Découvrez ou redécouvrez de A à Z la fantastique épopée de la mission Rosetta de l'ESA dans ce reportage moderne et rigoureux, diffusé sur la chaîne YT Micode.

www.youtube.com/watc...

Structural basis for DNA processing and membrane translocation by ComEC in natural transformation Natural transformation is one of the major pathways of horizontal gene transfer in bacteria, enabling the acquisition of extracellular DNA and its integration into the host genome. ComEC is a membrane...

ComEC structure is out!! 😍
Congratulations to the authors! That’s not an easy one. We have been trying for years to get that structure…
We failed and gave up.

great article in @quantamagazine.bsky.social by natalie wolchover on the bacterial flagellum and proton motive force. alas, I missed this great model on what happens to the stators during gear-shifting. see it in STC:
smallthingsconsidered.blog/schaechter/2...
#MicroSky

Very proud of this work and all the efforts from my team and collaborators on this! You can now use DGRs for in vivo targeted hypermutagenesis in E. coli. We also included some early proof of concept in Yeast thanks to @seth-shipman.bsky.social !

10 years ago, Elisabeth Bik published a preprint heard around the world Elisabeth Bik If you are at all familiar with scientific sleuthing, you’re familiar with Elisabeth Bik. She is quoted so often in the mainstream media it is probably difficult to imagine a time bef…

10 years ago today, @elisabethbik.bsky.social published a preprint heard around the world.

Au CNRS, une coupe budgétaire inédite fragilise un peu plus la recherche : « On va dans le mur » Le PDG du Centre national de recherche scientifique, Antoine Petit, a annoncé, le 24 mars, une baisse supplémentaire de 20 millions d’euros sur le budget 2026 de l’institution. Les chercheurs et les d...

On va dans le mur 🧱⬅️🚗

Our new work is out in @natwater.nature.com
Bacteria release nano-sized membrane particles called Extracellular vesicles (EVs). We show that EVs enable protected delivery for nutrients and enzymes, reshaping metabolic interactions and biogeochemical cycling.
doi.org/10.1038/s442...

Illustration showing how light from the supernova follows a bent path. A cluster of at least 84 galaxies sits between the supernova's galaxy and the JWST, distorting the gravitational field and bending the light paths around it. In 2016, the SN Requiem supernova appeared three times in multiple lensed images of the background galaxy. The predicted fourth path is bent even further, expected to arrive at Earth in 2026 or 2027.

Reappearing flashes from deep space, lensed by gravity, could resolve a dispute over the speed of the expanding universe.

Learn more: https://scim.ag/48Ay52C

Excited to share our new paper out today in @science.org 🎉

We show that HGT via natural competence drives diversification of chromosomal integrons in V. cholerae 🤩

Below a 🧵 on key findings incl. background on natural competence in V. cholerae 1/
#microsky #phagesky
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

we recommend reading this🧵by kristian @kgandersen.bsky.social first, and then the *full* substack post by ran @blekhman.bsky.social. it's well worth your time!

"...trying to turn a messy set of findings into a coherent story is not an obstacle to learning. It _is_ the learning".

Phage receptor prediction from genome sequencing alone. Bacterial receptor (blue) interacting with phage proteins (purple) is shown here

📣Huge preprint 🔔
Today we share something our group has been working toward for a long time, led by @lucasmoriniere.bsky.social We asked can we predict which receptor a phage targets from its genome sequence alone? For most phages, we couldn’t. So Lucas set out to do something I had only dreamed of.

Anti-type VI tactics: bacterial defenses against type VI secretion system attacks Survival of bacteria in dense and competitive microbial communities depends on their ability to access nutrients or outcompete neighboring cells. One of the key players in competition is the type VI s...

www.cell.com/trends/bioch...

Want to annotate a bacterial genome with structures?

@oschwengers.bsky.social bakta and @gbouras13.bsky.social phold got together, and the result is Baktfold: protein annotation across the microbial tree of life using structures

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

#phagesky #microsky #microbiomesky

Un poste de Professeur des Universités va être ouvert lors de la campagne d’emploi 2026 à l’université Claude Bernard Lyon1 -
Profil Recherche : Biologie Moléculaire des Eucaryotes.
Profil Enseignement: Biologie Moléculaire.
Profil ci-joint.
Merci de diffuser dans vos réseaux.

I am thrilled to share with you the outcome of the first collaboration with Albesa-Jove's lab (albesalab.org), in which we characterised the molecular mechanisms underlying the binding of a T6SS adaptor-effector pair in P. putida, Tap3–Tke5. (🧵1/9). Read the full paper here: doi.org/10.1038/s443...

🚨L'ENS de Lyon recrute un.e maître de conférence qui rejoindra le CIRI pour développer ses recherches sur l'immunité bactérienne, les transferts horizontaux et les MGE.

📖 Une très belle opportunité d'enseigner à des étudiants brillants tout en menant des recherches excitantes !

Coupling DNA processing to early gene expression drives antibiotic resistance plasmid dissemination The rapid global spread of antibiotic resistance is mediated by conjugative plasmids, yet how these elements establish immediately after entering new bacterial hosts remains poorly understood. Here we...

New bioRxiv preprint from our Lesterlin lab
How early gene expression coupled to DNA processing boosts resistance plasmid spread.
With @nfrk92.bsky.social in collab with Y. Yamaichi lab
👉 doi.org/10.64898/202...

Postdoctoral Researcher (Carella Group) | John Innes Centre An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join the Carella Group at the John Innes Centre, working on cutting-edge science in the field of Evo-MPMI (Evolutionary Molecular…

We have an open POSTDOC position to explore Marchantia immune receptor biology that is closing on the 18th of Jan. Apply using the link below, and/or email me for more details. www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/po...

First inhibitor of a bacterial two-partner secretion system. Two-partner secretion system transporter proteins (TpsB) are widely conserved across Gram-negative pathogens. TpsB family proteins secrete exoprotein virulence factors that perform a myriad of functions such as adhesion and immune modulation. Despite their incredible importance in bacterial infectious disease, TpsB inhibitors have not yet been discovered. Here, we describe a potent inhibitor of FhaC, a TpsB protein produced by Bordetella spp . FhaC secretes the exoprotein FhaB that is essential for the establishment of whooping cough. We designed a peptide called P1 that we predicted would prevent substrate binding and lock FhaC in a secretion-inactive state. Simulations and biochemical assays supported our hypothesis and identified interactions important for P1 binding to FhaC. Strikingly, we observed that the peptide strongly inhibited FhaB secretion from clinical isolates and broadly reduced correlates of virulence. Together, this work provides a strong case for further development of a novel class of anti-TpsB anti-virulence compounds. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, R21AI180112

💊 We are excited to share our preprint that describes an inhibitor of the widespread and highly conserved Two-Partner Secretion (TPS) system that is critical for Gram-negative pathogens to export a multitude of diverse virulence factors.

(1/6)

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Une opportunité unique de former des étudiants talentueux à la biologie des bactéries à l'ENS Lyon et mener des recherches sur les phages, l'immunité bactérienne, le transfert génétique horizontal (HGT) et/ou les éléments génétiques mobiles au sein du département de bactériologie du CIRI.

I am beyond excited to announce that the Bisson Lab has a new home!!! Starting January 2026, I will join the Biology Department at Indiana University Bloomington as Associate Professor with tenure.

I am actively recruiting scientists across all levels. More in our website: bissonlab.com/join

[1/4]

We are looking for a team leader to join the cryo-EM facility work at the new Ernst Ruska-Centre 2.0 at the Forschungszentrum Jülich. We have a series of microscopes used by (@irene-vercellino.bsky.social, Schröder, @sachsegroup.bsky.social) and external users.
www.fz-juelich.de/de/karriere/...

Environment-dependent evolution drives divergent adaptive strategies and parasite dynamics in a minimal community Prophages, phage genomes integrated into bacterial chromosomes, are widespread, yet, the extent to which these resident parasites contribute to host fitness and shape evolutionary trajectories, partic...

Preprint alert📢! 
Ever wondered how much bacterial parasites influence evolutionary outcomes of their host?
➡️ We co-evolved two bacterial strains in conditions in which the costs and benefits of prophage carriage varied

Here is what we found. 
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

#MicroSky #PhageSky
🧵

The changing roles of Escherichia coli Nature Microbiology - Richard Lenski traces the legacy of Escherichia coli and how science is evolving to use this model organism in new ways.

"The changing roles of Escherichia coli" -- a short essay by yours truly.

rdcu.be/eVtXT

What is better than one? Two connected papers!

#NewResearch

S protein of Streptococcus pneumoniae activates PBP1a and coordinates with a wider GpsB-associated multi-protein complex to regulate peptidoglycan remodelling and cell division.

#MicroSky 🦠

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Final version is out! Our large-scale cryo-ET dataset 🔬 of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii 🦠 is now published in @cp-molcell.bsky.social

Huge collaborative effort! So glad to see the community already using it to develop new resources & tools.

Check it out here: shorturl.at/z4i4c
#CryoEM #CryoET

Poly-immunity arrays associated with Rhs toxins confer wide protection against competitors Martinkus et al. show that Photorhabdus and Xenorhabdus species encode arrays of immunity genes whose protein products neutralize toxins secreted by competitors. These arrays, often linked to Xer pass...

Happy to share the last work of @jmartinkus.bsky.social, led by @dukasju.bsky.social
Immunity arrays associated with Rhs and CDI toxins and linked to a novel genetic element (XPC cassette) confer protection against competitors. @currentbiology.bsky.social
Kudos !!
www.cell.com/current-biol...

Beyond RNA modification: a novel role for tRNA modifying enzyme in oxidative stress response and metabolism Abstract. RNA modifications play a fundamental role in regulating essential cellular processes, including translation fidelity and stress adaptation. While

Our new paper on DusB’s role in redox metabolism in V. cholerae is now out in @narjournal.bsky.social linking tRNAmodif enzymes and metabolic adaptation.

Beyond RNA modification: a tRNA-modifying enzyme shaping oxidative stress resilience and metabolism in V. cholerae #rnasky #rnabiology

😊🦠💫

Temporal and spatial coordination of DNA segregation and cell division in an archaeon | PNAS Cells must coordinate DNA segregation with cytokinesis to ensure that each daughter cell inherits a complete genome. Here, we explore how DNA segre...

Temporal and spatial coordination of DNA segregation and cell division in an archaeon
#microbiology #DNA #archaea
@pnas.org
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...

In two-week time, it will be 10 years of our group. I have not regretted once joining Mol Micro Dept and more widely the John Innes Centre.