For enterics, adaptability could be an Achilles heel
Monday, November 10, 2014 - 11:00
in Biology & Nature
In research published in Nature Chemical Biology, scientists from RIKEN in Japan have discovered a surprisingly simple mechanism through which enterics can adjust to the very different oxygen environments inside the human gut and outside. This research, which was led by Shigeyuki Yokoyama and Wataru Nishii of the Structural Biology Laboratory, opens a new potential target against these bacteria, which are the most-frequently encountered causative microorganisms of infectious diseases. The family includes well-known symbionts and facultative or obligate pathogens such as E. coli, Klebsiella, Salmonella, Shigella and Yersinia pestis.
