Host-Microbe Biology
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyIn Vivo Transcriptome of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Colonization Impact on Murine Host Intestinal Gene Expression
To date, our basis for comprehending the probiotic mechanisms of Lactobacillus acidophilus, one of the most widely consumed probiotic microbes, was largely limited to in vitro functional genomic studies. Using a germfree murine colonization model, in vivo-based transcriptional studies provided the first view of how...
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologySphingomyelin Biosynthesis Is Essential for Phagocytic Signaling during Mycobacterium tuberculosis Host Cell Entry
Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) invades alveolar macrophages through phagocytosis to establish infection and cause disease. The molecular mechanisms underlying Mtb entry are still poorly understood.
- Research Article | Host-Microbe Biology5-Aminosalicylic Acid Ameliorates Colitis and Checks Dysbiotic Escherichia coli Expansion by Activating PPAR-γ Signaling in the Intestinal Epithelium
An expansion of Enterobacterales in the fecal microbiota is a microbial signature of dysbiosis that is linked to many noncommunicable diseases, including ulcerative colitis. Here, we used Escherichia coli, a representative of the Enterobacterales, to show that its dysbiotic expansion during colitis can be remediated by modulating host epithelial...
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyChlamydia trachomatis TmeA Directly Activates N-WASP To Promote Actin Polymerization and Functions Synergistically with TarP during Invasion
The increasing genetic tractability of Chlamydia trachomatis is accelerating the ability to characterize the unique infection biology of this obligate intracellular parasite. These efforts are leading to a greater understanding of the molecular events associated with key virulence requirements.
- Observation | Host-Microbe BiologySterilization by Adaptive Immunity of a Conditionally Persistent Mutant of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
The bacterial pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis can enter into a persistent state in which M. tuberculosis can evade host immunity, thereby reducing the effectiveness of current tuberculosis vaccines. Understanding the factors that contribute to persistence would enable the rational design of...
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyCRNKL1 Is a Highly Selective Regulator of Intron-Retaining HIV-1 and Cellular mRNAs
To regulate its complex splicing pattern, HIV-1 uses the adaptor protein Rev to shuttle unspliced or partially spliced mRNA from the nucleus to the cytoplasm. In the absence of Rev, these RNAs are retained in the nucleus, but it is unclear why.
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyExploring the Impact of Ketodeoxynonulosonic Acid in Host-Pathogen Interactions Using Uptake and Surface Display by Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae
All cells in vertebrates are coated with a dense array of glycans often capped with sugars called sialic acids. Sialic acids have many functions, including serving as a signal for recognition of “self” cells by the immune system, thereby guiding an appropriate immune response against foreign “nonself” and/or damaged cells.
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Canonical Long-Chain Fatty Acid Sensing Machinery Processes Arachidonic Acid To Inhibit Virulence in Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli
Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) play important roles in host immunity. Manipulation of lipid content in host tissues through diet or pharmacological interventions is associated with altered severity of various inflammatory diseases.
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologySARS-CoV-2 Genomic Variation in Space and Time in Hospitalized Patients in Philadelphia
Understanding how SARS-CoV-2 spreads globally and within infected individuals is critical to the development of mitigation strategies. We found that most lineages in Philadelphia had resembled sequences from New York, suggesting infection primarily but not exclusively from this location.
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyEngineering a Reliable and Convenient SARS-CoV-2 Replicon System for Analysis of Viral RNA Synthesis and Screening of Antiviral Inhibitors
COVID-19 has caused a severe global pandemic. Until now, there has been no simple and reliable system available in a lower-biosafety-grade laboratory for SARS-CoV-2 virologic research and inhibitor screening.