Protist feeding patterns and growth rate are related to their predatory impacts on soil bacterial communities.

Predatory protists are major consumers of soil micro-organisms. By selectively feeding on their prey, they can shape soil microbiome composition and functions. While different protists are known to show diverging impacts, it remains impossible to predict a priori the effect of a given species.

A global overview of the trophic structure within microbiomes across ecosystems.

The colossal project of mapping the microbiome on Earth is rapidly advancing, with a focus on individual microbial groups. However, a global assessment of the associations between predatory protists and their bacterial prey is still missing at a cross-ecosystem level. This knowledge is critical to better understand the importance of top-down links in structuring microbiomes.

Biocontrol Traits Correlate With Resistance to Predation by Protists in Soil Pseudomonads.

Root-colonizing bacteria can support plant growth and help fend off pathogens. It is clear that such bacteria benefit from plant-derived carbon, but it remains ambiguous why they invest in plant-beneficial traits. We suggest that selection via protist predation contributes to recruitment of plant-beneficial traits in rhizosphere bacteria.

Development of a new ecotoxicological assay using the testate amoeba Euglypha rotunda (Rhizaria; Euglyphida) and assessment of the impact of the herbicide S-metolachlor.

An ever-increasing diversity of potentially toxic chemical compounds are being developed and released into the environment as a result of human activities (e.g. agriculture, drugs, and cosmetics).