Bacterial genetics

Regulatory small RNA (sRNA) interact with mRNAs to regulate their stability, transcription, and translation via diverse mechanisms. Here, Mediati et al. apply RNase III-CLASH to multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus to characterise the network of RNA–RNA interactions associated with RNase III and identify a regulatory mRNA 3′UTR, named vigR-3′UTR, involved in the regulation of genes relevant for vancomycin sensitivity.

Combining conjugation and structural analyses, the authors show that TraN-OMP pairings determine bacterial conjugation species specificity, with implications in resistance plasmid distribution within Enterobacteriaceae.

A lack of understanding in the development and emergence of antimicrobial resistance presents as a problem for accurate infection diagnosis and treatment. Here, authors utilize Streptococcus pneumoniae and build a genome-wide atlas to understand the genes and interactions that contribute to altered drug susceptibility.

Combined CRISPRi chemical genetics and comparative genomics reveal Mycobacterium tuberculosis drug resistance mechanisms and a potential opportunity to repurpose clarithromycin to treat tuberculosis due to inactivation of the whiB7 resistance factor in an entire Mtb sublineage.