Table of contents
August 2006 Vol 4 No 8
In this issue
p563 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1485
Editorial: Influenza pandemic vaccines: how to ensure a low-cost, low-dose option
p565 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1482
Research Highlights
Bacterial pathogenesis: Waves of dissemination
p567 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1470
Innate immunity: Layers of fungal complexity
p568 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1468
Anti-infectives: Worming a way to better drugs
p568 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1469
Prion diseases: Partners in crime
p568 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1481
In brief
Bacterial physiology | Horizontal Gene Transfer | Bacterial pathogenicity
p569 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1480
Innate immunity: CRAMPing bacterial style
p570 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1463
Horizontal gene transfer: Plug and play Pig
p570 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1467
Anti-infectives: New antibiotic on the horizon?
p571 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1471
News and Analysis
Genome watch
Faecal matters
p572 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1483
Disease watch
Buffett comes to the table | Pre-symptomatic prion blood test | M for inflammation | Network shake-up | Targeted strategy | Open letter on MMR | West Nile season begins | STIs still rising in the UK | Chocolate alert | Avian influenza latest | Outbreak news
p574 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1484
Reviews
Microbial cell individuality and the underlying sources of heterogeneity
Simon V. Avery
p577 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1460
Individual cells in clonal microbial populations exhibit significant phenotypic heterogeneity, a phenomenon that provides a dynamic source of diversity and is thought to improve organismal fitness. Here, Simon Avery reviews our understanding of the processes that drive heterogeneity and their impact on biologically important cell phenotypes.
Aptamers come of age – at last
David H. J. Bunka and Peter G. Stockley
p588 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1458
Nucleic-acid aptamers bind tightly to a diverse range of molecular targets, owing to the complex folding of RNA molecules. Here, recent developments in aptamer research are discussed, including the development of potential anti-viral aptamers against pathogens such as HIV, hepatitis C virus and influenza virus.
Social evolution theory for microorganisms
Stuart A. West, Ashleigh S. Griffin, Andy Gardner and Stephen P. Diggle
p597 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1461
The emerging field of sociomicrobiology has been gaining impetus in recent years, but a limiting factor is the lack of effective communication of social evolution theory to microbiologists. Here, the authors provide a conceptual overview of social evolution theory, emphasizing the aspects most relevant to microorganisms.
Integrons: agents of bacterial evolution
Didier Mazel
p608 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1462
Integrons are assembly platforms that incorporate exogenous open reading frames through site-specific recombination and convert them to functional genes by ensuring their correct expression. Here, Didier Mazel reviews the biology of integrons and superintegrons and their evolutionary history, and proposes a new model to account for the peculiarities of the integron recombination pathway.
Perspectives
Opinion
Regulation of apicomplexan actin-based motility
Jake Baum, Anthony T. Papenfuss, Buzz Baum, Terence P. Speed and Alan F. Cowman
p621 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1465
Cowman and colleagues present their analysis of the repertoire of actin-binding proteins and actin-regulatory proteins in apicomplexan parasites. They integrate their observations with recent progress in understanding actin, actin-binding proteins and actin-regulatory proteins to propose a modified model of apicomplexan gliding motility, in which actin dynamics have a central role.
Opinion
Multidrug-resistance efflux pumps — not just for resistance
Laura J. V. Piddock
p629 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1464
It is well known that multidrug-resistance efflux pumps can confer antibiotic resistance on bacteria. Now, it is becoming evident that certain classes of these pumps also increase bacterial pathogenicity. Laura Piddock proposes that, owing to this dual function, such efflux pumps have greater clinical relevance than has previously been thought.
Correspondence
Correspondence: Modelling infectious diseases: viral complexity
Jagadeesh Bayry and Srini V Kaveri
p637 | doi:10.1038/nrmicro1386-c1