{"title":"Quinone-trapping filaments enhance respiratory capacity.","authors":"Anuj Kumar, Jan M Schuller","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.10.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2026.10.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cells expand respiratory capacity by adding internal membranes or forming cristae. A new study by Kropp and colleagues shows that the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis instead builds hollow protein filaments that sequester and transport quinones, extending the cell's respiratory capacity without adding membranes. This strategy, widespread across Bacillota, reveals an alternative route to bioenergetic expansion.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149224820","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Giulia Gionchetta, Carles M Borrego, Célia M Manaia, Sara Hernando-Amado, Rafael Laso-Pérez, Jaime Villaverde, Jessica Subirats
{"title":"When does environmental antimicrobial resistance become a health risk?","authors":"Giulia Gionchetta, Carles M Borrego, Célia M Manaia, Sara Hernando-Amado, Rafael Laso-Pérez, Jaime Villaverde, Jessica Subirats","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.09.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2026.09.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Environmental antimicrobial resistance (AMR) only constitutes a meaningful risk when resistant bacteria overcome key ecological and transmission barriers to reach, persist in, and colonize susceptible hosts. By linking exposure, evolution, transmission, and ecology, our framework provides a realistic basis for assessing AMR risks across One Health compartments.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149196870","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Siderophores: chemical threads of rhizosphere health.","authors":"Shaohua Gu, Dongming Cui, Jiqi Shao, Kunguang Wang, Zhong Wei, Yuanmei Zuo","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.09.006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2026.09.006","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Rhizosphere microbiomes are central to plant nutrition, pathogen suppression, and rhizosphere health, yet their functions remain difficult to predict from taxonomic composition alone. We argue that microbial siderophores offer a chemically explicit route from taxonomic associations to trait-based rhizosphere ecology. These structurally diverse iron-chelating metabolites link iron mobilization to ecological interactions across microbial, plant, and soil-fauna interfaces. In microbe-microbe systems, siderophore structure-receptor compatibility provides a well-established mechanism underlying resource sharing, competitive exclusion, and pathogen suppression. At plant and nematode interfaces, siderophore functions are increasingly evident, although recognition mechanisms remain less resolved. A siderophore-centered perspective can help move rhizosphere microbiome research from descriptive associations toward predictive, testable, and context-specific ecological engineering.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149183925","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pascal Nuijten, Xinya Pan, Ivana Staiano, Ian Lidbury, Jos M Raaijmakers, Víctor J Carrión
{"title":"Flavobacterium spp.","authors":"Pascal Nuijten, Xinya Pan, Ivana Staiano, Ian Lidbury, Jos M Raaijmakers, Víctor J Carrión","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.09.004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2026.09.004","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149149813","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in MicrobiologyPub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-07-06DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2026.06.003
Mathieu Coureuil, Stefano Marullo
{"title":"Host membranes provide hidden gateways for 'accidental pathogens'.","authors":"Mathieu Coureuil, Stefano Marullo","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.06.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.06.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Human infection often results from accidental host-pathogen interactions rather than from evolutionary microbial adaptation. In this forum, we highlight how intrinsic host plasma membrane properties-deformation, curvature sensing, receptor enrichment, and membrane reservoirs-support diverse bacterial processes of adhesion and entry.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"1025-1028"},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148391561","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in MicrobiologyPub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-06-11DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2026.05.012
Siying Huang, Dongchang Sun
{"title":"Structure-based prokaryotic transcription shapes adaptation and host-invader interplay.","authors":"Siying Huang, Dongchang Sun","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.05.012","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.05.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Prokaryotic gene regulation is governed by the dynamic conformation of the transcription machinery and the nucleoid. To navigate environmental fluctuations, prokaryotes reprogram RNA polymerase (RNAP) via σ factors and transcription factors (TFs) that remodel DNA conformation. Bacteriophages, in turn, exploit these mechanisms to hijack host gene expression. This review dissects recent structural insights into transitions governing transcriptional regulation, highlighting that both TFs and nucleoid-associated proteins act as 'architects' to remodel DNA structure, thereby blurring the traditional distinction between site-specific regulators and global genome organizers. By linking RNAP and DNA remodeling to broader prokaryotic conflicts, from stress adaptation to arms races between hosts and mobile genetic elements, the authors underscore the profound biological impact of perturbing prokaryotic transcriptional architecture.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"1080-1094"},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148228396","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in MicrobiologyPub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-08-21DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.011
Yi-Hui Lai, Ting Lu
{"title":"Coarse-grained resource allocation modeling for decoding and rewiring microbial metabolism.","authors":"Yi-Hui Lai, Ting Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Microbial metabolism is a complex, emergent system driven by the coordinated interplay of intricate and dynamic molecular processes. To elucidate cellular behavior and enable biotechnological applications, quantitative models that address the inherent complexity of metabolism have been developed from a resource allocation perspective. Here, we synthesize recent advances in coarse-grained resource allocation frameworks and their applications in understanding microbial physiology and guiding gene circuit design. These frameworks reveal global regulatory constraints and predict cellular adaptation to nutrient and environmental changes. In addition, they enable the quantification of metabolic costs, the dissection of circuit-host interactions, and the development of strategies for burden mitigation. Collectively, these modeling frameworks provide a powerful platform for uncovering quantitative principles of microbial growth and engineering robust synthetic biological systems.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"1124-1136"},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13555788/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148798331","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in MicrobiologyPub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-08-13DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.005
Lan Mu, Gordon Y S Choi, Thomas C A Hitch, Kwok M Ho, Matthew T V Chan, William K K Wu, Huarong Chen
{"title":"Mechanisms of key gut microbial metabolites: SCFAs, BAs, and TDMs.","authors":"Lan Mu, Gordon Y S Choi, Thomas C A Hitch, Kwok M Ho, Matthew T V Chan, William K K Wu, Huarong Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Gut microbial metabolites, particularly short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), bile acid (BAs) derivatives, and tryptophan-derived metabolites (TDMs), act as signaling molecules, receptor ligands, and epigenetic modulators in regulating host metabolic and immune homeostasis. They exert local effects in the gut and reach distant tissues via hepatic, lymphatic, neural, and immune-hormonal routes, thereby regulating immunity, metabolism, and neural function. Disruptions in these pathways are associated with inflammatory diseases, neurodegeneration, and cancer. This review discusses the importance of SCFAs, BAs, and TDMs in different host metabolic and immunological contexts, dissects their molecular mechanisms of action on target cells, evaluates the therapeutic implications of targeting these microbial pathways, and outlines a roadmap for possible future clinical translations.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"1066-1079"},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148726824","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Trends in MicrobiologyPub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-09-21DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.015
Phoebe Crossley, Conor Feehily
{"title":"The who, how, and when of mother-infant microbial sharing.","authors":"Phoebe Crossley, Conor Feehily","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.015","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2026.07.015","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The establishment of the infant gut microbiome is strongly linked to health outcomes throughout life. Recently, Mueller et al. reported that the majority of strains shared between a mother and an infant are gut-derived, as opposed to vaginally derived, and strain sharing could be observed into the second year of life.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"1019-1021"},"PeriodicalIF":18.7,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149017991","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}