Host-Microbe Biology
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyMicrobiomes Reduce Their Host’s Sensitivity to Interspecific InteractionsDescription of the Earth’s microbiota has recently undergone a phenomenal expansion that has challenged basic assumptions in many areas of biology, including hominid evolution, human gastrointestinal and neurodevelopmental disorders, and plant adaptation to climate change. By using the classic model system of freshwater phytoplankton that has been drawn upon for numerous foundational theories in ecology, we show that microbiomes, by...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyNeurotrophic Factors Protect the Intestinal Barrier from Rotavirus Insult in MiceHuman and mouse studies have shown that rotavirus infection is associated with low inflammation and unaffected intestinal barrier at the time of diarrhea, properties different from most bacterial and inflammatory diseases of the gut. We showed by in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo experiments that neurotrophic factors and 5-HT have barrier protective properties during rotavirus insult. These observations advance...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyAn Oral Inoculation Infant Rabbit Model for Shigella InfectionShigella species are the leading bacterial cause of diarrheal death globally. The pathogen causes bacillary dysentery, a bloody diarrheal disease characterized by damage to the colonic mucosa and is usually spread through the fecal-oral route. Small animal models of shigellosis that rely on the oral route of infection are lacking. Here, we found that orogastric inoculation of infant rabbits with...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyInhibition of HIV Replication by Apolipoprotein A-I Binding Protein Targeting the Lipid RaftsApolipoprotein A-I binding protein (AIBP) is a recently identified innate anti-inflammatory factor. Here, we show that AIBP inhibited HIV replication by targeting lipid rafts and reducing virus-cell fusion. Importantly, AIBP selectively reduced levels of rafts on cells stimulated by an inflammatory stimulus or treated with extracellular vesicles containing HIV-1 protein Nef without affecting rafts on nonactivated cells. Accordingly,...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyIFITM3 Reduces Retroviral Envelope Abundance and Function and Is Counteracted by glycoGagThe viral envelope glycoprotein, known as “Env” in Retroviridae, is found on the virion surface and facilitates virus entry into cells by mediating cell attachment and fusion. Env is a major structural component of retroviruses and is targeted by all arms of the immune response, including adaptive and innate immunity. Less is known about how cell-intrinsic immunity prevents retrovirus replication at the level of individual...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyEssential Role of mGBP7 for Survival of Toxoplasma gondii InfectionGuanylate-binding proteins (GBPs) are induced by the inflammatory cytokine interferon gamma (IFN-γ) and have been shown to be important factors in the defense of the intracellular pathogen Toxoplasma gondii. In previous studies, we showed that members of the mouse GBP family, such as mGBP2 and mGBP7, accumulate at the parasitophorous vacuole of T. gondii, which is the replicatory niche of the parasite. In this study,...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyListeria monocytogenes Exploits Host Caveolin for Cell-to-Cell SpreadingListeria monocytogenes moves from one cell to another as it disseminates within tissues. This bacterial transfer process depends on the host actin cytoskeleton as the bacterium forms motile actin-rich membranous protrusions that propel the bacteria into neighboring cells, thus forming corresponding membrane invaginations. Here, we examine these membrane invaginations...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyCRISPR Interference of a Clonally Variant GC-Rich Noncoding RNA Family Leads to General Repression of var Genes in Plasmodium falciparumPlasmodium falciparum is the deadliest malaria parasite species, accounting for the vast majority of disease cases and deaths. The virulence of this parasite is reliant upon the mutually exclusive expression of cytoadherence proteins encoded by the 60-member var gene family. Antigenic variation of this multigene family serves as an immune evasion mechanism,...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyA Zeaxanthin-Producing Bacterium Isolated from the Algal Phycosphere Protects Coral Endosymbionts from Environmental StressOccupying less than 1% of the seas, coral reefs are estimated to harbor ∼25% of all marine species. However, the destruction of coral reefs has intensified in the face of global climate changes, such as rising seawater temperatures, which induce the overproduction of reactive oxygen species harmful to corals. Although reef-building corals form complex consortia with bacteria and photosynthetic endosymbiotic algae of the family ...
Letter to the Editor | Host-Microbe BiologyA Complex Scenario of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs Induced Prostaglandin E2 Production and Gut Microbiota Alteration in Clostridium difficile-Infected Mice