Fungal secondary metabolism is critical for pathogen-host interactions, but its regulatory link to virulence is unclear. This study identifies an A. fumigatus CsdA-LaeB regulatory hub that controls fumiquinazoline C (FqC) biosynthesis; FqC mediates virulence, with CsdA/LaeB expression inversely correlating with FqC in clinical isolates, providing new post-transcriptional regulation insights and therapeutic strategies for invasive fungal diseases.

Trained immunity confers innate immune memory via metabolic and epigenetic reprogramming, yet the intercellular mediators regulating this process in host defense immunity remain largely elusive. Prof. LIU’s group and collaborators identify a tuberculosis resister-associated serum exosomal lncRNA, termed Tuberculosis Resister-derived CLOCK Regulator 1 (TRCR1), which mediates an intercellular immune training axis by modulating circadian regulator CLOCK-mediated epigenetic remodeling. These findings provide a mechanistic framework and translational strategy to refine Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination and prevent infectious diseases.

Host immune cells are equipped with cytosolic sensors to detect invading pathogens and initiate anti-infectious responses. However, how pathogens undermine host intracellular surveillance for persistent infection is not fully understood. New findings by Prof. LIU and colleagues demonstrate that Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb)-secreted protein kinase PknG disrupts host linear ubiquitin machinery LUBAC by phosphorylating its ubiquitin ligase subunit HOIL-1L and then coopts HOIL-1L to constitute an interspecies enzymatic cascade that drives inflammasome sensor NLRP3 degradation for counteracting host immune surveillance.

Addressing China's 80 billion yuan annual losses from nematode diseases, researchers developed baiweimectin—a novel, high-specificity nematicide. Collaborating institutions reported the systematic engineering of Streptomyces strains using the SMARTS platform in Nature Biotechnology. This plug-and-play system dynamically synchronizes quorum sensing to auto-modulate multiple targets, enabling unprecedented high-purity baiweimectin production at 8.4 g/L yield, successfully scaled to 120-m³ fermentation.

Surveillance of avian influenza viruses (AIVs) in live poultry markets across China (2019–2023) found 17.57% of 18,425 samples were AIV-positive, with H9N2 being the dominant. An automated H9N2 clade nomenclature system was proposed, uncovering ten sub-subclades cocirculated with antigenic variation. Most H9N2 possessed HA-L226 (human-receptor-binding) and NP-N52 (human MxA-resistance) and H9N2 with these mutations preferred human-type receptors and increased replication in human cells. H9N2 containing HA-L226, PB2-V/K627, and NP-N52 transmitted between guinea pigs and ferrets through direct and aerosol transmission, highlighting zoonotic risk concerns.

Huanglongbing (HLB) is a devastating citrus disease. Prof. YE Jian's team at the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMCAS), has identified the first citrus resistance mechanism to HLB and developed antimicrobial peptides effective against the disease using artificial intelligence (AI) technology. This research, published in Science, not only advances our understanding of HLB resistance but also paves the way for sustainable solutions to combat one of the most pressing challenges in global agriculture.