Volume 9 Issue 5, May 2024

Analyses refuting the dogma that a quarter of the world’s population is latently infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis emphasize the need for a redirection of research priorities.

Jody Deming recounts a career spent studying the cold-loving bacterial genus Colwellia.

Exoglycosidases isolated from the mucolytic gut bacteria Akkermansia muciniphila bring enzymatic conversion of A and B blood group erythrocytes to blood group O a step closer.

SARS-CoV-2 infection can be associated with ‘brain fog’ and persistent neurologic disease, especially in the elderly, with the possibility of direct viral particle interference with normal synaptic transmission.

We characterize the activity of fluorofolin, a potent inhibitor of dihydrofolate reductase, against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. By exploiting a divergence in thymidine metabolism, fluorofolin becomes selective for P. aeruginosa in the presence of thymine, demonstrating that it can be a narrow-spectrum antibiotic for this bacterial pathogen.

Choi, Jung and Lee highlight ways to produce renewable microbial foods that could move us closer to carbon neutrality.

Discovery, biochemical and structural characterization of exoglycosidases from Akkermansia muciniphila reveals combinations that efficiently target extended A and B blood group antigens to produce ABO-universal blood for transfusions.

Exposing cerebral organoids and post-mortem brain explants to SARS-CoV-2 virus particles alters expression of synaptic proteins and potentially affects synaptic function by blocking LPHN3 and FLRT3 synapses.

The dihydrofolate reductase inhibitor, fluorofolin, shows potent activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and selectively eliminates P. aeruginosa from mixed-species bacterial cultures.

Experimental evolution of Pseudomonas aeruginosa shows that the population is more vulnerable to invading cheaters in a spatially extended system due to a higher level of cooperation.

Comparing infection routes and subsequent transmission of MPXV in the multimammate rat (Mastomys natalensis) indicates increased susceptibility, shedding and transmission via the genital mucosae.

Antibiotics to treat carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii infection are an urgent need. The cerastecins are potent, bactericidal and efficacious in animal models of infection, and may enable new treatment modalities targeting LOS transport.

IFITM1 can compete with EBV glycoproteins for EphA2 binding and prevent virus entry into epithelial cells, in vitro and in vivo. YTHDF3 suppresses IFITM1 via the degradation-related protein DDX5.

CryoEM of the Salmonella MS- and C-rings in a counterclockwise pose and the C-ring in clockwise poses reveal structural insight into the mechanisms of directional switches and torque transmission for the bacterial flagellar supercomplex.

Cryoelectron microscopy analyses of the counter-clockwise and clockwise states of the Salmonella Typhimurium C-ring reveal the structural bases for changes in rotation of the bacterial flagellum.

Age-specific differences upon SARS-CoV-2 infection are marked by emergence of goblet 2 inflammatory cells expressing antiviral interferon stimulating genes in paediatric nasal cultures, and basaloid-like cells with increased viral spread in cultures from older adults.

Prophage-encoded anti-phage defence systems in Staphylococcus aureus protect hosts from superinfection but also prevent autoimmunity via an overlapping gene.

A membrane- and DNA-targeting approach is used to design a compound that displays potent activity against multidrug-resistant fungal pathogens without inducing antifungal resistance.

The presence of multiple functional m⁶A modification sites on diverse HIV-1 RNA transcripts suggests a strategy to provide additional stability and resilience to HIV-1 replication.

Virological, clinical and immunological characterization of a dengue virus 3 human challenge model could help with identifying vaccine and drug candidates.

DNA recognition by Argonaute proteins activates effector nucleases that trigger indiscriminate DNA and RNA cleavage and induce abortive infection.

Targeted accurate RNA consensus sequencing enables study of de novo errors caused by RNA-dependent RNA polymerases and provides deeper insights into how SARS-CoV-2 genetic diversity emerges.