What happens when you discover that your published paper is wrong? Does retracting it ruin your reputation—or could owning the mistake actually make things better? …

Transposon-associated amplifications are dominated by a previously underappreciated architecture, where the transposon is found only between, not flanking, the amplicons. These amplifications facilita...

Nature Microbiology, Published online: 16 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s41564-026-02484-3An engineered non-pathogenic bacterium produces lytic phages and is protective in mouse models of Salmonella infection.

The T7 bacteriophage deactivates bacterial defence systems through T7K phosphorylation of nearly all host and phage proteins during infection.

Background Urinary tract infections (UTIs) represent a major public health concern, increasingly complicated by rising antibiotic resistance, diminishing treatment efficacy, and increasing prevalence ...

Bacterial infections may consist of different species that together form a polymicrobial community, as is the case in urinary tract infections (UTIs) (1–3). The response to antibiotic treatment of such polymicrobial infections may be affected by metabolic interactions among community members that affect the survival and resistance evolution of specific members (4–7). For example, β-lactamase-producing strains may cross-protect community members against β-lactams (8, 9), and antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli strains producing the signal molecule indole may induce antibiotic tolerance via enhanced efflux in susceptible bacteria (10). Previous research of polymicrobial UTIs has shown that interactions between UTI members can alter the growth, antibiotic tolerance, and evolvability of antibiotic resistance of other community members (7, 11, 12). Yet, the nature of interactions affecting the evolvability of antibiotic resistance is often unknown.

The microbiome plays a significant yet underexplored role in antimicrobial resistance by influencing ecological and evolutionary processes. This Perspective proposes a framework to integrate microbiom...