Trang Phan

Editor’s summary Xanthomonas bacteria cause a range of necrotic diseases in plants, with substantial losses to agricultural yields. Two Research Articles in this issue report mechanisms by which Xanthomonas exploits plant molecular machinery to facilitate bacterial nutrition (see the Perspective by Kvitko and Jacobs). Wang et al. found that the Xanthomonas effector AvrBs2 uses plant-derived carbohydrates to synthesize a sugar phosphodiester called xanthosan.

Human beings are biologically designed to form, assess, and close loops through interaction. Every exchange — verbal, physical, cognitive, or energetic — is processed by the nervous system as a structured event. This event either resolves cleanly, contributing to system integrity, or remains open, creating internal friction. Yet across culture, psychology, and even AI training, relationships are often treated as abstract, emotional, or theoretical.