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The microbiota is central for host homeostasis and affects not only the gut but also other organs, including the lungs. In this Opinion article, Hansbro and colleagues explore the role of the microbiota in the gut–lung axis and lung disease.
The division of labour is an important strategy in microbial species. In this Perspective, Cooper and West propose a set of conditions that define division of labour, describe recent examples according to these conditions and discuss how clarifying what constitutes division of labour highlights key evolutionary questions.
Similarly to competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) in mammalian cells, competition for regulatory RNAs and proteins can lead to crosstalk between bacterial mRNAs. In this Opinion article, Bossi and Figueroa-Bossi argue that such competition for regulatory targets may have a substantial influence on bacterial gene networks.
The placenta forms the foremost barrier that protects the developing fetus during pregnancy in eutherian organisms. However, diverse pathogens such asToxoplasma gondii, rubella virus and cytomegalovirus can breach this barrier. In this Opinion article, Coyne and Lazear review mechanisms of vertical transmission, with a focus on the current Zika virus epidemic.
The evolution of monoderm and diderm cell envelopes, and thus of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, is a long-standing question. In this Opinion article, Tocheva, Ortega and Jensen propose, based on recent electron cryotomography data, a new model that places sporulation at the heart of bacterial evolution.
In this Opinion article, Kreft and colleagues discuss how the combination of individual-based observations with individual-based models (IBMs) can lead to the new approach of microbial individual-based ecology (μIBE). They illustrate this point by describing how IBMs help to explore competitive and cooperative microbial interactions, which include the emergence of spatial patterns in biofilms and bacteria–phage dynamics.
The failure of antibiotics can arise by different bacterial survival strategies, each with implications for treatment. In this Opinion article, Balaban and colleagues propose a new experimental framework for distinguishing between several forms of resistance, tolerance and persistence to antibiotic treatment.
Transposon insertion sequencing (TIS) enables genome-wide definition of loci that are required for growth in diverse conditions. In this article, Waldor and colleagues discuss the benefits and limitations of different experimental approaches to TIS analyses.
