#MicroSky

Vaccinating bats could be good for people. But how do you vaccinate a bat? In a new study, bats lap up vaccine-laced saline or chow down on vaccine-carrying mosquitoes. Will that have any impact on the flying mammal's immune system?

24 minutes ago

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Emmanuele Severi

@emmseveri.bsky.social

2 hours ago

Cross-family and phage-specific gene requirements for Klebsiella infection revealed by scalable RB-TnSeq genetic screens Bacteriophages (phages) are being cataloged at unprecedented rates and are recognized as key players in nutrient and energy cycling across ecosystems. Yet, the biological determinants of phage-host specificity and infection success remain poorly understood. Here, we used a randomly barcoded, genome-wide, loss-of-function transposon mutant library (RB-TnSeq) of Klebsiella sp. M5al, a plant-associated, nitrogen-fixing rhizobacterium, to identify bacterial genetic determinants necessary for the infection of 25 double-stranded DNA phages spanning five viral families. This approach identified 42 bacterial genes associated with phage infection, encompassing genes involved in receptor biosynthesis, regulatory pathways, electron transport, and unknown functions. Disruption of genes involved in receptor biosynthesis, such as glycosyltransferases involved in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) production, conferred cross-resistance to half of the phages, while intracellular gene disruptions had phage-specific effects. Taxonomically, we found significant differences in RB-TnSeq profiles across phage families and genera. While bacterial gene requirements are generally clustered by phage genus, we also observed notable divergences within genera. These differences were associated with variation in receptor usage, likely driven by divergence in tail fiber or other host recognition proteins. In some cases, differential reliance on bacterial intracellular factors suggested that even closely related phages may depend on distinct infection strategies, potentially involving phage-specific genes of unknown function. Our findings reveal key genetic dependencies shaping phage-host interactions and offer a framework for predicting infection outcomes in natural and applied settings. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Department of Energy and Environment, https://ror.org/05d5hbz44, #DE-SC0020173, #DE-SC0023307

#microsky #phagesky #phage

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

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Q&A: What factors influence likelihood and severity of Ebola outbreaks? Researcher at Penn State discusses results of two papers that looked at factors that contribute to how Ebola virus disease outbreaks begin and how severe they become.

20 hours ago

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We study pandemics, and the resurgence of measles is a grim sign of what’s coming Controlling the spread of many infections, including measles, depends on trust in public health, which is eroding.

1 day ago

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christoph_STCmicrobeblog

@christophstc.bsky.social

1 day ago

#MicroSky

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Current Research in Microbial Sciences

@microbesinfect.bsky.social

1 day ago

How are #kefir microbial communities & product characteristics maintained in industrial production?

Kefir’s complex microbial symbiosis drives flavor & health benefits but industrial methods dilute key functions. New synthetic cultures offer solutions
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... #MicroSky

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How bacteria suppress immune defenses in stubborn wound infections Researchers have revealed how a common bacterium, Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis), releases lactic acid to acidify its surroundings and suppress the immune-cell signal needed to start a proper…

1 day ago

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HIV-1-encoded circular RNA enhances viral transcription through Tat binding Nature Microbiology, Published online: 13 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41564-026-02271-0Obi, Yan and colleagues identified an HIV-1-encoded circular RNA (circHIV) in plasma from people living with HIV and in infected primary cells and T-cell lines. CircHIV binds to the viral Tat protein and enhances transcription from the viral promoter.

1 day ago

Out Now! HIV-1-encoded circular RNA enhances viral transcription through Tat binding #MicroSky

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Plasmids promote antimicrobial resistance through insertion sequence-mediated gene inactivation Nature Microbiology, Published online: 13 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41564-026-02290-xInactivation of chromosomal genes through plasmid-encoded IS elements is an extended mechanism of antimicrobial resistance evolution in bacteria.

1 day ago

Out Now! Plasmids promote antimicrobial resistance through insertion sequence-mediated gene inactivation #MicroSky

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Biomedical Journal

@biomedj.bsky.social

1 day ago

Bridging Clinical #Microbiology and #ArtificialIntelligence:

An Image-Based Deep Learning Framework for Automated Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... #OpenAccess #AI #MicroSky

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Fabrice Jean-Pierre

@fabricejpierre.bsky.social

1 day ago

Excited to team up with @whelanfj.bsky.social to work on a CF-related project focusing on Pseudomonas aeruginosa genomics. Applications close on April 3. Please share!

#microsky

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TRAstonDrs

@castltrastondrs.bsky.social

1 day ago

#Medsky🧪 #IDsky #microsky #immunosky #publichealth The findings highlight the gut-immune interface as a potential driver of #Longcovid & support therapeutic strategies targeting #viralpersistence and intestinal immune homeostasis

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AMI Journals

@ami-journals.bsky.social

1 day ago

In a new review, authors summarise current research on Staphylococcus aureus extracellular vesicles, with a focus on their potential applications for vaccine development, drug delivery, and novel antitumor and antiviral therapies.

https://ow.ly/IWIy50YreMS

#Microsky

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Atin Sharma

@atinsharma.bsky.social

2 days ago

The tremendous amount of computing resources required to simulate even a minimal bacterium for a short duration really puts into perspective what a remarkable machine such a tiny organism is.

#MicroSky

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Animalcules

@bacteriophile.bsky.social

2 days ago

#microsky

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Atin Sharma

@atinsharma.bsky.social

2 days ago

Navigating the promise and pitfalls of artificial intelligence - Nature Microbiology Artificial intelligence stands like a new dawn on the horizon. It carries the promise of effortless collaboration between mind and machine, where tedious tasks melt away and creativity is given room t...

A lot has been said about AI in biological research. While it is certainly a disruptive force, it is not yet an assistant you could blindly delegate your scientific tasks to.

Read our thoughts on the promise and pitfalls of AI in this month's editorial

#MicroSky 🦠🤖

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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Highly mutagenic continuous evolution in E. coli using a Φ29-based orthogonal replication system - Nature Biotechnology Mutational rates of bacterial evolution are increased using an error-prone orthogonal system.

2 days ago

#NatMicroPicks

Sending evolution into overdrive 🔧🦠

A Φ29‑based DNA replication system in E. coli enables stable and targeted hypermutation achieving evolution of enzyme activities within days

#MicroSky

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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Auto-crosslinking sporesilk fibers promote endospore and Cry toxin clustering - Nature Communications Authors reveal that protein nanofibrils govern assembly of bacterial spores and extrasporal toxins into insecticidal aggregates. Spores and parasporal bodies are incased in a “sporesilk” matrix that d...

2 days ago

#NatMicroPicks

No-GMO enhanced Bt toxin 🦠🌱🪲

Naturally occurring 'sporesilk' matrix coating the Bacillus thuringiensis toxin crystals boosts insecticidal activity providing a non-GMO pest biocontrol.

#MicroSky

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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Acinetobacter baumannii’s lifestyle includes soil-dwelling colonization of decaying plant material and airborne spread - Nature Communications Little is known about the ecology and evolution of the nosocomial pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii outside the hospital. Here, Wilharm et al. show that the lifestyle of A. baumannii includes soil-dwel...

2 days ago

#NatMicroPicks

The versatile Acinetobacter baumannii! 🦠

The dreaded pathogen naturally occupies soil and airborne niches that underpin its recalcitrance and human contact may have shaped its evolution.

#MicroSky

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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Candida albicans synergizes with Fusobacterium nucleatum in colorectal cancer progression via the Flo9-RadD interaction How does other types of microbe like fungi influence tumor-promoting role of Fusobacterium nucleatum? In this study, Li et al. establish that commensal fungi facilitate translocation of pro-tumor bact...

2 days ago

#NatMicroPicks

Multi-kingdom microbial interplay in cancer 🦠🍄🦀⚕️

Candida albicans synergizes with Fusobacterium nucleatum in colorectal cancer offering a potential therapeutic target via L‑arginine disruption.

#MicroSky #CancerSky

www.cell.com/cancer-cell/...

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Antibiotic use and gut microbiome composition links from individual-level prescription data of 14,979 individuals - Nature Medicine Using individual-level data from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register and fecal metagenomes of 14,979 individuals in Sweden, the authors examined the association between oral antibiotic use over 8 yea...

2 days ago

#NatMicroPicks

Antibiotics in the long run ⌛💊🦠

Antibiotic use shows lasting associations with reduced gut microbial diversity for up to 8 years, indicating long-term impacts on the adult gut microbiome.

#MicroSky #MicrobiomeSky

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

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The MicrobeAtlas database: Global trends and insights into Earth’s microbial ecosystems MicrobeAtlas (www.microbeatlas.org) is an integrated, reference-based resource for truly planet-wide microbiomics, analyzing hundreds of thousands of microbial lineages across diverse environments, co...

2 days ago

#NatMicroPicks

A Microbial Atlas 🦠🗺️

MicrobeAtlas unifies >2 million microbiome samples into a resource that enables consistent cross‑study comparisons and ecological contextualization of both known and newly discovered species.

#MicroSky #MicrobiomeSky

www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

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Bringing the genetically minimal cell to life on a computer in 4D Simulating the complete cell cycle of the minimal cell provides a platform to understand the progression of complete states over time. The spatial heterogeneity of the intracellular environment can st...

2 days ago

#NatMicroPicks

Simulating a bacterium 💻🦠

A 4D whole-cell model of the minimal bacterium JCVI‑syn3A simulates its ~100‑minute cell cycle to reproduce experimental measurements and predict behaviours

#MicroSky

www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

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