Microbiology

Multi-omics investigation of spontaneous T2DM macaque emphasizes gut microbiota could up-regulate the absorption of excess palmitic acid in the T2DM progression

1. Xu Liu
2. Yuchen Xie
3. Shengzhi Yang
4. Cong Jiang
5. Ke Shang
6. Jinxia Luo
7. Lin Zhang
8. Gang Hu
9. Qinghua Liu
10. Bisong Yue
11. Zhenxin Fan
12. Zhanlong He
13. Jing Li

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important work substantially advances our understanding of the interaction among gut microbiota, lipid metabolism, and the host in type 2 diabetes. The evidence supporting the claims of the authors is convincing. The work will be of interest to medical biologists working on microbiota and diabetes.

Reviewed by eLife

Mitochondrial protein FgDML1 regulates DON toxin biosynthesis and cyazofamid sensitivity in Fusarium graminearum by affecting mitochondrial homeostasis

1. Chenguang Wang
2. Xuewei Mao
3. Weiwei Cong
4. Lin Yang
5. Yiping Hou

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study provides a potential framework for understanding the regulatory mechanisms of DON toxin biosynthesis in F. graminearum and identifies potential molecular targets for Fusarium head blight control. While FgDML1 remains under-explored with an unclear role in the biology of filamentous fungi, the supporting evidence in this study is incomplete. Providing details on methods and adding controls will strengthen the work.

Reviewed by eLife

Genome-directed study reveals the diversity of Salmonella T6SS effectors and identifies a novel family of lipid-targeting antibacterial toxins

1. Gianlucca G. Nicastro
2. Stephanie Sibinelli-Sousa
3. Julia Takuno Hespanhol
4. Thomas W. C. Santos
5. Joseph P. Munoz
6. Rosangela S. Santos
7. Blanca M. Perez-Sepulveda
8. Sayuri Miyamoto
9. L. Aravind
10. Robson F. de Souza
11. Ethel Bayer-Santos

Reviewed by Review Commons

Genotypic Detection of Antibiotic-Resistant Genes in Emerging Bacterial Pathogens From Neonatal Sepsis Patients in Lagos

1. Helen Opeoluwa Adegboyega
2. Taiwo Abayomi Banjo
3. Anotu Mopelola Deji-Agboola
4. Bamidele Abiodun Iwalokun
5. Wasiu Bamidele Mutiu
6. Olubunmi Adetokunbo Osinupebi
7. Tessie Owolabi Shorunmu
8. Farouk Adedeji Oladoja
9. Oluwabunmi Motunrayo Fatungase
10. Muinat Moronke Adeyanju
11. Raheem Akinwunmi Akindele
12. Ponle Bamidele Fakunle
13. Ayobami Babatunde
14. Olusola Ajayi
15. Olufemi Onadeko
16. Abimbola Adeola Akintunde Oyelekan
17. Solomon Olubodunrin Ariyibi
18. Kolawole Sunday Oritogun
19. Emmanuel Sunday Omirin

Reviewed by PREreview

Secreted small RNAs of Naegleria fowleri are biomarkers for diagnosis of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis

1. A Cassiopeia Russell
2. Joseph Dainis
3. Jose Alexander
4. Ibne Karim M Ali
5. Dennis E Kyle

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The manuscript by Russell et al. investigates an important problem: the current lack of methods for early and accurate N. fowleri diagnosis, which is >95% fatal. The authors provide solid evidence that a small RNA secreted by N. fowleri is detectable in biological fluids like blood and urine in a mouse model, and is present in cerebrospinal fluid and blood for a limited number of patient samples. This could potentially help with earlier diagnosis, which could save lives.

Reviewed by eLife

Structural insights into peptidoglycan hydrolysis by the FtsEX system in Escherichia coli during cell division

1. Jianwei Li
2. Yutong He
3. Xin Xu
4. Martin Alcorlo
5. Jian Shi
6. Souvik Naskar
7. Nicholas S Briggs
8. David I Roper
9. Juan A Hermoso
10. Lok-To Sham
11. Min Luo

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is a potentially useful study that provides solid, yet confirmatory structural findings about the complex (FtsEX) that controls peptidoglycan remodeling during bacterial cell division. The authors capitalize on the fact that ATP binding stabilizes the FtsEX complex allowing structural characterization for this system. A model is then developed to explain ATP regulation but there is a gap between the model presented here and in vivo data reported previously.

Reviewed by eLife

Navigating contradictions in enteric chemotactic stimuli

1. Kailie Franco
2. Zealon Gentry-Lear
3. Michael Shavlik
4. Michael J Harms
5. Arden Baylink

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  In this manuscript, Franco and colleagues present compelling evidence that fecal extracts containing high concentrations of indole, a known repellent, enhance rather than protect against invasion of colonic tissue by Salmonella. The authors describe important findings that lead to the conclusion that the competing effects of attractants present in fecal matter, including L-serine, also sensed by the Tsr chemoreceptor that senses indole, override the repulsive effect of indole.

Reviewed by eLife

Effects of parental care on skin microbial community composition in poison frogs

1. Marie-Therese Fischer
2. Katherine S Xue
3. Elizabeth K Costello
4. Mai Dvorak
5. Gaelle Raboisson
6. Anna Robaczewska
7. Stephanie N Caty
8. David A Relman
9. Lauren A O'Connell

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study provides an important perspective on the influence of parental care in the establishment of the amphibian microbiome. Through a combination of cross-fostering experimental work, comparative analysis, and developmental time series, the authors provide compelling evidence that vertical transmission through care is possible, and solid but somewhat preliminary evidence that it plays a significant role in shaping frog skin microbiomes in nature or across time. This work will be of interest to researchers studying the evolution of parental care and microbiomes in vertebrates.

Reviewed by eLife

REPOP: bacterial population quantification from plate counts

1. Pedro Pessoa
2. Carol Lu
3. Stanimir Asenov Tashev
4. Rory Kruithoff
5. Douglas P Shepherd
6. Steve Pressé

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study introduces a Bayesian method to determine bacterial counts that accounts for the experimental noise inherent to dilution and plating methods, and distinguishes it from biological uncertainty. The evidence supporting the conclusions is convincing, combining simulated data and experimental data. The method will be of interest to microbial ecologists, and potentially to the broader community interested in inference from biological data, even more so if the domain of application and the limitations are further clarified.

Reviewed by eLife

An abundant merozoite surface protein of Plasmodium falciparum modulates susceptibility to inhibitory antibodies

1. Isabelle G Henshall
2. Jill Chmielewski
3. Dimuthu Angage
4. Ornella Romeo
5. Keng Heng Lai
6. Kaitlin R Turland
7. Nicki Badii
8. Michael Foley
9. Robin F Anders
10. James Beeson
11. Danny W Wilson

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important work offers a fresh perspective central to merozoite surface biology and potential implications on vaccine design, challenging the dogma that MSPs are indispensable invasion engines. Although the authors only deleted bp 132-819, the data based on Western blot, IFA, and RNA‐seq provide compelling evidence that while MSP2 is dispensable for growth, it serves as an immune modulator for AMA1. This work will be of particular interest to scientists working on different aspects of Plasmodium biology and vaccinology.

Reviewed by eLife