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Kim D, Crippen TL, Dhungel L, Delclos PJ, Tomberlin JK, Jordan HR. Behavioral interplay between mosquito and mycolactone produced by Mycobacterium ulcerans and bacterial gene expression induced by mosquito proximity. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0289768. [PMID: 37535670 PMCID: PMC10399876 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0289768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Mycolactone is a cytotoxic lipid metabolite produced by Mycobacterium ulcerans, the environmental pathogen responsible for Buruli ulcer, a neglected tropical disease. Mycobacterium ulcerans is prevalent in West Africa, particularly found in lentic environments, where mosquitoes also occur. Researchers hypothesize mosquitoes could serve as a transmission mechanism resulting in infection by M. ulcerans when mosquitoes pierce skin contaminated with M. ulcerans. The interplay between the pathogen, mycolactone, and mosquito is only just beginning to be explored. A triple-choice assay was conducted to determine the host-seeking preference of Aedes aegypti between M. ulcerans wildtype (MU, mycolactone active) and mutant (MUlac-, mycolactone inactive). Both qualitative and quantitative differences in volatile organic compounds' (VOCs) profiles of MU and MUlac- were determined by GC-MS. Additionally, we evaluated the interplay between Ae. aegypti proximity and M. ulcerans mRNA expression. The results showed that mosquito attraction was significantly greater (126.0%) to an artificial host treated with MU than MUlac-. We found that MU and MUlac produced differential profiles of VOCs associated with a wide range of biological importance from quorum sensing (QS) to human odor components. RT-qPCR assays showed that mycolactone upregulation was 24-fold greater for MU exposed to Ae. aegypti in direct proximity. Transcriptome data indicated significant induction of ten chromosomal genes of MU involved in stress responses and membrane protein, compared to MUlac- when directly having access to or in near mosquito proximity. Our study provides evidence of possible interkingdom interactions between unicellular and multicellular species that MU present on human skin is capable of interreacting with unrelated species (i.e., mosquitoes), altering its gene expression when mosquitoes are in direct contact or proximity, potentially impacting the production of its VOCs, and consequently leading to the stronger attraction of mosquitoes toward human hosts. This study elucidates interkingdom interactions between viable M. ulcerans bacteria and Ae. aegypti mosquitoes, which rarely have been explored in the past. Our finding opens new doors for future research in terms of disease ecology, prevalence, and pathogen dispersal outside of the M. ulcerans system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dongmin Kim
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
| | - Tawni L Crippen
- Southern Plains Agricultural Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA, College Station, Texas, United States of America
| | - Laxmi Dhungel
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Starkville, Mississippi, United States of America
| | - Pablo J Delclos
- Department of Natural Sciences, University of Houston-Downtown, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Jeffery K Tomberlin
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
| | - Heather R Jordan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Starkville, Mississippi, United States of America
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Keita ML, Kaba A, Telly Diallo I, Kesso Bah M, Sagno M, Goumane A, Bouam A, Drancourt M. Gold Panning-Related Chronic Cutaneous Ulcers in Guinea, West Africa. Am J Trop Med Hyg 2023; 108:221-226. [PMID: 36509061 PMCID: PMC9833079 DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.22-0244] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic cutaneous ulcers caused potentially by several pathogens are of increasing concern in endemic tropical countries, including Guinea in West Africa, in rural populations exposed to aquatic environments during recreational, domestic, or agricultural activities. By plotting 1,011 cases of chronic cutaneous ulcers classified under the name Buruli ulcer in 24 of 33 Guinea health districts (72%) between 2018 and 2020 against the gold map and gold-panning map of Guinea, we revealed a significant spatial association between chronic cutaneous ulcer foci and gold-panning foci (P < 0.05), but not with nongold-panning foci (P = 0.12) in Guinea. Gold panning should be listed as an additional economic activity exposing populations to chronic cutaneous ulcers. Further research may aim to clarify whether any geological and biologic factors underlie such an association, besides the possibility that the unprotected skin of gold panners may be exposed to opportunistic, pathogen-contaminated environments in gold-panning areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed L. Keita
- Aix Marseille University, Institut National pour le Developpement, Microbes, Evolution, Phylogénie et Infection, Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Marseille, Marseille, France
- Institut Hospitalo-Universitaire Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France
| | - Abdoulaye Kaba
- Bureau of Stratégies and Dévelopment, Ministère de la Santé, Conakry, République de Guinée
| | - Ibrahima Telly Diallo
- Bureau of Stratégies and Dévelopment, Ministère de la Santé, Conakry, République de Guinée
| | - Mariama Kesso Bah
- Programme National de Lutte Contre les Maladies Tropicales Negligées, Ministère de la Santé, Conakry, République de Guinée
| | - Michel Sagno
- Programme National de Lutte Contre les Maladies Tropicales Negligées, Ministère de la Santé, Conakry, République de Guinée
| | - Aboubacar Goumane
- Centre Régional de Dépistage et de Traitement de l’Ulcère de Buruli, Ministère de la Santé, N’zerekoré, République de Guinée
| | - Amar Bouam
- Aix Marseille University, Institut National pour le Developpement, Microbes, Evolution, Phylogénie et Infection, Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Marseille, Marseille, France
- Institut Hospitalo-Universitaire Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France
| | - Michel Drancourt
- Aix Marseille University, Institut National pour le Developpement, Microbes, Evolution, Phylogénie et Infection, Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Marseille, Marseille, France
- Institut Hospitalo-Universitaire Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France
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Banerjee A, Mukherjee D, Bera A, Ghosh R, Mondal S, Mukhopadhyay S, Das R, Altass HM, Natto SSA, Moussa Z, Ahmed SA, Chattopadhyay A, Pal SK. Molecular co-localization of multiple drugs in a nanoscopic delivery vehicle for potential synergistic remediation of multi-drug resistant bacteria. Sci Rep 2022; 12:18881. [PMID: 36344591 PMCID: PMC9640573 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-22759-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Anti-microbial resistant infection is predicted to be alarming in upcoming years. In the present study, we proposed co-localization of two model drugs viz., rifampicin and benzothiazole used in anti-tuberculosis and anti-fungal agents respectively in a nanoscopic cationic micelle (cetyl triethyl ammonium bromide) with hydrodynamic diameter of 2.69 nm. Sterilization effect of the co-localized micellar formulation against a model multi-drug resistant bacterial strain viz., Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus was also investigated. 99.88% decrease of bacterial growth in terms of colony forming unit was observed using the developed formulation. While Dynamic Light Scattering and Forsters Resonance Energy Transfer between benzothiazole and rifampicin show co-localization of the drugs in the nanoscopic micellar environment, analysis of time-resolved fluorescence decays by Infelta-Tachiya model and the probability distribution of the donor-acceptor distance fluctuations for 5 μM,10 μM and 15 μM acceptor concentrations confirm efficacy of the co-localization. Energy transfer efficiency and the donor acceptor distance are found to be 46% and 20.9 Å respectively. We have also used a detailed computational biology framework to rationalize the sterilization effect of our indigenous formulation. It has to be noted that the drugs used in our studies are not being used for their conventional indication. Rather the co-localization of the drugs in the micellar environment shows a completely different indication of their use in the remediation of multi-drug resistant bacteria revealing the re-purposing of the drugs for potential use in hospital-born multi-drug resistant bacterial infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amrita Banerjee
- Department of Physics, Jadavpur University, 188, Raja S.C. Mallick Rd, Kolkata, 700032, India
- Technical Research Centre, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector III, Salt Lake, Kolkata, 700106, West Bengal, India
| | - Dipanjan Mukherjee
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector 3, Salt Lake, Kolkata, 700106, India
| | - Arpan Bera
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector 3, Salt Lake, Kolkata, 700106, India
| | - Ria Ghosh
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector 3, Salt Lake, Kolkata, 700106, India
| | - Susmita Mondal
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector 3, Salt Lake, Kolkata, 700106, India
| | - Subhadipta Mukhopadhyay
- Department of Physics, Jadavpur University, 188, Raja S.C. Mallick Rd, Kolkata, 700032, India
| | - Ranjan Das
- Department of Chemistry, West Bengal State University, Kolkata, 700106, India
| | - Hatem M Altass
- Chemistry Department, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, Mecca, 21955, Saudi Arabia
| | - Sameer S A Natto
- Physcis Department, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, Mecca, 21955, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ziad Moussa
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, P.O. Box 15551, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Saleh A Ahmed
- Chemistry Department, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, Mecca, 21955, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Arpita Chattopadhyay
- Department of Basic Science and Humanities, Techno International New Town Block, DG 1/1, Action Area 1 New Town, Rajarhat, Kolkata, 700156, India.
- Department of Physics, Sister Nivedita University, DG 1/2 New Town, Action Area 1, Kolkata, 700156, India.
| | - Samir Kumar Pal
- Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Block JD, Sector 3, Salt Lake, Kolkata, 700106, India.
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Receveur JP, Bauer A, Pechal JL, Picq S, Dogbe M, Jordan HR, Rakestraw AW, Fast K, Sandel M, Chevillon C, Guégan JF, Wallace JR, Benbow ME. A need for null models in understanding disease transmission: the example of Mycobacterium ulcerans (Buruli ulcer disease). FEMS Microbiol Rev 2022; 46:fuab045. [PMID: 34468735 PMCID: PMC8767449 DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fuab045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the interactions of ecosystems, humans and pathogens is important for disease risk estimation. This is particularly true for neglected and newly emerging diseases where modes and efficiencies of transmission leading to epidemics are not well understood. Using a model for other emerging diseases, the neglected tropical skin disease Buruli ulcer (BU), we systematically review the literature on transmission of the etiologic agent, Mycobacterium ulcerans (MU), within a One Health/EcoHealth framework and against Hill's nine criteria and Koch's postulates for making strong inference in disease systems. Using this strong inference approach, we advocate a null hypothesis for MU transmission and other understudied disease systems. The null should be tested against alternative vector or host roles in pathogen transmission to better inform disease management. We propose a re-evaluation of what is necessary to identify and confirm hosts, reservoirs and vectors associated with environmental pathogen replication, dispersal and transmission; critically review alternative environmental sources of MU that may be important for transmission, including invertebrate and vertebrate species, plants and biofilms on aquatic substrates; and conclude with placing BU within the context of other neglected and emerging infectious diseases with intricate ecological relationships that lead to disease in humans, wildlife and domestic animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph P Receveur
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - Alexandra Bauer
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - Jennifer L Pechal
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - Sophie Picq
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - Magdalene Dogbe
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Starkville, MS, USA
| | - Heather R Jordan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mississippi State University, Starkville, MS, USA
| | - Alex W Rakestraw
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, The University of West Alabama, Livingston, AL, USA
| | - Kayla Fast
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, The University of West Alabama, Livingston, AL, USA
| | - Michael Sandel
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, The University of West Alabama, Livingston, AL, USA
| | - Christine Chevillon
- Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs : Ecologie, Génétique, Evolution et Contrôle (MIVEGEC), Université de Montpellier (UM), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut pour la Recherche et le Développement, Montpellier, France
| | - Jean-François Guégan
- Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs : Ecologie, Génétique, Evolution et Contrôle (MIVEGEC), Université de Montpellier (UM), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut pour la Recherche et le Développement, Montpellier, France
- UMR Animal, santé, territoires, risques et écosystèmes, Institut national de recherche pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (INRAE), Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement (Cirad), Université de Montpellier (UM), Montpellier, France
| | - John R Wallace
- Department of Biology, Millersville University, Millersville, PA, USA
| | - M Eric Benbow
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
- Ecology, Evolution and Behavior Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
- AgBioResearch, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
- Department of Osteopathic Medical Specialties, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
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Linking the Mycobacterium ulcerans environment to Buruli ulcer disease: Progress and challenges. One Health 2021; 13:100311. [PMID: 34485670 PMCID: PMC8403752 DOI: 10.1016/j.onehlt.2021.100311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2021] [Revised: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Buruli ulcer (BU), the second most common mycobacterial disease in West Africa, is a necrotizing skin disease that can lead to high morbidity in affected patients. The disease is caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans (MU), whose major virulence factor is mycolactone. Although early infection can be treated with antibiotics, an effective preventative strategy is challenging due to unknown reservoir(s) and unresolved mode(s) of transmission. Further, disease occurrence in remote locations with limited access to health facilities further complicates disease burden and associated costs. We discuss here MU transmission hypotheses and investigations into environmental reservoirs and discuss successes and challenges of studying MU and Buruli ulcer across human, animal, and environmental interfaces. We argue that a One Health approach is needed to advance the understanding of MU transmission and designing management scenarios that prevent and respond to epidemics. Although previous work has provided significant insights into risk factors, epidemiology and clinical perspectives of disease, understanding the bacterial ecology, environmental niches and role of mycolactone in natural environments and during infection of the human host remains equally important to better understanding and preventing this mysterious disease.
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