Parasitic connections: a patescibacterial epibiont, its methylotrophic gammaproteobacterial host, and their phages | mBio Patescibacteriota are ultra-small bacteria with reduced genomes that rely on symbiotic interactions with other prokaryotes; however, their host specificity and associated viral parasites remain poorly characterized due to limited cultured representatives. By combining targeted cultivation with genomic and microscopy analyses, we reveal previously unrecognized host lineages and expand the known viral diversity infecting this major, but still poorly known, bacterial phylum. We describe Strigamonas methylophilicida, a new patescibacterial species of the family Absconditicoccaceae that grows as an epibiont on various methylotrophic Gammaproteobacteria. This expands the host range for this family, previously found to infect only photosynthetic partners. Using enrichment cultures and metagenomics, we retrieved complete genomes of novel phages infecting S. methylophilicida and its methylotrophic hosts, including one phage that uses a modified genetic code matching that of the patescibacterium, which shows a specific viral adaptation to infect Absconditicoccaceae hosts. Our findings reveal a previously unrecognized patescibacteria-methylotrophs-phages tripartite interaction in freshwater environments, highlight the adaptations of patescibacterial phages, and shed light on the complex ecology and evolution of host-parasite-phage dynamics in understudied bacterial lineages.

Parasitic connections: a patescibacterial epibiont, its methylotrophic gammaproteobacterial host, and their phages | mBio https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mbio.00025-26

Eco-evolutionary dynamics of active virus-host interactions in a freshwater lake: revealed through metaHi-C www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.02...

It was great to catch up with my two mentors and great microbiologists Álex Mira and Francisco Rodriguez-Valera during the #pangenome25 meeting!!

Many thanks José for your words and support! I will see you very soon in Córdoba!

I am very excited to start my new position as a Ramón y Cajal fellow @ageinves.bsky.social @cienciagob.bsky.social at the ICBiBE @uv.es! I'm coming home! It feels great to deliver new science for my country!

PANGENOME2025 The biology of prokaryotic cells is directly dependent on the differential gene pools that characterize each cell or strain. This has been a fundamental aspect of epidemiology for delimiting outbreaks...

👉Congress
👉One Health Pangenome 25
The microbial pangenome in one health
December 2-5, 2025, Valencia, Spain
www.alocongress.com/pangenome2025

👉New Deadlines
Abstract Submission: Oct 31st, 2025
Early Bird Registration: Nov 14th, 2025
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#bioinformatics #pangenome #science

Adeu SAME18, it’s been a tremendous experience. Thank you all for coming to Barcelona, bringing your awesome science to the conference and contributing to maintaining strong the SAME spirit! Looking forward to SAME19 at České Budějovice! 🙌🫶

Changes to the 2026 and 2027 Work Programmes With the launch of the competitions for grants under ERC Work Programme 2026 in July of this year, several changes to the submission of applications and the evaluation of proposals will apply. The mai...

Planning to apply for #research #funding from the ERC?

From the next application rounds, expect changes to the:

• proposal structure
• evaluation process
• extra funding you can request
• eligibility for Starting & Consolidator #Grants (from 2027)

More 👇 europa.eu/!RPHWvv

The type IV secretion system of Patescibacteria is homologous to the bacterial monoderm conjugation machinery The Candidate Phyla Radiation, also known as Patescibacteria, represents a vast and diverse division of bacteria that has come to light via culture-independent ‘omics’ technologies. Their limited bios...

Another great collaboration where we studied the type IV SS of CPRs, which certainly opens new avenues for the study of these enigmatic (mostly epibiotic) organisms! @frvalera.bsky.social
www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/jour...

Ecogenomics and limnological dynamics of a new Thiocapsa species blooming in the whole water column of a karstic lake Purple sulfur bacteria (PSB) of the family Chromatiaceae (Gammaproteobacteria) can perform chemo- and photo-lithoautotrophy (through anoxygenic photosynthesis) in anoxic layers of freshwater stratifi....

‪Congrats to
@pedrojcy91.bsky.social
and coauthors on a nice contribution to #ASLO_LO:
aslopubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/....
‪@aslo.org

Ecogenomics and limnological dynamics of a new Thiocapsa species blooming in the whole water column of a karstic lake Purple sulfur bacteria (PSB) of the family Chromatiaceae (Gammaproteobacteria) can perform chemo- and photo-lithoautotrophy (through anoxygenic photosynthesis) in anoxic layers of freshwater stratifi...

Excited to share our last publication in L&O! We studied the unusual pink coloration of a lake due to the bloom of a novel Thiocapsa species. See: aslopubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

@aslo.org
@dave_hambright

🌊 Save the Date! 🌍
#SAME18 — Aquatic Microbiomes on a Changing Planet
📍 Barcelona, Spain | 🗓️ Sept 28 – Oct 3, 2025
At the iconic PRBB 🧬🌿
Join us to explore the frontiers of aquatic microbial ecology.

📢 Stay tuned for more info and follow us on Bluesky!

#MicrobialEcology #MarineMicrobiology #SAME18