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Fu T, Cai Z, Yue Z, Yang H, Fang B, Zhang X, Fan Z, Pan X, Yang F, Jin Y, Cheng Z, Wu W, Sun B, Huigens RW, Yang L, Bai F. Evolution of Resistance to Phenazine Antibiotics in Staphylococcus aureus and Its Role During Coinfection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. ACS Infect Dis 2021; 7:636-649. [PMID: 33650853 DOI: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.0c00837] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
In the niches that Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa coinhabit, the later pathogen produces phenazine antibiotics to inhibit the growth of S. aureus. Recently, a group of halogenated phenazines (HPs) has been shown to have potent antimicrobial activities against Staphylococci; however, no HP-resistant mutant has been reported. Here, we demonstrate that S. aureus develops HP-resistance via single amino acid change (Arg116Cys) in a transcriptional repressor TetR21. RNA-seq analysis showed that the TetR21R116C variation caused drastic up-regulation of an adjacent gene hprS (halogenated phenazine resistance protein of S. aureus). Deletion of the hprS in the TetR21R116C background restored bacterial susceptibility to HP, while hprS overexpression in S. aureus conferred HP-resistance. The expression of HprS is under tight transcriptional control of the TetR21 via direct binding to the promoter region of hprS. The R116C mutation in TetR21 significantly reduced its DNA binding affinity. Moreover, natural phenazine antibiotics (phenazine-1-carboxylic acid and pyocyanin) and a HP analog (HP-22) are ligands for the TetR21, regulating its repressor activity. Combining homology analysis and LC-MS/MS assay we demonstrated that HprS is a phenazine efflux pump. To the best of our knowledge, we provide the first report of phenazine efflux pump in S. aureus. Interestingly, the TetR21R116C variation has been found in some clinical S. aureus isolates, and a laboratory strain of S. aureus with TetR21R116C variation showed enhanced growth competitiveness toward P. aeruginosa and promoted coinfection with P. aeruginosa in the host environment, demonstrating significance of the mutation in host infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tongtong Fu
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Zhao Cai
- School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTec), Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Zhuo Yue
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Hongfen Yang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry & Center for Natural Products, Drug Discovery and Development (CNPD3), College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32610, United States
| | - Bo Fang
- School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China
| | - Xinwen Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Zheng Fan
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Xiaolei Pan
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Fan Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Yongxin Jin
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Zhihui Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Wuihui Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
| | - Baolin Sun
- School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China
| | - Robert W. Huigens
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry & Center for Natural Products, Drug Discovery and Development (CNPD3), College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32610, United States
| | - Liang Yang
- School of Medicine, Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTec), Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Fang Bai
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China
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Huigens RW, Abouelhassan Y, Yang H. Phenazine Antibiotic-Inspired Discovery of Bacterial Biofilm-Eradicating Agents. Chembiochem 2019; 20:2885-2902. [PMID: 30811834 PMCID: PMC7325843 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.201900116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Bacterial biofilms are surface-attached communities of slow-growing and non-replicating persister cells that demonstrate high levels of antibiotic tolerance. Biofilms occur in nearly 80 % of infections and present unique challenges to our current arsenal of antibiotic therapies, all of which were initially discovered for their abilities to target rapidly dividing, free-floating planktonic bacteria. Bacterial biofilms are credited as the underlying cause of chronic and recurring bacterial infections. Innovative approaches are required to identify new small molecules that operate through bacterial growth-independent mechanisms to effectively eradicate biofilms. One source of inspiration comes from within the lungs of young cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, who often endure persistent Staphylococcus aureus infections. As these CF patients age, Pseudomonas aeruginosa co-infects the lungs and utilizes phenazine antibiotics to eradicate the established S. aureus infection. Our group has taken a special interest in this microbial competition strategy and we are investigating the potential of phenazine antibiotic-inspired compounds and synthetic analogues thereof to eradicate persistent bacterial biofilms. To discover new biofilm-eradicating agents, we have established an interdisciplinary research program involving synthetic medicinal chemistry, microbiology and molecular biology. From these efforts, we have identified a series of halogenated phenazines (HPs) that potently eradicate bacterial biofilms, and future work aims to translate these preliminary findings into ground-breaking clinical advances for the treatment of persistent biofilm infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert W. Huigens
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry; Center for Natural Products Drug Discovery and Development (CNPD3); University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Yasmeen Abouelhassan
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry; Center for Natural Products Drug Discovery and Development (CNPD3); University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Hongfen Yang
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry; Center for Natural Products Drug Discovery and Development (CNPD3); University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
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