Patrick R. Secor
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prsecor.bsky.social
Patrick R. Secor
@prsecor.bsky.social
2K followers 1.2K following 180 posts
Associate Professor at Montana State University. Studying bacteria and their viruses with a focus on phage-host-microbe interactions.

Lab Website: https://secorlab.org

Faculty profile:
https://www.montana.edu/mbi/directory/2553333/patrick-secor
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
ironark.bsky.social
Happy to share a preprint—the last chapter of my dissertation with @mcsymbiont.bsky.social and Co—on what happens when bacterial endosymbionts accumulate huge numbers of pseudogenes during early genome reduction.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Diagram illustrating early genome erosion during the transition from a free-living Sodalis bacterium to two host-associated endosymbionts inside the long-tailed mealybug. Circular genomes show intact genes in blue and pseudogenes in red, highlighting increased pseudogene accumulation in symbiotic forms. Caption asks: “What are the downstream molecular consequences of early genome erosion?”
February 8, 2026 at 2:08 AM
prsecor.bsky.social
My office this morning
February 6, 2026 at 5:36 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Friends, please help spread the word about our microbiology REU program at Montana State University.
www.montana.edu/mbi/reu/

Each student receives a stipend ($7000 for 10 wks). Travel compensation, room, and board are also provided.

Details in the attached pic--Feb 14 deadline
🧫🧪🦠#microsky
This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program is funded by the National Science Foundation to create "points of entry" for students interested in research. Students apply from across the country to spend 10 weeks in Bozeman, Montana this summer (May 26, 2026 - August 1, 2026). Admitted students are paired with a faculty mentor, who serves as an advisor for a student's summer project. Each student receives a stipend ($7000 for 10 wks). Travel compensation, room, and board are also provided. Our program leverages MSU’s unique microbiology expertise, focusing specifically on microbes living with little or no oxygen (like those in the hot springs of nearby Yellowstone). Low oxygen microbes are essential to human and ecosystem health. They influence (or control) such processes as the breakdown of food in the GI tract, removal of toxins from our bodies and the environment, and production of greenhouse gases. They are also models for understanding the origins of life on this planet, and the potential for life on other planets. A key goal of our program is to recruit students from schools with limited research infrastructure. Being in Montana, a state with a vibrant Native American community, we are particularly interested in applications from students at tribal colleges. However, ANYONE with an interest in microbiology - or biology/science in general - can and should apply. If willing and able, please share/tweet/spread the word far and wide. Applications are due February 14, 2026. Full details can be found through our website http://www.montana.edu/mbi/reu/
January 28, 2026 at 7:46 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
jutraslab.bsky.social
Check out our exciting new paper out now in @plos.org where Dr Ahmad manipulated #peptidoglycan chemistry to understand Lyme disease and arthritis 👇👏
#Microsky
#glycotime

journals.plos.org/plospathogen...
Peptidoglycan architecture dictates protein interactions, tissue tropism, and arthritis in the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi
Author summary Many of the pathogenic mechanisms by which Borrelia burgdorferi causes disease involve cell envelope interactions with host components. To further elucidate the role of peptidoglycan in...
journals.plos.org
January 20, 2026 at 7:34 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
aaronwhiteley.bsky.social
I’m thrilled to share our work on phage triggers of the bacterial immune system in its final form @natmicrobiol.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A phage protein screen identifies triggers of the bacterial innate immune system - Nature Microbiology
A library of 400 phage protein-coding genes is used to find a trove of antiphage systems, revealing systems that target tail fibre and major capsid proteins.
www.nature.com
January 18, 2026 at 10:45 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
vscooper.micropopbio.org
Are you a graduate student or postdoc who wants to apply your science to policy?

The Gulf Research Program’s Science Policy Fellowship provides experience for one year on the staff of federal, state, local, NGO in the Gulf region and impt networking.
www.nationalacademies.org/programs/GUL...
Gulf Research Program Science Policy Fellowships
The Gulf Research Program’s Science Policy Fellowship helps scientists hone their skills by putting them to practice for the benefit of Gulf Coast communities and ecosystems. Fellows gain first-hand e...
www.nationalacademies.org
January 15, 2026 at 8:14 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
epcrocha.bsky.social
Here, we find that many Genomic islands have origins of transfer (oriT) mobilisable by conjugation, incl. known Pathogenicity & defense islands. iOriT use only an oriT for transfer by hitching on conjugative elements: they make abundant, diverse, ancient families of mobile genetic elements. See🧵
aresarroyom.bsky.social Manuel Ares-Arroyo @aresarroyom.bsky.social · 26d
Bacteria chromosomes contain Genomic Islands that provide virulence, antibiotic resistance, MGE-defence,... They transfer between cells, but the mechanism of most remains elusive.

Here we explore the conjugative capacity of these mysterious Genomic Islands.

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
www.biorxiv.org
January 14, 2026 at 11:26 AM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
vscooper.micropopbio.org
🚨Call for papers🚨
Microbial Evolution: Impacts on Human Health
in the society journal Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health

Guest Editors: Bob Woods, Silvie Huijben & Camilo Barbosa
EIC: me

This will be great, please submit and share!
academic.oup.com/emph/pages/m...
Microbial Evolution: Impacts on Human Health Call for Papers A defining characteristic of infectious diseases is that they evolve. The consequences of this evolution are among the most pressing medical issues facing humanity, including emerging pandemics, antibiotic resistance, and the success or failure of vaccines. Pathogen evolution profoundly influences virulence, transmission, and responses to a broad array of human interventions. While the evolutionary dynamics of pathogens have historically been challenging to study, large-scale genomic sequencing, novel computational tools, and experimental methods are rapidly changing the field. We encourage submissions on the broad topic of the evolution of infectious diseases. This Special Issue aims to feature research that blends evolutionary approaches to understanding pathogen heterogeneity and ongoing genetic change in clinical samples and models of human infection. It also seeks to highlight opportunities to design treatment and prevention strategies that remain effective in the face of ongoing pathogen evolution. Submission – open until January 31, 2027 Guest editors Robert Woods, MD PhD, University of Michigan Camilo Barbosa, PhD, University of Michigan Silvie Huijben, PhD, Arizona State University
January 9, 2026 at 4:49 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Now published in PLoS Pathogens! #microsky #phagesky
journals.plos.org/plospathogen...
prsecor.bsky.social Patrick R. Secor @prsecor.bsky.social · May 7
🚨New paper!

A prophage-encoded sRNA limits lytic phage infection in adherent-invasive E. coli.

Huge thanks to members of the Round Lab, @duerkoplab.bsky.social, Wiedenheft Lab, and phage legend Sherwood Casjens.

#microsky 🦠🧫🧪🧬

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
An E. coli cell being lysed by bacteriophages
January 5, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
evolvedbiofilm.bsky.social
A prophage-encoded sRNA limits phage infection of adherent-invasive E. coli

#PLoSPathogen from @prsecor.bsky.social

journals.plos.org/plospathogen...
A prophage-encoded sRNA limits phage infection of adherent-invasive E. coli
Author summary Prophages—viral genomes integrated into bacterial chromosomes—are common in enteric bacteria and can profoundly influence bacterial physiology and ecological fitness. Here we show that ...
journals.plos.org
January 3, 2026 at 11:18 AM
prsecor.bsky.social
Merry Christmas!
#microsky
E. coli colonies as Christmas ornaments
December 25, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
fsantoriello.bsky.social
The final form of my 2nd postdoc paper with the Bassler Lab! Turns out our favorite quorum-sensing phage isn’t a one-off, but rather a member of a globally dispersed family of phages that sense a universal autoinducer.

#phagesky #microsky

journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/...
A family of linear plasmid phages that detect a quorum-sensing autoinducer exists in multiple bacterial species | mBio
The discovery of quorum-sensing responsive linear plasmid phages has transformed understanding of phage-bacterial interactions by demonstrating inter-domain chemical communication. To date, however, e...
journals.asm.org
December 21, 2025 at 4:19 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Looking for a paid summer research experience? Apply to MSU’s Extreme Biofilms REU and work on cutting-edge biofilm science in extreme environments. No prior research experience needed.

#MicroSky
#PhageSky
December 16, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
audeber.bsky.social
Bacterial genomes encode a rich repertoire of antiphage systems, but we still know surprisingly little about when these systems are actually expressed.

In this preprint, Lucas Paoli et al, ask what shapes antiphage systems expression in native contexts.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Environment and physiology shape antiphage system expression
Bacteria and archaea encode on average ten antiphage systems. Quorum sensing, cellular, or transcription factors can regulate specific systems (CRISPR-Cas, CBASS). Yet, a systematic assessment of anti...
www.biorxiv.org
December 15, 2025 at 9:49 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
The Gallatin Range, Montana
December 14, 2025 at 10:05 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Congrats Nanami! It was a pleasure to be on your committee 🎉🥳🍾
nanamikubota.bsky.social Nanami Kubota @nanamikubota.bsky.social · Dec 8
Happy to announce that I successfully defended my PhD thesis today! Thank you those who attended in person and virtually.
December 8, 2025 at 11:16 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Had our lab holiday party and this was one of the white elephant gifts 🤣🫡
@dominickfaith.bsky.social
#microsky
#phagesky
December 8, 2025 at 10:38 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
jbdsf.bsky.social
Phages are full of genes of unknown function that are likely adaptive in specific conditions.
New preprint: Phage TnSeq identifies essential genes rapidly and knocks all non-essentials. We would like to send a pool of phiKZ mutants to anyone wanting it! Reach out
tinyurl.com/bdcfrejh
December 8, 2025 at 3:04 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Beer!
December 3, 2025 at 11:23 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
simrouxvirus.bsky.social
🦠🧪🧬🚨 New paper and database alert: the new IMG/VR release is now MetaVR ! We have a new website - meta-virome.org - with quick search capabilities for the >24M viruses, >12M vOTUs, and >42M protein clusters (including >790k with predicted structures !). academic.oup.com/nar/advance-...
Meta-virus resource (MetaVR): expanding the frontiers of viral diversity with 24 million uncultivated virus genomes
Abstract. Viruses are ubiquitous in all environments and impact host metabolism, evolution, and ecology, although our knowledge of their biodiversity is st
academic.oup.com
December 3, 2025 at 2:34 AM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
jbdsf.bsky.social
Check this out for the 2026 SISB (phage defense) meeting in NYC. Mark your calendar! (and note the Zoom option, if needed)
sisb2026.rockefeller.edu
SISB2026
sisb2026.rockefeller.edu
December 1, 2025 at 11:44 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
mkrupovic.bsky.social
Check out our latest paper on mirusviruses, one of the most remarkable new groups of protist viruses - extremely diverse, carry lots of spliceosomal introns (including new homing introns) and are at the evolutionary crossroads between tailed phages and herpesviruses! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Widespread and intron-rich mirusviruses are predicted to reproduce in nuclei of unicellular eukaryotes - Nature Microbiology
Environmental metagenomic explorations show that Mirusviricota lineages lack essential replication and transcription genes and contain spliceosomal introns, suggesting nuclear reproduction.
www.nature.com
November 28, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Reposted by Patrick R. Secor
bstevensonlab.bsky.social
Identification of Previously Unknown DNA-Binding Proteins Using DNA Affinity/Pull-Down Methods Followed by Mass Spectrometry

Jutras, Babb, Jusufovic, Krusenstjerna, Saylor, Verma, and Stevenson

Current Protocols 2025, 5:e70264
doi: 10.1002/cpz1.70264

#MicroSky
Schematic overview of the process of DNA-affinity / pull down identification of unknown nucleic acid-binding proteins
November 26, 2025 at 4:00 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Want to see something that will fry your brain? Disappearing reappearing plaques on P aeruginosa @dominickfaith.bsky.social
🧫🦠🧪
November 25, 2025 at 11:42 PM
prsecor.bsky.social
Snowing at the lab today here at Montana State ❄️🦠🧫
November 24, 2025 at 8:31 PM