Enterococci are unusually well adapted for survival and persistence in a variety of adverse
environments, including on inanimate surfaces in the hospital environment and at sites of …

Numerous bacteria utilize molecular communication systems referred to as quorum sensing
(QS) to synchronize the expression of certain genes regulating, among other aspects, the …

Background Host-microbe associations underlie many key processes of host development,
immunity, and life history. Yet, none of the current research on the central model species …

The quorum sensing (QS) circuit plays a role in the precise regulation of genes controlling
virulence factors and biofilm formation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. QS-controlled biofilm …

Enterococcus faecalis is a micro-organism that can survive extreme challenges. Its
pathogenicity ranges from life-threatening diseases in compromised individuals to less …

A genetic screen for Caenorhabditis elegans mutants with enhanced susceptibility to killing
by Pseudomonas aeruginosa led to the identification of two genes required for pathogen …

Abstract Background The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a major model organism in
laboratory biology. Very little is known, however, about its ecology, including where it …

Our laboratories have studied the mechanisms of aging (1, 2) and immune function (3) in
Caenorhabditis elegans. Herein we show that the mechanisms that govern these two …

The enterococci evolved over eons as highly adapted members of gastrointestinal consortia
of a wide variety of hosts, but for reasons that are not entirely clear, emerged in the 1970s as …

Many microbial communities, including those involved in chronic human infections, are
patterned at the micron scale. In this Review, we summarize recent work that has defined the …