RNA-guided phage remodeling boosts bacterial motility and gut colonization
A temperate phage–encoded RNA-guided transcription factor, TldR, remodels its Enterobacter host’s flagellin composition to alter flagellar structure, enhancing motility and immune evasion; FRφ lysogeny also improves gut colonization in mice, with cryo-EM revealing distinct flagellin architectures. The work shows phages can co-opt RNA-guided regulators to remodel bacterial motility and fitness, a parallel evolutionary path to CRISPR-Cas.