Mycobacterium avium subspecies hominissuis (MAH) is the most common pathogen among non-tuberculous mycobacteria, causing disease in immunocompromised individuals. An intracellular bacterium, MAH resides within the phagosome, a vesicle formed by macrophages as they engulf invading pathogens. Here, a subpopulation of MAH regresses into a nonreplicative state called persistence, allowing them...
The rate of physician dissatisfaction is steadily rising. Between 2011 and 2012, the number of physicians that would not choose a career in medicine if given the opportunity to decide again increased by 15% (Adams). This discontentment has major repercussions in the midst of the rising need for physicians: it...
Salmonella is a bacterium responsible for several illnesses, including typhoid fever,
paratyphoid fever, and salmonellosis. It is commonly found in animal products, including
poultry. Determination of potential reservoirs of Salmonella contamination is important
to mitigate the risk of transmission and possible outbreaks. Outbreaks can negatively
impact the livelihood of local...
Pantoea vagans C9-1 (C9-1) is a biological control agent sprayed onto apple and pear trees during bloom for suppression of fire blight, a devastating bacterial disease caused by Erwinia amylovora. Prior bioinformatics studies of C9-1 focused on predicted phenotypes associated with the three native megaplasmids, pPag1, pPag2, and pPag3, and...
Koi herpesvirus (KHV) is a new emerging viral pathogen of koi and common carps. It has been demonstrated that KHV becomes latent in the white blood cells in the recovered koi. The latent KHV can be reactivated under stressful conditions, such as heat and injury, and the reactivated viruses can...
When iron levels are low, the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa secretes the high-affinity iron-binding siderophore pyoverdine. The cognate ferripyoverdine receptor, FpvA, has gained attention as the most divergent gene in the organism’s genome, showing substantial evidence of positive selection. S-type pyocins, bacteriocins with specificity to Pseudomonads, enter cells through FpvA...
The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor that is an important regulator of immune responses in various disease models. In the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse model of type 1 diabetes, activation of this receptor leads to suppression of the autoimmune response and limits immune cell infiltration of...
A great deal of research has been focused on the microbiomes of terrestrial angiosperms (flowering plants), but much less research has been performed on the microbiomes of aquatic angiosperms (Turner et al. 2013). Eelgrass beds are extremely productive ecosystems that provide habitat for many marine organisms, such as fish, shellfish,...
Mammals exhibit circadian rhythms in several physiological processes
controlled by a core set of circadian genes that make up the so-called molecular
clock. Disruptions in these rhythms, and variations in circadian genes, are associated
with the development of psychiatric disorders, including addiction. However, the
effect of chronic binge-like alcohol drinking...
Ceratonova shasta is a myxozoan parasite that affects populations of salmonid species in the Pacific Northwest and is the cause of enteronecrosis. It has a complex life cycle involving two hosts; a definitive annelid host, Manayunkia speciosa (polychaete), and an intermediate salmonid host. Klamath River M. speciosa are genetically variable...