Research Fellow at Northumbria University: phage, synthetic biology, sialic acid, transport proteins. He/him.
#glycotime #glycotimesky Finally, the structure of the #sialic acid-binding SBP from the Streptococcal ABC transporter is determined! And binding alpha-NeuAc no less - interesting! Only one SBP left to solve now… www.nature.com/articles/s42...
www.nature.com#glycotime #glycotimesky From Alan Cartmell and collaborators: sulfatases from Akk muciniphila involved in mucin degradation www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Unique adaptations in sulfatases underpin colonic mucin degradation by Akkermansia muciniphila - Nature MicrobiologyStructural and biochemical follow-up of a serendipitous discovery reveals that Akkermansia muciniphila carbohydrate sulfatases are uniquely adapted to digest colonic mucins in collaboration with other...www.nature.com#microsky Leu auxotrophy as genetic marker for Mycobacterium abscessus #synbio journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Leucine auxotrophic marker for genetic manipulation of Mycobacterium abscessus | Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyThe development of a leucine auxotroph-based genetic system for Mycobacterium abscessus addresses critical challenges in mycobacterial genetics. By avoiding established antibiotic resistance markers, ...journals.asm.org#microsky #phagesky Lanthipeptides involved in #phage defence! What a blast!! www.cell.com/cell-host-mi...
A family of lanthipeptides with anti-phage functionShomar, Guillaume, et al. report the genomics-driven discovery of a family of more
than 2,000 lanthipeptide biosynthetic gene clusters with anti-phage potential. They
experimentally demonstrate anti-p...www.cell.com#microsky #phagesky #phage The secret life of prophages journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
From hijackers to architects: the role of prophages in bacterial genome evolution | Journal of BacteriologyBacteriophages (phages) are one of the most important drivers of bacterial evolution,
regulating physiology, genetic diversity, population dynamics, and coevolution through
complex host-phage interact...journals.asm.org#phagesky #microsky #phage www.cell.com/cell-reports...
A receptor-centered approach identifies Lom as a LamB-bound superinfection exclusion factor in bacteriophage λGe et al. develop a receptor-centered strategy to identify phage proteins that target
host receptors during infection and discover the λ outer-membrane protein Lom. Lom
binds and occludes LamB, blocki...www.cell.comNew #glycotime #glycotimesky paper reporting the super-fun isolation of “rule-breaking” #sialic acid transporter mutants! The phenotype is a real tease, much to ponder about. Worth a read: febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
FEBS PressBiophysical characterisation shows that NanX, a membrane transport protein from the major facilitator superfamily (MFS), forms both monomers and dimers after purification. AlphaFold modelling and sub...febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com#microsky #phagesky #phage 440K tail-fibre mutants… 440K… Mind-boggling doesn’t even start describing this
Vivek MutalikNew preprint!! 🎉 A cool collaborative work with @copabio.bsky.social and Chase Beisel teams on the phage editing technology. @sarshad.bsky.social led the work from our side to validate & characterize the lib. #phage #phagesky www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Work supported by: phagefoundry.org
#microsky #phagesky #phage www.nature.com/articles/s41...
END nucleases are antiphage defence systems targeting multiple phages with modified genomes - Nature MicrobiologyThe END nuclease targets eight phage families with at least ten different known DNA modifications, but not unmodified DNA. Its specificity is dictated by the C-terminal iEndoIII domain. To combat END,...www.nature.com#microsky #phagesky Years ago a stray temperate #phage lysogenised an E. coli mutant of mine unable to take in a Sia. The small portion of lysed cells was enough to predigest the Sia into catabolites the cells could take in and use for growth!!! And here I was 1/2 academic.oup.com/ismej/advanc...
Bacteriophage-mediated cell lysis externalizes a metabolically valuable nutrient to broadly modulate bacterial communitiesAbstract. Cobamides, including vitamin B12, are essential cofactors exchanged between organisms across diverse ecosystems including oceans, soils, and theacademic.oup.comChuffed I was included for my mini contribution ❤️. Authentic tour de force and beautiful discovery by the REAL authors of the story! 🎉🎉👏👏👏
Patrick MoynihanNew paper in collaboration with @proftracypalmer.bsky.social, @lislowe.bsky.social and many more. We show that mycobacteria produce Type VII secreted anti-bacterial protein toxins. Excited to explore this new area of mycobacterial biology. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#microsky More Tat!!! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Structure and substrate recognition by the bacterial twin-arginine translocation (Tat) core complex - Nature MicrobiologyCryo-EM structural, biochemical and functional analyses of the bacterial twin-arginine translocation system for protein transport across membranes reveal mechanisms of substrate binding.www.nature.com#microsky Gosh, Tat!! www.cell.com/molecular-ce...
Structure of E. Coli twin-arginine translocase (Tat) complex with bound cargoThe structure of the Tat protein complex bound to a substrate reveals how folded proteins
are recognized and offers insight into subsequent substrate transport across the membrane.www.cell.com#microsky #glycotime #glycotimesky and kinda #sialicacid New tools to study protein pseudaminylation www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Uncovering bacterial pseudaminylation with pan-specific antibody tools - Nature Chemical BiologyPseudaminic acids (Pse) are a family of carbohydrates found within bacterial lipopolysaccharides, capsular polysaccharides and glycoproteins. Now, monoclonal antibodies have been developed that recogn...www.nature.com#microsky and kinda #phagesky www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Structure of a contractile injection system in Salmonella enterica subsp. salamae - Nature CommunicationsContractile injection systems (CISs) are nanomachines that inject proteins into target cells. Here, the authors resolve the atomic structure of a CIS in the opportunistic human pathogen Salmonella ent...www.nature.com#microsky #phagesky AF3 models of Klebsiella #phage RBPs. This was done for coliphages and (to a lesser extent) phages against A. baumannii. Field heating up! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Structural modularity of receptor-binding proteins underlies host-range strategy diversification in Klebsiella pneumoniae phagesBacteriophage receptor-binding proteins (RBPs) determine bacterial host recognition and are central to phage host-range evolution, yet the structural principles governing how RBPs diversify and expand...www.biorxiv.org#microsky #synbiosky #streptomyces academic.oup.com/nar/article/...
Inducible CRISPRi enables efficient and high-fidelity genome editing in StreptomycesAbstract. Streptomycetes are prolific producers of bioactive natural products, but many of the biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) are silent in the laboratoacademic.oup.com#microsky #glycotimesky #glycotime #microbiomesky I read “mucin” & I think “sialic acid” ;-) www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Cayman enables large-scale analysis of gut microbiome carbohydrate-active enzyme repertoires - Nature MicrobiologyCayman enables computational analysis of carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) in microbial community data. It revealed novel mucus-foraging gut microorganisms and differences in gut microbial CAZyme ...www.nature.com#microsky #phagesky #phage www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Bacterial cell division protein FtsZ complexes with a phage protein to activate bacterial immunity - Nature MicrobiologyThe activation of an antiphage defence system relies on host factors targeted by phages, a mechanism analogous to the way that eukaryotic innate immune systems detect pathogen-induced perturbations of...www.nature.com#microsky Always a fan of Fidelma’s work (plus, who wouldn’t love working on a bacterium called “diabolicus”!!!) journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Deciphering the evolutionary history of ectoine catabolism, a compatible solute utilized by Vibrio diabolicus as an osmoprotectant and a nutrient source | Applied and Environmental MicrobiologyEctoine is a well-established CS used to overcome osmotic stress, produced by a wide
range of bacteria. The demonstration of ectoine biosynthesis and catabolism in V. diabolicus showed that it is cond...journals.asm.org