Latest Articles
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologySpecific Norovirus Interaction with Lewis x and Lewis a on Human Intestinal Inflammatory Mucosa during Refractory Inflammatory Bowel DiseaseInflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), are progressive diseases affecting millions of people each year. Flare-ups during IBD result in severe mucosal alterations of the small intestine (in CD) and in the colon and rectum (in CD and UC).
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyOXA-181-Like Carbapenemases in Klebsiella pneumoniae ST14, ST15, ST23, ST48, and ST231 from Septicemic Neonates: Coexistence with NDM-5, Resistome, Transmissibility, and Genome DiversityNeonatal sepsis is a leading cause of neonatal mortality in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Treatment of sepsis in this vulnerable population is dependent on antimicrobials, and resistance to these life-saving antimicrobials is worrisome.
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyPhosphorylation of the Canonical Histone H2A Marks Foci of Damaged DNA in Malaria ParasitesPlasmodium falciparum is the deadliest human parasite that causes malaria when it reaches the bloodstream and begins proliferating inside red blood cells, where the parasites are particularly prone to DNA damage. The molecular mechanisms that allow these pathogens to maintain their genome integrity under such conditions are also the driving force for acquiring genome...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyCoexistence of Communicating and Noncommunicating Cells in the Filamentous Cyanobacterium AnabaenaMulticellularity is found in bacteria as well as in eukaryotes, and the filamentous heterocyst-forming (N2-fixing) cyanobacteria represent a simple and ancient paradigm of multicellular organisms. Multicellularity generally involves cell-cell adhesion and communication.
Observation | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyAn Observational Laboratory-Based Assessment of SARS-CoV-2 Molecular Diagnostics in Benin, Western AfricaMonths after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, case numbers from Africa are surprisingly low, potentially because the number of SARS-CoV-2 tests performed in Africa is lower than in other regions. Here, we show an overload of COVID-19-related diagnostics in the central laboratory of Benin, Western Africa, with a stagnating average number of positive samples irrespective of daily sample counts.
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyRandomized Controlled Trial of Oral Vancomycin Treatment in Clostridioides difficile-Colonized PatientsA gold standard diagnostic for Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) does not exist. An area of controversy is how to manage patients whose stool tests positive by nucleic acid amplification tests but negative by toxin enzyme immunoassay.
Research Article | Applied and Environmental ScienceAmplicon Sequencing-Based Bipartite Network Analysis Confirms a High Degree of Specialization and Modularity for Fungi and Prokaryotes in DeadwoodDeadwood is important for our forest ecosystems. It feeds and houses many organisms, e.g., fungi and prokaryotes, with many different species contributing to its decomposition and nutrient cycling.
Commentary | Host-Microbe BiologymSphere of Influence: the Complexity of Interferon Gamma-Mediated Pathogen ControlBryan D. Bryson works in the field of biological engineering with a specific interest in host-mycobacterium interactions.
Commentary | Therapeutics and PreventionmSphere of Influence: Turning to Soil for MedicinesChing-Hsuan Lin works in the field of Candida biology. In this mSphere of Influence article, he reflects on how the papers “Use of ichip for high-throughput in situ cultivation of uncultivable microbial species” by D.
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Majority of Typhoid Toxin-Positive Salmonella Serovars Encode ArtB, an Alternate Binding SubunitWhile previous reports had suggested that the typhoid toxin (TT) could potentially use ArtB as an alternate binding subunit, this was thought to play a minor role in the evolution and biology of the toxin. In this study, we establish that both TT genes and artB are widespread among Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica, suggesting that TT likely plays...