March 27, 2024

Built environment microbiome

Genomic, functional, and metabolic enhancements in multidrug-resistant Enterobacter bugandensis facilitating its persistence and succession in the International Space Station – Pratyay Sengupta et al – BMC Microbiome

An overview of the bacterial microbiome of public transportation systems-risks, detection, and countermeasures – Yen-Tran Ly et al – Frontiers in Public Health

Bioinformatics and computational methods

Contigs directed gene annotation (ConDiGA) for accurate protein sequence database construction in metaproteomics – Enhui Wu et al – BMC Microbiome

Amplidiff: an optimized amplicon sequencing approach to estimating lineage abundances in viral metagenomes – Jasper van Bemmelen et al – BMC Bioinformatics

Multi-omic integration of microbiome data for identifying disease-associated modules – Efrat Muller – Nature Communications

Animal experiments

Gender affirming hormone therapy preserves skeletal maturation in young mice via the gut microbiome – Subhashis Pal et al – Journal of Clinical Investigation

Microbiota-derived indoles alleviate intestinal inflammation and modulate microbiome by microbial cross-feeding – Gang Wang et al – BMC Microbiome

[PREPRINT] Akkermansia muciniphila identified as key strain to alleviate gut barrier injury through Wnt signaling pathway – Xin Ma et al – bioRxiv

Microbiota from human infants consuming secretors or non-secretors mothers’ milk impacts the gut and immune system in mice – Manoj Gurung et al – mSystems

Plant and soil microbiome

Lose-lose consequences of bacterial community-driven invasions in soil – Xipeng Liu & Joana Falcão Salles – BMC Microbiome

Manipulating the physical distance between cells during soil colonization reveals the importance of biotic interactions in microbial community assembly – Sana Romdhane et al – BMC Environmental Microbiome

Soil fungal communities varied across aspects of restored grassland in former mining areas of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau – Xioaqing Li et al – PLOS One

Animal microbiome

Exploring the potential effects of forest urbanization on the interplay between small mammal communities and their gut microbiota – Marie Bouilloud et al – BMC Animal Microbiome

Bats, Bacteria, and Bat Smell V.2.0: Repeatable Sex-Specific Differences in Scent Organ Microbiota – Öncü Maraci et al – Microbial Ecology

Characterization of the skin microbiome in normal and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma affected cats and dogs – Jacoba I. Bromfield et al – mSphere

Phylosymbiosis and metabolomics resolve phenotypically plastic and cryptic sponge species in the genus Agelas across the Caribbean basin – M.S. Pankey et al – Molecular Ecology

Naturally occurring fire coral clones demonstrate a genetic and environmental basis of microbiome composition – C. E. Dubé et al – Nature Communications

March 20, 2024

Human gut and general microbiome

Prevotella copri and microbiota members mediate the beneficial effects of a therapeutic food for malnutrition – Hao-Wei Chang et al – Nature Microbiology

Outcomes after Fecal Microbiota Transplantation in combination with Bezlotoxumab for Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Recurrent C. difficile Infection – Jessica R Allegretti – American Journal of Gastroenterology

Diosmin alleviates ulcerative colitis in mice by increasing Akkermansia muciniphila abundance, improving intestinal barrier function, and modulating the NF-κB and Nrf2 pathways – Maha Badr Salem et al – Cell Heliyon

Gut microbiota profiling in obese children from Southeastern China – Jingjing Wang et al – BMC Pediatrics

A flexible high-throughput cultivation protocol to assess the response of individuals’ gut microbiota to diet-, drug-, and host-related factors – Janina N Zünd et al – ISME Communications

Animal experiments

Intact lung tissue and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid are both suitable for the evaluation of murine lung microbiome in acute lung injury – Lijun Zheng et al – BMC Microbiome

Microbiota-derived indoles alleviate intestinal inflammation and modulate microbiome by microbial cross-feeding – Gang Wang et al – BMC Microbiome

Plant, soil, and environmental microbiome

Microbial species pool-mediated diazotrophic community assembly in crop microbiomes during plant development – Chao Xiong et al – mSystems

Bacterial communities associated with an island radiation of lichen-forming fungi – Miguel Blázquez et al – PLOS ONE

Built environment microbiome

Early assessment of fungal and oomycete pathogens in greenhouse irrigation water using Oxford nanopore amplicon sequencing – Enoch Narh Kudjordjie et al – PLOS One

The composition of the bacterial communities collected from the PM10 samples inside the Seoul subway and railway station – Shambhavi Sharma et al – Nature Scientific Reports

Bioinformatics

Differential network connectivity analysis for microbiome data adjusted for clinical covariates using jackknife pseudo-values – Seungjun Ahn & Somnath Datta – BMC Bioinformatics

Beneficial microbes & microbial metabolites
Natural intestinal metabolite xylitol reduces BRD4 levels to mitigate renal fibrosis – Zhouke Tan et al – Clinical and Translational Science

Probiotics supplementation during pregnancy or infancy on multiple food allergies and gut microbiota: a systematic review and meta-analysis – Lan Jiang et al – Nutrition Reviews

Non-Microbiome Microbiology

Koch’s curse: How models of extreme pathology bias studies of host–pathogen interactions – Kalyan K. Dewan & Eric T. Harvill – PLOS Pathogens

March 6, 2024

Vaginal Microbiome

Modeling Healthy and Dysbiotic Vaginal Microenvironments in a Human Vagina-on-a-Chip – Aakanksha Gulati et al – JoVE Bioengineering

Cancer microbiome

Multi-omics analysis elucidates the relationship between intratumor microbiome and host immune heterogeneity in breast cancer – Jia Li et al – Microbiology Spectrum

Human gut microbiome

Protein combined with certain dietary fibers increases butyrate production in gut microbiota fermentation – Rachel Jackson et al – Food & Function

A human milk oligosaccharide prevents intestinal inflammation in adulthood via modulating gut microbial metabolism – Kasey M. Schalich et al – mBio

Taxonomic and metabolic development of the human gut microbiome across life stages: a worldwide metagenomic investigation – Leonardo Mancabelli et al – mSystems

Cadaver microbiome

Decomposer communities are universal in death – Michael S. Strickland – Nature Microbiology

Animal microbiome

The coral microbiome in sickness, in health and in a changing world – Christian R. Voolstra et al – Nature Reviews Microbiology

The effects of hydrolyzed protein on macronutrient digestibility, fecal metabolites and microbiota, oxidative stress and inflammatory biomarkers, and skin and coat quality in adult dogs – Clare Hsu et al – Journal of Animal Science

Host starvation and in hospite degradation of algal symbionts shape the heat stress response of the Cassiopea-Symbiodiniaceae symbiosis – Gaëlle Toullec et al – BMC Microbiome

An engineered bacterial symbiont allows noninvasive biosensing of the honey bee gut environment – Audam Chhun et al – PLOS Biology

From phyllosphere to insect cuticles: silkworms gather antifungal bacteria from mulberry leaves to battle fungal parasite attacks – Pengfei Zhao et al – BMC Microbiome

Phages and viruses

Discovery and characterization of novel DNA viruses in Apis mellifera: expanding the honey bee virome through metagenomic analysis – Dominika Kadlečková et al – mSystems

Taxonomic difference in marine bloom-forming phytoplanktonic species affects the dynamics of both bloom-responding prokaryotes and prokaryotic viruses – Hiroaki Takebe et al – mSystems

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Microbiome sequencing revealed the abundance of uncultured bacteria in the Phatthalung sago palm-growing soil – Pumin Nutaratat et al – PLOS ONE

The rhizosphere microbiome reduces the uptake of arsenic and tungsten by Blechnum orientale by increasing nutrient cycling in historical tungsten mining area soils – Xiaolong Lan et al – Science of the Total Environment

Non-Microbiology/Science Communication

[PREPRINT] Sci-comm “behind the scenes”: Gendered narratives of scientific outreach activities in the life sciences – Perry G. Beasley-Hall et al – bioRxiv

February 28, 2024

Human gut microbiome

Distinct intestinal microbial signatures linked to accelerated systemic and intestinal biological aging – Shalini Singh – BMC Microbiome

Safety, feasibility, and impact on the gut microbiome of kefir administration in critically ill adults – Vinod K. Gupta – BMC Medicine

Dissecting Gut-Microbial Community Interactions using a Gut Microbiome-on-a-Chip – Jeeyon Lee – Advanced Science

Animal experiments

CRB1-associated retinal degeneration is dependent on bacterial translocation from the gut – Shanzhen Peng – Cell

Amino acid formula induces microbiota dysbiosis and depressive-like behavior in mice – Ji Hu – Cell Reports

Bacteroides fragilis aggravates high-fat diet-induced non-alcoholic fatty liver disease by regulating lipid metabolism and remodeling gut microbiota – Yumei Huang – Microbiology Spectrum

Animal microbiome

Gut microbiota modulation enhances the immune capacity of lizards under climate warming – Jing Yang – BMC Microbiome

Gut microbiota contribute to variations in honey bee foraging intensity – Cassondra L Vernier – ISME Journal

Virome diversity shaped by genetic evolution and ecological landscape of Haemaphysalis longicornis – Run-Ze Ye – BMC Microbiome

Multi-omics reveal mechanisms of high enteral starch diet mediated colonic dysbiosis via microbiome-host interactions in young ruminant – Chunjia Jin – BMC Microbiome

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

[PREPRINT] Cover Crop Root Exudates Impact Soil Microbiome Functional Trajectories in Agricultural Soils – Valerie A Seitz – Research Square

Stronger compensatory thermal adaptation of soil microbial respiration with higher substrate availability – Lingrui Qu – ISME Journal

Built environment

Effects of operational parameters on bacterial communities in Hong Kong and global wastewater treatment plants – Yulin Zhang – mSystems

Water and extremophile microbiome

Novel functional insights into the microbiome inhabiting marine plastic debris: critical considerations to counteract the challenges of thin biofilms using multi-omics and comparative metaproteomics – Lauren F. Messer – BMC Microbiome

Particle-attached bacteria act as gatekeepers in the decomposition of complex phytoplankton polysaccharides – Feng-Qing Wang – BMC Microbiome

Dynamics of Gut Bacteria Across Different Zooplankton Genera in the Baltic Sea – Tianshuo Zu – Microbial Ecology

Beneficial microbes

[PREPRINT] Enhancing Recovery from Gut Microbiome Dysbiosis and Alleviating DSS-Induced Colitis in Mice with a Consortium of Rare Short-Chain Fatty Acid-Producing Bacteria – Achuthan Ambat – bioRxiv

Neuroprotective Effects of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis NJ241 in a Mouse Model of Parkinson’s Disease: Implications for Gut Microbiota and PGC-1α – Yuxuan Dong – Molecular Neurobiology

March 1, 2022

General microbiome

Phylogenomics, Epigenomics, Virulome, and Mobilome of Gram-negative Bacteria Co-resistant to Carbapenems and Polymyxins: A One-Health Systematic Review and Meta-analyses – Ramaloko et al. – Environmental Microbiology

Global diversity and distribution of mushroom-inhabiting bacteria – Gohar et al. – Environmental Microbiology Reports

Genomic Epidemiology Insights on NDM-Producing Pathogens Revealed the Pivotal Role of Plasmids on blaNDM Transmission – Dong et al. – Microbiology Spectrum

Multi-site human microbiome

Contributions of Human-Associated Archaeal Metabolites to Tumor Microenvironment and Carcinogenesis – Cai et al. – Microbiology Spectrum

Human respiratory microbiome

Early life inter-kingdom interactions shape the immunological environment of the airways – C Pattaroni et al. – Microbiome

Human gut microbiome

Altered gut metabolites and microbiota interactions are implicated in colorectal carcinogenesis and can be non-invasive diagnostic biomarkers – Coker et al. – Microbiome

Animal experiments

Development of a rational framework for the therapeutic efficacy of fecal microbiota transplantation for calf diarrhea treatment – Islam et al. – Microbiome

Animal microbiome

Comparative microbiome analysis of Diaphorina citri and its associated parasitoids Tamarixia radiata and Diaphorencyrtus aligarhensis reveals Wolbachia as a dominant endosymbiont – Ashraf et al. – Environmental Microbiology

Plant, root, and soil microbiome

Core arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are predicted by their high abundance-occupancy relationship while host-specific taxa are rare and geographically structured – Kajihara et al. – New Phytologist

Embracing mountain microbiome and ecosystem functions under global change –  Wang et al. – New Phytologist

Nitrogen fertilization disrupts the temporal dynamics of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal hyphae but not spore density and community composition in a wheat field – Babalola et al. – New Phytologist

Multiomics Reveals the Effect of Root Rot on Polygonati Rhizome and Identifies Pathogens and Biocontrol Strain – Pang et al. – Microbiology Spectrum

Seed microbiota revealed by a large-scale meta-analysis including 50 plant species – Simonin et al. – New Phytologist

Viewpoint: Plant–microbe eco-evolutionary dynamics in a changing world – Angulo et al. – New Phytologist

Stem traits, compartments, and tree species affect fungal communities on decaying wood – Yang et al. – Environmental Microbiology

Microplastics reduce soil microbial network complexity and ecological deterministic selection – Shi et al. – Environmental Microbiology

The core root microbiome of Spartina alterniflora is predominated by sulfur-oxidizing and sulfate-reducing bacteria in Georgia salt marshes, USA – Rolando et al. – Microbiome

Water and extremophile

“Boom-and-busted-dynamics” of phytoplankton-virus interactions explain the paradox of the plankton – Flynn et al. – New Phytologist

Communality in microbial stress response and differential metabolic interactions revealed by time-series analysis of sponge symbionts – Taylor et al. – Environmental Microbiology

Global 16S rRNA diversity of provannid snail endosymbionts from Indo-Pacific deep-sea hydrothermal vents – Breusing et al. – Environmental Microbiology Reports

Sources of protein diet differentially stimulate the gut and water microbiota under freshwater crayfish, marron (Cherax cainii, Austin 2002) culture – Foysal et al. – Environmental Microbiology Reports

November 6, 2020

Shalom from Israel!

While the eyes of the world are looking at the US elections results, it’s good to know that the world of microbiome research is stable and produces great scientific discoveries. So stop refreshing the news websites, grab yourself a cup of cofee and enjoy your Saturday.

Today’s digest has some great papers about memory in microboimes, factors that shapes bacterial growth, infant skin microbial communities, degraded soils restoration using self-assembly communities, songbirds microbiome, antiSMASH3 is out (!), useful youtube video for metagenome ML analysis in MATLAB and more. Reminding those of you who are intrested in agriculture-related microbioe studies to stop by and follow my bot agmicroPapers

General microbiology

Memory shapes microbial populations, Chaitanya S Gokhale , bioRxiv

Bacterial–fungal interactions revealed by genome-wide analysis of bacterial mutant fitness, Emily C. Pierce, Nature Microbiology

Environmental and Physiological Factors Affecting High-Throughput Measurements of Bacterial Growth, Esha Atolia , mBio

Human microbiome

Host variables confound gut microbiota studies of human disease, Ivan Vujkovic-Cvijin, Nature

Infant Skin Bacterial Communities Vary by Skin Site and Infant
Age across Populations in Mexico and the United States
, Melissa B. Manus, mSystems

Plant and soil microbiome

Microbiome manipulation by a soil-borne fungal plant pathogen using effector proteins, Nick C. Snelders, Nature Plants

Assembly and variation of root-associated microbiota of rice during their vegetative growth phase with and without lindane pollutant, Jiayin Feng, Soil Ecology Letters

Restoring degraded microbiome function with self-assembled communities, Carlos Fernando Gutierrez Landazuri , FEMS Micro. Eco.

Multi-species relationships in legume roots: From pairwise legume-symbiont interactions to the plant – microbiome – soil continuum, Myrto Tsiknia, FEMS Micro. Eco.

Animal microbiome

Evidence supporting the microbiota–gut–brain axis in a songbird, Morgan C. Slevin, Biology Letters

Comparative Analysis of the Fecal Microbiota of Wild and Captive Beal’s Eyed Turtle (Sacalia bealei) by 16S rRNA Gene Sequencing, Jonathan J. Fong , Front. Micro.

High-Throughput Cultivation for the Selective Isolation of Acidobacteria From Termite Nests, Markus Oberpaul , Front. Micro.

Bioinformatics

EUKulele: Taxonomic annotation of the unsung
eukaryotic microbes
, Arianna I. Krinos, JOSS

The antiSMASH database version 3: increased taxonomic coverage and new query features for modular enzymes, Kai Blin, Nucleic Acids Research

**Youtube Video- Microbiome: How to Navigate Through Matlab to Perform Machine Learning Analysis on Metagenomics Data

**Help questionnaire! Natural Products – Data Repositories Questionnaire

October 3, 2020

Shalom and good morning from Israel!

Today’s digest is highly diverse, with papers about naming microbes (bottom line- be creative and interesting!), human hair microbiome, the role of one single bacteria in plant growth, how phages weaponizes host bacteria and much more.

Lastly, a bit of ‘self promotion’- the lockdown in Isrel encouraged me to finally create AgrimicroPapers, a twitter-bot (using this great manual) for agriculture- and plant microbiome-realted papers. Feel free to follow and DM papers if they were missed by the bot. Enjoy!

General microbiology

Prokaryotic names: the bold and the beautiful, Aharon Oren, FEMS Micro. Letters

Human and animal microbiome

**Understanding the impact of antibiotic perturbation on the human microbiome, D.J. Schwartz, Genome Medicine

Salivary microbiome in patients undergoing hemodialysis and its associations with the duration of the dialysis, Xiaobo Duan, BMC Nephrology

Phytochemicals as modifiers of gut microbial communities, Giulia Dingedo, Food & Function

Relationship between the bacterial community structures on human hair and scalp, Kota Watanabe, Biosc. Biotech. Bioche

Pangenome sequence evolution within human gut microbiomes is explained by gene-specific rather than host-specific selective pressures, Arnaud N’Guessan, bioRxiv

Changes in dietary fiber intake in mice reveal
associations between colonic mucin Oglycosylation and specific gut bacteria
, Hasinika Gamage, Gut Microbes

Gut metabolites are more predictive of disease- and cohoused- states than gut bacterial features in a mouse model of polycystic ovary syndrome, Bryan Ho, bioRxiv

Environmental microbiome

**A single bacterial genus maintains root growth in a complex microbiome, Omri Finkel, Nature

The Soil-Borne Identity and Microbiome-Assisted Agriculture: Looking Back to the Future, Peter H.A.M Bakker, Molecular Plant (Cell)

Quantification of Extracellular Proteases and Chitinases from Marine Bacteria, Yang Zou, Current Micro.

Characterization of microbial communities in commercial bee pollen used for mass rearing of Bombus impatiens,Vicente D. Moreno Andrade, J. Apicultural Research

Phages

Phages weaponize their bacteria with biosynthetic gene clusters, Anna Dragos, bioRxiv

Microbiome news

Biotechs have big ambitions for the microbiome, SFBT

Core metagenomic functions of the poultry microbiome, Poultry World

September 20, 2020

Shalom from Israel and have a happy Jewish New Year!

As yesterday’s digest was packed with great papers, today’s post is a bit thinner- but still with great material. First, take a look at two virtual and fascinating events to be held in the next months. In addition, you’ll find a mini-review about molecular epidiomiology, locust-related microbiome, a fascinating research paper exploring the actual proportion of sequenced prokaryots and a even a paper focusing on the microbiome of hemp.

Stay healthy, wear a mask.

Events

LMU CAM Strategic Partnership Online Symposium: The role of microbes in plant health: Emerging topics!

ISME Virtual Microbial Ecology Summit

Human microbiome

Gut microbiota, NLR proteins, and intestinal homeostasis, Hao Guo, JEM

*Mini-review- Molecular epidemiology in current times, Burkhard Tummler, Env. Micro.

Animal microbiome

Microbiome-related aspects of locust density-dependent phase transition, Omer Levy, bioRxiv

Environmental microbiome

**Estimate of the sequenced proportion of the global prokaryotic genome, Zheng Zhang, Microbiome

Microbial dark matter filling the niche in hypersaline microbial mats, Hon Lun Wong, Microbiome

Pan‐genome study of Thermococcales reveals extensive genetic diversity and genetic evidence of thermophilic adaption, Chaofang Zhong , Env. Micro.

Plant microbiome

Evaluating the microbiome of hemp, Samuel E. Barnett, Phytobiomes

June 27, 2020

Shalom from Israel and a Happy world microbiome day!

Yes, it is a true day! celebrating the huge diversity of microbes around us, above us, below us and inside us. Check the day’s official website for more information, and take the weekend to appreciate this amazing field and your own personal contribution to advancing our knowledge about microbial communities on our planet.

Personally, I did my undergrad in Ecology and Evolution, confidence that I’ll my scientific career will focus on plant ecology and distribution, or at least large animals. Microbiology classes and introduction labs bored me, and I did my best to avoid this topic. But all of a sudden, during my Master’s degree (where I worked on a pathogenicity mechanism of postharvest disease-causing bacteria), I fell in love with microbiology in general, and specific bacterial communities. The huge untapped diversity, the unbelievable functions and the amazing interactions needed to maintain a functional community of these invisible inhabitants just fascinated me. Today, as a Ph.D. student exploring secondary metabolites gene clusters in soil and root microbiome, I’m a super-fan of the bacterial world.

How did you end up being microbiome suckers? Feel free to share your stories here as a comment, on MD FB page, or directly on tweeter.

Today’s digest include several microbimoe papers of animal midels (including ‘dirty mice’), diseased tomatoes taxonomical and functional microbiome profile, AND- a sweet reminder of the pre-COVID-19 world, with an analysis of the dust microbiome of a plane (remember this vehicle?).

Human and Animal Models microbiome

**Microbial transmission in animal social networks and the social microbiome, Amar Sarkar , Nat. Eco. Evo.

Does entry to center-based childcare affect gut microbial colonization in young infants?, Gerben D. A. Hermes, Scientific Reports

Serum metabolites reflecting gut microbiome
alpha diversity predict type 2 diabetes
, Cristina Menni, Gut microbes

**New Insights into the Immune System Using Dirty Mice, Sara E. Hamilton, J. Immunology.

Optimization of cerebrospinal fluid microbial metagenomic sequencing diagnostics,Josefin Olausson , bioRxiv

Sleep fragmentation increases blood pressure and is associated with alterations in the gut microbiome and fecal metabolome in rats, Katherine.Maki, Phys. Geno.

Animal microbiome

Environment Shapes the Microbiome of the Blue Orchard Bee, Osmia lignaria, Hamutahl Cohen, Microbial Ecology

The gut mycobiome of healthy mice is shaped by the environment and shapes metabolic outcomes in response to diet, Tahliyah S. Mims, bioRxiv

Microbial communities network analysis of anaerobic reactors fed with bovine and swine slurry, Eliane Cristina Gruszka Vendruscolo, Sci. Tot. Env.

Metagenomic analysis reveals significant differences in microbiome and metabolic profiles in the rumen of sheep fed low N diet with increased urea supplementation, Zhipeng Li, FEMS Micro. Eco.

Soil and Plant microbiome

Changes in Bacterial and Fungal Microbiomes Associated with Tomatoes of Healthy and Infected by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici, Xin Zhou, Microbial Ecology

Insights into drylands biocrust microbiome: geography, soil depth, and crust type affect biocrust microbial communities and networks in Mojave Desert, USA, Nuttapon Pombubpa, FEMS Micro. Eco.

Exploring the Lignin Catabolism Potential of Soil-Derived Lignocellulolytic Microbial Consortia by a Gene-Centric Metagenomic Approach, Laura Díaz-García, Microbial Ecology

Shotgun Metagenomics Of Dust Microbiome From Flight Deck And Cabin In Civil Aviation Aircraft, Yu Sun, Indoor Air

Bioinformatics

MicroNiche: an R package for assessing microbial niche breadth and overlap from amplicon sequencing data, D.R. Finn , FEMS Micro. Eco.

June 09, 2020

Good morning everyone!

Today’s digest presents several antibiotic resistance papers, as well as hospital ICU microbiome study, a microbial nomenculture paper, bunch of human microbiome papers (both gut and vaginal), as well as two computational platforms for analyzing microbial data.

In a more personal note– recently, my PhD research (at ARO and The Hebrew U, Israel) resulted in two manuscripts dealing with the exciting world of bacterial secondary metabolites. The first one is a review paper where we present state-of-the-art tools and methodologies to study and identify novel secondary metabolites gene clusters within the widely diverse soil and root bacterial communities. We present a conceptual pipeline for an efficient use of these culture-based and culture-independent platforms to identify novel antimicrobials-producing gene clusters in-vivo.

The second one (a bioRxiv pre-print) utilized some of these techniques to explore differences in secondary metabolites gene clusters between soil and roots bacterial communities, in terms of diversity, composition and taxonomy. We then took advantage of this data and deeply focused on root-enriched and abundant sequences (those that were associated with NRPS and PKS, mega-enzymes that produces two very important families of secondary metabolites- nonribosomal peptides and polyketides). Then, we used a unique culture-independent platform (eSNaPD, from Sean Brady lab @ Rockefeller U, NY) and were able to actually recover 5 clones (~40Kb in length) that harbored five novel gene clusters. At least one of these probably encode for an antifungal metabolites (derived from Actinobacteria). This piepline/platform is applicable for other uses of course, depending on your research question and the functions you’re intrested in. I’ll be happy for any feedback regarding the bioRxiv MS (either directly there or via my tweeter).

General microbiology

Roadmap for naming uncultivated Archaea and Bacteria, Alison E. Murray, Nature Microbiology

Human microbiome

Re-evaluating the relationship between missing heritability and the microbiome, Gavin Douglas , Microbiome

Microbes and mental health: Can the microbiome help explain clinical heterogeneity in psychiatry?, Christina L. Hayes, Front. Neuroendocrinology

Analysis of 1321 Eubacterium rectale genomes from metagenomes uncovers complex phylogeographic population structure and subspecies functional adaptations, Nicolai Karcher, Genome Biology

Exploring potential of vaginal Lactobacillus isolates from South African women for enhancing treatment for bacterial vaginosis, Anna Ursula Happel , PLOS Pathogens

Hospital microbiome

Temporal variations in bacterial community diversity and composition throughout intensive care unit renovations, Jessica Chopik , Microbiome

Antibiotic Resistance

The household resistome – frequency of beta-lactamases, class 1 integron and antibiotic resistant bacteria in the domestic environment, Laura S. Schages , bioRxiv

Environmental conditions dictate differential evolution of vancomycin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus, Henrique Machado, bioRxiv

Coexistence of Antibiotic Resistance Genes and Virulence Factors Deciphered by Large-Scale Complete Genome Analysis, Yu Pan, mSystems

Bioinformatics

A Framework for Effective Application of Machine Learning to Microbiome-Based Classification Problems, Begum D. Topcuoglu, mBio

PVAmpliconFinder: a workflow for the identification of human papillomaviruses from high-throughput amplicon sequencing, Alexis Robitaille, BMC Bioinformatics