Microbiology

Cyclic AMP binding to a universal stress protein in Mycobacterium tuberculosis is essential for viability

1. Arka Banerjee
2. Moubani Chakraborty
3. Suruchi Sharma
4. Ruchi Chaturvedi
5. Avipsa Bose
6. Priyanka Biswas
7. Amit Singh
8. Sandhya S. Visweswariah

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This important study will be of interest to those working on mycobacterial signal transduction. A combination of experiments provides convincing evidence to show how universal stress proteins bind to cAMP and function by direct sequestration of the second messenger. Although the methods, data and analyses broadly support the conclusions, the main claims are only partially supported and can be strengthened through further analytic approaches.

Reviewed by eLife

A high-throughput cytotoxicity screening platform reveals agr-independent mutations in bacteraemia-associated Staphylococcus aureus that promote intracellular persistence

1. Abderrahman Hachani
2. Stefano G Giulieri
3. Romain Guérillot
4. Calum J Walsh
5. Marion Herisse
6. Ye Mon Soe
7. Sarah L Baines
8. David R Thomas
9. Shane Doris Cheung
10. Ashleigh S Hayes
11. Ellie Cho
12. Hayley J Newton
13. Sacha Pidot
14. Ruth C Massey
15. Benjamin P Howden
16. Timothy P Stinear

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This paper describes a new method to investigate Staphylococcus aureus intracellular virulence that has produced important insights into the mechanisms of staphylococcal pathogenesis. The results are convincing and the methodology is state-of-the-art. This paper will be of interest to scientists studying microbial intracellular pathogenesis and cell biology.

Reviewed by eLife

Lipopolysaccharide integrity primes bacterial sensitivity to a cell wall-degrading intermicrobial toxin

1. Kristine L Trotta
2. Beth M Hayes
3. Johannes P Schneider
4. Jing Wang
5. Horia Todor
6. Patrick Rockefeller Grimes
7. Ziyi Zhao
8. William L Hatleberg
9. Melanie R Silvis
10. Rachel Kim
11. Byoung Mo Koo
12. Marek Basler
13. Seemay Chou

Reviewed by Review Commons

Extensive remodelling of the cell wall during the development of Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia

1. Edward JA Douglas
2. Nathanael Palk
3. Tarcisio Brignoli
4. Dina Altwiley
5. Marcia Boura
6. Maisem Laabei
7. Mario Recker
8. Gordon YC Cheung
9. Ryan Liu
10. Roger C Hsieh
11. Michael Otto
12. Eoin O'Brien
13. Rachel M McLoughlin
14. Ruth C Massey

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This important study uses an innovative GWAS approach and targeted testing to highlight S. aureus genes that modify susceptibility to serum, serum-derived antimicrobial products, and commonly used antibiotics. These findings are significant in that they highlight evidence of evolution of virulence determinants in the setting of exposure to host stressors expected to be present during bacteremia and antibiotic therapy. Compelling results build on a foundation of work attributing loss-of-function mutations in tcaA to glycopeptide non-susceptibility.

Reviewed by eLife

The importance of cellulolytic and xylanolytic activities of Bacillus subtilis on dairy cow feed digestibility

1. Valeria Bontà
2. Marco Battelli
3. Erlinda Rama
4. Michela Casanova
5. Lorenzo Pasotti
6. Gianluca Galassi
7. Stefania Colombini
8. Cinzia Calvio

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

Amino acid auxotrophies in human gut bacteria are linked to higher microbiome diversity and long-term stability

1. Svenja Starke
2. Danielle M M Harris
3. Johannes Zimmermann
4. Sven Schuchardt
5. Mhmd Oumari
6. Derk Frank
7. Corinna Bang
8. Philip Rosenstiel
9. Stefan Schreiber
10. Norbert Frey
11. Andre Franke
12. Konrad Aden
13. Silvio Waschina

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

Optimizing expression of Nanobody® molecules in Pichia pastoris through co-expression of auxiliary proteins under methanol and methanol-free conditions

1. Manu De Groeve
2. Bram Laukens
3. Peter Schotte

Reviewed by Arcadia Science

A toxin-mediated policing system in Bacillus optimizes division of labor via penalizing cheater-like nonproducers

1. Rong Huang
2. Jiahui Shao
3. Zhihui Xu
4. Yuqi Chen
5. Yunpeng Liu
6. Dandan Wang
7. Haichao Feng
8. Weibing Xun
9. Qirong Shen
10. Nan Zhang
11. Ruifu Zhang

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This manuscript reports important findings regarding the potential for self-policing and a division of labor among biofilm-inhabiting Bacillus cells. Overall, this work is robust in its use of various techniques and provides solid insights into the intersections of well-understood regulatory controls and the suppression of cheaters. Despite some concerns about the data, all reviewers were excited by the potential impact of this work. Colleagues interested in microbial social interactions should find this study's narrative about the internal mediation of cell differentiation particularly valuable.

Reviewed by eLife

A TRAF-like E3 ubiquitin ligase TrafE coordinates ESCRT and autophagy in endolysosomal damage response and cell-autonomous immunity to Mycobacterium marinum

1. Lyudmil Raykov
2. Manon Mottet
3. Jahn Nitschke
4. Thierry Soldati

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This study presents important findings on the mechanism as to how Mycobacterium-containing vacuoles are recognized by host cell factors and subjected to membrane repair or autophagic degradation using Dictyostelium discoideum as a useful model. The evidence for the role of TrafE in damaged-membrane repair and xenophagy induction is convincing, but that in autophagosome closure is rather incomplete.

Reviewed by eLife

A simple mechanism for integration of quorum sensing and cAMP signalling in Vibrio cholerae

1. Lucas M Walker
2. James RJ Haycocks
3. Julia C Van Kessel
4. Triana N Dalia
5. Ankur B Dalia
6. David C Grainger

• Curated by eLife

  eLife assessment

  This paper provides valuable new information on the mechanisms by which Vibrio cholerae integrates and responds to environmental signals. The strength of the evidence provided in support of the conclusions made and the model proposed is solid. The revision resolved many of the issues raised by the reviewers and improved the manuscript. The work is relevant for a broad audience of microbiologists interested in the mechanisms by which bacteria sense their environment.

Reviewed by eLife