Molecular Microbiology

Microgravity reshapes bacteriophage–host coevolution aboard the International Space Station Phage-host interactions have a role shaping microbial ecosystems, but their behavior in microgravity remains largely unexplored. In this study, experiments aboard the ISS reveal distinct evolutionary ...

👇 Microgravity reshapes bacteriophage–host coevolution aboard the International Space Station:

dx.plos.org/10.1371/jour...

Staphylococcus species infected by a bacteriophage with a tail that is both curved and contractile | mBio Past work has seen over-representation of Staphylococcus aureus clinical isolates in genome and biology studies on staphylococci. Here, we show by a selective plating analysis of municipal wastewater ...

🫴 Staphylococcus species infected by a bacteriophage with a tail that is both curved and contractile:

👇

| mBio journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

@mbio.bsky.social @spp2330.bsky.social

c-di-AMP–DasR signaling axis mediates mycobacterial acid resistance | mBio The findings identified a regulatory axis central to mycobacterial acid adaptation, and DasR was found to be a conserved c-di-AMP receptor in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. A key feature is its highly pH-sensitive binding to c-di-AMP, which exhibits a 20-fold increase in affinity under acidic conditions, indicating that environmental cues are linked to the transcriptional response. DasR directly targets genes governing (p)ppGpp, cyclic AMP (cAMP), c-di-AMP metabolism, and acid adaptation, creating a feedback loop that dynamically balances stress signaling pathways. The concurrent upregulation of the chaperone HtpG stabilizes the DasR complex, increasing signal output under stress. This integrated system, which combines allosteric enhancement of DNA binding with chaperone-mediated stabilization, constitutes an evolutionarily refined strategy for acid resistance. The c-di-AMP–DasR pathway is therefore a promising target that could enable researchers to address the persistence of M. tuberculosis.

🫴 c-di-AMP–DasR signaling axis mediates mycobacterial acid resistance:

| mBio journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Efficient detection and typing of phage-plasmids | mBio Mobile genetic elements, such as phages and plasmids, are diverse and drive bacterial evolution through horizontal gene transfer. Phage-plasmids, of which many carry antibiotic resistance genes or vir...

🫴 Efficient detection and typing of phage-plasmids:

| mBio journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

@mbio.bsky.social @spp2330.bsky.social

Starvation-independent alarmone production inhibits translation through GTP depletion:

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

#subtiwiki (p)ppGpp

postdoc position in tuebingen:

A widespread extended arbitrium system controls lysis/lysogeny through antirepression Many temperate Bacillus phages use the arbitrium peptide-based signaling system to regulate lysis-lysogeny decisions. In this system, the secreted Aim…

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

A DNA recognition-mimicry switch governs induction in arbitrium phages Temperate phages integrate multiple information sources to regulate lysis-lysogeny transitions. SPbeta-like phages use arbitrium signaling and DNA dam…

🫴 Fantastic work: DNA recognition-mimicry switch governs induction in arbitrium phages:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

@spp2330.bsky.social #subtiwiki @cp-cellhostmicrobe.bsky.social

Constant trouble with prolines—navigating a global translation dilemma Abstract. Proline is a paradox in biology—integral to protein structure and functionality, yet exceptionally challenging during translation. This review ex

Great review: constant trouble with prolines—navigating a global translation dilemma:

academic.oup.com/nar/article/...

@narjournal.bsky.social

#proline

How do bacteria sense the antibiotic rifampicin? They employ a widespread dual-promoter based alarm system!

academic.oup.com/nar/article/...

@narjournal.bsky.social #subtiwiki

Advancing Fast-Track Genome Engineering in Bacillus subtilis Phages Phage genome engineering methods accelerate the study of phage biology, the discovery of new functions, and the development of innovative genetic engineering tools. Here, we present QuickPhage, a rapi...

A new tool for engineering lytic phages of the Gram-positive model bacterium Bacillus subtilis:

| ACS Synthetic Biology pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

#subtiwiki

PostDoc position in Newcastle upon Tyne:

@henrikstrahl.bsky.social

exam preparation

Save the date, please RT:

Looking forward to an exciting International Symposium @spp2330.bsky.social "New concepts in prokaryotic virus-host interactions".

October 5-7, 2026; Harnack-Haus Berlin (Germany).

@dfg.de @hhu.de @fz-juelich.de

A mechanotransduction mechanism for antibiotic defense in Gram-positive bacteria In this issue of Structure, Yu et al. show that the Bacillus subtilis ytr operon encodes two distinct ABC transporters. The authors present the cryo-EM structures of YtrEF in the apo and ADP-vanadate-...

See accompanying comment: www.cell.com/structure/ab...

A mechanotransduction mechanism for antibiotic defense in Gram-positive bacteria In this issue of Structure, Yu et al. show that the Bacillus subtilis ytr operon encodes two distinct ABC transporters. The authors present the cryo-EM structures of YtrEF in the apo and ADP-vanadate-...

🫴 A mechanotransduction mechanism for antibiotic defense in Gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus subtilis, with some interesting suppressor mutants):

In

Structure www.cell.com/structure/fu...

#subtiWiki #subtilis

🫴 Distinct PlzC mechanisms integrate chemotaxis and c-di-GMP signaling to regulate Vibrio cholerae motility and biofilm formation:

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

@pnas.org #cdiGMP #vibrio

Beyond mecA: a two-tiered mechanism and regulatory rewiring drive high-level ceftaroline resistance in clinical MRSA | Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a growing threat to global health, contributing to an estimated 4.95 million deaths in 2019 (1). Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is among the most persistent and clinically challenging pathogens, causing infections ranging from bacteremia and pneumonia to osteomyelitis and endocarditis in both healthcare and community settings. MRSA’s ability to evade multiple antibiotic classes, particularly β-lactams, has made it a priority pathogen for new treatment strategies.

Beyond mecA: a two-tiered mechanism and regulatory rewiring drive high-level ceftaroline resistance in clinical MRSA!

(A link between Spx and c-di-AMP 🤔)

| Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

#cdAMP

🫴 Genetic switch between unicellularity and multicellularity in marine yeasts:

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

@nature.com

a bit complex...

PhD Student in Computational Structural Biology of Pathogen Targets
www.biozentrum.unibas.ch/open-positio...

@biozentrum.unibas.ch @unibas.ch

#biozentrum #biozentrumbasel #universityofbasel #researchjobs #sciencejobs #basel #job #hiring #recruiting #carreers #research #phd #biology

Just a reminder 🔔 that early bird registration for the VAAM Annual Conference 2026 in Berlin ends 📆January 11 Register soon to save your spot and some money.
Hope to see you there!

On the role of cell chaining in the attenuation of a Listeria monocytogenes divIVA mutant Listeria monocytogenes is a facultative intracellular human pathogen capable of invading non-phagocytic host cells, replicating within their cytosol, and spreading directly from cell to cell. These pr...

🫴 On the role of cell chaining in the attenuation of a Listeria monocytogenes divIVA mutant:

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Take a look at Figure 4; you can admire some very interesting phenotypes there!

#Listeria

Professurship (W2) in Microbiology - Regensburg (Stadt), Bayern (DE) job with Universität Regensburg | 12851113 UNIVERSITY OF REGENSBURG   The Faculty of Biology and Pre-Clinical Medicine invites applications for a   Professurship (W2) in Microbiology   To be...

A new year brings new opportunities: we are looking to fill a permanent professorship position with a Microbiologist preferably with expertise on archaeal biology, RNA biology or imaging techniques to unravel cell biology in prokaryotes! Please share and/or apply :)! www.nature.com/naturecareer...

Molecular characterisation of the Bacillus subtilis SpbK antiphage defence system - PubMed Bacteria have a variety of mechanisms for limiting predation by phages. SpbK is a Toll/interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) domain-containing antiphage defence protein from Bacillus subtilis that provides protection against the temperate phage SPβ via abortive infection. Here we structurally characterise Sp …

🫴 Molecular characterisation of the Bacillus subtilis SpbK antiphage defence system:

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41462020/

@spp2330.bsky.social #subtilis #Subtiwiki @natcomms.nature.com

Structural basis of quinone sensing by the MarR-type repressor MhqR in Staphylococcus aureus | mBio Staphylococcus aureus is a major human pathogen that can cause life-threatening infections in humans. However, treatment options are limited due to the prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant isolates i...

🫴 Structural basis of quinone sensing by the MarR-type repressor MhqR in Staphylococcus aureus:

| mBio journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Metastable folding of Bacillus subtilis glmS ribozyme modulates turnover by RNase J1 Rapid turnover of glmS mRNA in Bacillus subtilis by 5′-3’ exoribonuclease RNase J is essential for feedback regulation of glucosamine-6-phosphate (Glc…

🫳 Metastable folding of Bacillus subtilis glmS ribozyme modulates turnover by RNase J1:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

#subtiwiki

🫴 Professur (W2 mit Tenure Track) für Molekulare Mikrobiologie:

Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main

#professur #frankfurt #Mikrobiologie

Tenure Track Professorship (W1 with Tenure Track to W3) in “Molecular Biology" (f/m/d) - Heidelberg job with Universität Heidelberg | 12850668 The Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University (ZMBH) and the Faculty of Biosciences invite applications for a   Tenure Track Professors...

🫴 Tenure Track Professorship (W1 with Tenure Track to W3) in “Molecular Biology" (f/m/d):

#Heidelberg #professur

www.nature.com/naturecareer...

Functional Mapping and Engineering of the Sec Translocon Unlocked by a Cell-Free System Almost all proteins are inserted or translocated across membranes by the universally conserved Sec translocon. Despite its central role, experimental access to Sec function has remained limited. Here,...

🫴 Functional Mapping and Engineering of the Sec Translocon Unlocked by a Cell-Free System:

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

#SecYEG