Regulation of extracellular vesicles for protein secretion in Aspergillus nidulans
This study reveals that Aspergillus nidulans boosts extracellular vesicle production when ER-trafficked enzymes are induced, uncovering how fungi remodel their secretome through vesicle-mediated secretion to adapt to changing environments and biofilm formation.
Transcriptomic response to different heme sources in Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigotes
This study uncovers how the Chagas disease parasite adapts to changes in heme, an essential molecule for its survival, providing transcriptional clues to heme metabolism and identifying a previously unreported heme-binding protein in T. cruzi.
Luminal acetylation of microtubules is not essential for Plasmodium berghei and Toxoplasma gondii survival
Acetylation of α-tubulin at lysine 40 is not essential for cytoskeletal stability in Plasmodium berghei or Toxoplasma gondii, suggesting redundancy and plasticity in microtubule regulation in these parasites.
The dual-site agonist for human M2 muscarinic receptors Iper-8-naphtalimide induces mitochondrial dysfunction in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
S. cerevisiae is a model to study human GPCRs. N-8-Iper, active against glioblastoma via M2 receptor, causes mitochondrial damage in yeast by binding Ste2, highlighting evolutionary conservation of GPCRs.
Integrative Omics reveals changes in the cellular landscape of peroxisome-deficient pex3 yeast cells
To uncover the consequences of peroxisome deficiency, we compared Saccharomyces cerevisiae wild-type with pex3 cells, which lack peroxisomes, employing quantitative proteomics and transcriptomics technologies.
Regulation of extracellular vesicles for protein secretion in Aspergillus nidulans
Rebekkah E. Pope1, Patrick Ballmann2, Lisa Whitworth3 and Rolf A. Prade1,*
This study reveals that Aspergillus nidulans boosts extracellular vesicle production when ER-trafficked enzymes are induced, uncovering how fungi remodel their secretome through vesicle-mediated secretion to adapt to changing environments and biofilm formation.
Transcriptomic response to different heme sources in Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigotes
Evelyn Tevere1,a, María G. Mediavilla1,a, Cecilia B. Di Capua1, Marcelo L. Merli1, Carlos Robello2,3, Luisa Berná2,4 and Julia A. Cricco
This study uncovers how the Chagas disease parasite adapts to changes in heme, an essential molecule for its survival, providing transcriptional clues to heme metabolism and identifying a previously unreported heme-binding protein in T. cruzi.
Sir2 regulates selective autophagy in stationary-phase yeast cells
Ji-In Ryua, Juhye Junga, and Jeong-Yoon Kim
This study establishes Sir2 as a previously unrecognized regulator of selective autophagy during the stationary phase and highlight how cells dynamically control organelle degradation.
Microbial competition between Escherichia coli and Candida albicans reveals a soluble fungicidal factor
Damien J. Cabral1, Swathi Penumutchu1, Colby Norris1,2, Jose Ruben Morones-Ramirez3,4 and Peter Belenky1
Localized and systemic fungal infections caused by Candida albicans can lead to significant mortality and morbidity. Here, Cabral et al. show that E. coli produces a soluble factor that kills C. albicans in a magnesium-dependent fashion such that depletion of available magnesium is essential for toxicity.
Spontaneous mutations in CYC8 and MIG1 suppress the short chronological lifespan of budding yeast lacking SNF1/AMPK
Nazif Maqani1,#, Ryan D. Fine1,#, Mehreen Shahid1, Mingguang Li1,2, Elisa Enriquez-Hesles1 and Jeffrey S. Smith1
Chronologically aging yeast cells are prone to adaptive regrowth, whereby mutants with a survival advantage spontaneously appear and re-enter the cell cycle in stationary phase cultures. Here, Magani et al. identified specific downstream SNF1 targets responsible for CLS extension during CR.
Production of poly-β-1,6-N-acetylglucosamine by MatAB is required for hyphal aggregation and hydrophilic surface adhesion by Streptomyces
Dino van Dissel1, Joost Willemse1, Boris Zacchetti1, Dennis Claessen1, Gerald B. Pier2, Gilles P. van Wezel1
In this article van Dissel et al. describe new insights to allow better control of liquid-culture morphology of streptomycetes, which may be harnessed to improve growth and industrial exploitation of these highly versatile natural product and enzyme producers.
Impact of F1Fo-ATP-synthase dimer assembly factors on mitochondrial function and organismic aging
Nadia G Rampello1, Maria Stenger2, Benedikt Westermann2, Heinz D Osiewacz1
In aerobic organisms, mitochondrial F1Fo-ATP-synthase is the major site of ATP production. Here, Rampello et al. report on the role of the two dimer assembly factors PaATPE and PaATPG of the aging model Podospora anserina validating a model that links mitochondrial membrane remodeling to aging and identify specific molecular components triggering this process.
Non-canonical regulation of glutathione and trehalose biosynthesis characterizes non-Saccharomyces wine yeasts with poor performance in active dry yeast production
Esther Gamero-Sandemetrio1, Lucía Payá-Tormo1, Rocío Gómez-Pastor1,3, Agustín Aranda1,2 and Emilia Matallana1,2
Several yeast species, belonging to Saccharomyces and non-Saccharomyces genera, play fundamental roles during spontaneous must grape fermentation, and recent studies have shown that mixed fermentations, co-inoculated with S. cerevisiae and non-Saccharomyces strains, can improve wine organoleptic properties. Here, Gamero-Sandemetrio et al. present findings that non-canonical regulation of glutathione and trehalose biosynthesis could cause poor fermentative performance after active dry yeast (ADY) production, as it corroborates the corrective effect of antioxidant treatments, during biomass propagation, with both pure chemicals and food-grade argan oil.
Molecular signature of the imprintosome complex at the mating-type locus in fission yeast
Célia Raimondi1, Bernd Jagla2, Caroline Proux3, Hervé Waxin4, Serge Gangloff1, Benoit Arcangioli1
Genetic and molecular studies have indicated that an epigenetic imprint at mat1, the sexual locus of fission yeast, initiates mating type switching. Here, Raimondi et al. characterized the recruitment of early players of mating type switching at the mat1 region and suggest a nucleoprotein protective structure defined as imprintosome.
A novel system to monitor mitochondrial translation in yeast
Tamara Suhm1, Lukas Habernig2, Magdalena Rzepka1, Jayasankar Mohanakrishnan Kaimal3, Claes Andréasson3, Sabrina Büttner2,3 and Martin Ott1
In this study Suhm et al. present a novel system to monitor mitochondrial translation by detection of mitochondrial GFP-translation through fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry in functional mitochondria. This novel tool allows the investigation of the function and regulation of mitochondrial translation during stress signaling, aging and mitochondrial biogenesis.
Inhibiting eukaryotic ribosome biogenesis: Mining new tools for basic research and medical applications
Lisa Kofler1, Michael Prattes1 and Helmut Bergler1
This article comments on work published by Awad et al (BMC Biology, 2019), which screened for novel inhibitors of the ribosome biogenesis pathway in yeast.
Diverse conditions support near-zero growth in yeast: Implications for the study of cell lifespan
Jordan Gulli1, Emily Cook1, Eugene Kroll1, Adam Rosebrock2,3, Amy Caudy2 and Frank Rosenzweig1
This review discusses alternative cultivation methods for baker’s yeast to study its chronological lifespan, with the aim of better understanding the ageing of non-dividing cells and their potential implications for the lifespan of multicellular eukaryotes such as humans.
Evolution of the bacterial nucleosidase PpnN and its relation to the stringent response
René Lysdal Bærentsen1, Ditlev Egeskov Brodersen1 and Yong Everett Zhang2
This article comments on work published by Zhang et al (Mol Cell, 2019), which discovered an interesting mode of regulation of purine metabolism unique to Proteobacteria.
Integrins in disguise – mechanosensors in Saccharomyces cerevisiae as functional integrin analogues
Tarek Elhasi1 and Anders Blomberg1
This article shows that although yeast lack integrin-like proteins, they possess WSC- and MID-type mechanosensors that functionally resemble integrins in animal cells, playing a role in sensing external mechanical stimuli and activating the conserved PKC1-SLT1 cell wall integrity pathway, with potential implications for understanding mechanosensing in yeast biology.
Bacterial maze runners reveal hidden diversity in chemotactic performance
M. Mehdi Salek1,#, Francesco Carrara1,#, Vicente Fernandez1 and Roman Stocker1
This article comments on work published by Salek et al. (Nat Commun, 2019), which combined microfluidic experiments with mathematical modeling to demonstrate that even in clonal populations, bacteria are individuals with different abilities to climb chemical gradients.
Laundry and textile hygiene in healthcare and beyond
Dirk P. Bockmühl1, Jan Schages1 and Laura Rehberg1
This article shows that while institutional laundering is regulated to ensure hygiene, the trend towards energy-efficient washing at lower temperatures raises concerns about the antimicrobial efficacy of domestic laundering, with a focus on addressing microbial contamination in both clinical and home settings.
Bacterial pathogens under high-tension: Staphylococcus aureus adhesion to von Willebrand factor is activated by force
Felipe Viela1, Pietro Speziale2,3, Giampiero Pietrocola2 and Yves F. Dufrêne1,4
This article comments on work published by Viela et al (mBio, 2019), which shows that the bacterial cell surface protein A to the large plasma glycoprotein von Willebrand factor interaction is tightly regulated by mechanical force.
Yeast AP-1 like transcription factors (Yap) and stress response: a current overview
Claudina Rodrigues-Pousada1, Frédéric Devaux2, Soraia M. Caetano1, Catarina Pimentel1, Sofia da Silva1, Ana Carolina Cordeiro1 and Catarina Amaral1
This review summarizes current understanding of the eight Yap transcription factors in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, detailing their activation by specific stress conditions and discussing their function and evolution across various fungal species.
Means of intracellular communication: touching, kissing, fusing
Anne Spang1
This work highlights different aspects of communication between organelles, including the importance of organellar contact sites.
Neuropathogenesis caused by Trypanosoma brucei, still an enigma to be unveiled
Katherine Figarella1
This Editorial addresses the meningo-encephalitic stage of Trypanosoma brucei infection and the resultig neuropathogenesis as well as the impact that the application of tools developed in the last years in the field of neuroscience will have on the study of neglected tropical diseases.
Lichens – growing greenhouses en miniature
Martin Grube1
This commentary article provides an overview on different aspects of lichen biology and the remarkable symbiotic association between fungi and algae.
Regulation of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore and its effects on aging
Damiano Pellegrino-Coppola1
Aging is linked to mitochondrial function, with the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) playing a key role. Yeast is a useful model for studying how mPTP affects cell survival, aging, and related diseases.
Fungal infections in humans: the silent crisis
Katharina Kainz1, Maria A. Bauer1, Frank Madeo1-3 and Didac Carmona-Gutierrez1
This article highlights the growing global threat of fungal infections – exacerbated by rising drug resistance and medical practices – and emphasizes the urgent need for intensified research to develop more effective antifungal strategies.
Digesting the crisis: autophagy and coronaviruses
Didac Carmona-Gutierrez1, Maria A. Bauer1, Andreas Zimmermann1,2, Katharina Kainz1,
Sebastian J. Hofer1, Guido Kroemer3-7 and Frank Madeo1,2,8
This article reviews the multifaceted role of autophagy in antiviral defense and highlights how coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, interact with this pathway, raising the possibility that targeting autophagy could offer novel therapeutic strategies against COVID-19.
Microbial Cell
is an open-access, peer-reviewed journal that publishes exceptionally relevant research works that implement the use of unicellular organisms (and multicellular microorganisms) to understand cellular responses to internal and external stimuli and/or human diseases.
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Peer-reviewed, open-access research using unicellular organisms (and multicellular microorganisms) to understand cellular responses and human disease.
The journal (founded in 2014) is led by its Editors-in-Chief Frank Madeo, Didac Carmona-Gutierrez, and Guido Kroemer
Microbial Cell has been publishing original scientific literature since 2014, and from the very beginning has been managed by active scientists through an independent Publishing House (Shared science Publishers). The journal was conceived as a platform to acknowledge the importance of unicellular organisms, both as model systems as well as in the biological context of human health and disease.
Ever since, Microbial Cell has very positively developed and strongly grown into a respected journal in the unicellular research community and even beyond. This scientific impact is reflected in the yearly number of citations obtained by articles published in Microbial Cell, as recorded by the Web of Science (Clarivate, formerly Thomson/Reuters):

The scientific impact of Microbial Cell is also mirrored in a series of milestones:
2015: Microbial Cell is included in the Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), a selection of developing journals drafted by Clarivate Analytics based on the candidate’s publishing standards, quality, editorial content, and citation data. Note: As an ESCI-selected journal, Microbial Cell is currently being evaluated in a rigorous and long process to determine an inclusion in the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE), which allows the official calculation of Clarivate Analytics’ impact factor.
2016: Microbial Cell is awarded the so-called DOAJ Seal by the selective Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). The DOAJ Seal is an exclusive mark of certification for open access journals granted by DOAJ to journals that adhere to outstanding best practice and achieve an extra high and clear commitment to open access and high publishing standards.
2017: Microbial Cell is included in Pubmed Central (PMC), allowing the archiving of all the journal’s articles in PMC and PubMed.
2019: Microbial Cell is indexed in the prestigious abstract and citation database Scopus after a thorough selection process. This also means that Microbial Cell obtains, for the first time, an official Scopus CiteScore as well as an official journal ranking in the Scimago Journal and Country Ranking.
2022: Microbial Cell’s CiteScore reaches a value of 7.2 for the year 2021, positioning Microbial Cell among the top microbiology journals (previously available CiteScores: 2019: 5.4; 2020: 5.1).
2022: Microbial Cell is indexed in the highly selective Science Citation Index Expanded™, which covers approx. 9,500 of the world’s most impactful journals across 178 scientific disciplines. In their journal selection and curation process, Clarivate´s editors apply 24 ‘quality’ criteria and four ‘impact’ criteria to select the most influential journals in their respective fields. This selection is also a pre-requisite for inclusion in the JCR, which features the impact factor.
2022: Microbial Cell is listed in the Journal Citation Reports™ (JCR), and obtains its first official Journal Impact Factor™ (JIF) for the year 2021: 5.316.
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The long and winding road of reverse genetics in Trypanosoma cruzi
Miguel A. Chiurillo1 and Noelia Lander1
This Editorial provides a brief historic overview that highlights the strengths and weaknesses of the molecular strategies that have been developed to genetically modify Trypanosoma cruzi, emphasizing the future directions of the field.