Host-Microbe Biology
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyCapsular Polysaccharide Cross-Regulation Modulates Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron Biofilm FormationThe human gut harbors a complex bacterial community that plays important roles in host health and disease, including nutrient acquisition, maturation of the immune system, and resistance to infections. The capacity to adhere to surfaces and form communities called biofilms is believed to be important for niche colonization and maintenance of gut bacteria. However, little is known about the adhesion capacity of most gut bacteria. In this...
Opinion/Hypothesis | Host-Microbe BiologyCould an Unrelated Live Attenuated Vaccine Serve as a Preventive Measure To Dampen Septic Inflammation Associated with COVID-19 Infection?We propose the concept that administration of an unrelated live attenuated vaccine, such as MMR (measles, mumps, rubella), could serve as a preventive measure against the worst sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). There is mounting evidence that live attenuated vaccines provide nonspecific protection against lethal infections unrelated to the target pathogen of the vaccine by inducing “trained” nonspecific innate immune...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyPreviremic Identification of Ebola or Marburg Virus Infection Using Integrated Host-Transcriptome and Viral Genome DetectionCurrent molecular tests that identify infection with high-consequence viruses such as Ebola virus and Marburg virus are based on the detection of virus material in the blood. These viruses do not undergo significant early replication in the blood and, instead, replicate in organs such as the liver and spleen. Thus, virus begins to accumulate in the blood only after significant replication has already occurred in those organs, making...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyRisk1, a Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase Effector, Promotes Rickettsia typhi Intracellular SurvivalRickettsia species are Gram-negative obligate intracellular bacteria that infect a wide range of eukaryotes and vertebrates. In particular, human body louse-borne Rickettsia prowazekii and flea-borne Rickettsia typhi have historically plagued humankind and continue to reemerge globally. The...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyPrions from Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Patients Propagate as Strain MixturessCJD occurrence is currently assumed to result from spontaneous and stochastic formation of a misfolded PrP nucleus in the brains of affected patients. This original nucleus then recruits and converts nascent PrPC into PrPSc, leading to the propagation of prions in the patient’s brain. Our study demonstrates the coexistence of two prion strains in the brains of a majority of the 23 sCJD patients investigated. The...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologySterol-Response Pathways Mediate Alkaline Survival in Diverse FungiThe work described here further elucidates how microorganisms sense and adapt to changes in their environment to establish infections in the human host. Specifically, we uncover a novel mechanism by which an opportunistic human fungal pathogen, Cryptococcus neoformans, responds to increases in extracellular pH in order to survive and thrive within the relatively...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyComparative Genomics Identified a Genetic Locus in Plant-Associated Pseudomonas spp. That Is Necessary for Induced Systemic SusceptibilityMicrobiome-associated bacteria can have diverse effects on health of their hosts, yet the genetic and molecular bases of these effects have largely remained elusive. This work demonstrates that a novel bacterial locus can modulate systemic plant immunity. Additionally, this work demonstrates that growth-promoting strains may have unanticipated consequences for plant immunity, and this is critical to consider when the plant microbiome is...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyInhibition of the Super Elongation Complex Suppresses Herpes Simplex Virus Immediate Early Gene Expression, Lytic Infection, and Reactivation from LatencyHSV infections can cause pathologies ranging from recurrent lesions to significant ocular disease. Initiation of lytic infection and reactivation from latency in sensory neurons are dependent on the induced expression of the viral immediate early genes. Transcription of these genes is controlled at multiple levels, including modulation of the chromatin state of the viral genome and appropriate recruitment of transcription factors and...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyIntegrin α5β1, as a Receptor of Fibronectin, Binds the FbaA Protein of Group A Streptococcus To Initiate Autophagy during InfectionAutophagy is generally considered a strategy used by the innate immune system to eliminate invasive pathogens through capturing and transferring them to lysosomes. Currently, researchers pay more attention to how virulence factors secreted by GAS regulate the autophagic process. Here, we provide the first evidence that the structural protein FbaA of M1 GAS strain SF370 is a potent inducer of autophagy in epithelial cells. Furthermore,...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyDifferential Impacts on Host Transcription by ROP and GRA Effectors from the Intracellular Parasite Toxoplasma gondiiThis work performs transcriptomic analysis of U-I cells, captures the earliest stage of a host cell’s interaction with Toxoplasma gondii, and dissects the effects of individual classes of parasite effectors on host cell biology.