Microbiology

IFIT1 is rapidly evolving and exhibits disparate antiviral activities across 11 mammalian orders

1. Matthew B McDougal
2. Ian N Boys
3. Anthony M De Maria
4. Emi Nakahara
5. John W Schoggins

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important report describes the changing antiviral activity of IFIT1 across mammals and in response to distinct viruses, likely as a result of past arms races. One of the main strengths of the manuscript is the breadth of mammalian IFIT1 orthologs and viruses that were tested, as well as the thoroughness of the positive selection analysis. Overall the evidence is convincing, and the discussion conveys well the limitations due to physical interactions with other IFITs that are not accounted for.

Reviewed by eLife

The capsule and genetic background, rather than specific individual loci, strongly influence in vitro pneumococcal growth kinetics

1. Chrispin Chaguza
2. Daan W Arends
3. Stephanie W Lo
4. Indri Hapsari Putri
5. Anna York
6. John A Lees
7. Anne L Wyllie
8. Daniel M Weinberger
9. Stephen D Bentley
10. Marien I de Jonge
11. Amelieke JH Cremers

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is an important study that examines the impact of Streptococcus pneumoniae genetics on its in vitro growth kinetics, aiming to identify potential targets for vaccines and therapeutics. The study identified significant variations in growth characteristics among capsular serotypes and lineages, linked to phylogeny and high heritability, but genome-wide association studies did not reveal specific genomic loci associated with growth features independent of the genetic background. The evidence supporting these findings is convincing.

Reviewed by eLife

RBMX2: A Pivotal Regulator Linking Mycobacterium bovis Infection to Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Lung Cancer Progression

1. Chao Wang
2. Yongchong Peng
3. Hongxin Yang
4. Yanzhu Jiang
5. Abdul Karim Khalid
6. Kailun Zhang
7. Shengsong Xie
8. Luiz Bermudez
9. Yong Yang
10. Lei Zhang
11. Huanchun Chen
12. Aizhen Guo
13. Yingyu Chen

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The identification of RBMX2 as a novel regulator linking mycobacterial infection to Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition and cancer progression are fundamental findings that advance our understanding of a major research question about the link between infectious and non-infectious diseases, microbiology and oncology. It does so by introducing RBMX2 as a novel host factor, a potential therapeutic target and biomarker for both TB and lung cancer. The evidence provided is convincing because it is appropriate and the validated multi-omics methodologies used are in line with the current state of the art. This study will be of interest to scientists working in the fields of drug discovery, microbiology and oncology.

Reviewed by eLife

Bacteria detect neutrophils via a system that responds to hypochlorous acid and flow

1. Ilona P Foik
2. Runhang Shu
3. Serena Abbondante
4. Summer J Kasallis
5. Lauren A Urban
6. Andy P Huang
7. Leora Duong
8. Michaela E Marshall
9. Eric Pearlman
10. Timothy L Downing
11. Albert Siryaporn

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This is an important study reporting a new phenotype for a gene cluster that has previously been associated with the responses of the Gram-negative opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa to flow fluid. Expression of the froABCD gene cluster is induced by HOCl in vitro and by activated immune cells, which produce these types of reactive chlorine species. Overall, the evidence presented by the authors is solid; however, the mechanism of fro-induction by HOCl remains unclear, and the evidence in support of the authors' claims is descriptive, which needs to be improved. This study is of interest to infection biologists interested in mechanisms of bacterial pathogenicity.

Reviewed by eLife

The second messenger signaling molecule cyclic di-AMP drives developmental cycle progression in Chlamydia trachomatis

1. Junghoon Lee
2. Scot P Ouellette

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  In this useful study, ectopic expression and knockdown strategies were used to assess the effects of increasing and decreasing Cyclic di-AMP on the developmental cycle in Chlamydia. The authors convincingly demonstrate that overexpression of the dacA-ybbR operon results in increased production of c-di-AMP and early expression of the transitionary gene hctA and late gene omcB. Whilst the authors have attempted to revise the submission, the model proposed in the revised manuscript is still not fully supported by the data presented.

Reviewed by eLife

A novel mechanism for bacterial sporulation based on programmed peptidoglycan degradation

1. Carlos A Ramírez Carbó
2. Oihane Irazoki
3. Srutha Venkatesan
4. Lauren JS Chen
5. Haylie A Morales
6. Assariel J Garcia Avila
7. Hoi-Ling Cheung
8. Felipe Cava
9. Beiyan Nan

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This important study identifies and partially characterises two proteins optimised for coordinated peptidoglycan degradation during two spore morphogenesis programs in the bacterium Myxococcus xanthus. The evidence supporting the conclusions is solid, although the description of the data is somewhat overstated. After some editing, the paper will be of interest to those studying peptidoglycan synthesis and reorganisation, which is a central aspect of microbial cell biology.

Reviewed by eLife

Dicer accumulates in cytoplasmic foci upon alphavirus infection and plays a proviral role in Myotis myotis bat cells

1. Léa Gaucherand
2. Hugo Marie
3. Julie Cremaschi
4. Sébastien Pfeffer

Reviewed by Review Commons

Phage-Encoded TelN Inhibits Mre11-Rad50 to Protect Hairpin Telomeres

1. Maya Houmel
2. Nicolas Pellaton
3. Anna Anchimiuk
4. Stephan Gruber

Reviewed by Review Commons

Membrane binding properties of the cytoskeletal protein bactofilin

1. Ying Liu
2. Rajani Karmakar
3. Maria Billini
4. Wieland Steinchen
5. Saumyak Mukherjee
6. Rogelio Hernandez-Tamayo
7. Thomas Heimerl
8. Gert Bange
9. Lars V Schäfer
10. Martin Thanbichler

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study advances our understanding of how bactofilin cytoskeletal proteins associate with cell membranes by identifying and characterizing a conserved membrane-targeting sequence. The evidence is solid, with a well-integrated combination of mutagenesis, biophysical analysis, molecular simulations, and bioinformatics supporting the mechanistic model. The work will be of particular interest to microbiologists and structural biologists studying bacterial cytoskeletons and membrane-protein interactions.

Reviewed by eLife

Magnesium depletion unleashes two unusual modes of colistin resistance with different fitness costs

1. Yu-Ying Phoebe Hsieh
2. Ian P. O’Keefe
3. Zeqi Wang
4. Wanting Sun
5. Hyojik Yang
6. Linda M. Vu
7. Robert K. Ernst
8. Ajai A. Dandekar
9. Harmit S. Malik

Reviewed by Review Commons