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

Microbiota from young mice counteracts susceptibility to age-related gout through modulating butyric acid levels in aged mice

1. Ning Song
2. Hang Gao
3. Jianhao Li
4. Yi Liu
5. Mingze Wang
6. Zhiming Ma
7. Naisheng Zhang
8. Wenlong Zhang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is an important study showing that age-related gut microbiota modulate uric acid metabolism through the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway and thereby regulate susceptibility to age-related gout. Several experimental approaches (mechanistic insights) and methods (data quality) remain incomplete. This paper should be of interest to researchers working on gout and microbiota.

Reviewed by eLife

Virus adaptation to heparan sulfate comes with capsid stability tradeoff

1. Han Kang Tee
2. Simon Crouzet
3. Arunima Muliyil
4. Gregory Mathez
5. Valeria Cagno
6. Matteo Dal Peraro
7. Aleksandar Antanasijevic
8. Sophie Clément
9. Caroline Tapparel

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is an important work and it correlates capsid stability with mutations that promote heparan sulfate binding. The data is solid, but there is a need for further analysis and experiments to support the claims and to propose a more detailed mechanism that could explain how these mutations altered capsid stability.

Reviewed by eLife

Microbes with higher metabolic independence are enriched in human gut microbiomes under stress

1. Iva Veseli
2. Yiqun T Chen
3. Matthew S Schechter
4. Chiara Vanni
5. Emily C Fogarty
6. Andrea R Watson
7. Bana Jabri
8. Ran Blekhman
9. Amy D Willis
10. Michael K Yu
11. Antonio Fernàndez-Guerra
12. Jessika Füssel
13. A Murat Eren

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study presents an important new bioinformatics tool for normalizing gene copy number from metagenomic assemblies and applies it to gain functional insights into the loss of microbial diversity during conditions of stress. The inclusion of extensive computational validation makes this a compelling study that raises intriguing new hypotheses regarding the impact of disease states on the gut microbiome. This paper will likely be of broad interest to researchers studying the role of complex microbial communities in host health and disease.

Reviewed by eLife

Paracrine rescue of MYR1-deficient Toxoplasma gondii mutants reveals limitations of pooled in vivo CRISPR screens

1. Francesca Torelli
2. Diogo M da Fonseca
3. Simon W Butterworth
4. Joanna C Young
5. Moritz Treeck

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study shows that Toxoplasma gondii uses paracrine mechanisms, in addition to cell-intrinsic methods, to evade the host immune system, with MYR1 playing a key role in transporting effector molecules into host cells. The authors present convincing evidence that in vivo, MYR1-deficient parasites can be rescued by wild-type parasites, revealing a limitation in pooled CRISPR screens, where such paracrine effects may obscure the identification of key parasite pathways involved in immune evasion

Reviewed by eLife

Green synthesized silver nanoparticles from Moringa : Potential for preventative treatment of SARS-CoV-2 contaminated water

1. Adebayo J. Bello
2. Omorilewa B. Ebunoluwa
3. Rukayat O. Ayorinde
4. Nneka Onyepeju
5. Joseph O. Shaibu
6. Adeniyi R. Adewole
7. Abeebat O. Adewole
8. Olusegun Adedeji
9. Ololade O. Akinnusi
10. Olajumoke B. Oladapo
11. Temitope S. Popoola
12. Oluwamodupe M. Arotiba
13. Joseph B. Minari
14. Luqman A. Adams
15. Joy Okpuzor
16. Mujeeb O. Shittu

Reviewed by preLights

Akkermansia muciniphila identified as key strain to alleviate gut barrier injury through Wnt signaling pathway

1. Xin Ma
2. Meng Li
3. Yuanyuan Zhang
4. Tingting Xu
5. Xinchen Zhou
6. Mengqi Qian
7. Zhiren Yang
8. Xinyan Han

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The work by Han and collaborators describes valuable findings on the role of Akkermansia muciniphila during ETEC infection. If confirmed, these findings will add to a growing list of beneficial properties of this organism. The strength of the evidence used to justify the conclusions in the manuscript is solid, as the analyses broadly support the claims with only minor weaknesses.

Reviewed by eLife

The Mycobacterium ulcerans toxin mycolactone causes destructive Sec61-dependent loss of the endothelial glycocalyx and vessel basement membrane to drive skin necrosis

1. Louise Tzung-Harn Hsieh
2. Belinda S Hall
3. Jane Newcombe
4. Tom A Mendum
5. Sonia Santana Varela
6. Yagnesh Umrania
7. Michael J Deery
8. Wei Q Shi
9. Josué Diaz-Delgado
10. Francisco J Salguero
11. Rachel E Simmonds

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The toxin mycolactone is produced by Mycobacterium ulcerans which is responsible for the Buruli ulcer lesions. The authors performed a valuable study showing the effects of mycolactone on blood vessel integrity. This convincing data provides new therapeutic targets to accelerate the healing of Buruli ulcer lesions.

Reviewed by eLife

Antimicrobial activity of iron-depriving pyoverdines against human opportunistic pathogens

1. Vera Vollenweider
2. Karoline Rehm
3. Clara Chepkirui
4. Manuela Pérez-Berlanga
5. Magdalini Polymenidou
6. Jörn Piel
7. Laurent Bigler
8. Rolf Kümmerli

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study highlights the use of siderophores as antibacterials, and the authors also discuss the consequences and efficacy of 'siderophore therapy' in more complex communities/environments. The evidence supporting the overall hypotheses ranges is largely convincing. The work will be of broad interest to people working in the fields of evolutionary ecology, microbiology and medical sciences.

Reviewed by eLife

The nanoscale organization of the Nipah virus fusion protein informs new membrane fusion mechanisms

1. Qian Wang
2. Jinxin Liu
3. Yuhang Luo
4. Vicky Kliemke
5. Giuliana Leonarda Matta
6. Jingjing Wang
7. Qian Liu

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study advances our understanding of how Nipah virus fusion protein F (NiV-F) organizes into nanoclusters on cell and viral membranes using biochemical and super-resolution microscopy methods. The conclusions are supported by solid evidence and the revision has addressed most of the reviewers' concerns. The relationship between clustering and fusion is of high interest and an interesting hypothesis to continue investigating in future studies.

Reviewed by eLife