To ensure that the ENIGMA research program remain vibrant, 10% of funding is set aside annually for a Discovery program. ENIGMA researchers may propose new, short-term, research projects that either explore a new research theme or develop a new technical capability. These proposals are reviewed internally and funds allocated on the basis of merit and potential impact. One proposal by Mutalik and Carim as Early Career Scientists combined efforts across multiple ENIGMA labs: Arkin, Deutschbauer, Chakraborty, Walian has recently been published.
Carim, S; AL. Azadeh, AE. Kazakov, MN. Price, P. Walian, LM. Lui, TN. Nielsen, R Chakraborty, AM. Deutschbauer, VK. Mutalik, AP. Arkin (2021) Systematic discovery of Pseudomonad genetic factors involved in sensitivity to tailocins. ISME Journal [doi]:10.1038/s41396-021-00921-1 OSTI ID: 1773739
These insights are highlighted by the LBL Newscenter https://newscenter.lbl.gov/2021/04/07/bacterial-homing-missiles/
The success of this work is being followed up with more discovery efforts in biochemistry and imaging.
The Incredible Bacterial ‘Homing Missiles’ That Scientists Want to Harness