Reviews & Analysis

Two recent studies reveal a virus anti-defence strategy whereby large, ‘jumbo’ phages protect themselves from both restriction endonucleases and DNA-targeting CRISPR–Cas systems, but not from RNA-targeting ones, by encapsulating the phage genome inside the cell in a ‘nucleus’-like shell that is impenetrable for CRISPR effectors.

Metabolic adaptation plays a key role in determining the composition of microbial ecosystems. A new study shows that in the inflamed gut, pathogenic Enterobacteriaceae can reprogramme their metabolism towards diet-derived l-serine utilization to outcompete the resident microbiota and cause disease.

Baloxavir marboxil (BXM) represents a promising advance in antiviral chemotherapies for influenza infections. Identification of transmissible BXM-resistant strains in Japan may hit pause on widespread adoption of this therapy and could lead to revision of surveillance practices for emerging viruses.

Adding a flap on the top of an insecticide-treated bednet helps to intercept blood-seeking mosquitoes and allows a wider range of insecticides to be used together. Net buyers must now make a challenging decision for each target area: which net product will be most cost-effective, given the resistance in local vectors?

The host protein cyclophilin A binds to the HIV-1 capsid and its role in infection has long been enigmatic. A new study shows that this interaction protects the virus from inhibition by TRIM5α in physiologically relevant primary human cells.

This Review summarizes mechanisms by which hosts recognize pathogens and their effectors, and trigger downstream immune pathways.

A newly discovered energy-linked carbonic anhydrase, DabBA2, is a two-protein complex responsible for inorganic carbon accumulation in the sulfur bacterium Halothiobacillus neapolitanus. DABs are present in a wide range of proteobacterial clades, suggesting that they function in diverse metabolic pathways.

Influenza vaccine strain selection is informed by international efforts to track antigenic change, focusing on the viral hemagglutinin protein. Recent research advocates monitoring neuraminidase for immune escape mutations that could reduce vaccine efficacy.

Culture-independent methods capable of connecting bacteriophages (phages) to their target host bacteria will help define the roles of phages in host-associated microbiotas. A recent study used fluorescently dyed intestinal phages to identify novel phage–bacterial interactions from the human intestine.

12,13-diHOME produced by the gut microbiome promotes an asthma-like immunophenotype in the lungs of a murine experimental model. Accordingly, the metabolite is elevated in neonates who developed asthma during childhood, potentially providing a biomarker for early risk prediction and a novel therapeutic target.

Some RNAs have to be made at maximal achievable rates, yet RNA polymerase encounters many obstacles that slow it down. A new study shows that a group of co-transcribing RNA polymerases communicate over long distances to work more efficiently than a solo enzyme.

Clinicians have long observed that infections diagnosed as susceptible to antibiotics can sometimes resist treatment. New studies show that such treatment failures can be explained by subpopulations of transiently resistant cells that are often missed by standard clinical diagnostics, offering new therapeutic avenues.

Lab-based studies, combined with metatranscriptomic and metabolomic field analyses, reveal important diel-linked roles for sulfonates in the major classes of phytoplankton that produce them, and in the environment in which they feed ubiquitous heterotrophic bacteria.

The Mla phospholipid transporter is a multi-subunit ATP-binding cassette transport system widely understood to move phospholipids in a retrograde direction; that is, from the outer membrane to the inner membrane. However, recent studies reveal that Mla might move phospholipids in the opposite, anterograde direction.

Since the emergence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus 60 years ago, scientists have been trying to engineer β-lactam antibiotics to restore drug susceptibility. Genomic data now shows that clavulanic acid (a β-lactamase inhibitor) can restore susceptibility in many strains, but only if they carry key mutations.

Duffy-binding protein (DBP) is the leading vaccine candidate for Plasmodium vivax malaria. Two studies express and characterise the first human monoclonal antibodies against DBP, induced by natural infection and vaccination, showing they have in vitro functional activity but target different conserved epitopes.

Metagenomic screening of gut microbiomes led to the discovery of a new enzymatic process for the removal of group A antigens on red blood cells, providing new hope for the development of universal blood.

The vast majority of fungi reproduce sexually and use secreted pheromones to signal to each other. A study now shows that these signalling molecules in the fungal plant pathogen Fusarium oxysporum activate a density-dependent autocrine signal that controls asexual spore germination.

This Perspective discusses the emergence and connectedness of antimicrobial resistance across One Health and Global Health levels, as well as potential strategies for mitigating the burden of such resistance in human and environmental health.