As editor in chief of @asm.org #mSphere sometimes I need to work at home on papers submitted to the journal. Knowing that we have a dedicated scientists who read our papers makes all the work worth it. Here's one of our dedicated readers

Acinetobacter—the bad, the ugly, but also the good! | mSphere Acinetobacter is a bacterial genus with huge metabolic diversity (1), which can be found in many different sources, including animals, humans, plants, soil, and diverse aquatic environments (2, 3). However, the genus is mostly recognized as an opportunistic pathogen and source of hard-to-treat nosocomial infections (4, 5)—the bad and the ugly. Nonetheless, even the most nefarious species of the genus, Acinetobacter baumannii, has a habitat that extends well beyond causing illness in humans and can be found in many hosts or sources (6). Importantly, although not very much known or publicized, some species of the genus can be beneficial for some organisms—the good. Such is the case of Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, which is considered a plant growth-promoting bacterium (7–11). In this regard, a recent paper published in this journal shows that A. calcoaceticus can impact the growth of an important staple crop, namely the tomato (12).

#mSphere also published an outstanding commentary on this article by Santiago Castillo-Ramírez and colleagues journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Acinetobacter enrichment shapes composition and function of the bacterial microbiota of field-grown tomato plants | mSphere Tomatoes are at center stage in global food security due to their high nutritional value, widespread cultivation, and versatility. Tomatoes provide essential vitamins and minerals, contribute to diver...

High nutrient veggies like tomatoes make them critical for global food security and thus important to optimize growth and yields. Using metagenomics @bulgarelli-d.bsky.social et al discover a Acinetobacter sp a important part of their rhizosphere. @asm.org #mSphere journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

2025 Acknowledgment of mSphere Ad Hoc Reviewers | mSphere As we approach the end of 2025, I have been reflecting on the past year’s events as well as how mSphere has moved forward. Scientific research, funding, and publishing have certainly seen more headlin...

Reviewers are the soul of any scientific journal and I want to thank you those who reviewed papers in 2025 for #mSphere. Exciting things to come from mSphere. Stay tuned @asm.org journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

An apicoplast-localized GTPase is essential for Toxoplasma gondii survival | mSphere Toxoplasma gondii, and many other parasites in the phylum Apicomplexa, are pathogens with significant medical and veterinary importance. Most Apicomplexa contain a non-photosynthetic plastid organelle...

Latest work from the @atheaslip.bsky.social lab! Congrats to all @asm.org #mSphere journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

APC24-7, a covalent combination of boronic acid and chelator moieties, restores β-lactam efficiency against metallo-β-lactamase-producers | mSphere The ability of bacteria such as Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli to circumvent antimicrobial chemotherapy has become a global public health crisis. The high prevalence of β-lactamase enzymes...

Interested in #β-lactamase inhibitors? 🧪

Our new #mSphere paper shows how a covalent boronic-acid + chelator fusion ⚗️ can restore β-lactam susceptibility in metallo-β-lactamase producers, even in variants that are difficult to inhibit with #taniborbactam.

journals.asm.org/doi/full/10....

Submit your research to the mSphere collection by December 15! One Health, Microbes and Climate Change

🌍This #OneHealthDay, #mSphere, in partnership with the @agu.org journal GeoHealth, continues to invite submissions to our joint collection on One Health, Microbes and Climate Change through Dec. 15. Time is running out—submit your paper today: 🔗 asm.social/2FH

Schematic of how the Salmonella Serovar Wiki can support hypothesis generation in academia, industry, and public health using livestock-associated serovars as examples.

Introducing Salmonella Serovar Wiki! A web portal for academia, industry and public health providing comprehensive, serovar-specific information on over 100 Salmonella serovars, including their genomic characteristics and outbreak history. #mSphere: asm.social/2Fn

Map of Salton Sea and dust collection sites. Wister (red) is located <2 mi from the eastern edge of the Salton Sea. Palm Desert is located approximately 26 mi northwest from the Salton Sea. Dust material from Boyd Deep Canyon was used in previous host pulmonary inflammation studies (18) and is a site located approximately 20 mi northwest from the Salton Sea. The map was made using Google Earth.

#MicrobiologyMonday: California's Salton Sea, the state's largest lake, is drying up. Studies in mice show that dust collected near the lake alters lung microbiomes and triggers more inflammation than dust from areas farther away. #mSphere: asm.social/2Fc

Nasal microbionts differentially colonize and elicit cytokines in human nasal epithelial organoids | mSphere Human nasal microbiota often includes highly pathogenic members, many of which are antimicrobial resistance threats, e.g., methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and drug-resistant Streptococcus ...

Happy to share this new article online at #mSphere journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Human nasal organoids (HNOs) are a new model system for studying bacterial colonization and interspecies interactions. A big congratulations to the whole team, especially co-first authors: Andrea Boyd and Leah Kafer

ASM Announces Honorees for 2026 Awards and Prize Program ASM announced the 2026 Awards and Prize Program recipients. The awards recognize leading scientists and researchers for their accomplishments and contributions to research, education and leadership.

Congrats to #mSphere Senior Editor Michael Johson @copperbae.bsky.social for this award from @asm.org that recognizes the important work that Michael is doing to ensure and promote equity and access for all scientists. Congrats Michael - you're awe inspriring. asm.org/press-releas...

Differentiation of bronchial (BEpC) and nasal (NEpC) primary epithelial cells and mucus harvesting. (A) schematic overview of primary cell differentiation and mucus harvesting. Following a 4-week differentiation period at air-liquid interface (ALI), mucus was harvested in ultrapure H2O at 4, 6, and 8 weeks of ALI culture. The illustration was created at Biorender.com. B-C BEpC (B) and NEpC (C) from three different donors were differentiated and grown at air-liquid interface (ALI) for 28 days. Transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) was monitored at the time points indicated. Shown are means ± standard deviations from two independent wells.

By comparing bronchial and nasal mucus, researchers find that mucus' ability to neutralize influenza A virus varies with the anatomical origin and correlates with the abundance of triglycerides & specific sialylated glycoproteins and glycolipids. #mSphere: journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Evolution of polyamine resistance in Staphylococcus aureus through modulation of potassium transport | mSphere Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of infectious disease-related deaths globally. Understanding factors that govern adaptation and survival of S. aureus and other pathogens in the host environme...

Evolution of polyamine resistance in Staphylococcus aureus through modulation of potassium transport

#mSphere from @biobarber.bsky.social

journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Workflow and use of the web-based tool RepRanger: (A) workflow for identifying candidate REPs in a genome, (B) screenshots showcasing the RepRanger user interface, including the prediction (Ba) and browse (Bb) pages, and (C) example of an output table (TSV file) generated by RepRanger.

The biological roles, diversity & sequence conservation of repetitive extragenic palindromic (REP) sequences remain unclear. Researchers developed a web-based tool, RepRanger, to identify & annotate putative palindromic elements, including REPs. #mSphere: asm.social/2v4

#mSphere is in great shape due to the leadership of the previous EIC, Dr. Michael Imperiale, my fellow senior editors, the editorial board, and @ASM journal staff and leadership.

With everything going on the world of science, we feel that the microbial sciences community needs a journal it can call home and our goal is to make #mSphere as the microbial sciences community's journal. We will be creating new article types to allow us to get to know and understand each other.

I am excited and humbled by this opportunity. Our goal at #mSphere publish exciting and cutting edge science all the while experimenting with publication models in order to ensure that authors and reviewers workloads are minimized.

mSphere’s journey and future: a message from the new editor in chief | mSphere Readers know that mSphere was launched in 2015 as a pan-microbial, multidisciplinary open-access journal that publishes high-quality, high-impact work across the microbial sciences. However, some may ...

Today, I assume my new role as Editor-in-Chief of #mSphere published by @asm.org. In this editorial , I discuss where the journal is today and where it is going. mSphere’s journey and future: a message from the new editor in chief | mSphere journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Divergent modes of mitosis and the centriolar plaque (CP) architecture in Plasmodium

In #mSphere: how a decade-long journey—from early electron microscopy observations of nuclear pore dynamics—has evolved into a broader investigation of nuclear envelope composition, architecture & regulation across the malaria parasite life cycle. asm.social/2tO

Visualization of bacterial aggregates and scattered single cells

The dermal bacterial profile could be a valuable tool for longitudinally monitoring changes during the relapsing phases of atopic dermatitis (AD), allowing for a precise categorization of patients into specific AD endotypes. Learn more in #mSphere: asm.social/2qn

Transmission electron micrograph of HIV-1 virus particles (blue) replicating from the plasma membrane of an H9 T cell

In 2021, the ICTV adopted a standardized binomial format for virus species names. However, despite some confusion, "common" virus names, such as HIV, are not under the remit of the ICTV & have not been changed. Read the perspective in #mSphere: asm.social/2pU

Survival data for the zebrafish-Pseudomonas aeruginosa model system indicate the failure of a constant mortality assumption.

What are the dynamics of pathogen-induced death? According to research in #mSphere, the risk of death increases approximately exponentially in time since infection, contrasting with conventional models assuming a constant elevated risk of death. asm.social/2pr

Alterations of fecal microbiota and plasma metabolome in patients with Parkinson's disease with rapid eye movement sleep disorder #mSphere #MassSpec journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Schematic diagram of the immune response induced by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection in humans.

Polymorphisms in cytokine genes—including interferons, interleukins, tumor necrosis factors and chemokines—are closely linked to the onset, progression & treatment outcomes of pulmonary tuberculosis. Get the latest insights in #mSphere: asm.social/2mb

Biological findings related to melanin production by L. prolificans cells. L. prolificans cultures grown for 14 days at 30°C in the absence or presence of 30 µg/mL of one or more melanin inhibitors in PD agar and broth, respectively, showed different pigment colors (A). The efficiency of extracellular phenol oxidase production was determined using the phenol oxidase assay and ABTS as a substrate, observing the development of a colored zone in the supernatant (broth media).

#MicrobiologyMonday: Did you know that fungi produce melanin? Some fungal species, like Lomentospora prolificans—a filamentous fungus that can cause disease in humans—produce multiple melanin types, as shown here. Learn more in #mSphere: journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Immunogenicity/adjuvanticity of different bacterial species-derived OMVs in intranasal vaccine model mice.

Canines frequently develop periodontitis. Researchers investigated the humoral immune responses to an outer membrane vesicle-based periodontal disease vaccine in beagles; the vaccine elicited strong mucosal immune responses. Learn more in #mSphere: asm.social/2l9

mSphere A joint call for papers with AGU.

#mSphere and #ASM are excited to partner with the #AGU journal #GeoHealth on a joint call for papers on #OneHealth, #Microbes, and #Climate Change.

journals.asm.org/journal/msph...

mSphere of Influence: The complex world of bacterial biogeography | mSphere Historically, bacteria have been thought of as comparatively simple organisms that lack the panache of their eukaryotic, “higher organism,” counterparts. We now know that this is not the case; bac...

Had a blast writing a commentary #msphere on “Biogeography of a human oral microbiome at the micron scale” by @jmarkwelch.bsky.social et al. The work in this paper made me want to be a microbiologist. I vividly remember an MBL lecture by Gary Borisy on the topic when I was a grad student.