B. P. Bratton

Macromolecular interactions and geometrical confinement determine the 3D diffusion of ribosome-sized particles in live Escherichia coli cells

This study tracks ribosome-sized particles in E. coli to show that their 3D diffusion is influenced by macromolecular interactions and geometrical confinement, revealing sub-diffusive motion due to nucleoid and cell boundary constraints.

Evolution of pH-sensitive transcription termination during adaptation to repeated long-term starvation.

The paper identifies an Arg to His mutation in Rho that enables E. coli to adapt to fluctuating pH during starvation by altering transcription termination and pH homeostasis.

Integrin-like adhesin CglD confers traction and stabilizes bacterial focal adhesions involved in myxobacterial gliding motility

The paper identifies CglD as a β-integrin-like adhesin in Myxococcus xanthus that stabilizes bacterial focal adhesions and enables gliding motility through mechanosensory and mechanotransductory functions.

CauloKO: an ordered transposon mutant library in Caulobacter crescentus

The paper introduces CauloKO, an ordered transposon mutant library in Caulobacter crescentus, validated by Sanger sequencing and used for phenotypic analysis of biofilm mutants.

Distinct regions of H. pylori's bactofilin regulate protein interactions to control cell shape

This study identifies regions of H. pylori's bactofilin CcmA that regulate protein interactions and cell shape by controlling polymerization and interactions with Csd5 and Csd7.

Bacterial DNA on the skin surface overrepresents the viable skin microbiome

This study shows that viable bacteria in the skin microbiome are mainly in hair follicles, not on the skin surface, and that surface DNA mostly comes from dead cells.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa detachment from surfaces via a self-made small molecule

This study identifies a Pseudomonas aeruginosa-produced small molecule, MHQ, that disperses surface-attached bacteria by inhibiting Type IV Pili activity.

CglB adhesins secreted at bacterial focal adhesions mediate gliding motility

The paper identifies CglB as a substratum-coupling protein secreted by the gliding complex in Myxococcus xanthus, revealing a mechanism for force transduction and a novel secretion process.

A dual-mechanism antibiotic targets Gram-negative bacteria and avoids drug resistance

This paper identifies a dual-mechanism antibiotic, SCH-79797, that kills Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria with low resistance and outperforms combination treatments.

The evolution of bacterial shape complexity by a curvature-inducing module

This study identifies a two-protein module, CrvAB, that autonomously induces bacterial curvature independent of major elongation and division machinery, demonstrating modular shape determinants can drive morphological complexity evolution.

Distinct cytoskeletal proteins define zones of enhanced cell wall synthesis in Helicobacter pylori

The paper identifies cytoskeletal proteins that regulate cell wall synthesis in Helicobacter pylori, linking their distribution to specific Gaussian curvatures that maintain helical shape.

RodZ promotes MreB polymer formation and curvature localization to determine the cylindrical uniformity of E. coli shape

This study shows RodZ regulates MreB polymer number and curvature preference to control E. coli cylindrical uniformity, with quantitative measurements showing strong predictive power for cell shape changes.

A gated relaxation oscillator controls morphogenetic movements in bacteria

The paper identifies a gated relaxation oscillator mechanism in Myxococcus xanthus that controls polarity reversals through FrzX and RomR, enabling tunable motility responses.