Latest Articles
Editor's Pick Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyMetabolic Reprogramming in the Opportunistic Yeast Candida albicans in Response to HypoxiaA critical aspect of cell fitness is the ability to sense and adapt to variations in oxygen levels in their local environment. Candida albicans is an opportunistic yeast that is the most prevalent human fungal pathogen. While hypoxia is the predominant condition that C. albicans encounters in most...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyFecal Viral Community Responses to High-Fat Diet in MicePrior studies have shown that high-fat diet (HFD) can have profound effects on the gastrointestinal (GI) tract microbiome and also demonstrate that bacteria in the GI tract can affect metabolism and lean/obese phenotypes. We investigated whether the composition of viral communities that also inhabit the GI tract are affected by shifts from normal to HFD. We found significant and reproducible shifts in the content of GI tract viromes...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyComparison of Methods To Collect Fecal Samples for Microbiome Studies Using Whole-Genome Shotgun Metagenomic SequencingA major direction for future microbiome research is implementation of fecal sample collections in large-scale, prospective epidemiologic studies. Studying microbiome-disease associations likely requires microbial data to be pooled from multiple studies. Our findings suggest collection methods that are most optimal to be used standardly across future WGSS microbiome studies.
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyAge-Related Variation of Bacterial and Fungal Communities in Different Body Habitats across the Young, Elderly, and Centenarians in SardiniaSite-specific microbial communities are recognized as important factors in host health and disease. To better understand how the human microbiota potentially affects and is affected by its host during the aging process, the fundamental issue to address is the distribution of microbiota related to age. Here, we show an integrated view of the spatial distribution of microbes in a specific Mediterranean population (Sardinians) across a...
Commentary | Host-Microbe BiologymSphere of Influence: a Controlled Burn—Pathogen Manipulation of the Dynamic Chemistry That Results from InflammationNeal Hammer works in the field of bacterial pathogenesis, metabolism, and antibiotic resistance. In this mSphere of Influence article, he reflects on how “Gut inflammation provides a respiratory electron acceptor for Salmonella” by Winter and colleagues (S. E. Winter, P. Thiennimitr, M. G. Winter, B. P. Butler, et al., Nature 467:426–429, 2010, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature09415...
Commentary | Host-Microbe BiologymSphere of Influence: Combining Host and Pathogen Genetics To Disrupt Chronic InfectionsAndrew J. Olive works in the field of host responses to chronic infections. In this mSphere of Influence article, he reflects on how “Tryptophan biosynthesis protects mycobacteria from CD4 T-cell-mediated killing” (Y. J. Zhang, M. C. Reddy, T. R. Ioerger, A. C. Rothchild, et al., Cell 155:1296–1308, 2013, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2013.10.045) impacted his own work using...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyTrypanosoma brucei RAP1 Has Essential Functional Domains That Are Required for Different Protein InteractionsTrypanosoma brucei causes human African trypanosomiasis and regularly switches its major surface antigen, VSG, to evade the host immune response. VSGs are expressed from subtelomeres in a monoallelic fashion. TbRAP1, a telomere protein, is essential for cell viability and VSG monoallelic expression and suppresses VSG switching. Although TbRAP1 has...
Observation | Host-Microbe BiologyPerinatal Antibiotic Exposure Affects the Transmission between Maternal and Neonatal Microbiota and Is Associated with Early-Onset SepsisPerinatal antibiotic prophylaxis is an effective method for preventing group B Streptococcus (GBS) infection in newborns. Antibiotic exposure unbalances women’s vaginal microbiota, which is associated with the establishment of the newborn gut microbiota. However, the influence of perinatal antibiotic exposure on neonatal gut microbiota colonization and health outcomes remains unclear. In this study, we found that perinatal...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Secreted Acid Phosphatase Domain-Containing GRA44 from Toxoplasma gondii Is Required for c-Myc Induction in Infected CellsApproximately one-third of humans are infected with the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. Toxoplasma infections can lead to severe disease in those with a compromised or suppressed immune system. Additionally, infections during pregnancy present a significant health risk to the developing fetus. Drugs that target this parasite are limited, have significant side...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyCoimmunoprecipitation with MYR1 Identifies Three Additional Proteins within the Toxoplasma gondii Parasitophorous Vacuole Required for Translocation of Dense Granule Effectors into Host CellsToxoplasma is an extremely successful intracellular parasite and important human pathogen. Upon infection of a new cell, Toxoplasma establishes a replicative vacuole and translocates parasite effectors across this vacuole to function from the host cytosol and nucleus. These effectors play a key role in parasite virulence. The work reported here newly identifies three parasite proteins that are necessary for protein...