An antiphage defence system has an activation mechanism that relies on the sensing of phage-encoded proteins that enforce geometry crucial to activation and are not typically present in non-infected cells.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are emerging as biocompatible carriers for targeted drug delivery, yet challenges in yield, cargo loading and biodistribution persist. In this Review, key trends from over a decade of research are analysed, comparing EVs with lipid-based systems and outlining strategies for improving therapeutic translation and reporting standards.

Bacterial and human cells produce extracellular vesicles (EVs) in response to diverse stimuli, e.g., toxins, oxidative stress, nutrient depletion, or high cell density. Here, we describe a cocultivation platform that allows recovery of mixed extracellular vesicles (mix-EVs) produced simultaneously by both cell types. We investigated interactions between Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria (Streptococcus pyogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Neisseria meningitidis) and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The production of the mix-EVs population decreased with higher bacterial concentrations. Exposing PBMCs to mix-EVs repressed the general transcriptomic signature, in contrast with a significant upregulation generated by single bacterial-EVs. However, mix-EVs-derived IL-1β upregulation was confirmed at the protein level. Inhibition experiments showed that IL-1β production involved TLR2 and TLR4 signaling, acting through IRAK-1 and TRAF6 related pathways. This approach provides a new platform for the study of EVs at the pathogen–host interface and presents mechanistic insights into the effect of EVs on an infected host.

This study innovatively modified the structure of LPS for the recombinant H. pylori OMV vaccine, and utilised the vector advantage of OMVs to deliver the H. pylori main antigen proteins UreB, VacA an...

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) produced by bacteria contain many bacterial-derived molecules, which play an important role in host interactions and a...