Trends in MicrobiologyPub Date : 2024-08-01Epub Date: 2024-06-19DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2024.06.001
Kun Jiang, Xiang Gao
{"title":"Current advances on Vip3 highlight the promising potential of bacterial insecticidal proteins.","authors":"Kun Jiang, Xiang Gao","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.06.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.06.001","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Biological control, based on microbial insecticidal proteins, has become an important strategy for sustainable pest management. This forum discusses recent advancements and research strategies of the bacterial insecticidal protein vegetative insecticidal protein 3 (Vip3), aiming to provide valuable insights for future investigations on Vip3 and other insecticidal proteins.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"732-735"},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141432898","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":"Regulation of microbial gene expression: the key to understanding our gut microbiome","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.07.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2024.07.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p>During the past two decades, gut microbiome studies have established the significant impact of the gut microbiota and its metabolites on host health. However, the molecular mechanisms governing the production of microbial metabolites in the gut environment remain insufficiently investigated and thus are poorly understood. Here, we propose that an enhanced understanding of gut microbial gene regulation, which is responsive to dietary components and gut environmental conditions, is needed in the research field and essential for our ability to effectively promote host health and prevent diseases through interventions targeting the gut microbiome.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":"12 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":15.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141870084","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 : 2024-08-01Epub Date: 2024-01-23DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2024.01.001
Katarzyna Bialas, Felipe Diaz-Griffero
{"title":"HIV-1-induced translocation of CPSF6 to biomolecular condensates.","authors":"Katarzyna Bialas, Felipe Diaz-Griffero","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.01.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.01.001","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cleavage and polyadenylation specificity factor subunit 6 (CPSF6, also known as CFIm68) is a 68 kDa component of the mammalian cleavage factor I (CFIm) complex that modulates mRNA alternative polyadenylation (APA) and determines 3' untranslated region (UTR) length, an important gene expression control mechanism. CPSF6 directly interacts with the HIV-1 core during infection, suggesting involvement in HIV-1 replication. Here, we review the contributions of CPSF6 to every stage of the HIV-1 replication cycle. Recently, several groups described the ability of HIV-1 infection to induce CPSF6 translocation to nuclear speckles, which are biomolecular condensates. We discuss the implications for CPSF6 localization in condensates and the potential role of condensate-localized CPSF6 in the ability of HIV-1 to control the protein expression pattern of the cell.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"781-790"},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11263504/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139545439","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 : 2024-08-01Epub Date: 2024-06-08DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2024.05.009
Biao Hu, Jianping Chen, Zongtao Sun
{"title":"The microbiota's role in flavivirus control: Rosenbergiella_YN46.","authors":"Biao Hu, Jianping Chen, Zongtao Sun","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.05.009","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.05.009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The transmission of flaviviruses, such as dengue virus (DENV) and Zika virus (ZIKV), poses a significant threat to global public health. Zhang et al. recently showed that Rosenbergiella sp. YN46 (Rosenbergiella_YN46), a bacterium from the mosquito gut, inhibits flavivirus transmission and thus offers a potential biocontrol strategy with broad public health implications.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"725-727"},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141296758","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 : 2024-08-01Epub Date: 2024-02-15DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2024.01.005
Guillaume Beaudoin-Bussières, Andrés Finzi
{"title":"Deciphering Fc-effector functions against SARS-CoV-2.","authors":"Guillaume Beaudoin-Bussières, Andrés Finzi","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.01.005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.01.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Major efforts were deployed to study the antibody response against SARS-CoV-2. Antibodies neutralizing SARS-CoV-2 have been extensively studied in the context of infections, vaccinations, and breakthrough infections. Antibodies, however, are pleiotropic proteins that have many functions in addition to neutralization. These include Fc-effector functions such as antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) and antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP). Although important to combat viral infections, these Fc-effector functions were less studied in the context of SARS-CoV-2 compared with binding and neutralization. This is partly due to the difficulty in developing reliable assays to measure Fc-effector functions compared to antibody binding and neutralization. Multiple assays have now been developed and can be used to measure different Fc-effector functions. Here, we review these assays and what is known regarding anti-SARS-CoV-2 Fc-effector functions. Overall, this review summarizes and updates our current state of knowledge regarding anti-SARS-CoV-2 Fc-effector functions.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"756-768"},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139747467","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 : 2024-08-01Epub Date: 2024-05-29DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2024.05.004
Zhenkun Cai, Weiyu Xie, Zehua Bao
{"title":"Broadening the targetable space: engineering and discovery of PAM-flexible Cas proteins.","authors":"Zhenkun Cai, Weiyu Xie, Zehua Bao","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.05.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.05.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The application of CRISPR-Cas systems has been hindered by their requirement for long protospacer-adjacent motifs (PAMs). Recent engineering and discovery of PAM-flexible Cas proteins have substantially broadened the targetable DNA sequence space, thereby facilitating genome editing and improving derivative technologies such as gene regulation, seamless cloning, and large-scale genetic screens.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"728-731"},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141180786","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 : 2024-08-01Epub Date: 2024-01-18DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2023.12.009
Jens Rolff, Sebastian Bonhoeffer, Charlotte Kloft, Rasmus Leistner, Roland Regoes, Michael E Hochberg
{"title":"Forecasting antimicrobial resistance evolution.","authors":"Jens Rolff, Sebastian Bonhoeffer, Charlotte Kloft, Rasmus Leistner, Roland Regoes, Michael E Hochberg","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2023.12.009","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2023.12.009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global health issue. Current measures for tackling it comprise mainly the prudent use of drugs, the development of new drugs, and rapid diagnostics. Relatively little attention has been given to forecasting the evolution of resistance. Here, we argue that forecasting has the potential to be a great asset in our arsenal of measures to tackle AMR. We argue that, if successfully implemented, forecasting resistance will help to resolve the antibiotic crisis in three ways: it will (i) guide a more sustainable use (and therefore lifespan) of antibiotics and incentivize investment in drug development, (ii) reduce the spread of AMR genes and pathogenic microbes in the environment and between patients, and (iii) allow more efficient treatment of persistent infections, reducing the continued evolution of resistance. We identify two important challenges that need to be addressed for the successful establishment of forecasting: (i) the development of bespoke technology that allows stakeholders to empirically assess the risks of resistance evolving during the process of drug development and therapeutic/preventive use, and (ii) the transformative shift in mindset from the current praxis of mostly addressing the problem of antibiotic resistance a posteriori to a concept of a priori estimating, and acting on, the risks of resistance.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"736-745"},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139492250","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 : 2024-08-01Epub Date: 2024-01-22DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2023.12.011
Adriana Chrenková, Francesco Bisiak, Ditlev E Brodersen
{"title":"Breaking bad nucleotides: understanding the regulatory mechanisms of bacterial small alarmone hydrolases.","authors":"Adriana Chrenková, Francesco Bisiak, Ditlev E Brodersen","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2023.12.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.tim.2023.12.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Guanosine tetra- and pentaphosphate nucleotides, (p)ppGpp, function as central secondary messengers and alarmones in bacterial cell biology, signalling a range of stress conditions, including nutrient starvation and exposure to cell-wall-targeting antibiotics, and are critical for survival. While activation of the stringent response and alarmone synthesis on starved ribosomes by members of the RSH (Rel) class of proteins is well understood, much less is known about how single-domain small alarmone synthetases (SASs) and their corresponding alarmone hydrolases, the small alarmone hydrolases (SAHs), are regulated and contribute to (p)ppGpp homeostasis. The substrate spectrum of these enzymes has recently been expanded to include hyperphosphorylated adenosine nucleotides, suggesting that they take part in a highly complex and interconnected signalling network. In this review, we provide an overview of our understanding of the SAHs and discuss their structure, function, regulation, and phylogeny.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"769-780"},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139542478","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":"Immunological roads diverged: mapping tuberculosis outcomes in mice.","authors":"Rachel K Meade, Clare M Smith","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.06.007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2024.06.007","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The journey from phenotypic observation to causal genetic mechanism is a long and challenging road. For pathogens like Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), which causes tuberculosis (TB), host-pathogen coevolution has spanned millennia, costing millions of human lives. Mammalian models can systematically recapitulate host genetic variation, producing a spectrum of disease outcomes. Leveraging genome sequences and deep phenotyping data from infected mouse genetic reference populations (GRPs), quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping approaches have successfully identified host genomic regions associated with TB phenotypes. Here, we review the ongoing optimization of QTL mapping study design alongside advances in mouse GRPs. These next-generation resources and approaches have enabled identification of novel host-pathogen interactions governing one of the most prevalent infectious diseases in the world today.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141735109","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}
Yuxuan Hu, Yanping Zhao, Yan Zhang, Weijun Chen, Haiqiang Zhang, Xin Jin
{"title":"Cell-free DNA: a promising biomarker in infectious diseases.","authors":"Yuxuan Hu, Yanping Zhao, Yan Zhang, Weijun Chen, Haiqiang Zhang, Xin Jin","doi":"10.1016/j.tim.2024.06.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2024.06.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Infectious diseases pose serious threats to public health worldwide. Conventional diagnostic methods for infectious diseases often exhibit low sensitivity, invasiveness, and long turnaround times. User-friendly point-of-care tests are urgently needed for early diagnosis, treatment monitoring, and prognostic prediction of infectious diseases. Cell-free DNA (cfDNA), a promising non-invasive biomarker widely used in oncology and pregnancy, has shown great potential in clinical applications for diagnosing infectious diseases. Here, we discuss the most recent cfDNA research on infectious diseases from both the pathogen and host perspectives. We also discuss the technical challenges in this field and propose solutions to overcome them. Additionally, we provide an outlook on the potential of cfDNA as a diagnostic, treatment, and prognostic marker for infectious diseases.</p>","PeriodicalId":23275,"journal":{"name":"Trends in Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141601808","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}