Articles

Low recovery of bacterial community after an extreme salinization-desalinization cycle

Understanding the recovery of bacterial communities after extreme environmental disturbances offers key opportunities to investigate ecosystem resilience. However, it is not yet clear whether bacterial communi...

Authors: Yang Hu, Chengrong Bai, Jian Cai, Keqiang Shao, Xiangming Tang and Guang Gao

Witches’ broom resistant genotype CCN51 shows greater diversity of symbiont bacteria in its phylloplane than susceptible genotype catongo

Theobroma cacao L. (cacao) is a perennial tropical tree, endemic to rainforests of the Amazon Basin. Large populations of bacteria live on leaf surfaces and these phylloplane microorganisms can have important eff...

Authors: Juliano Oliveira Santana, Karina Peres Gramacho, Katiúcia Tícila de Souza Eduvirgens Ferreira, Rachel Passos Rezende, Pedro Antônio Oliveira Mangabeira, Ricardo Pedro Moreira Dias, Francisco M. Couto and Carlos Priminho Pirovani

Coevolution of hytrosaviruses and host immune responses

Hytrosaviruses (SGHVs; Hytrosaviridae family) are double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) viruses that cause salivary gland hypertrophy (SGH) syndrome in flies. Two structurally and functionally distinct SGHVs are recognized...

Authors: Henry M. Kariithi, Drion G. Boucias, Edwin K. Murungi, Irene K. Meki, Güler Demirbaş-Uzel, Monique M. van Oers, Marc J. B. Vreysen, Adly M. M. Abd-Alla and Just M. Vlak

Diversity and phylogenetic relationships of Glossina populations in Nigeria and the Cameroonian border region

Tsetse flies are vectors of trypanosomes, parasites that cause devastating disease in humans and livestock. In the course of vector control programmes it is necessary to know about the Glossina species present in...

Authors: Stephen Saikiu Shaida, Judith Sophie Weber, Thaddeus Terlumun Gbem, Sen Claudine Henriette Ngomtcho, Usman Baba Musa, Mbunkha Daniel Achukwi, Mohammed Mamman, Iliya Shehu Ndams, Jonathan Andrew Nok and Soerge Kelm

Enhancing vector refractoriness to trypanosome infection: achievements, challenges and perspectives

With the absence of effective prophylactic vaccines and drugs against African trypanosomosis, control of this group of zoonotic neglected tropical diseases depends the control of the tsetse fly vector. When ap...

Authors: Henry M Kariithi, Irene K Meki, Daniela I Schneider, Linda De Vooght, Fathiya M Khamis, Anne Geiger, Guler Demirbaş-Uzel, Just M Vlak, ikbal Agah iNCE, Sorge Kelm, Flobert Njiokou, Florence N Wamwiri, Imna I Malele, Brian L Weiss and Adly M M Abd-Alla

Multi-drug resistant Enterobacter bugandensis species isolated from the International Space Station and comparative genomic analyses with human pathogenic strains

The antimicrobial resistance (AMR) phenotypic properties, multiple drug resistance (MDR) gene profiles, and genes related to potential virulence and pathogenic properties of five Enterobacter bugandensis strains ...

Authors: Nitin K. Singh, Daniela Bezdan, Aleksandra Checinska Sielaff, Kevin Wheeler, Christopher E. Mason and Kasthuri Venkateswaran

RNA interference-based antiviral immune response against the salivary gland hypertrophy virus in Glossina pallidipes

Glossina pallidipes salivary gland hypertrophy virus (GpSGHV; Hytrosaviridae) is a non-occluded dsDNA virus that specifically infects the adult stages of the hematophagous tsetse flies (Glossina species, Diptera:...

Authors: Irene K. Meki, Henry M. Kariithi, Andrew G. Parker, Marc J B Vreysen, Vera I D Ros, Just M Vlak, Monique M van Oers and Adly M. M. Abd-Alla

Symbiotic microbes affect the expression of male reproductive genes in Glossina m. morsitans

Tsetse flies (Diptera, Glossinidae) display unique reproductive biology traits. Females reproduce through adenotrophic viviparity, nourishing the growing larva into their modified uterus until parturition. Mal...

Authors: Francesca Scolari, Geoffrey Michael Attardo, Emre Aksoy, Brian Weiss, Grazia Savini, Peter Takac, Adly Abd-Alla, Andrew Gordon Parker, Serap Aksoy and Anna Rodolfa Malacrida

Towards improving tsetse fly paratransgenesis: stable colonization of Glossina morsitans morsitans with genetically modified Sodalis

Tsetse flies (Glossina sp.) refractory to trypanosome infection are currently being explored as potential tools to contribute in the control of human and animal African trypanosomiasis. One approach to disrupt tr...

Authors: Linda De Vooght, Severien Van Keer and Jan Van Den Abbeele

Bacterial diversity obtained by culturable approaches in the gut of Glossina pallidipes population from a non sleeping sickness focus in Tanzania: preliminary results

Glossina pallidipes is a haematophagous insect that serves as a cyclic transmitter of trypanosomes causing African Trypanosomiasis (AT). To fully assess the role of G. pallidipes in the epidemiology of AT, especi...

Authors: Imna Malele, Hamis Nyingilili, Eugen Lyaruu, Marc Tauzin, B. Bernard Ollivier, Jean-Luc Cayol, Marie-Laure Fardeau and Anne Geiger

Sodalis glossinidius presence in wild tsetse is only associated with presence of trypanosomes in complex interactions with other tsetse-specific factors

Susceptibility of tsetse flies (Glossina spp.) to trypanosomes of both humans and animals has been associated with the presence of the endosymbiont Sodalis glossinidius. However, intrinsic biological characterist...

Authors: Manun Channumsin, Marc Ciosi, Dan Masiga, C Michael R Turner and Barbara K Mable

Blood feeding tsetse flies as hosts and vectors of mammals-pre-adapted African Trypanosoma: current and expected research directions

Research on the zoo-anthropophilic blood feeding tsetse flies’ biology conducted, by different teams, in laboratory settings and at the level of the ecosystems- where also co-perpetuate African Trypanosoma- has a...

Authors: Anne Geiger, Imna Malele, Adly M Abd-Alla and Flobert Njiokou

Impact of Glossina pallidipes salivary gland hypertrophy virus (GpSGHV) on a heterologous tsetse fly host, Glossina fuscipes fuscipes

Tsetse flies (Diptera: Glossinidae) are the vectors of African trypanosomosis, the causal agent of sleeping sickness in humans and nagana in animals. Glossina fuscipes fuscipes is one of the most important tsetse...

Authors: Güler Demirbas-Uzel, Andrew G. Parker, Marc J. B. Vreysen, Robert L. Mach, Jeremy Bouyer, Peter Takac and Adly M. M. Abd-Alla

Combining paratransgenesis with SIT: impact of ionizing radiation on the DNA copy number of Sodalis glossinidius in tsetse flies

Tsetse flies (Diptera: Glossinidae) are the cyclical vectors of the causative agents of African Trypanosomosis, which has been identified as a neglected tropical disease in both humans and animals in many regi...

Authors: Güler Demirbas-Uzel, Linda De Vooght, Andrew G. Parker, Marc J. B. Vreysen, Robert L. Mach, Jan Van Den Abbeele and Adly M. M. Abd-Alla

Prevalence of symbionts and trypanosome infections in tsetse flies of two villages of the “Faro and Déo” division of the Adamawa region of Cameroon

Tsetse flies are vectors of human and animal African trypanosomiasis. In spite of many decades of chemotherapy and vector control, the disease has not been eradicated. Other methods like the transformation of ...

Authors: Ginette Irma Kame-Ngasse, Flobert Njiokou, Tito Trésor Melachio-Tanekou, Oumarou Farikou, Gustave Simo and Anne Geiger

Prevalence of trypanosomes, salivary gland hypertrophy virus and Wolbachia in wild populations of tsetse flies from West Africa

Tsetse flies are vectors of African trypanosomes, protozoan parasites that cause sleeping sickness (or human African trypanosomosis) in humans and nagana (or animal African trypanosomosis) in livestock. In add...

Authors: Gisele M. S. Ouedraogo, Güler Demirbas-Uzel, Jean-Baptiste Rayaisse, Geoffrey Gimonneau, Astan C. Traore, Antonios Avgoustinos, Andrew G. Parker, Issa Sidibe, Anicet G. Ouedraogo, Amadou Traore, Bale Bayala, Marc J. B. Vreysen, Kostas Bourtzis and Adly m. M. Abd-Alla

What can a weevil teach a fly, and reciprocally? Interaction of host immune systems with endosymbionts in Glossina and Sitophilus

The tsetse fly (Glossina genus) is the main vector of African trypanosomes, which are protozoan parasites that cause human and animal African trypanosomiases in Sub-Saharan Africa. In the frame of the IAEA/FAO pr...

Authors: Anna Zaidman-Rémy, Aurélien Vigneron, Brian L Weiss and Abdelaziz Heddi

Different laboratory populations similar bacterial profile? The case of Glossina palpalis gambiensis

Microbiota plays an important role in the biology, ecology and evolution of insects including tsetse flies. The bacterial profile of 3 Glossina palpalis gambiensis laboratory colonies was examined using 16S rRNA ...

Authors: Vangelis Doudoumis, Antonios Augustinos, Aggeliki Saridaki, Andrew Parker, Adly M M Abd-Alla, Kostas Bourtzis and George Tsiamis

Nuclear and Wolbachia-based multimarker approach for the rapid and accurate identification of tsetse species

Tsetse flies (Diptera: Glossinidae) are solely responsible for the transmission of African trypanosomes, causative agents of sleeping sickness in humans and nagana in livestock. Due to the lack of efficient va...

Authors: Antonios A. Augustinos, Irene K. Meki, Guler Demirbas-Uzel, Gisele M. S. Ouédraogo, Aggeliki Saridaki, George Tsiamis, Andrew G. Parker, Adly M. M. Abd-Alla and Kostas Bourtzis

Analysis of the gut-specific microbiome from field-captured tsetse flies, and its potential relevance to host trypanosome vector competence

The tsetse fly (Glossina sp.) midgut is colonized by maternally transmitted and environmentally acquired bacteria. Additionally, the midgut serves as a niche in which pathogenic African trypanosomes reside within...

Authors: Bridget C Griffith, Brian L Weiss, Emre Aksoy, Paul O Mireji, Joana E Auma, Florence N Wamwiri, Richard Echodu, Grace Murilla and Serap Aksoy

Effect of antibiotic treatment and gamma-irradiation on cuticular hydrocarbon profiles and mate choice in tsetse flies (Glossina m. morsitans)

Symbiotic microbes represent a driving force of evolutionary innovation by conferring novel ecological traits to their hosts. Many insects are associated with microbial symbionts that contribute to their host’...

Authors: Tobias Engl, Veronika Michalkova, Brian L. Weiss, Güler D. Uzel, Peter Takac, Wolfgang J. Miller, Adly M. M. Abd-Alla, Serap Aksoy and Martin Kaltenpoth

Gene expression in reproductive organs of tsetse females – initial data in an approach to reduce fecundity

Tsetse flies are vectors of African trypanosomes, and their vectorial capacity results in a major public health emergency and vast economic losses in sub-Saharan Africa. Given the limited ability of trypanosom...

Authors: Emanuel Procházka, Veronika Michalková, Ivana Daubnerová, Ladislav Roller, Peter Klepsatel, Dušan Žitňan, George Tsiamis and Peter Takáč

Hytrosavirus genetic diversity and eco-regional spread in Glossina species

The management of the tsetse species Glossina pallidipes (Diptera; Glossinidae) in Africa by the sterile insect technique (SIT) has been hindered by infections of G. pallidipes production colonies with Glossina p...

Authors: Irene K. Meki, Henry M. Kariithi, Mehrdad Ahmadi, Andrew G. Parker, Marc J. B. Vreysen, Just M. Vlak, Monique M. van Oers and Adly M.M. Abd-Alla

Metarhizium anisopliae infection reduces Trypanosoma congolense reproduction in Glossina fuscipes fuscipes and its ability to acquire or transmit the parasite

Tsetse fly-borne trypanosomiasis remains a significant problem in Africa despite years of interventions and research. The need for new strategies to control and possibly eliminate trypanosomiasis cannot be ove...

Authors: Lawrence G Wamiti, Fathiya M Khamis, Adly M M Abd-alla, Fidelis L O Ombura, Komivi S Akutse, Sevgan Subramanian, Samuel O Odiwuor, Shem J Ochieng, Sunday Ekesi and Nguya K Maniania

Special issue on enhancing vector refractoriness to trypanosome infection-foreword

Authors: Adly M. M. Abd-Alla, George Tsiamis and Drion G. Boucias

High-sensitivity detection of cryptic Wolbachia in the African tsetse fly (Glossina spp.)

In African tsetse flies Glossina, spp. detection of bacterial symbionts such as Wolbachia is challenging since their prevalence and distribution are patchy, and natural symbiont titers can range at levels far bel...

Authors: Daniela I Schneider, Andrew G Parker, Adly M Abd-alla and Wolfgang J Miller

Dialogue between Staphylococcus aureus SA15 and Lactococcus garvieae strains experiencing oxidative stress

Staphylococcus aureus is an important foodborne pathogen. Lactococcus garvieae is a lactic acid bacterium found in dairy products; some of its strains are able to inhibit S. aureus growth by producing H₂O₂. Three...

Authors: Clothilde Queiroux, Muriel Bonnet, Taous Saraoui, Pierre Delpech, Philippe Veisseire, Etienne Rifa, Cécile Moussard, Geneviève Gagne, Céline Delbès and Stéphanie Bornes

Screening, purification and characterization of thermostable, protease resistant Bacteriocin active against methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

The emergence of serious issues of multidrug resistance in the past few years have enforced the use of bacteriocins for combating infections. Threat posed to public health by various multidrug resistant (MDR) ...

Authors: Asma Ansari, Rashida Rahmat Zohra, Omer Mukhtar Tarar, Shah Ali Ul Qader and Afsheen Aman

Prediction of pathogenesis-related secreted proteins from Stemphylium lycopersici

Gray leaf spot is a devastating disease caused by Stemphylium lycopersici that threatens tomato-growing areas worldwide. Typically, many pathogenesis-related and unrelated secreted proteins can be predicted in ge...

Authors: Rong Zeng, Shigang Gao, Lihui Xu, Xin Liu and Fuming Dai

A comprehensive fungi-specific 18S rRNA gene sequence primer toolkit suited for diverse research issues and sequencing platforms

Several fungi-specific primers target the 18S rRNA gene sequence, one of the prominent markers for fungal classification. The design of most primers goes back to the last decades. Since then, the number of seq...

Authors: Stefanos Banos, Guillaume Lentendu, Anna Kopf, Tesfaye Wubet, Frank Oliver Glöckner and Marlis Reich

Metagenomics of pasteurized and unpasteurized gouda cheese using targeted 16S rDNA sequencing

The microbiome of cheese is diverse, even within a variety. The metagenomics of cheese is dependent on a vast array of biotic and abiotic factors. Biotic factors include the population of microbiota and their ...

Authors: Joelle K. Salazar, Christina K. Carstens, Padmini Ramachandran, Arlette G. Shazer, Sartaj S. Narula, Elizabeth Reed, Andrea Ottesen and Kristin M. Schill

Taxonomic classification for microbiome analysis, which correlates well with the metabolite milieu of the gut

16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing analysis (16S amplicon sequencing) has provided considerable information regarding the ecology of the intestinal microbiome. Recently, metabolomics has been used for investiga...

Authors: Yoshihisa Wakita, Yumi Shimomura, Yusuke Kitada, Hiroyuki Yamamoto, Yoshiaki Ohashi and Mitsuharu Matsumoto

Multi-drug resistant Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi isolates with reduced susceptibility to ciprofloxacin in Kenya

Typhoid fever remains a public health concern in developing countries especially among the poor who live in informal settlements devoid of proper sanitation and clean water supply. In addition antimicrobial re...

Authors: Winnie C. Mutai, Anne W. T. Muigai, Peter Waiyaki and Samuel Kariuki

Characteristics of NDM-1-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae ST234 and ST1412 isolates spread in a neonatal unit

The emergence of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CR-KP) has become a significant problem worldwide and also being a major threat to children and newborns. Here we report an outbreak of NDM-1-producing...

Authors: Xu Huang, Xiangjun Cheng, Pengfei Sun, Chenjie Tang, Fang Ni and Genyan Liu

MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry-based serotyping of V. parahaemolyticus isolated from the Zhejiang province of China

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is as an important food-borne pathogen circulating in China. Since 1996, the core serotype has become O3:K6, which has specific genetic markers. This serotype causes the majority of outbre...

Authors: Ping Li, Wenwen Xin, Susu Xia, Yun Luo, Zhongwen Chen, Dazhi Jin, Shan Gao, Hao Yang, Bin Ji, Henghui Wang, Yong Yan, Lin Kang and Jinglin Wang

Gut microbiota of preterm infants supplemented with probiotics: sub-study of the ProPrems trial

The ProPrems trial, a multi-center, double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized trial, previously reported a 54% reduction in necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) of Bell stage 2 or more from 4.4 to 2.0% in 1099 infan...

Authors: Erica L. Plummer, Dieter M. Bulach, Gerald L. Murray, Susan E. Jacobs, Sepehr N. Tabrizi and Suzanne M. Garland

Characterization of Streptococcus pluranimalium from a cattle with mastitis by whole genome sequencing and functional validation

Streptococcus pluranimalium is a new member of the Streptococcus genus isolated from multiple different animal hosts. It has been identified as a pathogen associated with subclinical mastitis, valvular endocardit...

Authors: Yushan Pan, Haoran An, Tong Fu, Shiyu Zhao, Chengwang Zhang, Genhui Xiao, Jingren Zhang, Xinfang Zhao and Gongzheng Hu

Novel human monoclonal antibodies targeting the F subunit of leukocidins reduce disease progression and mortality caused by Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of Gram-positive bacterial infections worldwide; however, the treatment of S. aureus infection has become increasingly difficult due to the prevalence of methicillin-resis...

Authors: Chendi Jing, Chenghua Liu, Fangjie Liu, Yaping Gao, Yu Liu, Zhangchun Guan, Bo Xuan, Yanyan Yu and Guang Yang

Evolution and functional characterization of pectate lyase PEL12, a member of a highly expanded Clonostachys rosea polysaccharide lyase 1 family

Pectin is one of the major and most complex plant cell wall components that needs to be overcome by microorganisms as part of their strategies for plant invasion or nutrition. Microbial pectinolytic enzymes th...

Authors: Lea Atanasova, Mukesh Dubey, Marica Grujić, Mikael Gudmundsson, Cindy Lorenz, Mats Sandgren, Christian P. Kubicek, Dan Funck Jensen and Magnus Karlsson

Correlating enzyme annotations with a large set of microbial growth temperatures reveals metabolic adaptations to growth at diverse temperatures

The ambient temperature of all habitats is a key physical property that shapes the biology of microbes inhabiting them. The optimal growth temperature (OGT) of a microbe, is therefore a key piece of data neede...

Authors: Martin K. M. Engqvist

Genome sequence of the potato pathogenic fungus Alternaria solani HWC-168 reveals clues for its conidiation and virulence

Alternaria solani is a known air-born deuteromycete fungus with a polycyclic life cycle and is the causal agent of early blight that causes significant yield losses of potato worldwide. However, the molecular mec...

Authors: Dai Zhang, Jia-Yu He, Parham Haddadi, Jie-Hua Zhu, Zhi-Hui Yang and Lisong Ma

Antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli from retail poultry meat with different antibiotic use claims

We sought to determine if the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli differed across retail poultry products and among major production categories, including organic, “raised without antibiotics”, an...

Authors: Gregg S. Davis, Kara Waits, Lora Nordstrom, Heidi Grande, Brett Weaver, Katerina Papp, Joseph Horwinski, Benjamin Koch, Bruce A. Hungate, Cindy M. Liu and Lance B. Price

Defining conditions for biofilm inhibition and eradication assays for Gram-positive clinical reference strains

Biofilms are formed by a complex bacterial community encapsulated by a polymeric matrix, with strong adherent properties and persistent phenotype. Biofilms are considered one of the most challenging areas of m...

Authors: Cristina D. Cruz, Shreya Shah and Päivi Tammela

In vitro inactivation of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) by use of copper ions

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the causative agent of paratuberculosis, a contagious infectious disease that affects domestic and wild ruminants causing chronic inflammation of the intestine...

Authors: P. Steuer, C. Avilez, C. Tejeda, N. Gonzalez, A. Ramirez-Reveco, F. Ulloa, A. Mella, I. R. Grant, M. T. Collins and M. Salgado

In vivo bioluminescence imaging of the spatial and temporal colonization of lactobacillus plantarum 423 and enterococcus mundtii ST4SA in the intestinal tract of mice

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are major inhabitants and part of the normal microflora of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of humans and animals. Despite substantial evidence supporting the beneficial properties o...

Authors: Winschau F. Van Zyl, Shelly M. Deane and Leon M. T. Dicks

Identification and antibiotic susceptibility of lactobacilli isolated from turkeys

The aim of this study was to identify Lactobacillus isolates derived from turkeys from six Polish farms and to characterize their phenotypic and genotypic antibiotic resistance profiles.

Authors: Marta Dec, Anna Nowaczek, Dagmara Stępień-Pyśniak, Jacek Wawrzykowski and Renata Urban-Chmiel

Development of flow cytometric opsonophagocytosis and antibody-mediated complement deposition assays for non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae

Haemophilus influenzae is found in the nasopharynx of 80% of the human population. While colonisation with non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) is usually asymptomatic, it is capable of causing acute and ch...

Authors: Stephen R. Thomas, Stephanie Leung, Katy Knox, Tom M. A. Wilkinson, Karl J. Staples, Pascal Lestrate, Dominique Wauters, Andrew Gorringe and Stephen C. Taylor

Nystatin enhances the immune response against Candida albicans and protects the ultrastructure of the vaginal epithelium in a rat model of vulvovaginal candidiasis

Vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) is a common infectious disease of the lower genital tract. Nystatin, a polyene fungicidal antibiotic, is used as a topical antifungal agent for VVC treatment. The aim of the curr...

Authors: Xu Zhang, Ting Li, Xi Chen, Suxia Wang and Zhaohui Liu

Molecular characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains by spa typing and pulsed field gel electrophoresis methods

Rapid detection of sources and transmission routes by molecular methods provides key data for risk management of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus-induced infections acquired in both the community and h...

Authors: Tülin Güven Gökmen, Yıldız Kalayci, Akgün Yaman and Fatih Köksal

Molecular cloning and characterization of vanillin dehydrogenase from Streptomyces sp. NL15-2K

Streptomyces sp. NL15-2K, previously isolated from the forest soil, features an extensive catabolic network for lignin-derived aromatic compounds, including pathways transforming ferulic acid to vanillin, vanilli...

Authors: Motohiro Nishimura, Susumu Kawakami and Hideaki Otsuka