Microbiology

A system for functional studies of the major virulence factor of malaria parasites

1. Jakob Cronshagen
2. Johannes Allweier
3. Paolo Mesén-Ramírez
4. Jan Stäcker
5. Anna Viktoria Vaaben
6. Gala Ramón-Zamorano
7. Isabel Naranjo-Prado
8. Susann Ofori
9. Pascal WTC Jansen
10. Joëlle Hornebeck
11. Florian Kieferle
12. Agnes Murk
13. Elicia Martin
14. Carolina Castro-Peña
15. Richárd Bártfai
16. Thomas Lavstsen
17. Iris Bruchhaus
18. Tobias Spielmann

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study introduces an important approach using selection linked integration (SLI) to generate Plasmodium falciparum lines expressing single, specific surface adhesins PfEMP1 variants, enabling precise study of PfEMP1 trafficking, receptor binding, and cytoadhesion. By moving the system to different parasite strains and introducing an advanced SLI2 system for additional genomic edits, this work provides compelling evidence for an innovative and rigorous platform to explore PfEMP1 biology and identify novel proteins essential for malaria pathogenesis including immune evasion.

Reviewed by eLife

Loss of the s2U tRNA modification induces antibiotic tolerance and is linked to changes in ribosomal protein expression

1. Katherine L Cotten
2. Abigail McShane
3. Peter C Dedon
4. Thomas J Begley
5. Kimberly M Davis

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This fundamental work examines how tRNA modifications influence antibiotic tolerance, providing novel insights that may have therapeutic uses. The evidence supporting the conclusions is convincing. Strengths of the manuscript include the mechanism of tRNA modification influencing antibiotic tolerance and the precise measurement techniques used throughout. Further analysis of growth rate impacts and specific identification of the proteins responsible for the effect would further strengthen the manuscript.

Reviewed by eLife

Functional genomics reveals strain-specific genetic requirements conferring hypoxic growth in Mycobacterium intracellulare

1. Yoshitaka Tateishi
2. Yuriko Ozeki
3. Akihito Nishiyama
4. Yuta Morishige
5. Yusuke Minato
6. Anthony D Baughn
7. Sohkichi Matsumoto

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study makes a valuable contribution by elucidating the genetic determinants of growth and fitness across multiple clinical strains of Mycobacterium intracellulare, an understudied non-tuberculous mycobacterium. Using transposon sequencing (Tn-seq), the authors identify a core set of 131 genes essential for bacterial adaptation to hypoxia, providing a convincing foundation for anti-mycobacterial drug discovery.

Reviewed by eLife

Rice stripe virus utilizes a Laodelphax striatellus salivary carbonic anhydrase to facilitate plant infection by direct molecular interaction

1. Jing Zhao
2. Xiangyi Meng
3. Jie Yang
4. Rongxiang Fang
5. Yan Huo
6. Lili Zhang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study presents a well-designed set of experiments demonstrating how a planthopper salivary carbonic anhydrase can promote rice stripe virus infection by modulating callose deposition in the host plant. The authors provide solid data for the proposed protein-protein interactions, including strengthened evidence for the LssaCA-NP-OsTLP complex and clarified dynamics of LssaCA presence in planta. Overall, the work reveals a mechanistic link whereby a vector salivary protein enhances a plant β-1,3-glucanase to suppress callose-based defense, thereby facilitating early viral establishment.

Reviewed by eLife

Vitamin B ₂ Production by Vaginal Lactobacilli Promotes Symbiosis

1. Caroline E.M.K. Dricot
2. Denise M. Selegato
3. Tim Van Rillaer
4. Eline Cauwenberghs
5. Isabel Erreygers
6. Margo Hiel
7. Amber Brauer-Nikonow
8. Annelies Breynaert
9. Stefanie Wijnants
10. Isabel Pintelon
11. Sandra Condori
12. Sarah Ahannach
13. Thies Gehrmann
14. Sam Bakelants
15. Nina Hermans
16. Patrick Van Dijck
17. Michael France
18. Irina Spacova
19. Jacques Ravel
20. Michael Zimmermann
21. Sarah Lebeer

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

Peptidoglycan recycling is critical for cell division, cell wall integrity and β-lactam resistance in Caulobacter crescentus

1. Pia Richter
2. Anna Merz
3. Jacob Biboy
4. Nicole Paczia
5. Timo Glatter
6. Waldemar Vollmer
7. Martin Thanbichler

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is a valuable study that investigates peptidoglycan (PG) recycling in Caulobacter crescentus, demonstrating its importance for β-lactam resistance, cell morphology, and cell division. The findings are compelling, although limited complementation somewhat constrains the interpretation of specific gene functions.

Reviewed by eLife

Stationary-Phase Pseudomonas aeruginosa Fluoroquinolone Persisters Mostly Avoid DNA Double-Stranded Breaks

1. Patricia J. Hare
2. Juliet R. González
3. Wendy W.K. Mok

Reviewed by Rapid Reviews Infectious Diseases

Dark matter of an orchid: metagenome of the microbiome associated with the rhizosphere of Dactylorhiza traunsteineri

1. Gabriel A Vignolle
2. Leopold Zehetner
3. Christian Zimmerman
4. Domenico F Savio
5. Ovidiu Paun
6. Robert L Mach
7. Astrid R Mach-Aigner
8. Julien Charest

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents a useful overview of the taxonomic composition of the microbiome associated with Dactylorhiza traunsteineri, a widely distributed orchid species in Central Europe. The evidence supporting the claims of the authors is incomplete, especially when it comes to the (secondary) metabolic pathways found in the metagenome assembled genomes, and requires more substantial analysis to be able to claim that these pathways play a key role in microbiome-orchid symbiosis.

Reviewed by eLife

Membrane affinity difference between MinD monomer and dimer is not crucial for MinD gradient formation in Bacillus subtilis

1. Laura C Bohorquez
2. Henrik Strahl
3. Davide Marenduzzo
4. Martin J Thiele
5. Frank Bürmann
6. Leendert W Hamoen

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  In the gram-positive model organism Bacillus subtilis, the membrane associated ParA family member MinD, concentrates the division inhibitor MinC at cell poles where it prevents aberrant division events. This important study presents compelling data suggesting that polar localization of MinCD is largely due to differences in diffusion rates between monomeric and dimeric MinD. This finding is exciting as it negates the necessity for a third, localization determinant, in this system as has been proposed by previous investigations.

Reviewed by eLife

Structural basis for collagen recognition by the Streptococcus pyogenes M3 protein and its involvement in biofilm

1. Marta Wojnowska
2. Takeaki Wajima
3. Tamas Yelland
4. Hannes Ludewig
5. Robert M Hagan
6. Olivia F McCurry
7. Grant Watt
8. Samir W Hamaia
9. Dominique Bihan
10. Jean-Daniel Malcor
11. Arkadiusz Bonna
12. Helena Bergsten
13. Laura M Palma Medina
14. Mattias Svensson
15. Oddvar Oppegaard
16. Steinar Skrede
17. Per Arnell
18. Ole Hyldegaard
19. Richard W Farndale
20. Anna Norrby-Teglund
21. Ulrich Schwarz-Linek

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  M proteins are essential group A streptococci virulence factors that bind to numerous human proteins; a small subset of M proteins, such as M3, have been reported to bind collagen, which is thought to promote tissue adherence. In this important paper, the authors provide a solid characterization of M3 interactions with collagen. The work raises significant questions regarding the specificity of the structure and its interactions with different collagens, with implications for the variable actions of M protein collagen interactions on biofilm formation.

Reviewed by eLife