Figure 1. Cryo-EM of abundant protein complexes in native membranes.

Figure 2. Cryo-EM of membrane proteins in vesicles.

Figure 3. 3D reconstruction of V-ATPase in native synaptic vesicle membranes.

Figure 4. Generation of membrane vesicles for structure determination of proteins in their native lipid bilayer.

I've written a review on what I think is an extremely exciting direction in cryo-EM:

Cryo-EM of endogenous membrane proteins in their native lipid bilayer

Open access in Quarterly Reviews of Biophysics:
doi.org/10.1017/S003...

Streptococcus mitis bacteriocins drive contact-dependent lysis of S. pneumoniae facilitating transformation in multispecies environments | mBio Many streptococci are naturally competent, acquiring environmental DNA through transformation. This includes pathogens like Streptococcus pneumoniae and commensals like Streptococcus mitis, which can exchange genetic material through horizontal gene transfer (HGT). For example, S. mitis can acquire pneumococcal capsules, leading to its misidentification in polymicrobial samples such as those obtained from the upper respiratory tract. Understanding the drivers of HGT between these species is therefore critical. Here, we characterize a competence-induced bacteriocin cluster in S. mitis. These bacteriocins lyse pneumococci, promoting DNA release and enhancing gene transfer in dual-species biofilms. Our findings uncover a mechanism by which competence-associated predation promotes interspecies HGT, shaping the evolution and epidemiology of streptococcal populations.

😮👀
Streptococcus mitis bacteriocins drive contact-dependent lysis of S. pneumoniae facilitating transformation in multispecies environments | mBio journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...

Pictures of the delivery please ….

We had the 2 year anniversary and strategic advisory board for our BBSRC sLoLa on bacterial cell shape this week. Many thanks to Profs Miguel Valvano, Mariana Pinho and Dr Pam Brown for their feedback!

'Vallance said the Medical Research Council would reopen its calls in May, at which point the council would set out “the totality” of its funding'

www.researchprofessional.com/news-article...

I recognise that place..

Convergent MurJ flippase inhibition by phage lysis proteins - Nature A common mechanism of inhibition of the essential lipid II flippase MurJ by three distinct phage-encoded single-gene lysis proteins provides insights into potential new targets for antimicrobial development.

Nature research paper: Convergent MurJ flippase inhibition by phage lysis proteins

go.nature.com/4aAWHKb

25 years ago today I started as a lecturer at Warwick, may have got the hang of it now.
Mostly…
But always supported by Mrs Emma Roper.

Not to mention luck….

Oh really?, Nothing to do with a track record of high impact publications, major long term funding and the patience of a saint to get those things, along with a large dollop of single minded, focused almost blinkered determination then?

He’s official now, just needs a lab coat and H&S induction …

Loss of Fsr quorum sensing promotes biofilm formation and worsens outcomes in enterococcal infective endocarditis - Nature Communications Infective endocarditis (IE) is an understudied biofilm-associated infection. Here, analyses of preclinical and clinical data reveal that the Fsr quorum sensing (QS) system of Enterococcus faecalis is ...

What if quorum sensing doesn’t promote biofilms - but restrains it? 🤔

New work from @harisantypas.bsky.social shows that the Fsr QS system in Enterococcus faecalis acts as a brake on biofilm formation and pathogenesis during infective endocarditis (IE).

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Since last year, I've been making a RELION GUI that supports viewing, navigating and running jobs in a way completely compatible with the original RELION pipeline. Now it's working nicely for both SPA and tomography! Please try it out - github.com/hanjinliu/hi...

‘An AlphaFold 4’ – scientists marvel at DeepMind drug spin-off’s exclusive new AI Nature - Isomorphic Lab’s proprietary drug-discovery model is a major advance, but scientists developing open-source tools are left guessing how to achieve similar results.

“It’s a major advance, on the scale of an AlphaFold4. The problem, of course, is that we know nothing of the details.”

Isomorphic Lab’s proprietary drug-discovery model is a major advance
go.nature.com/4kHrHeR

Spring may be returning to my part of Leicestershire finally.

Single vaccine could protect against all coughs, colds and flus, researchers say A Stanford University team have tested their nasal spray vaccine in animals but still need to do human clinical trials.

"A single nasal spray vaccine could protect against all coughs, colds and flus, as well as bacterial lung infections, and may even ease allergies, say US researchers."

www.bbc.com/news/article....

#medicine

A set of genetic tools for use in Clostridioides difficile and related species The Clostridia are a phylogenetically diverse group of anaerobic, spore-forming bacteria that include species of medical, veterinary and industrial importance. The last two decades have seen major adv...

New paper from us.

If you're interested in genetic manipulation of Clostridia, we have a few new tools for you! 36 new plasmids - all available from @addgene.bsky.social

www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/jour...

#microsky

Pre-announcement: UKRI Translation: Proof of Concept This support is grant funding for proof-of-concept projects for early to mid-stage research commercialisation activities.

🔔Pre-announcement: UKRI Proof of Concept funding.

This opportunity aims to support the development of UK research into market-ready solutions.

Full opportunity launches 4 March 2026.

Webinars to be held on (UK time):
-18 March, 2pm
-25 March, 10am
-14 April, 3pm

👉 www.ukri.org/opportunity/...

This is a nice one! Congratulations @carballido-lab.bsky.social et al! Nice to see you agree that this might lead to local enrichment of cell wall precursor lipids. Not easy to prove but I still think its an attractive model (to ensure high CW synthesis given low lipid II levels).

BBC computer from 40 years ago. Think how far we have come…

New in JB: Weiss, Tamayo et al. describe a very cool microbial interaction wherein Enterococcus faecalis, an opportunist found in the inflamed gut, impacts phase-variation noted by chaining & rough colony morphology of C. diff.
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
@asm.org #JBacteriology

Antiparallel stacking of Csu pili drives Acinetobacter baumannii 3D biofilm assembly - PubMed Many Gram-negative nosocomial pathogens rely on adhesive filaments, known as archaic chaperone-usher pili, to establish stress- and drug-resistant, multi-layered biofilms. Here, we uncover the mechanism by which these pili build three-dimensional (3D) biofilm architectures. In situ analyses of Acine …

A. baumannii is one of the most notorious multidrug-resistant pathogens, capable of forming drug-tolerant biofilms that make infections exceptionally difficult to treat. But how are these complex microbial fortresses built? Just published in Nat Comms. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41654547/

Can someone from/familiar with Committee B step up..?

The first 13 mins was about the perilous state the European and UK chemicals industry that underpins economies, healthcare, infrastructure and our future. The last 2 about the reported headline.
What is more important?

In-person training. 7th UK Workshop on Membrane Proteins. Birmingham, UK. 15-17 April 2026. Includes Biochemical Society logo, image of scientists in lab coats, in a lab, and event logo.

Registration is open for the 7th UK Workshop on Membrane #Proteins! Join us from 15-17 April to understand the basics of membrane protein purification using cutting edge methods. Places are limited, save £50 with our earlybird discount if you register before 15 February: ow.ly/rx0B50YbAUt

Our new paper is out on the cell wall UDP-sugar nucleotide pathways in Candida & their potential as antifungal drug targets. doi.org/10.1016/j.tc...
@mrccmm.bsky.social @youngecmm.bsky.social @ecmmcandidaiv.bsky.social @ishamycology.bsky.social @youngisham.bsky.social @bsmm-meeting.bsky.social

Super cool story from Sam Fenn. He developed a wound model where s. aureus & p. aerunginosa & c. albicans fight it out shows that copper is central to the outcome where Candida and pseudomonas take copper from human tissue to gang up on staph!

But staph being staph is as always one step ahead….

yep..

Preprint on the permeability of Gram+ bacterial cell wall from a few months ago. Intriguing findings, elegant methodology. Cell wall is largely impermeable to molecule sizes of mNeonGreen (27kDa) and above. How do larger secreted proteins get through? www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... #microsky

'A senior leader at the UK Medical Research Council has confirmed that it expects to fund fewer grants through its applicant-led schemes than in previous years.'

www.researchprofessional.com/news-article...