Phages Open B12 Floodgates, Reshaping Microbial Communities

Virginia Tech researchers show that bacteriophages lysing B12-producing bacteria release vitamin B12 into the surrounding environment, feeding neighboring microbes that cannot make enough B12 themselves and reshaping gut microbial communities by altering diversity and composition; the timing and location of B12 release matter, suggesting viruses act as nutrient recyclers in microbial ecosystems.