Host-Microbe Biology
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyTranscriptome Profiling Analysis of Bovine Vaginal Epithelial Cell Response to an Isolated Lactobacillus StrainBovine bacterial vaginitis causes infertility, abortion, and postpartum uterine diseases, causing serious economic loss to the dairy industry. The large-scale use of antibiotics destroys normal genital tract flora and hinders the defense mechanisms of the host. Recent research suggests that lactobacilli present in the vaginal microflora of healthy cows constitute the primary microbiological barrier to infection by genital pathogens,...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Formaldehyde Dehydrogenase SsFdh1 Is Regulated by and Functionally Cooperates with the GATA Transcription Factor SsNsd1 in Sclerotinia sclerotiorumS. sclerotiorum is a pathogenic fungus with sclerotium and infection cushion development, making S. sclerotiorum one of the most challenging agricultural pathogens with no effective control method. We identified important sclerotium and compound appressorium formation determinants, SsNsd1 and SsFdh1...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyGut Microbiota Has a Widespread and Modifiable Effect on Host Gene RegulationThe composition of the gut microbiome has been associated with various aspects of human health, but the mechanism of this interaction is still unclear. We utilized a cellular system to characterize the effect of the microbiome on human gene expression. We showed that some of these changes in expression may be mediated by changes in chromatin accessibility. Furthermore, we validate the role of a specific microbe and show that changes in...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyMolecular Dating of the Emergence of Anaerobic Rumen Fungi and the Impact of Laterally Acquired GenesAnaerobic fungi living in the rumen of herbivorous mammals possess an extraordinary ability to degrade plant biomass. We examined the origin and genomic composition of these poorly characterized anaerobic gut fungi using both transcriptome and genomic data. Phylogenomics and molecular dating analyses found remarkable concurrence of the divergence times of the rumen fungi, the forage grasses, and the dietary shift of ancestral mammals...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyExtensive Thioautotrophic Gill Endosymbiont Diversity within a Single Ctena orbiculata (Bivalvia: Lucinidae) Population and Implications for Defining Host-Symbiont Specificity and Species RecognitionSymbiont diversity and host/symbiont functions have been comprehensively profiled for only a few lucinid species. In this work, unprecedented thioautotrophic gill endosymbiont taxonomic diversity was characterized within a Ctena orbiculata population associated with both seagrass- and alga-covered sediments. Endosymbiont metabolisms included known chemosynthetic functions and an additional conserved, previously uncharacterized...
Methods and Protocols | Host-Microbe BiologyHighly Reproducible 16S Sequencing Facilitates Measurement of Host Genetic Influences on the Stickleback Gut MicrobiomeOur findings demonstrate the importance of appropriately quantifying biological and technical variance components when attempting to understand major influences on high-throughput microbiome data. Our focus was on understanding among-host (biological) variance in community metrics and its magnitude in relation to within-host (technical) variance, because meaningful comparisons among individuals are necessary in addressing major...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyComparative Genomics Reveals Ecological and Evolutionary Insights into Sponge-Associated ThaumarchaeotaSponges represent ecologically important models to understand the evolution of symbiotic interactions of metazoans with microbial symbionts. Thaumarchaeota are commonly found in sponges, but their potential adaptations to a host-associated lifestyle are largely unknown. Here, we present three novel sponge-associated thaumarchaeal species and compare their genomic and predicted functional features with those of closely related...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyDual RNA-seq in Streptococcus pneumoniae Infection Reveals Compartmentalized Neutrophil Responses in Lung and Pleural SpaceThe factors that regulate the passage of bacteria between different anatomical compartments are unclear. We have used an experimental model of infection with Streptococcus pneumoniae to examine the host and bacterial factors involved in the passage of bacteria from the lung to the pleural space. The transcriptional profile of host and bacterial cells within the...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyBacteroides fragilis Strain ZY-312 Defense against Cronobacter sakazakii-Induced Necrotizing Enterocolitis In Vitro and in a Neonatal Rat ModelCronobacter sakazakii is an opportunistic pathogenic bacterium that can cause necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). However, the mechanism of pathogenicity of C. sakazakii is largely unknown. Here we have now demonstrated that apoptotic and pyroptotic stimuli are effectors of...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Oral Mouse Microbiome Promotes Tumorigenesis in Oral Squamous Cell CarcinomaThere is growing evidence that changes in the microbiome are associated with carcinogenesis. To date, no consistent oral microbiome composition associated with OSCC has been identified. Longitudinal and functional studies like the study presented here should yield a better understanding of the role that the oral microbiome plays in OSCC. Our findings, obtained using a germ-free mouse model, indicate that the presence of different oral...