BMAC Weekly — 2026-W38
8 papers selected for 2026-W38.
2026-09-08–2026-09-14 · 8 papers
Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition restructures decomposing microbial communities, altering SOM molecular composition, but not molecular complexity or diversity
Brooke E. Propson, William A. Argiroff, Grace A. Cagle, Rima A. Upchurch, Donald R. Zak, A. Stuart Grandy, Zachary B. Freedman
2026-09-09 · npj Soil Ecology
TL;DR. In a long-term nitrogen-deposition field experiment, N deposition did not alter undecomposed or 1-year decomposed root litter but did restructure decomposing microbial communities and mineral soil organic matter biochemistry, mainly in lignin- and lipid-derived compounds.
Key signal. N deposition changed decomposing microbial communities and mineral SOM biochemical composition, particularly lignin- and lipid-derived compounds, while leaving undecomposed and 1-year decomposed root litter unchanged.
Why it matters here. Directly connects to Fangzhou's interest in microbial community ecology and dynamic metabolism, since the study links microbial community restructuring to altered decomposition of specific soil carbon substrates.
Biological stability shapes habitat-specific microbial community dynamics from treatment to distribution in non-chlorinated drinking water distribution systems
Peer H. A. Timmers, Giovanni Sandrini, Julia Wunderer, Goffe Elsinga, Michiel H. in ‘t Zandt, Wim Hijnen, Leonie Marang
2026-09-05 · npj Biofilms and Microbiomes
TL;DR. Comparing two full-scale non-chlorinated drinking water distribution systems, the study found that improved biological stability reduced regrowth potential and Aeromonas occurrence while altering habitat-specific microbial communities in bulk water, biofilms, and loose deposits.
Key signal. Treatment established the initial community, but ultrafiltration post-treatment and storage reshaped it by increasing cell numbers and promoting Comamonadaceae and Brevundimonas dominance, with loose deposits increasingly contributing to bulk water communities during distribution.
Why it matters here. Relevant to Fangzhou's microbial population dynamics and community ecology interests, as it tracks habitat-specific community assembly and regrowth across engineered freshwater systems.
Let there be multifunctionality: Uncovering the dynamical zoo of the AC-DC genetic circuit
Smitha Maretvadakethope, Içvara Aor, Matthias M. Fischer, Àngela Pantebre Pedrosa, Yolanda Schaerli, Rubén Perez‐Carrasco
2026-09-01 · Cell Systems
TL;DR. Using thermodynamic formalism and Bayesian inference, the authors show that a single-inducer version of the three-gene AC-DC circuit can display multifunctional dynamics including coexisting oscillations and multistability.
Key signal. The AC-DC circuit can produce more than thirty topologically distinct bifurcation diagrams, challenging the view that network topology rigidly constrains dynamical outcomes.
Why it matters here. Directly tied to Fangzhou's synthetic biology circuit and cell-fate circuit interests, showing how a minimal gene regulatory network can generate diverse dynamical behaviors relevant to designing biological decision circuits.
Bacterial growth under confinement requires transcriptional adaptation to resist turgor pressure build-up
Laure Le Blanc, Baptiste Alric, Romain Rollin, Laura Xénard, Merisa Avdović, Sylvie Goussard, Laurent Mazenq, Matthieu Piel, Jean-Yves Tinévez, Morgan Delarue, Guillaume Duménil, Daria Bonazzi
2026-09-01 · Nature Communications
TL;DR. E. coli growing under confinement generate forces in the hundreds of kPa range, decoupling growth and division, producing shorter cells, increasing cytoplasmic crowding, and activating the Rcs stress pathway.
Key signal. Growth-induced pressure keeps increasing under confinement in a regime the authors call overpressurization, and rcs mutants display abnormal shapes only in this overpressurized state, indicating transcriptional adaptation is needed to resist pressure buildup.
Why it matters here. Directly connects to Fangzhou's core work on bacterial growth and division, growth laws, and cell-size homeostasis by linking mechanical confinement to division arrest and altered cell size.
Seasonal Effect of a Small Hydropower Plant on Benthic Biofilm Microbial Community Structure and Predicted Functional Potential
Huimin Gao, Sangar Khan, Xinxin Qi, Zongwei Lin, Guohao Liu, Yuanyuan Lv, Min Zhang, Zhijun Xia, Naicheng Wu
2026-09-01 · Ecology and Evolution
TL;DR. A one-year survey across four river sections affected by a small hydropower plant found distinct bacterial composition in the reservoir, highest diversity and broader niche breadth in the dewatered reach, and seasonal shifts between deterministic and stochastic assembly.
Key signal. Deterministic assembly processes dominated in summer while stochastic processes prevailed in winter, and predicted functional profiling suggested the hydropower plant may regulate carbon and nutrient metabolism.
Why it matters here. Relevant to Fangzhou's microbial community ecology interests, particularly how hydrological alteration and seasonality shape community assembly and predicted metabolic function in freshwater biofilms.
The Effect of Climate Warming on Microbial Community Functions and Antibiotic Resistance in Freshwater Ecosystems
Wensi Zhang
2026-09-01 · ResearchSpace (University of Auckland)
TL;DR. This thesis examines how temperature-oxygen interactions shape freshwater microbial community structure, oxidative stress responses, and antibiotic resistance gene dynamics using metagenomics, E. coli evolution experiments, proteomics, and pond oxygen-manipulation experiments.
Key signal. Low-oxygen conditions downregulated ROS-scavenging enzymes and resistance proteins including beta-lactamases and efflux pump components in E. coli, and continuous oxygen oscillation at 25°C provided the best balance between ARG control and cyanobacterial suppression.
Why it matters here. Directly connects to Fangzhou's interests in antibiotic resistance, microbial physiology, and community ecology by linking oxygen availability to metabolic adaptation, stress responses, and resistance-associated protein abundance.
Assessing the Impact of Invasive Trapa natans on Freshwater Microbial Communities in Collins Lake, New York
Jacob Mead
2026-08-31
TL;DR. A field study of Collins Lake, New York, compared water and sediment samples with and without invasive Trapa natans canopies and assessed microbial integrity via morphotype diversity and cellular motility.
Key signal. A water chestnut canopy influenced microbial integrity at the air-water and sediment-water interfaces by affecting cellular motility and morphotype diversity, leading the authors to conclude that the canopy creates localized microbial stress.
Why it matters here. Relevant to Fangzhou's microbial population and community ecology interests by examining how an invasive plant alters microbial community structure and motility in freshwater habitats.
Design of peptides with non-canonical amino acids using flow matching
Jin Sub Lee, Philip M. Kim
2026-08-31 · Bioinformatics
TL;DR. The authors present NCFlow, a flow matching generative model that places arbitrary non-canonical amino acids into a given protein backbone using only atom types and bond connectivity, pretrained on small molecules and protein-ligand complexes before finetuning on native non-canonicals.
Key signal. NCFlow outperforms AlphaFold3-based methods in structure prediction of unseen non-canonical amino acids, and in four protein-peptide test cases incorporating non-canonicals improved predicted binding affinity by up to -7.0 kcal/mol.
Why it matters here. This biology-enabling generative method connects to Fangzhou's interest in flow matching and data-driven design of biological networks; although it does not itself study microbial physiology, its flow-matching framework and peptide design pipeline could inform future generative design of proteins and peptides with non-canonical building blocks.