Kevin England

Technician III - Department of Microbiology Position Summary This position will be in the lab of Dr. Joseph E. Peters in the Department of Microbiology. Research in the Peters’ lab broadly involves deciphering mechanisms in genome stability and...

The Peters lab is looking for a new team member! The role transposons play in evolution, basic mechanisms regulating transposition, and applying transposons as tools for genome modification with a special focus on guide RNA-directed transposition. cornell.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/CornellCaree...

I am very happy to share that I have started this week as an Assistant Professor of Microbiology at the Richard A. Gillespie College of Veterinary Medicine in Harrogate, Tennessee. It has been a beautiful journey from IAAS to Ohio State to Cornell, and now to LMU-CVM.

A dirty and worn sponge on a sink.

Has anyone already done the work-kitchen sponge microbiome project?

Cross-species phenotypic profiling uncovers functional determinants of bacterial cold shock adaptation https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.22.676666v1

ComFB, a widespread family of c-di-NMP receptor proteins | PNAS Cyclic dimeric-GMP (c-di-GMP) is a ubiquitous bacterial second messenger that regulates a variety of cellular processes, including motility, biofil...

And here is the published version of the work from @selimlab.bsky.social, @mygalperin.bsky.social, Dubnau labs and @thethormannden.bsky.social labs
(superb collaboration)

ComFB, a widespread family of c-di-NMP receptor proteins

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Spx inhibits expression of the SwrA*DegU master flagellar activator in Bacillus subtilis. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.09.12.675978v1

ggplot2 4.0.0 A new major version of ggplot2 has been released on CRAN. Find out what is new here.

I am beyond excited to announce that ggplot2 4.0.0 has just landed on CRAN.

It's not every day we have a new major #ggplot2 release but it is a fitting 18 year birthday present for the package.

Get an overview of the release in this blog post and be on the lookout for more in-depth posts #rstats

New in JB: There are many ways to regulate transcription. Jayasinghe and Babitzke review the role of RNA polymerase pausing in the control of gene expression in several microbes.
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
@asm.org #JBacteriology

Proximity-specific ribosome profiling using light induced BirA. 😎 #Ribosome #RNASky

Check out the first preprint from our lab describing a direct molecular cross-talk between (p)ppGpp and c-di-GMP nucleotide messengers! Great work from first-author Corentin Jaboulay who was a postdoc in our lab, and great collaborations! @mmsb-lyon.bsky.social @cnrsbiologie.bsky.social

The RecBCD complex interacts directly with the DNA sliding clamp in Escherichia coli https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.20.671105v1

Remodeling of RNA-binding proteome and RNA-mediated regulation as a new layer of control of sporulation | mSystems Understanding how bacteria survive extreme conditions is key to tackling challenges in health, food safety, and industry. This study reveals a previously unexplored layer of control in Bacillus subtil...

Thrilled to share my first last-author paper, just out in #mSystems! A work about #RBPs, #RNA and #sporulation in #subtilis.
Special thanks to my brilliant student T. Kaboré who's signing hist first PhD paper and to the whole team @galinier-lab.bsky.social
👉 journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Dinucleoside Polyphosphates in Cellular Signaling: Function and Evolution Across Life Although discovered more than 50 years ago, the cellular functions of Ap4A and related dinucleotides remain largely enigmatic. To address this knowledge gap, we organized a conference showcasing rece....

From bacterial virulence to human disease, researchers gathered in Marburg exploring how Ap₄A and other dinucleoside polyphosphates are rewriting the rules of cellular signaling across life. 🚀 Huge thanks to all speakers, participants, and organizers. 🙌 @synmikro.bsky.social @unimarburg.bsky.social

we are SO back

#Phages

Bacterial two-hybrid systems evolved: innovations for protein-protein interaction research | Journal of Bacteriology Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) are fundamental to nearly all biological processes, governing cellular signaling, enzymatic activity, structural integrity, and regulatory mechanisms. Efforts to manipulate these interactions have driven advances in therapeutics and biotechnology (1). Given that over 80% of proteins function within complexes rather than in isolation (2, 3), mapping and understanding PPIs is critical for elucidating cellular function and disease pathology.

Bacterial two-hybrid systems evolved: innovations for protein-protein interaction research | Journal of Bacteriology https://journals.asm.org/doi/full/10.1128/jb.00129-25?af=R

(p)ppGpp imposes graded transcriptional changes to impair motility and promote antibiotic tolerance in biofilms - npj Biofilms and Microbiomes npj Biofilms and Microbiomes - (p)ppGpp imposes graded transcriptional changes to impair motility and promote antibiotic tolerance in biofilms

The wonderful dynamics of (p)ppGpp, big thank you to everyone involved with this story

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Very excited about our work from @jordanthesier.bsky.social and @popomicro.bsky.social et al. We find that Tn7 family elements common in bacteria (that include all of the guide RNA-directed transposons, CAST) are also found across archaea including many in the exciting Asgard group! #MicroSky #TESky

Interpreting UniFrac with Absolute Abundance: A Conceptual and Practical Guide Microbial ecologists routinely use β-diversity metrics to compare communities, yet these metrics vary in the ecological dimensions they capture. Popular for incorporating phylogenetic relationships, U...

Microbial ecologists! Do you use Unifrac distances? Are you curious about absolute abundances? Then I’ve got a paper for you!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... (1/4)

RNA Is the Cell’s Emergency Alert System | Quanta Magazine How does a cell know when it’s been damaged? A molecular alarm, set off by mutated RNA and colliding ribosomes, signals danger.

When sun hits you, what does it *hit*? It rockets into your RNA, and the sound of colliding ribosomes and potholed RNA signals to your body to do something: produce a sunburn. My latest for @quantamagazine.bsky.social.

www.quantamagazine.org/rna-is-the-c...

Selective silencing of antibiotic-tethered ribosomes as a resistance mechanism against aminoglycosides Antibiotic resistance is a growing threat, underscoring the need to understand the underlying mechanisms. Aminoglycosides kill bacteria by disrupting translation fidelity, leading to the synthesis of ...

Mutations in fusA lead to drug bound ribosome inactivation and prevent error cluster fomation upon aminoglycoside treatment, limiting proteotoxic stress and further aminoglycoside uptake #ribosome #rnasky #microsky #amr www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

The ParA-like ATPase PldP influences the TatA dynamics in Corynebacterium glutamicum https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.07.02.662783v1

Expanding the diversity of bacterial DNA partitioning: A CTP-independent ParABS system for plasmid partitioning in Streptomyces | PNAS The ATP- and CTP-dependent ParA-ParB-parS segrosome is a macromolecular complex that segregates chromosomes/plasmids in most bacterial species. CTP...

Finally published! Many thanks to the reviewers and editor whose comments & suggestions improved this work significantly more than the first preprint version!!!

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Extended Shine-Dalgarno motifs govern translation initiation in Staphylococcus aureus Regulation of translation initiation is central to bacterial adaptation, but species-specific mechanisms remain poorly understood. We present high-resolution mapping of translation start sites in S. a...

Beautiful paper on translation start sites and extented SD motifs in Staph. aureus. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
Congrats to colleagues in Strasburg univ.!

Also the sun aligns with Cascadilla Creek around the solstice 🌄🐈

Photo of the bow of a canoe looking down the length of Cayuga Lake

Stream with a small waterfall in a shaded forest

Ithaca and Cornell from Cayuga Lake

Finally had a Saturday without rain, so I got to enjoy my new [to me] solo canoe and fly fish on a new [to me] stream! Summers in Ithaca are the best!! 🦠🌎

Targeting de novo purine biosynthesis for tuberculosis treatment - Nature The validation of inhibitors targeting PurF, a novel drug target for tuberculosis drug discovery, is described.

🎯 New antibiotic target in TB!
👉 Small-molecule inhibitor targeting PurF, the first enzyme in the mycobacterial de novo purine biosynthesis pathway.
👉 Effective vs drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in vivo (in mice)
#TBSky #IDSky #MedSky 🧪
@nature.com
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Here, we show that bacterial ribosomes—often viewed as conserved drug targets—actually vary across species due to extensive sequence variation in their drug-binding residues. In some cases, this divergence may lead to intrinsic drug resistance in certain bacterial clades: doi.org/10.1016/j.ce...

Overview of oxidative damage on macromolecules (DNA, lipids, and proteins) and the role of Lon protease in cellular defense against oxidative stress. Protective roles of Lon protease include regulation of oxidative stress responses (21, 22) and potential removal of oxidatively damaged proteins (8, 23–25).

Lon protease, a highly conserved ATP-dependent protease, is thought to play a central role in mitigating oxidative stress by targeting damaged and misfolded proteins for degradation. This #JBacteriology review offers some insights: asm.social/2sV

Cyclic-di-AMP modulates cellular turgor in response to defects in bacterial cell wall synthesis - Nature Microbiology Brogan et al. uncover a signalling pathway in which levels of the nucleotide second messenger c-di-AMP increase in response to defects in cell wall synthesis. This regulatory pathway decreases turgor ...

Very happy to share that a large part of my thesis work is out today: B. subtilis uses the second messenger c-di-AMP to modulate its turgor pressure in response to the state of its cell envelope. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

New in JB: Healy, Frank et al. show that two distinct ATP-binding protein of the Pst system of E. faecalis, with one playing a classic role in Pi uptake and the 2nd an accessory role.
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
@asm.org #JBacteriology