Article
Microbiology
Alfonso Olaya-Abril, Rafael Prados-Rosales, Jose A. Gonzalez-Reyes, Arturo Casadevall, Liise-anne Pirofski, Manuel J. Rodriguez-Ortega
Summary: This study demonstrates that extracellular vesicles produced by different serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae can be internalized by macrophages through fusion with host cell membranes, and have the ability to induce an immune response and promote the production of proinflammatory cytokines, with higher levels observed in certain serotypes.
Article
Microbiology
Saigopalakrishna S. Yerneni, Sarah Werner, Juliana H. Azambuja, Nils Ludwig, Rory Eutsey, Surya D. Aggarwal, Peter C. Lucas, Nathanael Bailey, Theresa L. Whiteside, Phil G. Campbell, N. Luisa Hiller
Summary: pEVs produced by Streptococcus pneumoniae affect macrophages in different ways and may serve as a reservoir for the bacteria, leading to inflammatory responses and tissue damage in mammalian hosts.
Review
Microbiology
Wassim Daher, Virginia Pichler, Jona Karam, Olivier Neyrolles, Laurent Kremer
Summary: This review summarizes the complexity of interactions between mycobacterial ligands and host receptors during infection and pathogenesis. It highlights the recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns by phagocytic pattern recognition receptors as the first step of the infection process. It discusses the downstream effects of receptor-mediated pathways in promoting mycobacterial survival or activating host immune defenses, and the potential of mycobacterial surface molecules as therapeutic targets, diagnostic markers, or vaccine candidates.
FEMS MICROBIOLOGY REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Soo Jung Cho, Alexander Pronko, Jianjun Yang, Kassandra Pagan, Heather Stout-Delgado
Summary: This study investigates the role of Ch25h in modulating innate immune responses by macrophages during Streptococcus pneumoniae infection. The findings demonstrate the important role of Ch25h in regulating the production of inflammatory cytokines and bacterial clearance in the lung.
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Jie Zhang, Junaid Zafar, Jinrong Kong, Fei Wang, Xuehua Shao, Ruonan Zhang, Rui Pang, Hanhong Xu, Xiaoxia Xu, Fengliang Jin
Summary: This study investigates the immune response of Spodoptera frugiperda to Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) infection, identifying Toll, IMD, and apoptosis pathways as primary immune responses. The study also discovers that AcMNPV induces differential expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) in the host, which negatively regulate the host's antiviral immune genes.
JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Review
Microbiology
Stefan Ness, Markus Hilleringmann
Summary: Streptococcus pneumoniae is a major Gram-positive human pathogen with increasing resistance rates against antibacterial agents and various virulence factors that promote pathogenicity through complex hair-like structures. Different types of pneumococcal pili, such as pili-1 and pili-2, play important roles in colonization, invasion, and spreading within the host. The molecular architecture of P1 pilus and the interactions with the host provide insights into its pathogenesis and mechanobiology.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Gerry Tonkin-Hill, Clare Ling, Chrispin Chaguza, Susannah J. Salter, Pattaraporn Hinfonthong, Elissavet Nikolaou, Natalie Tate, Andrzej Pastusiak, Claudia Turner, Claire Chewapreecha, Simon D. W. Frost, Jukka Corander, Nicholas J. Croucher, Paul Turner, Stephen D. Bentley
Summary: Characterizing the genetic diversity of Streptococcus pneumoniae through deep sequencing provides valuable insights into colonization dynamics, transmission, inter-strain competition, and the impact of antibiotic treatment.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Asher Preska Steinberg, Mingzhi Lin, Edo Kussell
Summary: Recombination plays a key role in microbial evolution and affects antibiotic resistance, antigenic variation, and adaptation to different environments. This study quantifies the impact of homologous recombination on core and accessory genes in bacteria using a computationally efficient approach. The results show that core genes have higher recombination rates compared to accessory genes, and in some bacterial species, this difference is pronounced. Additionally, gene frequency and homologous recombination rate are positively correlated in some species.
Article
Microbiology
Jinghui Zhang, Weijie Ye, Kaifeng Wu, Shengnan Xiao, Yuqiang Zheng, Zhaoche Shu, Yibing Yin, Xuemei Zhang
Summary: Streptococcus pneumoniae can alter its cell surface phenotype in response to the host environment; FabT indirectly regulates capsular polysaccharide, while PsrA is responsible for phase variation; Upregulation of PsrA correlates with more T phase variants, while inactivation of PsrA leads to O variants.
Article
Immunology
M. Ammar Zafar, Alicia Costa-Terryl, Taylor M. Young
Summary: The ability of Streptococcus pneumoniae to sense and respond quickly to the changing environment of the upper respiratory tract allows it to thrive as a pathogen. Two-component systems play a crucial role in this adaptation process. They have been found to promote pneumococcal colonization and virulence in the upper respiratory tract.
INFECTION AND IMMUNITY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ye -Yu Chun, Kai Sen Tan, Lisa Yu, Michelle Pang, Ming Hui Millie Wong, Rei Nakamoto, Wan-Zhen Chua, Amanda Huee-Ping Wong, Zhe Zhang Ryan Lew, Hsiao Hui Ong, Vincent T. Chow, Thai Tran, De Yun Wang, Lok-To Sham
Summary: The composition and structure of surface polysaccharides of Streptococcus pneumoniae affect their binding to epithelial cells and stimulate the production of immune-related proteins in nasal epithelial cells. The glycomotifs of surface polysaccharides are likely to play a crucial role in colonization and survival in the human airway.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Moe Takemura, Masaya Yamaguchi, Momoko Kobayashi, Tomoko Sumitomo, Yujiro Hirose, Daisuke Okuzaki, Masayuki Ono, Daisuke Motooka, Kana Goto, Masanobu Nakata, Narikazu Uzawa, Shigetada Kawabata
Summary: The gene bgaA in Streptococcus pneumoniae has been identified as a multifunctional virulence factor that affects glycan metabolism, bacterial adherence, and resistance to neutrophil-mediated killing. Deletion of bgaA reduces bacterial association with human cells and enhances neutrophil-mediated killing in human blood. In a mouse sepsis model, the absence of bgaA leads to increased host immune response, suppressed tissue damage, and blood coagulation. Therefore, BgaA could be a potential target for drug design and vaccine development against pneumococcal infection.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Jiaqi D. Zhu, Annie Abruzzo, Cindy N. Wu, Gavyn Chern Wei Bee, Alejandro A. Pironti, Gregory Putzel, Surya A. Aggarwal, Hannes Eichner, Jeffrey A. Weiser
Summary: This study investigates the impact of capsule thickness on host-pathogen interactions using genetically-modified strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae. The results show that a sufficiently thick capsule can protect the organism from recognition by host factors and benefit both invasive infection and colonization. Additionally, the study finds substantial variability in capsule thickness among different clinical isolates of S. pneumoniae.
Article
Physiology
Rick van der Geest, Hernan F. Penaloza, Zeyu Xiong, Shekina Gonzalez-Ferrer, Xiaojing An, Huihua Li, Hongye Fan, Mohammadreza Tabary, S. Mehdi Nouraie, Yanwu Zhao, Yingze Zhang, Kong Chen, Jonathan K. Alder, William G. Bain, Janet S. Lee
Summary: BATF2 is an important transcription factor that plays a key role in regulating the innate immune system. It enhances macrophage proinflammatory cytokine responses to Klebsiella pneumoniae, contributing to early host defense against pulmonary infection.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-LUNG CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR PHYSIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Mirelys Hernandez-Morfa, Nicolas M. Reinoso-Vizcaino, Nadia B. Olivero, Victoria E. Zappia, Paulo R. Cortes, Andrea Jaime, Jose Echenique
Summary: This study reveals the fluoroquinolone persistence mechanism in Streptococcus pneumoniae, which is induced by oxidative stress and allows the bacteria to survive in host cells. The findings suggest that persistence may influence antibiotic therapy and contribute to the evolution of fluoroquinolone resistance.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Olivia Bibollet-Bahena, Tatsuya Okafuji, Karsten Hokamp, Guy Tear, Kevin J. Mitchell
Article
Cell Biology
Brendan Ffrench, Claudia Gasch, Karsten Hokamp, Cathy Spillane, Gordon Blackshields, Thamir Mahmoud Mahgoub, Mark Bates, Louise Kehoe, Aoibhinn Mooney, Ronan Doyle, Brendan Doyle, Dearbhaile O'Donnell, Noreen Gleeson, Bryan T. Hennessy, Britta Stordal, Ciaran O'Riain, Helen Lambkin, Sharon O'Toole, John J. O'Leary, Michael F. Gallagher
CELL DEATH & DISEASE
(2017)
Article
Oncology
Colin Kenny, Naomi McDonagh, Antonio Lazaro, Elaine O'Meara, Rut Klinger, Darran O'Connor, Fiona Roche, Karsten Hokamp, Maureen J. O'Sullivan
JOURNAL OF PATHOLOGY
(2018)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Eric Conway, Emilia Jerman, Evan Healy, Shinsuke Ito, Daniel Holoch, Giorgio Oliviero, Orla Deevy, Eleanor Glancy, Darren J. Fitzpatrick, Marlena Mucha, Ariane Watson, Alan M. Rice, Paul Chammas, Christine Huang, Indigo Pratt-Kelly, Yoko Koseki, Manabu Nakayama, Tomoyuki Ishikura, Gundula Streubel, Kieran Wynne, Karsten Hokamp, Aoife McLysaght, Claudio Ciferri, Luciano Di Croce, Gerard Cagney, Raphael Margueron, Haruhiko Koseki, Adrian P. Bracken
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Carsten Kroger, Keith D. MacKenzie, Ebtihal Y. Alshabib, Morgan W. B. Kirzinger, Danae M. Suchan, Tzu-Chiao Chao, Valentyna Akulova, Aleksandra A. Miranda-CasoLuengo, Vivian A. Monzon, Tyrrell Conway, Sathesh K. Sivasankaran, Jay C. D. Hinton, Karsten Hokamp, Andrew D. S. Cameron
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
(2018)
Article
Microbiology
TuShun R. Powers, Amanda L. Haeberle, Alexander V. Predeus, Disa L. Hammarlof, Jennifer A. Cundiff, Zeus Saldana-Ahuactzi, Karsten Hokamp, Jay C. D. Hinton, Leigh A. Knodler
Summary: The study identified niche-specific bacterial expression profiles and required genes for cytosolic colonization by exploiting the parallel intracellular lifestyles of Salmonella enterica in epithelial cells. It revealed that Salmonella encounters oxidative stress and mineral deprivation in different intracellular compartments, and requires extensive transcriptional reprogramming for successful colonization. Unique virulence gene programs tailored for residence within distinct intracellular compartments were also highlighted.
Article
Oncology
Colin Kenny, Elaine O'Meara, Mevlut Ulas, Karsten Hokamp, Maureen J. O'Sullivan
Summary: Malignant rhabdoid tumors (MRT) are lethal and treatment-resistant cancers, primarily affecting young children with only a single DNA spelling change leading to this deadly outcome. Research shows that this single mutation alters the arrangement of the entire DNA, keeping cells in a cancerous state.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ciara G. Doran, Ryoichi Sugisawa, Michael Carty, Fiona Roche, Claire Fergus, Karsten Hokamp, Vincent P. Kelly, Andrew G. Bowie
Summary: Investigations into the gene expression of SARM1 in macrophages have revealed its roles in neuronal degeneration and immunity. The generation of Sarm1-/- mice and epitope-tagged SARM1 mice have provided further insights into the transcriptional regulation and functional aspects of SARM1 in macrophages and neurons.
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Roberto de la Cerda-garcia Caro, Karsten Hokamp, Fiona Roche, Georgia Thompson, Soukaina Timouma, Daniela Delneri, Ursula Bond
Summary: The lager yeasts are natural hybrids of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Saccharomyces eubayanus, with aneuploid genomes and gene expression patterns influenced by gene dosage. S. eubayanus genes are overrepresented during fermentation, and gene copy number plays a crucial role in the complex gene expression patterns observed.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Roberto de la Cerda Garcia-Caro, Georgia Thompson, Penghan Zhang, Karsten Hokamp, Fiona Roche, Silvia Carlin, Urska Vrhovsek, Ursula Bond
Summary: The polyploid nature of S. pastorianus genomes is advantageous for genetic alteration in otherwise sterile strains. An accelerated evolution approach was used to obtain lager yeasts with enhanced flavor profiles by inducing aneuploidy and selecting strains with increased production of aromatic amino acids. The mutants exhibited genomic changes and upregulation of key genes and enzymes, resulting in higher alcohol and ester production and improved flavor in lager beers.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Clive Drakeford, Sonia Aguila, Fiona Roche, Karsten Hokamp, Judicael Fazavana, Mariana P. Cervantes, Annie M. Curtis, Heike C. Hawerkamp, Sukhraj Pal Singh Dhami, Hugo Charles-Messance, Emer E. Hackett, Alain Chion, Soracha Ward, Azaz Ahmad, Ingmar Schoen, Eamon Breen, Joe Keane, Ross Murphy, Roger J. S. Preston, Jamie M. O'Sullivan, Frederick J. Sheedy, Padraic Fallon, James S. O'Donnell
Summary: This study demonstrates that VWF binding to macrophages activates downstream signaling, induces pro-inflammatory responses, and alters macrophage polarization and metabolism. These findings highlight an important role for VWF in modulating macrophage function and establish a novel link between primary hemostasis and innate immunity.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Brenda Lee, Michael Church, Karsten Hokamp, Mohamed M. Alhussain, Atif A. Bamagoos, Alastair B. Fleming
Summary: The Tup1-Cyc8 complex in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a global co-repressor of gene transcription. By studying TUP1 and CYC8 gene deletion mutants, it was found that Tup1p and Cyc8p can associate with active and inactive genes to mediate distinct negative and positive regulatory roles through interactions with different histone deacetylases. Therefore, the Tup1-Cyc8 complex should be considered as a regulator of transcription rather than solely a repressor of transcription.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Jessica O'Reilly, Faith Pangilinan, Karsten Hokamp, Per M. Ueland, John T. Brosnan, Margaret E. Brosnan, Lawrence C. Brody, Anne M. Molloy
MOLECULAR GENETICS AND METABOLISM REPORTS
(2018)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Gundula Streubel, Darren J. Fitzpatrick, Giorgio Oliviero, Andrea Scelfo, Bruce Moran, Sudipto Das, Nayla Munawar, Ariane Watson, Kieran Wynne, Gian Luca Negri, Eugene T. Dillon, SriGanesh Jammula, Karsten Hokamp, Darran P. O'Connor, Diego Pasini, Gerard Cagney, Adrian P. Bracken
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Conor P. Young, Cory Hillyer, Karsten Hokamp, Darren J. Fitzpatrick, Nikifor K. Konstantinov, Jacqueline S. Welty, Scott A. Ness, Margaret Werner-Washburne, Alastair B. Fleming, Mary Ann Osley
