Microbiology

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 David 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

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

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 Marcela 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

Three pathways feed the folate-dependent one carbon pool for growth and virulence of Listeria monocytogenes

1. Sandra Freier
2. Sarah Frentzel
3. Susan Scheffler
4. Sabrina Wamp
5. Moritz Müller
6. Tim Engelgeh
7. Janina Döhling
8. Dunja Bruder
9. Sascha Kahlfuss
10. Sven Halbedel

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  The one-carbon tetrahydrofolate metabolism plays a crucial role in producing essential metabolic intermediates. In this study, the authors employ a genetics-based approach to demonstrate that three different metabolic pathways are essential for synthesizing 1C-tetrahydrofolates (1C-THF). Disrupting any of these pathways impairs both growth and virulence. Although the work presented is valuable, the experimental evidence remains incomplete without direct quantification of folate intermediates.

Reviewed by eLife

P-body formation is required for yeast proliferation in the phyllosphere

1. Fuka Sekioka
2. Kosuke Shiraishi
3. Miho Akagi
4. Akari Habata
5. Yumi Arima
6. Yasuyoshi Sakai
7. Hiroya Yurimoto

• Curated by eLife

  eLife Assessment

  This valuable study investigates the role of P-bodies in yeast proliferation and mRNA regulation within the phyllosphere, proposing that P-body assembly contributes to methanol metabolism and stress adaptation. The findings are of interest to researchers studying post-transcriptional gene regulation and microbial ecology in plants. However, the evidence is incomplete, as most experiments were performed under artificial conditions, relied on limited genetic validation, and were supported primarily by qualitative or low-resolution imaging.

Reviewed by eLife

A weaponized phage suppresses competitors in historical and modern metapopulations of pathogenic bacteria

1. Talia Backman
2. Sergio M. Latorre
3. Efthymia Symeonidi
4. Artur Muszyński
5. Ella Bleak
6. Lauren Eads
7. Paulina I. Martinez-Koury
8. Sarita Som
9. Aubrey Hawks
10. Andrew D. Gloss
11. David M. Belnap
12. Allison M. Manuel
13. Adam M. Deutschbauer
14. Joy Bergelson
15. Parastoo Azadi
16. Hernán A. Burbano
17. Talia L. Karasov

Reviewed by Rapid Reviews Infectious Diseases