Pathogens articles from across Nature Portfolio

Inconsistency between transcriptional and translational in secondary metabolite biosynthesis sheds light on the role of transcription factor FgSfp1 under nutrient-stress condition in filamentous fungi Fusarium graminearum.

Group A Streptococcus exploits the human fibrinolytic system to promote infection. Here, the authors reveal that the bacterial toxin streptolysin O binds to plasminogen and accelerates its conversion to plasmin, thereby dismantling blood clots and facilitating the spread within the human host.

This Genome Watch explores recent transcriptomic and metatranscriptomic analyses that revealed the key role of secondary endosymbionts in host immunity and disease transmission within their insect or plant hosts.

A metabolomics approach to study microbe–tick interactions reveals that host β-aminoisobutyric acid contributes both to tick fitness and bacterial infection.

Moving from academia to government was challenging, but learning to translate evidence-based results into policy decisions that impact society is hugely rewarding, writes Robin May.

Our global survey and high-resolution local survey revealed that socio-economic development substantially influences the diversity of soil-borne animal pathogens, among which Trichosporon is a key indicator species. Our findings highlight the importance of human activities in shaping the pathogenic microbiome of cities and the potential implications for human health.

In this Journal Club, Kirstyn Brunker highlights two papers published in 2017 that showcase how the emergence of portable sequencing capabilities improved the real-time response to infectious disease outbreaks on a global scale.

We characterize the activity of fluorofolin, a potent inhibitor of dihydrofolate reductase, against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. By exploiting a divergence in thymidine metabolism, fluorofolin becomes selective for P. aeruginosa in the presence of thymine, demonstrating that it can be a narrow-spectrum antibiotic for this bacterial pathogen.