Wbm0076, a candidate effector protein of the Wolbachia endosymbiont of Brugia malayi, disrupts eukaryotic actin dynamics.

Brugia malayi, a parasitic roundworm of humans, is colonized by the obligate intracellular bacterium, Wolbachia pipientis. The symbiosis between this nematode and bacterium is essential for nematode reproduction and long-term survival in a human host. Therefore, identifying molecular mechanisms required by Wolbachia to persist in and colonize B.

Abundance in Breastfed Infants and Identification of a New Species in the Global Enterics Multicenter Study.

is a leading cause of bacterial diarrhea worldwide and is associated with high rates of mortality and growth stunting in children inhabiting low- to middle-resource countries. To better understand the impact of breastfeeding on infection in infants in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, we examined fecal microbial compositions, bacterial isolates, and their carbohydrate metabolic pathways in -positive infants <1 year of age from the Global Enterics Multicenter Study. Exclusively breastfed infants with diarrhea exhibited high abundances, and this negatively correlated with bacterial carbohydrate metabolism.

Identification of putative effectors of the Type IV secretion system from the Wolbachia endosymbiont of Brugia malayi.

Wolbachia is an unculturable, intracellular bacterium that persists within an extremely broad range of arthropod and parasitic nematode hosts, where it is transmitted maternally to offspring via vertical transmission. In the filarial nematode Brugia malayi, a causative agent of human lymphatic filariasis, Wolbachia is an endosymbiont, and its presence is essential for proper nematode development, survival, and pathogenesis. While the elucidation of Wolbachia:nematode interactions that promote the bacterium's intracellular persistence is of great importance, research has been hampered due to the fact that Wolbachia cannot be cultured in the absence of host cells.