Articles in 2017

This study highlights a heretofore unappreciated role of electrical signalling in biofilm communities and in their interaction with their environment.

Recent studies have provided insights into the antagonistic roles of cyclic-di-GMP (c-di-GMP) and the alarmones guanosine tetraphosphate and guanosine pentaphosphate (collectively referred to as (p)ppGpp) in the regulation of the cell cycle in Alphaproteobacteria. In this Review, Viollier and colleagues discuss how those second messengers control the initiation of DNA replication and cytokinesis by modulating the synthesis and proteolysis of key regulators of the cell cycle.

This study reveals that two host cell membrane proteins have contrasting roles during the transfer of picornavirus RNA into the cytoplasm.

This study shows that co-culturingStreptomyces venezuelae with the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae triggers a previously unknown growth mode in S. venezuelaethat enables cells to explore their environment.

Class 2 CRISPR–Cas systems are characterized by effector modules that consist of a single multidomain protein. In this Analysis, using a computational pipeline, the authors discover three novel families of class 2 effectors that correspond to three new CRISPR–Cas subtypes and present a comprehensive census of class 2 systems that are encoded in complete and draft bacterial and archaeal genomes.

This study provides insights into the archaeal ancestor of eukaryotes and the primal stages of eukaryogenesis.

This month's Genome Watch discusses how whole-genome sequencing of bacteria from several body sites has provided insights into the spatial diversity of bacteria within patients.

Bacteria have to overcome many obstacles to invade the meninges from the bloodstream. This Review considers how extracellular pathogens such asNeisseria meningitides and Streptococcus pneumoniaebypass the blood–brain barriers, the understanding of which may lead to improved methods for delivering drugs into the brain.

Sequencing viral DNA and RNA is an important part of clinical practice, although, so far, mostly subgenomic fragments have been sequenced. In this Opinion article, Houldcroft, Beale and Breuer highlight the potential that sequencing whole viral genomes has for clinical applications.

This paper shows that the intestinal microbiota is required for normal expansion of the pancreatic β-cell population in zebrafish during early larval development.

In addition to viruses, bacteria such asHelicobacter pylori and Salmonella enterica subsp. entericaserovar Typhi have been linked to cancer development. Progress has been made in our understanding of how bacterial effectors contribute to cancer directly by influencing host cell signalling pathways and indirectly by causing tissue damage and inflammatory responses.

Although viral sequences are important in taxonomy, classification has typically also required biological properties, thus excluding viruses that were identified by metagenomics. The proposals in this Consensus Statement, which are supported by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV), enable viruses that are discovered by sequence alone to be incorporated into virus classification.