Mostly Microbes and Infection

  Highlights • Comprehensive multi-omic analysis of the immune system and microbiome in healthy humans • Major axes of immune variation are driven by interferon response signatures • Specific immune cell states are coordinated with microbiome pathways and metabolites • Coordinated immune and microbiome features are stable within individuals over time

  Highlights • HDV triggers innate immune sensing but largely escapes interferon-mediated control • Nuclear replication limits HDV exposure to antiviral interferon-stimulated genes • HDV selectively impairs IFN-α signaling through USP18-mediated negative feedback • Interferon efficacy against HDV varies across viral genotypes and cell models • Understanding HDV-IFN interactions is key to optimizing future combination therapies

  Highlights • Whole-exome sequencing in severe rotavirus cases identified seven candidate SNPs, several linked to gastrointestinal cancer pathways. • Transcriptomic and epigenomic data supported functional involvement of top candidate genes and suggested roles in cancer progression. • Polygenic risk score analyses indicated reduced gastrointestinal cancer risk among individuals with severe early-life RV infection. • Evidence of recent positive selection in key SNPs supports a model of reverse antagonistic pleiotropy, suggesting early RV susceptibility may confer later-life cancer protection.

  Highlights • Deltaviruses hitchhike within helper virus virions, using them as viral Trojan Horses • The Trojan Horse model is mandatory for productive herpesvirus-deltavirus associations • This mode of propagation favors deltavirus infectivity • Trojan Horse model warrants screening for extra-hepatic deltavirus infections in humans

  HIGHLIGHTS • Cross-cohort meta-analysis reveals reproducible gut microbiome signatures of insomnia • Eight conserved gut taxa are consistently associated with insomnia across studies • A small number of gut microbes drive most insomnia-associated functional shifts • The Burkholderia - Caballeronia-Paraburkholderia (BCP) complex drives key functions • Microbial metabolic changes may indirectly shape host immune and neural states

  Highlights • Human saliva and small intestine harbor peanut (PN) allergen-degrading bacteria • Microbes degrade immunodominant PN allergens, reducing IgE binding • Microbial PN metabolism alters allergen absorption, mast cell activity, and anaphylaxis • PN-degrading  Rothia  abundance is linked to higher PN threshold in patients