Latest Articles
EditorialmSphere Highlights Black In Microbiology WeekThe inaugural Black In Microbiology Week (#BlackInMicro) is 28 September 2020 through 4 October 2020. Its mission is to “showcase the presence and accomplishments of Black microbiologists from around the globe, connect Black microbiologists with one another and foster a sense of community among them, and provide a forum for the discussion of racial disparities in microbiology and its subfields.” Participation in this event will happen...
Editor's Pick Commentary | Clinical Science and EpidemiologymSphere of Influence: That’s Racist—COVID-19, Biological Determinism, and the Limits of HypothesesKishana Taylor works in the field of virology. In this mSphere of Influence article, she reflects on the personal impact of “Racial health disparities and COVID-19 – caution and context” by Merlin Chowkwanyun and Adolph L. Reed, Jr. (N Engl J Med 383:201–203, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp2012910) and “A hypothesis is a liability” by Itai Yanai and Martin Lercher (Genome Biol 21:...
Editor's Pick Commentary | Host-Microbe BiologymSphere of Influence: Frameshift—a Vision for Human Microbiome ResearchAriangela J. Kozik studies the respiratory microbiome as it relates to asthma. In this mSphere of Influence article, she reflects on how two papers, “Time’s up to adopt a biopsychosocial model to address racial and ethnic disparities in asthma outcomes” (E. C. Matsui, A. S. Adamson, and R. D. Peng, Allergy Clin Immunol 143:2024–2025, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaci.2019.03.015...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyProvirus Mutations of Human T-Lymphotropic Virus 1 and 2 (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2) in HIV-1-Coinfected IndividualsHTLV-1 and HTLV-2 are endemic to Brazil, and they have different effects in HIV/AIDS disease progression. HIV/HTLV-1 has been described as accelerating the progression to AIDS and death, while HIV/HTLV-2 slows the progression to AIDS. Provirus mutations of HTLV-1 were implicated in severe leukemia development and in problems in the diagnosis of HTLV-1; in contrast, provirus mutations of HTLV-2 had not been confirmed and associated with...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyStaphylococcus aureus Releases Proinflammatory Membrane Vesicles To Resist Antimicrobial Fatty AcidsThe nares of one in three humans are colonized by Staphylococcus aureus. In these environments, and arguably on all mucosal surfaces, bacteria encounter fatty acids with antimicrobial properties. Our study uncovers that S. aureus releases membrane vesicles (MVs) that act as decoys to protect the...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionAntimicrobial Peptide Exposure Selects for Resistant and Fit Stenotrophomonas maltophilia Mutants That Show Cross-Resistance to AntibioticsStenotrophomonas maltophilia is an increasingly relevant multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterium found, for example, in people with cystic fibrosis and associated with other respiratory infections and underlying pathologies. The infections caused by this nosocomial pathogen are difficult to treat due to the intrinsic resistance of this bacterium against a broad number of...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyEducational Attainment and Staphylococcus aureus Colonization in a Hispanic Border Community: Testing Fundamental Cause TheoryUnlike some types of S. aureus infections, S. aureus colonization is not associated with ethnicity or educational attainment and thus may be outside the influence of socioeconomic status-based resources typically mobilized to avoid or mitigate preventable health risks. This assessment of a...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyAssessing the Variation within the Oral Microbiome of Healthy AdultsThe human oral cavity is inhabited by a diverse community of microbes, known as the human oral microbiome. These microbes play a role in maintaining both oral and systemic health and, as such, have been proposed to be useful biomarkers of disease. However, to identify these biomarkers, we first need to determine the composition and variation of the healthy oral microbiome. In this report, we investigate the oral microbiome of 1,049...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyImmune Response Characterization after Controlled Infection with Lyophilized Shigella sonnei 53GCorrelate(s) of immunity have yet to be defined for shigellosis. As previous disease protects against subsequent infection in a serotype-specific manner, investigating immune response profiles pre- and postinfection provides an opportunity to identify immune markers potentially associated with the development of protective immunity and/or with a reduced risk of developing shigellosis postchallenge. This study is the first to report such...
Commentary | Host-Microbe BiologymSphere of Influence: 3-D Culture Models Influence Studies on Epstein-Barr Virus Molecular Pathogenesis in the EpitheliumKathy Shair works in the field of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated cancers, with emphasis on nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). In this mSphere of Influence article, she reflects on how the paper “Efficient replication of Epstein-Barr virus in stratified epithelium in vitro” by Temple et al. (R. M. Temple, J. Zhu, L. Budgeon, N. D. Christensen, et al., Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 111:16544–16549, 2014,...