ActinoBase
@actinobase.bsky.social
Streptomyces biology and natural products. Visit the wiki at: http://actinobase.org for help and protocols. Visit http://streptomyces.org.uk for genomes, strains and plasmids. Email matt.hutchings [at] jic.ac.uk to get involved. #microsky
Reposted by ActinoBase
📄 Delighted to share that the preprint of my main PhD work is out now!
👏 A huge thank you to everyone involved, @tommclean.bsky.social, Govind Chandra, Ngat Tran (both not on BlueSky) and especially my PhD supervisor @tunglejic.bsky.social 👏
🧵 below!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
👏 A huge thank you to everyone involved, @tommclean.bsky.social, Govind Chandra, Ngat Tran (both not on BlueSky) and especially my PhD supervisor @tunglejic.bsky.social 👏
🧵 below!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Stable inheritance of the Streptomyces linear plasmid SCP1 by dual ParABS partition systems
Low-copy-number plasmids often rely on dedicated maintenance mechanisms, such as partitioning systems, to ensure stable inheritance across generations. These partition systems actively segregate siste...
www.biorxiv.org
December 11, 2025 at 1:25 PM
📄 Delighted to share that the preprint of my main PhD work is out now!
👏 A huge thank you to everyone involved, @tommclean.bsky.social, Govind Chandra, Ngat Tran (both not on BlueSky) and especially my PhD supervisor @tunglejic.bsky.social 👏
🧵 below!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
👏 A huge thank you to everyone involved, @tommclean.bsky.social, Govind Chandra, Ngat Tran (both not on BlueSky) and especially my PhD supervisor @tunglejic.bsky.social 👏
🧵 below!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by ActinoBase
So happy to see Mark recognised for his incredible work. Over a ~40 year career he and his group discovered ECF sigma factors, characterised many key developmental regulators of the Streptomyces lifecycle, and identified new mechanisms of bacterial gene regulation, antibiotic action and resistance.
NEWS - Professor Mark Buttner receives Marjory Stephenson Prize 2026
Professor Buttner, one of our Emeritus Fellows, has received the @microbiologysociety.org Marjory Stephenson Prize for 2026. Congratulations Mark! 👏
Read about his exceptional research and career: www.jic.ac.uk/news/profess...
Professor Buttner, one of our Emeritus Fellows, has received the @microbiologysociety.org Marjory Stephenson Prize for 2026. Congratulations Mark! 👏
Read about his exceptional research and career: www.jic.ac.uk/news/profess...
December 11, 2025 at 8:23 PM
So happy to see Mark recognised for his incredible work. Over a ~40 year career he and his group discovered ECF sigma factors, characterised many key developmental regulators of the Streptomyces lifecycle, and identified new mechanisms of bacterial gene regulation, antibiotic action and resistance.
Reposted by ActinoBase
MtrAB activates ectoine production and triggers sporulation in response to osmotic stress in Streptomyces venezuelae https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.19.695424v1
December 22, 2025 at 6:16 AM
MtrAB activates ectoine production and triggers sporulation in response to osmotic stress in Streptomyces venezuelae https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2025.12.19.695424v1
Reposted by ActinoBase
Microbe-derived aromatic polyketides toward MRSA infection: current advances and perspectives
This review classifies all natural aromatic polyketides (discovered 2005-25) with anti-MRSA activity (MIC<10 µg/mL) and summarises SARs, bioactivities and mechanisms.
pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...
This review classifies all natural aromatic polyketides (discovered 2005-25) with anti-MRSA activity (MIC<10 µg/mL) and summarises SARs, bioactivities and mechanisms.
pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...
Microbe-derived aromatic polyketides toward MRSA infection: current advances and perspectives
Covering: 2005 to July 2025Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), emerging as one of the most common multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial strains, has posed a serious threat to global heal...
pubs.rsc.org
January 28, 2026 at 10:19 AM
Microbe-derived aromatic polyketides toward MRSA infection: current advances and perspectives
This review classifies all natural aromatic polyketides (discovered 2005-25) with anti-MRSA activity (MIC<10 µg/mL) and summarises SARs, bioactivities and mechanisms.
pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...
This review classifies all natural aromatic polyketides (discovered 2005-25) with anti-MRSA activity (MIC<10 µg/mL) and summarises SARs, bioactivities and mechanisms.
pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...
Reposted by ActinoBase
‘Why solutions to antimicrobial resistance are urgently needed‘ sergemostowylab.bsky.social & I had the opportunity to write an editorial for @dmmjournal.bsky.social ‘s collection celebrating 100 years of @biologists.bsky.social you can read it here: journals.biologists.com/dmm/article/...
Why solutions to antimicrobial resistance are urgently needed
Summary: This Editorial discusses the growing global problem of antimicrobial resistance, and new and emerging opportunities for developing real-world solutions, involving both basic science and clini...
journals.biologists.com
December 19, 2025 at 11:46 AM
‘Why solutions to antimicrobial resistance are urgently needed‘ sergemostowylab.bsky.social & I had the opportunity to write an editorial for @dmmjournal.bsky.social ‘s collection celebrating 100 years of @biologists.bsky.social you can read it here: journals.biologists.com/dmm/article/...
Reposted by ActinoBase
New preprint. Work led by @ainsley-beaton.bsky.social & Rebecca Devine.
They show the highly conserved Streptomyces MtrAB two component system activates ectoine production and triggers sporulation in response to osmotic stress in Streptomyces venezuelae
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
They show the highly conserved Streptomyces MtrAB two component system activates ectoine production and triggers sporulation in response to osmotic stress in Streptomyces venezuelae
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
MtrAB activates ectoine production and triggers sporulation in response to osmotic stress in Streptomyces venezuelae
The MtrAB two-component system is a master regulator of antibiotic biosynthesis in Streptomyces species. MtrA is also required for sporulation under certain growth conditions, which means that on some...
www.biorxiv.org
December 22, 2025 at 7:19 AM
New preprint. Work led by @ainsley-beaton.bsky.social & Rebecca Devine.
They show the highly conserved Streptomyces MtrAB two component system activates ectoine production and triggers sporulation in response to osmotic stress in Streptomyces venezuelae
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
They show the highly conserved Streptomyces MtrAB two component system activates ectoine production and triggers sporulation in response to osmotic stress in Streptomyces venezuelae
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Reposted by ActinoBase
Very happy to see this remarkable work published. Led by @tommclean.bsky.social and @ainsley-beaton.bsky.social. We show how Streptomyces bacteria sense & respond to misfolded secreted proteins. A great collaboration with @barriewilks.bsky.social
#microsky
1/2
journals.asm.org/doi/epub/10....
#microsky
1/2
journals.asm.org/doi/epub/10....
The conserved two-component systems CutRS and CssRS control the protein secretion stress response in Streptomyces
journals.asm.org
December 15, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Very happy to see this remarkable work published. Led by @tommclean.bsky.social and @ainsley-beaton.bsky.social. We show how Streptomyces bacteria sense & respond to misfolded secreted proteins. A great collaboration with @barriewilks.bsky.social
#microsky
1/2
journals.asm.org/doi/epub/10....
#microsky
1/2
journals.asm.org/doi/epub/10....
Reposted by ActinoBase
Reposted by ActinoBase
norwichsciencefestival.co.uk/whats-on/mic...
It's official, our latest project with @norwichmicro.bsky.social, Microbe Zoo, will be launched at Norwich Science Festival 2026!
Thanks to our funders, the John Innes Foundation and the Norwich Freemens Charity for making this project possible.
🦠🧫🔎
It's official, our latest project with @norwichmicro.bsky.social, Microbe Zoo, will be launched at Norwich Science Festival 2026!
Thanks to our funders, the John Innes Foundation and the Norwich Freemens Charity for making this project possible.
🦠🧫🔎
Microbe Zoo | Norwich Science Festival
Microscopic adventures await – visit the Microbe Zoo at Norwich Science Festival! Once inside the ‘zoo’, you’ll be transported into a world usually invisible to the naked eye – one inhabited by bacter...
norwichsciencefestival.co.uk
December 18, 2025 at 1:46 PM
norwichsciencefestival.co.uk/whats-on/mic...
It's official, our latest project with @norwichmicro.bsky.social, Microbe Zoo, will be launched at Norwich Science Festival 2026!
Thanks to our funders, the John Innes Foundation and the Norwich Freemens Charity for making this project possible.
🦠🧫🔎
It's official, our latest project with @norwichmicro.bsky.social, Microbe Zoo, will be launched at Norwich Science Festival 2026!
Thanks to our funders, the John Innes Foundation and the Norwich Freemens Charity for making this project possible.
🦠🧫🔎
Reposted by ActinoBase
Feeling sad that we didn't make another science inspired Adventure Activity Book this year? Us too! So we decided to make all our existing books available to purchase on our website.
All proceeds made from these books go directly back into creating more resources for schools.
sawtrust.org/shop/
All proceeds made from these books go directly back into creating more resources for schools.
sawtrust.org/shop/
December 18, 2025 at 1:53 PM
Feeling sad that we didn't make another science inspired Adventure Activity Book this year? Us too! So we decided to make all our existing books available to purchase on our website.
All proceeds made from these books go directly back into creating more resources for schools.
sawtrust.org/shop/
All proceeds made from these books go directly back into creating more resources for schools.
sawtrust.org/shop/
Reposted by ActinoBase
AdpA, a Global Regulator of Hundreds of Genes, Including Those for Secondary Metabolism, in Streptomyces venezuelae
www.mdpi.com/2079-6382/14...
www.mdpi.com/2079-6382/14...
www.mdpi.com
September 3, 2025 at 6:03 AM
AdpA, a Global Regulator of Hundreds of Genes, Including Those for Secondary Metabolism, in Streptomyces venezuelae
www.mdpi.com/2079-6382/14...
www.mdpi.com/2079-6382/14...
Reposted by ActinoBase
Enhancement and Mechanism of In-Cluster Two-Component Regulatory Factors on Granaticin Production in Streptomyces vilmorinianum YP1
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Enhancement and Mechanism of In-Cluster Two-Component Regulatory Factors on Granaticin Production in Streptomyces vilmorinianum YP1
Granaticins, a class of bioactive benzoisochromanequinones (BIQs), are natural blue pigments with biological activities, including antibacterial prope…
www.sciencedirect.com
September 3, 2025 at 6:05 AM
Enhancement and Mechanism of In-Cluster Two-Component Regulatory Factors on Granaticin Production in Streptomyces vilmorinianum YP1
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by ActinoBase
Great to see @nodwell.bsky.social on Bluesky. Excellent scientist and human. A Streptomyces aficionado!!
Thanks for posting - I'm very pleased with this paper which happens to be our first in @plosbiology.org. Great working with you!
What happens to the colossal stash of C- and N-rich (but chemically inaccessible) chitin generated by the global insect population? Love this @plosbiology.org paper from Justin Nodwell & co which shows that #Streptomyces have the equipment to exploit it...
August 20, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Great to see @nodwell.bsky.social on Bluesky. Excellent scientist and human. A Streptomyces aficionado!!
Reposted by ActinoBase
What happens to the colossal stash of C- and N-rich (but chemically inaccessible) chitin generated by the global insect population? Love this @plosbiology.org paper from Justin Nodwell & co which shows that #Streptomyces have the equipment to exploit it...
More than a billion tons of #chitin are produced on Earth each year. This study shows that the soil #bacterium #Streptomyces venezuelae thrives on chitin from #insect #exoskeletons, using a potent mix of chitinases and a dedicated chitobiose importer @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/45sg4S5
August 7, 2025 at 8:28 AM
What happens to the colossal stash of C- and N-rich (but chemically inaccessible) chitin generated by the global insect population? Love this @plosbiology.org paper from Justin Nodwell & co which shows that #Streptomyces have the equipment to exploit it...
Reposted by ActinoBase
#Streptomyces venezuelae uses an MreB-dependent lateral elongation growth mode during exploratory growth - publication drop mentioned during #phages2025 🦠
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Streptomyces uses both polar and dispersed cell wall synthesis during exploratory growth - Nature Microbiology
Streptomyces venezuelae requires MreB1-dependent dispersed peptidoglycan cell wall synthesis and DivIVA-mediated polar cell wall synthesis during its rapid exploratory growth phase.
www.nature.com
August 8, 2025 at 2:11 PM
#Streptomyces venezuelae uses an MreB-dependent lateral elongation growth mode during exploratory growth - publication drop mentioned during #phages2025 🦠
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Yang, B., Li, Z., Zhang, J. et al. Scalable secondary metabolite production in Streptomyces using a plug-and-play system. Nat Biotechnol (2025). doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Scalable secondary metabolite production in Streptomyces using a plug-and-play system - Nature Biotechnology
A plug-and-play system fine-tunes multiple targets simultaneously for secondary metabolite production in Streptomyces.
doi.org
August 16, 2025 at 7:34 AM
Yang, B., Li, Z., Zhang, J. et al. Scalable secondary metabolite production in Streptomyces using a plug-and-play system. Nat Biotechnol (2025). doi.org/10.1038/s415...
Reposted by ActinoBase
Happy to contribute to a C&EN article on genome mining for antimicrobials cen.acs.org/pharmaceutic...
Great article by Max Barnhart, who’s not on BlueSky for all I can tell.
Great article by Max Barnhart, who’s not on BlueSky for all I can tell.
Bioprospectors mine microbial genomes for antibiotic gold
But turning what they find into drugs isn’t so easy
cen.acs.org
June 11, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Happy to contribute to a C&EN article on genome mining for antimicrobials cen.acs.org/pharmaceutic...
Great article by Max Barnhart, who’s not on BlueSky for all I can tell.
Great article by Max Barnhart, who’s not on BlueSky for all I can tell.
Reposted by ActinoBase
The latest from the lab. A new antifungal lipopeptaibiotic active vs MDR C. auris. rdcu.be/ezVt4
Coniontins, lipopetaibiotics active against Candida auris identified from a microbial natural product fractionation library
Nature Communications - In this work, authors utilise a prefractionation natural product extract screening platform, which uncovers coniotins, lipopeptaibiotics with broad antifungal activity and a...
rdcu.be
August 12, 2025 at 12:13 PM
The latest from the lab. A new antifungal lipopeptaibiotic active vs MDR C. auris. rdcu.be/ezVt4
Reposted by ActinoBase
A new bench at JIC in memory of Helen Kieser. She moved to Norwich with David Hopwood in the 1960s and was instrumental in establishing the Streptomyces group and Molecular Microbiology @johninnescentre.bsky.social. Hard to overstate her importance to the #streptomyces field and community.
August 12, 2025 at 4:41 PM
A new bench at JIC in memory of Helen Kieser. She moved to Norwich with David Hopwood in the 1960s and was instrumental in establishing the Streptomyces group and Molecular Microbiology @johninnescentre.bsky.social. Hard to overstate her importance to the #streptomyces field and community.
Reposted by ActinoBase
Ever wondered why some antibiotics are made by Streptomyces on agar plates but not in liquid cultures? Read this work on redox control of antibiotic biosynthesis. Led by katienoble241.bsky.social and Rebecca Devine, and in collaboration with @barriewilks.bsky.social
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
journals.asm.org
August 7, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Ever wondered why some antibiotics are made by Streptomyces on agar plates but not in liquid cultures? Read this work on redox control of antibiotic biosynthesis. Led by katienoble241.bsky.social and Rebecca Devine, and in collaboration with @barriewilks.bsky.social
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
Reposted by ActinoBase
New Independent Fellowship position in Microbiology to launch your lab in our department @johninnescentre.bsky.social (UK). We are conducting a broad search in the area of plant-associated microbial interactions. Message me if you have any questions.
Apply here: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
Apply here: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
Independent Fellowship in Plant-Associated Microbial Interactions | John Innes Centre
An exciting opportunity for an Independent Fellowship in Plant-Associated Microbial Interactions has arisen at the John Innes Centre. To read the full job description for this role…
www.jic.ac.uk
July 10, 2025 at 6:28 AM
New Independent Fellowship position in Microbiology to launch your lab in our department @johninnescentre.bsky.social (UK). We are conducting a broad search in the area of plant-associated microbial interactions. Message me if you have any questions.
Apply here: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
Apply here: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
Reposted by ActinoBase
We’re pleased to announce two new vacancies for senior roles at our institute:
Group Leader in Discovery Plant Sciences: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/gr...
🗓️ Closes 25 August
Independent Fellowship in Plant-Associated Microbial Interactions: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
🗓️ Closes 5 September
Group Leader in Discovery Plant Sciences: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/gr...
🗓️ Closes 25 August
Independent Fellowship in Plant-Associated Microbial Interactions: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
🗓️ Closes 5 September
July 17, 2025 at 3:56 PM
We’re pleased to announce two new vacancies for senior roles at our institute:
Group Leader in Discovery Plant Sciences: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/gr...
🗓️ Closes 25 August
Independent Fellowship in Plant-Associated Microbial Interactions: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
🗓️ Closes 5 September
Group Leader in Discovery Plant Sciences: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/gr...
🗓️ Closes 25 August
Independent Fellowship in Plant-Associated Microbial Interactions: www.jic.ac.uk/vacancies/in...
🗓️ Closes 5 September
Reposted by ActinoBase
Despite a century of use in #DrugDiscovery, specialized metabolism continues to amaze. Justin Nodwell explores a @plosbiology.org study that uses a novel computational approach to uncover unsuspected functions of a compound produced by #Streptomyces 🧪 Paper: plos.io/43UVUPB Primer: plos.io/4n25bOF
June 16, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Despite a century of use in #DrugDiscovery, specialized metabolism continues to amaze. Justin Nodwell explores a @plosbiology.org study that uses a novel computational approach to uncover unsuspected functions of a compound produced by #Streptomyces 🧪 Paper: plos.io/43UVUPB Primer: plos.io/4n25bOF
Reposted by ActinoBase
Delighted to have started my tenure as an editor for mBio journals.asm.org/journal/mbio handling papers on Streptomyces, natural product evolution and biosynthesis, experimental evolution, bacteriophage resistance, Corynebacterium and engineering biology
mBio Journal Homepage
mBio covers the enormity of the interconnected microbial world: from symbiosis to pathogenesis, energy acquisition and conversion, climate change, geologic change, food and drug production, and even ...
journals.asm.org
July 2, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Delighted to have started my tenure as an editor for mBio journals.asm.org/journal/mbio handling papers on Streptomyces, natural product evolution and biosynthesis, experimental evolution, bacteriophage resistance, Corynebacterium and engineering biology