December 2005

The dectin-1 beta-glucan receptor is critical for the recognition of fungi by innate cells. This fluorescent deconvolution micrograph shows soluble dectin-1 staining of unmasked beta-glucans (red) on Aspergillus fumigatus germinating swollen conidia.

Image Credit: Micrograph taken by Chad Steele with a Zeiss Axioplan 2 upright fluorescent deconvolution microscope. False color by Sapna Khandwala.

Opinion

Coping with Multiple Virulence Factors: Which Is Most Important?

Erin E McClelland, Paul Bernhardt, Arturo Casadevall

PLOS Pathogens: published December 30, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010040

Research Articles

A Novel Endogenous Inhibitor of the Secreted Streptococcal NAD-Glycohydrolase

Michael A Meehl, Jerome S Pinkner, Patricia J Anderson, Scott J Hultgren, Michael G Caparon

PLOS Pathogens: published December 2, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010035

Using the TAP Component of the Antigen-Processing Machinery as a Molecular Adjuvant

Timothy Z Vitalis, Qian-Jin Zhang, Judie Alimonti, Susan S Chen, Genc Basha, Alex Moise, Jacqueline Tiong, Mei Mei Tian, Kyung Bok Choi, Douglas Waterfield, Andy Jeffries, Wilfred A Jefferies

PLOS Pathogens: published December 30, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010036

Invasion by P. falciparum Merozoites Suggests a Hierarchy of Molecular Interactions

Jake Baum, Alexander G Maier, Robert T Good, Ken M Simpson, Alan F Cowman

PLOS Pathogens: published December 16, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010037

Functional and Genetic Analysis of Coronavirus Replicase-Transcriptase Proteins

Stanley G Sawicki, Dorothea L Sawicki, Diane Younker, Yvonne Meyer, Volker Thiel, Helen Stokes, Stuart G Siddell

PLOS Pathogens: published December 9, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010039

Recognition of Conserved Amino Acid Motifs of Common Viruses and Its Role in Autoimmunity

Mireia Sospedra, Yingdong Zhao, Harald zur Hausen, Paolo A Muraro, Christa Hamashin, Ethel-Michele de Villiers, Clemencia Pinilla, Roland Martin

PLOS Pathogens: published December 16, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010041

The Beta-Glucan Receptor Dectin-1 Recognizes Specific Morphologies of Aspergillus fumigatus

Chad Steele, Rekha R Rapaka, Allison Metz, Shannon M Pop, David L Williams, Siamon Gordon, Jay K Kolls, Gordon D Brown

PLOS Pathogens: published December 9, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010042

A Plasmodium Whole-Genome Synteny Map: Indels and Synteny Breakpoints as Foci for Species-Specific Genes

Taco W. A Kooij, Jane M Carlton, Shelby L Bidwell, Neil Hall, Jai Ramesar, Chris J Janse, Andrew P Waters

PLOS Pathogens: published December 23, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010044

Bordetella pertussis, the Causative Agent of Whooping Cough, Evolved from a Distinct, Human-Associated Lineage of B. bronchiseptica

Dimitri A Diavatopoulos, Craig A Cummings, Leo M Schouls, Mary M Brinig, David A Relman, Frits R Mooi

PLOS Pathogens: published December 30, 2005 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.0010045

Cover

Unmasked beta-glucans