News & Comment

Liz Sockett recounts lessons learned by getting to know Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus, a single-celled predator that invades and kills Gram-negative bacteria from within.

Nature Microbiology and Nature Communications are issuing a joint call for papers to highlight research focused on microbiome and nutrition.

An integrated science–policy–society interface that explicitly considers soil microbiomes is needed to achieve One Health goals.

Microbiota-targeted interventions for malnutrition are under investigation, but complex illnesses associated with malnutrition, such as eating disorders, may not be straightforward to treat.

Evidence that bacterial infection shapes susceptibility to recurrent UTI via epigenetic memory shows that integrated approaches that consider host and pathogen are essential to develop effective treatments.

Diagnosis is the weakest aspect of tuberculosis (TB) care and control. We describe seven critical transitions that can close the massive TB diagnostic gap and enable TB programmes worldwide to recover from the pandemic setbacks.

Characterization of an ancient chemosynthetic process in modern oceans prompts investigation into microbial metabolisms that might be hiding in the dark.

The extent and diversity of exposures to microbial stimuli have a crucial role in regulating the capacity of a host to mount an immune response to a challenge, such as vaccination, making exposure history an important factor to optimize in rodent models.

The SARS-CoV-2 Africa dashboard is an interactive tool that enables visualization of SARS-CoV-2 genomic information in African countries. The customizable app allows users to visualize the number of sequences deposited in each country, and the variants circulating over time. Our dashboard enables near real-time exploration of public data that can inform policymakers, healthcare professionals and the public about the ongoing pandemic.

Reports of diphtheria cases in asylum seekers in the UK remind us that understanding and mitigating the risks posed by infectious diseases to disadvantaged peoples remain important.

We present a series of commissioned articles authored by people from groups that are under-represented in research, to highlight past and present scientific contributions in microbiology and to increase the diversity of Nature Microbiology authors.

Ariangela Kozik is a research investigator at the University of Michigan where she studies the role of the respiratory microbiome, and host–microbiome interactions, in asthma pathogenesis and treatment response. Ariangela is also the vice president and a co-founder of the Black Microbiologists Association.

Methods for monitoring wastewater for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and emerging variants have risen to prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic. Routine monitoring of wastewater should be deployed around the world to mitigate the spread of pathogens, both old and new.