Microbiology

The giant mimivirus 1.2 Mb genome is elegantly organized into a 30-nm diameter helical protein shield

1. Alejandro Villalta
2. Alain Schmitt
3. Leandro F Estrozi
4. Emmanuelle RJ Quemin
5. Jean-Marie Alempic
6. Audrey Lartigue
7. Vojtěch Pražák
8. Lucid Belmudes
9. Daven Vasishtan
10. Agathe MG Colmant
11. Flora A Honoré
12. Yohann Couté
13. Kay Grünewald
14. Chantal Abergel

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  Giant dsDNA viruses, with genomes in excess of 1Mb that encode more than a thousand genes, were only recently discovered and their study offers new opportunities to understand life's evolved mechanisms. In this manuscript, Villalta and colleagues report results on one of the most complex known viruses, the Mimivirus. Its genome is compacted into magnificent fibers comprising apparently repurposed GMC-type oxidoreductase paralogs assembled as a helical coat around genomic dsDNA. Cryo-EM and cryo-ET image analysis yielded a structural model of the fiber in multiple states. The authors also provide some evidence that additional viral enzymes, including RNA polymerases, exist within the fiber assemblies. Pending the resolution of certain issues that emerged in peer review, the study will be of broad interest to biologists.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

Vaccination decreases the risk of influenza A virus reassortment but not genetic variation in pigs

1. Chong Li
2. Marie R Culhane
3. Declan C Schroeder
4. Maxim C-J Cheeran
5. Lucina Galina Pantoja
6. Micah L Jansen
7. Montserrat Torremorell

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  Vaccines are a major influenza control strategy in swine, but perform sub-optimally and are under-utilized. The manuscript describes a detailed genetic characterization of influenza virus variants in vaccinated versus unvaccinated pigs. The results indicate that viral reassortment, which is an important process yielding new strange of importance to man and animals, may be less common in pigs that have been vaccinated against influenza.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

Two enhancer binding proteins activate σ54-dependent transcription of a quorum regulatory RNA in a bacterial symbiont

1. Ericka D Surrett
2. Kirsten R Guckes
3. Shyan Cousins
4. Terry B Ruskoski
5. Andrew G Cecere
6. Denise A Ludvik
7. C Denise Okafor
8. Mark J Mandel
9. Tim I Miyashiro

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  The manuscript has the potential to transform the field of sensory transduction and gene regulation in the Vibrio genus by uncovering a previously undescribed enhancer binding protein and its role in the regulation of quorum sensing and physiology in the Vibrio - squid symbiosis. However, in its present form, several experiments are required to support the claims of the manuscript.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife

Characterization of entry pathways, species-specific ACE2 residues determining entry, and antibody neutralization evasion of Omicron BA.1, BA.1.1, BA.2, and BA.3 variants

1. Sabari Nath Neerukonda
2. Richard Wang
3. Russell Vassell
4. Haseebullah Baha
5. Sabrina Lusvarghi
6. Shufeng Liu
7. Tony Wang
8. Carol D. Weiss
9. Wei Wang

Reviewed by ScreenIT

A Multitrait Locus Regulates Sarbecovirus Pathogenesis

1. Alexandra Schäfer
2. Sarah R. Leist
3. Lisa E. Gralinski
4. David R. Martinez
5. Emma S. Winkler
6. Kenichi Okuda
7. Padraig E. Hawkins
8. Kendra L. Gully
9. Rachel L. Graham
10. D. Trevor Scobey
11. Timothy A. Bell
12. Pablo Hock
13. Ginger D. Shaw
14. Jennifer F. Loome
15. Emily A. Madden
16. Elizabeth Anderson
17. Victoria K. Baxter
18. Sharon A. Taft-Benz
19. Mark R. Zweigart
20. Samantha R. May
21. Stephanie Dong
22. Matthew Clark
23. Darla R. Miller
24. Rachel M. Lynch
25. Mark T. Heise
26. Roland Tisch
27. Richard C. Boucher
28. Fernando Pardo Manuel de Villena
29. Stephanie A. Montgomery
30. Michael S. Diamond
31. Martin T. Ferris
32. Ralph S. Baric

Reviewed by ScreenIT

SARS-CoV-2 variant spike and accessory gene mutations alter pathogenesis

1. Marisa E. McGrath
2. Yong Xue
3. Carly Dillen
4. Lauren Oldfield
5. N. Assad-Garcia
6. Jayshree Zaveri
7. Natasha Singh
8. Lauren Baracco
9. Louis J. Taylor
10. Sanjay Vashee
11. Matthew B. Frieman

Reviewed by ScreenIT

The salivary and nasopharyngeal microbiomes are associated with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection and disease severity

1. Josh G. Kim
2. Ai Zhang
3. Adriana M. Rauseo
4. Charles W. Goss
5. Philip A. Mudd
6. Jane A. O'Halloran
7. Leyao Wang

Reviewed by ScreenIT

The SARS-CoV-2 accessory factor ORF7a downregulates MHC class I surface expression

1. Shuxuan Zheng
2. Hendrik de Buhr
3. Patrique Praest
4. Anouk Evers
5. Ingrid Brak-Boer
6. Mariëlle van Grinsven
7. Ylenia Longo
8. Liset de Vries
9. Wilco Nijenhuis
10. Lukas C. Kapitein
11. Jeffrey M. Beekman
12. Monique Nijhuis
13. Ingo Drexler
14. Emmanuel J. H. J. Wiertz
15. Robert Jan Lebbink

Reviewed by ScreenIT

Herd immunity on chip: recapitulating virus transmission in human society

1. Wanyoung Lim
2. Narina Jung
3. Jiande Zhang
4. Zhenzhong Chen
5. Byung Mook Weon
6. Sungsu Park

Reviewed by ScreenIT

Obligate sexual reproduction of a homothallic fungus closely related to the Cryptococcus pathogenic species complex

1. Andrew Ryan Passer
2. Shelly Applen Clancey
3. Terrance Shea
4. Márcia David-Palma
5. Anna Floyd Averette
6. Teun Boekhout
7. Betina M Porcel
8. Minou Nowrousian
9. Christina A Cuomo
10. Sheng Sun
11. Joseph Heitman
12. Marco A Coelho

• Curated by eLife

  Evaluation Summary:

  There are various ways in which self-fertility has arisen in the fungal kingdom. This study describes a novel form of self-fertility that evolved in a species closely related to the Cryptococcus species causing serious human lung disease, in which sexual development is achieved by self signaling of a cognate pheromone and pheromone receptor pair. Through a combination of high-quality genomic analysis and experimental gene expression and manipulation work, the study adds to our understanding of the evolution and flexibility of fungal breeding systems. This work will be of interest to colleagues studying fungi as well as mating systems in any eukaryote.

  (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

Reviewed by eLife