Here, the authors report metabolic activation as a potential antimicrobial strategy against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. They show that supra-physiological activation of L-histidine biosynthesis r...

Investigating the Tad pilus nanomachine in a genetically tractable, non-pathogenic organism like Caulobacter crescentus provides a powerful model for elucidating the architecture and functional dynamics of this widespread system. Insights gained from studying the Tad machinery can improve our understanding of related Tad pilus systems in pathogenic bacteria such as Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, where Tad pili are a key determinant of biofilm formation and chronic infection. Additionally, the remarkable functional diversity of Tad systems, ranging from surface sensing in C. crescentus to bacterial predation in Myxococcus xanthus, highlights their broad biological relevance. By revealing the in situ architecture of the Tad pilus biosynthetic machinery, this study advances our understanding of a major class of bacterial nanomachines and may thus provide structural insights that could inform the development of new therapeutic strategies targeting pilus-mediated virulence.

The bacterial Tad pilus extends and retracts using a single bifunctional ATPase CpaF. Here, the authors employ cryo-EM, fluorescent microscopy, and AlphaFold modelling to propose how a rotary mechanis...

A single ATPase powers extension and retraction of a broadly distributed class of type IV pili.

Bacteria sense surfaces via the resistance imparted on retracting surface-bound pili.

Cell division in many Gram-positive bacteria involves the synthesis of a peptidoglycan septum that is then hydrolyzed to facilitate cell separation. Here the authors show that, after septum formation,...

A research team co-led by UdeM's Yves Brun has received a US$3.8-million grant from the Gates Foundation to develop drugs to fight Gram-negative bacteria.

by Elio — At the June General Meeting of the ASM in Boston, there was a session called 'From Bacterial Physiology to Cellular Genetics: Reflections on the 50th Anniversary of Schaechter, Maaløe, a…