Exciting work from the Hsu lab at Virginia Tech! They developed a cool way too knock down phage abundances to examine their role in the gut.
"A bacteriophage-conditional mouse model reveals the impact of phages within a conventionally colonized gut microbiota"
Sustained in situ protein production and release in the mammalian gut by an engineered bacteriophage
nature.com/articles/s41587-025…
Biologics are delivered to the gut using phage that infects resident commensal bacteria.Nature
We have a new preprint describing a method for #bacteriophage phylogenetics and comparative genomics.
Maybe useful for those interested in all the amazing #phages out there and their bizarre mosaic genomes
Towards a unifying phylogenomic framework for tailed phages
biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/20…
Background Classifying viruses systematically has remained a key challenge of virology due to the absence of universal genes and vast genetic diversity of viruses.bioRxiv
Contrasting drivers of abundant phage and prokaryotic communities revealed in diverse coastal ecosystems
nature.com/articles/s43705-023…
#marine #viruses #phages #ocean #microbiology #virology
ISME Communications - Contrasting drivers of abundant phage and prokaryotic communities revealed in diverse coastal ecosystemsNature
In this work, authors use an arrayed genome-wide CRISPR interference assay to map gene essentiality landscape in the canonical coliphages λ and P1.plos.io
Awesome work from Rotem Sorek lab in our department:
Rotem's lab & others found this past decade >150 bacterial defense mechanisms against phages.
This new work, led by Erez Yirmiya, explores phage *anti-defense* mechanisms, and it's really cool!
#bacteria #bacteriophage #phages
nature.com/articles/s41586-023…
Nature - Phages overcome bacterial immunity via diverse anti-defence proteinsNature
Ongoing shuffling of protein fragments diversifies core viral functions linked to interactions with bacterial hosts
nature.com/articles/s41467-023…
#phages #viruses #evolution #genomics
Proteins are composed of distinct functional domains, each serving a specific role. Here, Smug et al. show that phages are able to shuffle fragments of their proteins and this predominantly occurs in proteins involved in bacterial host interactions.Nature
Vampire viruses prey on other #viruses to replicate themselves
A virus that latches onto the neck of another virus
Researchers discovered a satellite virus latching onto the neck of another virus called MindFlayer. Studying the viral arms race between similar viruses could lead to new ways to fight infections.The Conversation
Characterization of crAss-like phage isolates highlights Crassvirales genetic heterogeneity and worldwide distribution
nature.com/articles/s41467-023…
#phages #bacteriophage #viruses
Here, the authors report the isolation and genetic characterization of 25 unique crAss-like phages (termed “crAssBcn”) infecting Bacteroides intestinalis, and show that CrAssBcn phages are commonly found in fecal samples from people around the globe,…Nature
Scientists discover how parasites of #viruses drive #superbug #evolution.
#phages #gene_transfer #lateral_transduction
phys.org/news/2023-08-scientis…
In a study published in Cell, scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Imperial College London have discovered a new way by which bacteria transmit their genes, enabling them to evolve much faster than previously understood.Science X (Phys.org)
Happy to say I defended my dissertation "Methods and complexity in phage-bacteria ecology and evolution"!
Much thanks to all those who supported me throughout my PhD.
I'm glad to be sticking around the Turner Lab for another year as a post-doc to continue my work on multispecies phage-bacteria communities
#PhDone #AcademicChatter #AcademicMastodon #Academia #PhD #Ecology #Evolution #Phage #Phages
'#Bioprospecting' technique uncovers #viruses that can kill deadly superbugs.
#phages #antimicrobial #epitopes #porin
phys.org/news/2023-05-bioprosp…
In a modern take on the Victorian gold rush, a Monash University-led project is successfully "bioprospecting" for viruses known as phages that can kill deadly superbugs.Cheryl Critchley (Phys.org)
Happy to see the first experimental project I led finally out in the world! With Jeremy Moore, Sydney Olsen, and Mike Travisano
We combined experimental evolution and mathematical modeling to ask: do bacteria evolve to swim away from phages?
1/n
doi.org/10.1101/2023.04.29.538…
#microbiology #evolution #ecology #phages #phage #bacteria #MicrobialEvolution #MicrobialEcology
In the face of ubiquitous threats from parasites, hosts often evolve strategies to resist infection or to altogether avoid contact with parasites. At the microbial scale, bacteria frequently encounter viral parasites, bacteriophages.bioRxiv
Hijacking strategy mapped for hundreds of #viruses.
#infection #protein #motif #phages
phys.org/news/2023-05-hijackin…
One strategy that viruses use to take over a host cell is to mimic small parts of the cell's proteins called motifs.Science X (Phys.org)
Unexplored diversity and ecological functions of transposable phages
nature.com/articles/s41396-023…
The ISME Journal - Unexplored diversity and ecological functions of transposable phagesNature
Identification and characterization of thousands of bacteriophage satellites across bacteria
academic.oup.com/nar/advance-a…
#phages #viruses #microbiology
Abstract. Bacteriophage–bacteria interactions are affected by phage satellites, elements that exploit phages for transfer between bacteria. Satellites can encodde Sousa, Jorge A Moura (Oxford University Press)
Human-gut #phages harbor #sporulation genes | bioRxiv
biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/20…
Spore-forming bacteria are prevalent in mammalian guts and have implications for host health and nutrition. The production of dormant spores is thought to play an important role in the colonization, persistence, and transmission of these bacteria.bioRxiv
