Although β-glucosidases play an important role in fungal cellulase induction and production, our current understanding does not provide a global perspective on β-glucosidase function. This work comprehensively studies all the β-glucosidases regarding their effect on cellulase production and their cellular distribution and secretion.

DksA was discovered 30 years ago in a screen for suppressors that reversed the thermosensitivity of Escherichia coli mutant strains deficient in DnaK/DnaJ, raising the possibility that this chaperone system may control DksA function. Since its serendipitous discovery, DksA has emerged as a key activator of the transcriptional program called the stringent response in...

Cellular transport pathways play a fundamental role in secretion and membrane biogenesis. Enveloped viruses exploit these pathways to direct their membrane proteins to sites of envelopment and, as such, are powerful tools for unraveling subtle activities of trafficking factors, potentially pinpointing therapeutic targets.

All available vaccines for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) express or deliver the full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein. We show that this antigen is not optimal, consistent with observations that the vast majority of the neutralizing response to the virus is focused on the S-protein receptor-binding domain (RBD).

The addition of dairy cow manure—stored in manure pits—to field soil has the potential to introduce not only organic nutrients but also mammalian microbial communities and antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) to soil communities. Using shotgun sequencing paired with functional metagenomics, we showed that microbial community composition changed between fresh manure and manure pit samples with a decrease in gut-associated pathobionts,...

Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) is a major global public health concern causing sexually transmitted and ocular infections affecting over 130 million and 260 million people, respectively. Sequelae include infertility, preterm birth, ectopic pregnancy, and blindness. Ct relies on available host tryptophan pools and/or substrates to synthesize tryptophan to...

While cumulative data indicate that indigenous commensal bacteria can facilitate enteric virus infection, little is known regarding whether intestinal microbes have a protective role in antagonizing enteric systemic infection by modulating host innate immunity. Although accumulating literature has pointed out that the microbiota has a fundamental impact on host systemic antiviral innate immune responses mediated by type I interferon (...