine that conferred protection in mice against challenge with S. Paratyphi B sensu stricto and S. Paratyphi B Java, which are the causes of enteric fever and gastroenteritis, respectively. Currently, the incidence of invasive S. Paratyphi B sensu stricto...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyGenome-Wide Association Analyses in the Model Rhizobium Ensifer melilotiGenome-wide association analyses are a powerful approach for identifying gene function. These analyses are becoming commonplace in studies of humans, domesticated animals, and crop plants but have rarely been conducted in bacteria. We applied association analyses to 20 traits measured in Ensifer meliloti, an agriculturally and ecologically important bacterium because...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionMechanism of High-Level Daptomycin Resistance in Corynebacterium striatumAntimicrobial resistance threatens the efficacy of antimicrobial treatment options, including last-line-of-defense drugs. Understanding how this resistance develops can help direct antimicrobial stewardship efforts and is critical to designing the next generation of antimicrobial therapies. Here we determine how Corynebacterium striatum, a skin commensal and...
Resource Report | Host-Microbe BiologyFusoPortal: an Interactive Repository of Hybrid MinION-Sequenced Fusobacterium Genomes Improves Gene Identification and CharacterizationIn this report, we describe a hybrid MinION whole-genome sequencing pipeline and the genomic characteristics of the first eight Fusobacterium strains deposited in the FusoPortal database. This collection of highly accurate and complete genomes drastically improves upon previous multicontig assemblies by correcting and newly identifying a significant number of open reading frames. We believe that the availability of this...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyProteins Potentially Involved in Immune Evasion Strategies in Sporothrix brasiliensis Elucidated by Ultra-High-Resolution Mass SpectrometrySporotrichosis is an important disease in Brazil that is caused by fungi of the genus Sporothrix and affects cats and humans. Our work investigated the proteins differentially expressed by S. brasiliensis in order to find out why this species is more virulent and pathogenic than S. schenckii...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyUltrasensitive Capture of Human Herpes Simplex Virus Genomes Directly from Clinical Samples Reveals Extraordinarily Limited Evolution in Cell CultureHerpes simplex viruses affect more than 4 billion people across the globe, constituting a large burden of disease. Understanding the global diversity of herpes simplex viruses is important for diagnostics and therapeutics as well as cure research and tracking transmission among humans. To date, most HSV genomics has been performed on culture isolates and DNA swabs with high quantities of virus. We describe the development of wet-lab and...
Opinion/Hypothesis | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceExperimental Evolution as a High-Throughput Screen for Genetic AdaptationsExperimental evolution is a method in which populations of organisms, often microbes, are founded by one or more ancestors of known genotype and then propagated under controlled conditions to study the evolutionary process. These evolving populations are influenced by all population genetic forces, including selection, mutation, drift, and recombination, and the relative contributions of these forces may be seen as mysterious.
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Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyMolecular Preadaptation to Antimony Resistance in Leishmania donovani on the Indian SubcontinentThe “antibiotic resistance crisis” is a major challenge for scientists and medical professionals. This steady rise in drug-resistant pathogens also extends to parasitic diseases, with antimony being the first anti-Leishmania drug that fell in the Indian subcontinent (ISC). Leishmaniasis is a major but neglected infectious disease with limited therapeutic options. Therefore, understanding how parasites became resistant to...