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Climate change can affect microbial processes, which are, in turn, known to affect greenhouse gas flux. Singh and colleagues review the feedback responses between climate change and terrestrial microbial processes and discuss the potential to exploit microorganisms to mitigate anthropogenic climate change.
Transmission of viruses between species can lead to severe disease in the new host. However, little is known about the requirements for cross-species transmission. Pepin and colleagues describe the experiments required to improve our understanding of this process and how this can identify markers that can be used to predict transmission.
Poor patient compliance and the spread of drug-resistant strains pose serious threats to anti-tuberculosis treatment regimens. In this Innovation article, Griffithset al. review the potential advantages of using biodegradable nanoparticles as delivery systems for anti-tuberculosis drugs and vaccines.
The plasmid-encoded ParMRC system is one of the best characterized plasmid segregation systems and comprises just three components: an actin-like protein, ParM, a DNA-binding adaptor protein, ParR, and a centromere-like region,parC. Here, the authors review the molecular mechanisms by which the components of this system interact to achieve bipolar DNA segregation.
Electrical current can be used to drive microbial metabolism, opening the door to a range of applications, including the electricity-driven synthesis of chemical compounds. Here, Rabaey and Rozendal introduce the principle of microbial electrosynthesis and discuss the associated challenges and opportunities.
The evolutionary relationship between the Archaea and the Eukarya remains unclear. Here, Gribaldo and colleagues provide an overview of seven recent studies that investigate the problem but that reach different conclusions. Furthermore, they provide a framework for future studies.
Pathogenic bacteria have evolved numerous effectors and toxins to specifically interact with host cell death signalling pathways, many of which act directly at the mitochondria. Here, Thomas Rudel and colleagues summarize our understanding of the interactions between bacterial pathogens and mitochondrial cell death pathways.
Survival of intracellularPlasmodiumparasites requires that the parasites remodel the host cell through the export of parasite proteins. Goldberg and Cowman describe recent insights into the complex export pathway of parasite proteins, which are transferred from the parasite endoplasmic reticulum into the host cell.
To circumvent the blood–brain barrier and invade the central nervous system, many pathogens enter neurons at the nerve terminal and travel the length of the axon to reach the cell body. Here, Kremer and colleagues review the neuronal trafficking pathways that are subverted by neurotropic viruses and toxins.
Network inference is the construction of biological networks using an algorithm to assess biological data. Many different programs taking various approaches are available, and here De Smet and Marchal review these programs and provide a guide to using the right one for a particular data set.
The mechanisms that allow bacteria to swim through liquid environments are well understood, but much less is known about how bacteria migrate across solid surfaces, a process known as swarming. In this Review, Daniel Kearns describes the requirements and phenotypes associated with swarming motility.
Secretory antibodies are immune effectors that protect mucosal epithelia from infection by pathogens. Here, Strugnell and Wijburg describe the mechanisms for the production of secretory antibodies and their methods of action and discuss possible explanations for the evolution of the secretory immune system.
Most bacteria live in biofilms, the structure of which depends on the biofilm matrix. This matrix is composed of extracellular polymeric substances, which are compounds that are produced by the bacteria. Here, Flemming and Wingender describe the properties of the matrix and provide an overview of the individual matrix components.
In this Opinion article, the authors describe howMycobacterium tuberculosisinfection of host macrophages affects the balance of host lipid mediators and, in doing so, alters the plasma membrane repair and mitochondrial-damage pathways. As a consequence, bacterial virulence influences whether macrophage death occurs by apoptosis or necrosis.
The identity of the forces that drive chromosome segregation in bacteria has long been unknown. Here, Jun and Wright describe their model in which entropy is the central driving force of chromosome segregation and discuss the role of previously identified DNA segregation proteins in the context of this model.
Phage-related chromosomal islands, which include theStaphylococcus aureuspathogenicity islands, often encode virulence factors and co-opt a helper phage to spread to other cells. Richard Novick and colleagues describe the life cycle of these genetic elements, the regulation of their mobility and their effects on helper phages.
In this article the authors review what mouse models of intestinal inflammation using gene-targeted mice and defined bacteria have contributed to our understanding of the mechanisms underlying inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), focusing on the specific contribution of bacteria and bacterial components.
Integrative and conjugative elements are self-transmissible genetic elements that encode a core set of genes for their propagation and transfer and can also carry various other genes, including drug resistance markers. Here, Wozniak and Waldor describe the transmission of these elements and how this is regulated.
Recalcitrant dissolved organic matter is now known to be a key element in the global carbon cycle. Here, Nianzhi Jiao and colleagues set out the role of ocean-dwelling microorganisms in the generation of this pool of long-lived carbon, using a new concept they call the microbial carbon pump.
Chikungunya virus is a re-emerging alphavirus that recently caused an epidemic in countries of the Indian Ocean. At the time, little was known about the biology and pathogenesis of this virus compared with other viruses, but recent multidisciplinary efforts have furthered our understanding of this pathogen and its interaction with the host.
