Microbiology's next top model: Galleria in the molecular age.

Galleria mellonella has risen to fame as an invertebrate model organism given its ethical advantages, low maintenance costs, rapid reproduction time, short life cycle, high number of progeny, tolerance for human body temperatures, innate immune system and similarities to mammalian host models. It is increasingly being utilised to evaluate in vivo toxicity and efficacy of chemical compounds and antimicrobials, modelling microbial (bacterial, fungal and viral) pathogenicity and assessing host-pathogen interaction during infection. During this molecular age of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic and genetic manipulation approaches, our understanding of microbial pathogenicity and host-pathogen interactions has deepened from high-throughput molecular studies performed in G.

Macronutrients modulate survival to infection and immunity in Drosophila.

Immunity and nutrition are two essential modulators of individual fitness. However, while the implications of immune function and nutrition on an individual's lifespan and reproduction are well established, the interplay between feeding behaviour, infection and immune function remains poorly understood. Asking how ecological and physiological factors affect immune responses and resistance to infections is a central theme of eco-immunology.

Catabolism of Nucleic Acids by a Cystic Fibrosis Isolate: An Adaptive Pathway to Cystic Fibrosis Sputum Environment.

is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). We undertook Biolog Phenotype Microarray testing of CF isolates to investigate their catabolic capabilities compared to laboratory strains PAO1 and PA14. One strain, PASS4, displayed an unusual phenotype, only showing strong respiration on adenosine and inosine.

Unicellular Cyanobacteria Are Important Components of Phytoplankton Communities in Australia's Northern Oceanic Ecoregions.

The tropical marine environments of northern Australia encompasses a diverse range of geomorphological and oceanographic conditions and high levels of productivity and nitrogen fixation. However, efforts to characterize phytoplankton assemblages in these waters have been restricted to studies using microscopic and pigment analyses, leading to the current consensus that this region is dominated by large diatoms, dinoflagellates, and the marine cyanobacterium . During an oceanographic transect from the Arafura Sea through the Torres Strait to the Coral Sea, we characterized prokaryotic and eukaryotic phytoplankton communities in surface waters using a combination of flow cytometry and Illumina based 16S and 18S ribosomal RNA amplicon sequencing.

Dual Transcriptomics of Host-Pathogen Interaction of Cystic Fibrosis Isolate PASS1 With Zebrafish.

is a significant cause of mortality in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). To explore the interaction of the CF isolate PASS1 with the innate immune response, we have used (zebrafish) as an infection model. Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) enabled visualization of direct interactions between zebrafish macrophages and PASS1.

Genetically and Phenotypically Distinct Pseudomonas aeruginosa Cystic Fibrosis Isolates Share a Core Proteomic Signature.

The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa is among the main colonizers of the lungs of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. We have isolated and sequenced several P. aeruginosa isolates from the sputum of CF patients and compared them with each other and with the model strain PAO1.

Proteomics of hosts and pathogens in cystic fibrosis.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a congenital disease that results in great morbidity and mortality mainly in the Caucasian population. Although CF is a monogenic disease caused by mutation in the CF conductance transmembrane regulator (CFTR) gene, most of the related mortality can be attributed to infection mediated by opportunistic bacterial and fungal pathogens. Over the past decade, advancements in the field of proteomics have helped to gain insight into the repertoire of host and pathogen proteins involved in CF pathophysiology.