Microreviews, Review
How do yeast sense mitochondrial dysfunction?
Dmitry A. Knorre1, Svyatoslav S. Sokolov1, Anna N. Zyrina2, Fedor F. Severin1,3
Apart from energy transformation, mitochondria play important signaling roles. In yeast, mitochondrial signaling relies on several molecular cascades. However, it is not clear how a cell detects a particular mitochondrial malfunction. In our review we argue that in yeast the major known routes of mitochondrial signaling are moderated by non-mitochondrial inputs.
Chlamydia trachomatis Genital Infections
Catherine M. O’Connell and Morgan E. Ferone
Chlamydia trachomatis infections are the most commonly reported sexually transmitted bacterial infections in the US and globally. Ascending infection may result in infertility, ectopic pregnancy and chronic pelvic pain in some women. In this review we provide an overview of current knowledge regarding epidemiology, disease outcomes and effective treatment of chlamydial genital tract infection and explore potential mechanisms facilitating C. trachomatis infection of genital mucosa identified via bioinformatics and other molecular approaches.
Hepatitis B virus and its sexually transmitted infection – an update
Takako Inoue1 and Yasuhito Tanaka1,2
About 5% of the world’s population has chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, and nearly 25% of carriers develop chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. The purpose of this article is to provide up-to-date information on HBV and HBV infection as a major sexually transmitted infection.
Gonorrhea – an evolving disease of the new millennium
Stuart A. Hill, Thao L. Masters and Jenny Wachter
Neisseria gonorrhoeae (the gonococcus) is a Gram-negative diplococcus, an obligate human pathogen, and the etiologic agent of the sexually transmitted disease, gonorrhea. This review provides insight into the molecular epidemiology, virulence mechanisms, pathogenesis and therapeutic options.
Cryptococcus flips its lid – membrane phospholipid asymmetry modulates antifungal drug resistance and virulence
Erika Shor1, Yina Wang1, David S. Perlin1,2, and Chaoyang Xue1,2
This article comments on work published by Huang et al. (MBio, 2016), which reported that in the pathogenic fungus Cryptococcus neoformans loss of lipid flippase activity sensitized cryptococcal cells to multiple classes of antifungal drugs and abolished fungal virulence in murine models.
A novel component of the mitochondrial genome segregation machinery in trypanosomes
Anneliese Hoffmann1,2, Martin Jakob1, and Torsten Ochsenreiter1
This article comments on work published by Trikin et al. (PLoS Pathog, 2016), which described a new component of the mitochondrial genome segregation machinery in the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma brucei.
Bacterial genotoxin functions as immune-modulator and promotes host survival
R. Guidi1, L. Del Bell Belluz2, T. Frisan2
This article comments on work published by Del Bel Belluz et al. (PLoS Pathog, 2016), which demonstrated that the typhoid toxin of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi esembles an immune-modulatory molecule rather than a toxic agent.
Metabolic disharmony and sibling conflict mediated by T6SS
April 4, 2018
In this article, the authors comment on the study "Physiological Heterogeneity Triggers Sibling Conflict Mediated by the Type VI Secretion System in an Aggregative Multicellular Bacterium" by Troselj et al. (MBio, 2018) discussing that M. xanthus uses T6SS to eliminate less fit cells from their population and identified toxic effector and cognate immunity protein (TsxEI) that mediates this sibling antagonism.
Helicobacter hepaticus polysaccharide induces an anti-inflammatory response in intestinal macrophages
March 22, 2018
In this article, the authors comment on the study "A Large Polysaccharide Produced by Helicobacter hepaticus Induces an Anti-inflammatory Gene Signature in Macrophages. " by Danne et al, (Cell Host Microbe 2017), discussing the interactions between H. hepaticus and intestinal macrophages that promote mutualism.
Endolysosomal pathway activity protects cells from neurotoxic TDP-43
March 21, 2018
In this article, the authors comment on the study "TDP-43 controls lysosomal pathways thereby determining its own clearance and cytotoxicity" by Leibiger et al. (Hum Mol Genet, 2018), proposing that ameliorating endolysosomal pathway activity enhances cell survival in TDP‑43-associated diseases.
Two distinct penicillin binding proteins promote cell division in different Salmonella lifestyles
February 18, 2018
In this article, the authors comment on the study "A Specialized Peptidoglycan Synthase Promotes Salmonella Cell Division inside Host Cells" by Castanheira et al. (mBio, 2017), discussing insights in two distinct penicillin binding proteins that promote cell division in different Salmonella lifestyles.
Burkholderia gladioli strain NGJ1 deploys a prophage tail-like protein for mycophagy
December 31, 2017
In this article, the authors comment on the study "A prophage tail-like protein is deployed by Burkholderia bacteria to feed on fungi" by Swain et al. (Nature Communications, 2017), discussing that a prophage tail-like protein (Bg_9562) is essential for mycophagy. The protein may help the bacteria to survive in certain ecological niches and, considering its broad-spectrum antifungal activity, may be potentially useful in biotechnological applications to control fungal diseases.
A novel basolateral type IV secretion model for the CagA oncoprotein of Helicobacter pylori
December 9, 2017
In this article, the authors comment on the study "Helicobacter pylori Employs a Unique Basolateral Type IV Secretion Mechanism for CagA Delivery" by Tegtmeyer et al. (Cell Host Microbe, 2017), discussing that the finding of a T4SS receptor suggests the presence of a sophisticated control mechanism for the injection of CagA and the possible impact of this novel signaling cascade on pathogenesis during infection with Helicobacter pylori.
A new role for the nuclear basket network
November 28, 2017
This article comments on work published by Salas-Pino et al. (J Cell Biol, 2017), which describes a novel function of the fission yeast nuclear basket component - the translocated promoter region (TPR) nucleoporin Alm1 - in proper localization of the proteasome to the nuclear envelope.
VAMP8 mucin exocytosis attenuates intestinal pathogenesis by Entamoeba histolytica
November 24, 2017
This article comments on work published by Cornick et al. (mBio, 2017), which nominates SNARE-mediated exocytosis as the putative mechanism responsible for pathogen-induced mucus secretion from goblet cells.