Host-Microbe Biology
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyGut Microbiota and Host Thermoregulation in Response to Ambient Temperature FluctuationsWhether gut microbiota play a role in regulating host phenotypic plasticity in small mammals living in seasonal environments has rarely been examined. The present study, through an intermittent temperature acclimation model, indicates that both gut microbiota and their host were more adaptive after repeated acclimations. It also demonstrates that dynamic gut microbiota confer host plasticity in thermoregulation in response to...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologySingle-Inclusion Kinetics of Chlamydia trachomatis DevelopmentChlamydia trachomatis is an obligate intracellular bacterium that can cause trachoma, cervicitis, urethritis, salpingitis, and pelvic inflammatory disease. To establish infection in host cells, Chlamydia must complete a multiple-cell-type developmental cycle. The developmental cycle consists of specialized cells, the EB cell, which mediates infection of new...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyA Family of Viral Satellites Manipulates Invading Virus Gene Expression and Can Affect Cholera Toxin MobilizationViral satellites are found in all domains of life and can have profound fitness effects on both the viruses they parasitize and the cells they reside in. In this study, we have acquired the first RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) transcriptomes of viral satellites outside plants, as well as the transcriptome of the phage ICP1, a predominant predator of pandemic Vibrio cholerae...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyHapX, an Indispensable bZIP Transcription Factor for Iron Acquisition, Regulates Infection Initiation by Orchestrating Conidial Oleic Acid Homeostasis and Cytomembrane Functionality in Mycopathogen Beauveria bassianaConidial maturation and germination are highly coupled physiological processes in filamentous fungi that are critical for the pathogenicity of mycopathogens. Compared to the mechanisms involved in conidial germination, those of conidial reserves during maturation are less understood. The insect-pathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana, as a representative species of...
Observation | Host-Microbe BiologyReduced Independence in Daily Living Is Associated with the Gut Microbiome in People with HIV and HCVThe microbes in the gut and the chemicals they produce by metabolism have been linked to brain function. In earlier work, we showed that infection with two viruses, HIV and HCV, changed the gut microbes and metabolism in ways that were associated with a lifetime history of major depressive disorder. Here, we extend this analysis looking at a measurement of independence in daily living. We find that in individuals with HIV, whether or...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyMetatranscriptomics by In Situ RNA Stabilization Directly and Comprehensively Revealed Episymbiotic Microbial Communities of Deep-Sea Squat LobstersDeep-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystems remain mysterious. To depict in detail the enigmatic life of chemosynthetic microbes, which are key primary producers in these ecosystems, metatranscriptomic analysis is expected to be a promising approach. However, this has been hindered by substantial perturbation (e.g., RNA degradation) during time-consuming retrieval from the deep sea. In this study, we conducted direct metatranscriptome...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyPhysical Activity Shapes the Intestinal Microbiome and Immunity of Healthy Mice but Has No Protective Effects against Colitis in MUC2−/− MicePerturbation in the gut microbial ecosystem has been associated with various diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease. Habitual physical activity, through its ability to modulate the gut microbiome, has recently been shown to prophylactically protect against chemically induced models of murine colitis. Here, we (i) confirm previous reports that physical activity has limited but significant effects on the gut microbiome of mice and...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyDepression in Individuals Coinfected with HIV and HCV Is Associated with Systematic Differences in the Gut Microbiome and MetabolomeThe human gut microbiome influences depression. Differences between the microbiomes of HIV-infected and uninfected individuals have been described, but it is not known whether these are due to HIV itself, or to common HIV comorbidities such as HCV coinfection. Limited research has explored the influence of the microbiome on depression within these groups. Here, we characterized the microbial community and metabolome in the stools from...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyVirulence of the Pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis Is Controlled by the CRISPR-Cas Protein Cas3Porphyromonas gingivalis is a key pathogen of periodontitis, a polymicrobial disease characterized by a chronic inflammation that destroys the tissues supporting the teeth. Thus, understanding the virulence potential of P. gingivalis is essential to maintaining a healthy oral microbiome. In nonoral...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyStrain-Level Analysis of Bifidobacterium spp. from Gut Microbiomes of Adults with Differing Lactase Persistence GenotypesWhen humans domesticated animals, some adapted genetically to digest milk into adulthood (lactase persistence). The gut microbiomes of people with lactase-persistent genotypes (AA or AG) differ from those with lactase-nonpersistent genotypes (GG) by containing fewer bacteria belonging to the bifidobacteria, a group which contains beneficial species. Here, we asked if the gut microbiomes of adults with GG and AA/AG genotypes differ in...