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Sequence-specific interactions between the Hepatitis B virus pre-genome and the core protein define the nucleocapsid assembly pathway and trigger virus-like particle formation. Cp-RNA contacts may regulate pre-genome organization, facilitating reverse transcription.
Mutational analysis of marine microorganisms with streamlined genomes revealed an excess of deleterious radical amino acid substitutions compared to related lineages with larger genomes, suggesting that genetic drift may be important.
This study explores the mechanism for enhanced respiratory virus replication in airway epithelial cells subject to mesenchymal reprogramming, implicating a role for epigenetic silencing interferon pathways.
Virus attenuation is used to obtain vaccine strains. Here, the rapid evolution of RNA viruses is exploited by engineering their genomes to encode sites that are a mutation away from a stop codon, a clever method to generate attenuated viruses.
Methanonatronarchaeia are a distinct class-level lineage of extremely halophilic methanogens, which lack features of classical methanogenesis and have a high intracellular concentration of potassium, suggesting potassium-based osmoprotection.
Metabolomics analyses of Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae show that, unlike other metabolites, coenzymes such as pyridoxal 5'-phosphate, NAD(P), coenzyme A and flavins are long-lived in vivo and passed on over generations.
Deubiquitinase OTULIN targets linear (M1-linked) ubiquitin chain patches on cytosolic Salmonella Typhimurium to modulate NEMO, IKKα/IKKβ and NF-ĸB signalling and regulate secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines and bacterial proliferation.
Plasmodium falciparum PTEF is a translation-enhancing factor that interacts with ribosomes to facilitate translation of PfEMP1–VAR2CSA, a ligand that mediates adhesion of infected red blood cells to the placenta during pregnancy-associated malaria.
Salmonella Typhimurium E3 ligase LUBAC generates linear polyubiquitin patches in the ubiquitin coat that serves as a signalling platform for the recruitment of Optineurin and Nemo for xenophagy and local activation of NF-κB, respectively.
The use of mitomycin C inductions to determine the fraction of lysogenic cells in mixed natural communities is highly variable and insensitive to bacterial host density, suggesting that other methods should be developed and used to measure lysogeny.
Magnaporthe oryzae nitronate monooxygenase NMO2 is shown to be required for prevention of damaging lipid nitration and host ROS-mediated innate immune responses in rice plants, enabling biotrophic growth of the rice blast fungus.
Drosophila Bap180 is induced by immune deficiency/Relish in response to both pathogenic and commensal bacteria. Bap180 can feedback to restrain immune deficiency signalling and repress pro-inflammatory gene eiger (TNF), limiting tissue damage and elongating life span.
Comparative genomics of 24 Penicillium species, including 9 that are newly sequenced, characterizes over 1000 secondary metabolism gene clusters, some of which are validated experimentally, identifying these fungi as an important untapped source of bioactive compounds.
This study shows that mitochondrial DNA leaks into the cytoplasm during dengue virus infection, activating the DNA sensor cGAS. Viral NS2B targets cGAS for lysosomal degradation, inhibiting type I interferon responses in infected cells.
In addition to canonical guide-dependent endonuclease activity, the Argonaute protein from the archaeon Methanocaldococcus jannaschii (MjAgo) is capable of guide-independent DNA cleavage, enabling MjAgo to process plasmids and genomic DNA.
Trypanosoma brucei, which is responsible for human sleeping sickness, has an intrinsic circadian clock that regulates metabolism and influences drug sensitivity.