Volume 20 Issue 11, November 2022

This study comprehensively assesses the fitness cost of mutations conferring resistance to an antifungal drug, revealing a steep resistance–function trade-off.

This study of a plant–bacteria symbiosis model reveals the mechanisms of vertical transmission of symbiotic bacteria in plants.

This study reports that dietary sugar induces changes in the intestinal microbiota that disrupt immune-mediated protection from metabolic syndrome in mice.

Two studies report how soil microbiota adapts after wildfires and soil warming.

This study describes a novel parasitic interaction between bacteria and archaea.

This study reports viral transmission between two phytopathogenic species that have similar ecological niches on oilseed rape.

This study provides novel insights into the architecture of the cell division site and the dynamics of septal peptidoglycan biogenesis.

This Genome Watch explores how metagenomics and bioinformatics can aid to uncover the prevalence and biosynthetic capabilities of underexplored microorganisms in various ecosystems.

CRISPR–Cas systems provide resistance against foreign mobile genetic elements and have a wide range of genome editing and biotechnological applications. In this Review, Wang, Pausch and Doudna examine recent advances in understanding the molecular structures and mechanisms of enzymes comprising bacterial RNA-guided CRISPR–Cas immune systems and deployed for wide-ranging genome editing applications.

Trace metals are essential micronutrients required for survival across all kingdoms of life. In this Review, Murdoch and Skaar discuss the strategies whereby vertebrate hosts limit metal or induce excess metal to prevent bacterial proliferation, a process termed nutritional immunity, and they discuss adaptive mechanisms that bacterial pathogens have evolved to survive in conditions of metal depletion or excess.

Marine biofilms grow on diverse marine surfaces, ranging from particles to animals and ships. In this Review, Qian and colleagues discuss the diversity and composition of marine biofilms and their role in the development of marine benthos and biofouling.

The anti-tuberculosis drug candidate pipeline is promising, but the recent breakthroughs are challenged with the need to prioritize drug combinations for clinical trials and revamping trial designs to accelerate regimen development. In this Review, Dartois and Rubin explore treatment challenges, drug development priorities, and approaches — from basic research to preclinical evaluation — that lead to the selection of drug combinations earlier in the discovery cascade to accelerate the approval of shorter treatment regimens.