Tradeoffs and constraints on the evolution of tailocins.

Phage tail-like bacteriocins (tailocins) are protein complexes produced by bacteria with the potential to kill their neighbors. Widespread throughout Gram-negative bacteria, tailocins exhibit extreme specificity in their targets, largely killing closely related strains. Despite their presence in diverse bacteria, the impact of these competitive weapons on the surrounding microbiota is largely unknown.

A phage tail-like bacteriocin suppresses competitors in metapopulations of pathogenic bacteria.

Bacteria can repurpose their own bacteriophage viruses (phage) to kill competing bacteria. Phage-derived elements are frequently strain specific in their killing activity, although there is limited evidence that this specificity drives bacterial population dynamics. Here, we identified intact phage and their derived elements in a metapopulation of wild plant-associated genomes.

A weaponized phage suppresses competitors in historical and modern metapopulations of pathogenic bacteria.

Unlabelled: Bacteriophages, the viruses of bacteria, are proposed to drive bacterial population dynamics, yet direct evidence of their impact on natural populations is limited. Here we identified viral sequences in a metapopulation of wild plant-associated spp. genomes.

DNA Authentication and Chemical Analysis of Mushrooms Reveal Widespread Misdeterminations in Fungaria and Inconsistencies in Metabolites.

The mushroom genus is best known as the core group of psychoactive mushrooms, yet basic information on their diversity, taxonomy, chemistry, and general biology is still largely lacking. In this study, we reexamined 94 fungarium specimens, representing 18 species, by DNA barcoding, evaluated the stability of psilocybin, psilocin, and their related tryptamine alkaloids in 25 specimens across the most commonly vouchered species (Psilocybe cubensis, Psilocybe cyanescens, and Psilocybe semilanceata), and explored the metabolome of cultivated . Our data show that, apart from a few well-known species, the taxonomic accuracy of specimen determinations is largely unreliable, even at the genus level.