Bacteriophages are normally classified as either virulent or temperate. Reality is, of course, more complicated!
Here we show many bacterial isolates contain non-temperate phages that can persist through restreaking.
Thanks to all co-authors for such a great collaboration!
Beyond the scope of this paper, I must highlight how terrific this unique system of obligate symbiosis is, to decipher what are the molecular determinants for bacterial phyllosphere colonization. I have no doubt that this will lead to several major discoveries in the future! 🦠🪴
A plant symbiont in the phyllosphere uses two distinct T6SS-antibacterial weapons to get rid of potential competitors! 🏹🦠
Proud to have had the opportunity to take part to this exciting project, and fantastic work from the @acarlier.bsky.social lab!
#Belgium
The latest completed work from our ERC StG BioMatrix is now online 🤩🦠🧫🔬🧪🤓: mechanisms for c-di-GMP sensing and synthase activation by proxy, pEtN-transferase recruitment and polymer modification:
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Now is published a beautiful and short "dispatch" to highlight its main results, and put them in context with the literature
I hope you will enjoy the reading 🙏
www-cell-com.insb.bib.cnrs.fr/current-biol...
We recently published a paper @CurrentBiology on a novel and conserved Proteobacterial scaffold observed by #CryoEM formed by BcsD and a Proline-rich partner, bound to cellulose synthase, and involved in biofilm structuration and strength
www.cell.com/current-biol...
The exact role of this scaffold in terms of cellulose organization or modification remain enigmatic, and further work is needed to discover how it impacts cellulose secretion in Proteobacteria Nevertheless, our paper just came out
@CurrentBiology
: www.cell.com/current-biol...
Last but not least, BcsD can form a scaffold with its partner that can further bind to cellulose synthase. I'm not a structuralist myself, but this scaffold does not look like anything else I have seen before (please comment if you have ideas/inputs)
Furthermore, BcsD participate to biofilm architecture, suggesting an active role in cellulose organization during secretion
In our work, we show through #CryoEM that BcsD form tetramers and not octamers (unlike in Gluconacetobacter genus), and that its partner is either BcsP or BcsO
While BcsH is restricted to the Gluconacetobacter genus, BcsD is present in many other Proteobacteria, with very different cellulose operons, which is very intriguing Their role and structure was undefined until recently
However, Gluconacetobacter can secrete crystalline cellulose. In this case, cellulose synthases are attached to the so-called "cortical belt", a cytoskeletal scaffold recently discovered, made of BcsD octamers with BcsH partner
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Plant secrete cellulose in a highly orderly fashion contrarily to most bacteria which secrete amorphous cellulose. In plant, this is achieved by the "rosettes" formed of cellulose synthases attached to a cytoskeletal scaffold
Figure from: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Kicking off the winter with our latest paper on bacterial cellulose (BC) secretion 🤩🤩🤩!! Roles for BcsD/CesD beyond BC crystallinity and more dedicated intracellular BcsD-Proline rich partner scaffolds for cellulose secretion across Proteobacteria:
www.cell.com/current-biol...
Interested in bacterial toxins? Check out our paper in
@mbiojournal "Toxinome—the bacterial protein toxin database". An interactive database of 1.4M toxins and 491K antitoxins encoded in 59K bacterial genomes.
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Ever wondered how Pseudomonas aeruginosa "choose" between planktonic and biofilm lifestyles, at the molecular level? 🦠🔬🧐 #CryoEM
Fantastic team work from the
@krastevalab.bsky.social (and yes, I'm biased 😊)
See the paper here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Quite an interesting work showing that a bacterial pathogen can actively stimulate itching, to induce scratching and further skin-damage 😵💫
www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
