Microbiology

A Novel Rapid Host Cell Entry Pathway Determines Intracellular Fate of Staphylococcus aureus

1. Marcel Rühling
2. Fabio Schmelz
3. Kim Ulbrich
4. Fabian Schumacher
5. Julia Wolf
6. Maximilian Pfefferle
7. Magdalena Priester
8. Adriana Moldovan
9. Nadine Knoch
10. Andreas Iwanowitsch
11. Christian Kappe
12. Kerstin Paprotka
13. Burkhard Kleuser
14. Christoph Arenz
15. Martin J Fraunholz

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study proposes a novel rapid-entry mechanism for S. aureus, involving the rapid release of calcium from lysosomes. The paper's strength lies in its very interesting hypothesis. The methods used are solid and adequately support the conclusions.

Reviewed by eLife

A Conserved Mycobacterial Nucleomodulin Hijacks the Host COMPASS Complex to Reprogram Pro-Inflammatory Transcription and Promote Intracellular Survival

1. Liu Chen
2. Baojie Duan
3. Pingping Chen
4. Qiang Jiang
5. Yifan Wang
6. Lu Lu
7. Yingyu Chen
8. Changmin Hu
9. Lei Zhang
10. Aizhen Guo

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study provides convincing evidence that MgdE, a conserved mycobacterial nucleomodulin, downregulates inflammatory gene transcription by interacting with the histone methyltransferase COMPASS complex and altering histone H3 lysine methylation. This work will interest microbiologists as well as cell and cancer biologists.

Reviewed by eLife

The type VI secretion system governs strain maintenance in a wild mammalian gut microbiome

1. Beth A Shen
2. Kyle L Asfahl
3. Bentley Lim
4. Savannah K Bertolli
5. Samuel S Minot
6. Matthew C Radey
7. Kelsi Penewit
8. Billy Ngo
9. Stephen J Salipante
10. Christopher D Johnston
11. S Brook Peterson
12. Andrew L Goodman
13. Joseph D Mougous

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This fundamental work significantly advances our understanding of how contact-dependent antagonism enables keystone bacteria to establish and maintain their niche over time. The evidence obtained is convincing, supporting most of the conclusions drawn. This work will be of significant interest to the microbiome research community.

Reviewed by eLife

Mycobacterial metallophosphatase MmpE acts as a nucleomodulin to regulate host gene expression and promote intracellular survival

1. Liu Chen
2. Baojie Duan
3. Qiang Jiang
4. Yifan Wang
5. Yingyu Chen
6. Lei Zhang
7. Aizhen Guo

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The work convincingly demonstrates the role of the mycobacterial secreted effector protein MmpE, which translocates to the host nucleus and exhibits phosphatase activity. The study is particularly valuable in showing that both the nuclear localization signal sequences and residues critical for phosphatase function are essential for host gene regulation, lysosomal biogenesis, and intracellular survival. Future studies will be needed to explore additional host pathways modulated by MmpE, particularly in the context of infection with a fully virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain.

Reviewed by eLife

The role of MICOS in organizing mitochondrial cristae in malaria parasites

1. Silvia Tassan-Lugrezin
2. Irina Bregy
3. Judith López Orra
4. Nicholas I. Proellochs
5. Geert-Jan van Gemert
6. Rianne Stoter
7. Felix Evers
8. Taco W.A. Kooij
9. Laura van Niftrik

Reviewed by Review Commons

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 tackles an interesting aspect of fungal physiology: how a mitochondria-associated gene influences production of the secondary metabolite DON and fungicide sensitivity. The authors have improved the manuscript and the supporting evidence is convincing, although some uncertainties remain around descriptions of the methods.

Reviewed by eLife

C is non-coding genetic variation drives gene expression changes in the E. coli and P. aeruginosa pangenomes

1. Bamu F. Damaris
2. Matylda Zietek
3. Jelena Erdmann
4. Athanasios Typas
5. Susanne Häußler
6. Marco Galardini

Reviewed by Review Commons

High-Throughput Quantification of Population Dynamics using Luminescence

1. Malte Muetter
2. Daniel Angst
3. Roland Regoes
4. Sebastian Bonhoeffer

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  Muetter et al. provide an important argument that luminescence is a reliable, high-throughput alternative to colony-forming units (CFU) for super-MIC investigations, particularly when the quantity of interest is biomass. By examining 20 antimicrobials spanning 11 classes, the work shows that discrepancies between CFU and luminescence are often biological (filamentation, Viable But Not Culturable). The work provides a compelling view of how these three common measurements (luminescence, optical density, and CFU) relate to one another across a range of drug treatments, although testing on clinical isolates could be of further benefit.

Reviewed by eLife

Unlocking new understanding of Plasmodium sporozoite biology with expansion microscopy

1. Benjamin Liffner
2. Thiago Luiz Alves e Silva
3. Elizabeth Glennon
4. Veronica Primavera
5. Elaine Hoffman
6. Alexis Kaushansky
7. Joel Vega-Rodriguez
8. Sabrina Absalon

Reviewed by Review Commons

A rapid transfer of virions coated with heparan sulfate from the ECM to CD151 defines an early step in the human papillomavirus infection cascade

1. Annika Massenberg
2. Yahya Homsi
3. Carl Niklas Schneider
4. Snježana Mikuličić
5. Tatjana Döring
6. Luise Florin
7. Thorsten Lang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This study provides valuable insight into the role of actin protrusions in mediating early pre-endoyctic steps of human papillomavirus entry at the cell surface. Using state-of-the-art microscopy in an immortalized keratinocyte model, the authors present mostly solid evidence that filopodia actively promote the transfer of heparin sulfate-coated virions from the extracullar matrix to the viral entry factor CD151. Remaining gaps in the mechanistic model could be further supported by including a more expansive analysis of the fixed microscopy samples and live cell imaging to distinguish virion transfer from direct binding.

Reviewed by eLife