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Rauti R, Navok S, Biran D, Tadmor K, Leichtmann-Bardoogo Y, Ron EZ, Maoz BM. Insight on Bacterial Newborn Meningitis Using a Neurovascular-Unit-on-a-Chip. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0123323. [PMID: 37222614 PMCID: PMC10269748 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.01233-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding the pathogenesis of bacterial infections is critical for combatting them. For some infections, animal models are inadequate and functional genomic studies are not possible. One example is bacterial meningitis, a life-threatening infection with high mortality and morbidity. Here, we used the newly developed, physiologically relevant, organ-on-a-chip platform integrating the endothelium with neurons, closely mimicking in vivo conditions. Using high-magnification microscopy, permeability measurements, electrophysiological recordings, and immunofluorescence staining, we studied the dynamic by which the pathogens cross the blood-brain barrier and damage the neurons. Our work opens up possibilities for performing large-scale screens with bacterial mutant libraries for identifying the virulence genes involved in meningitis and determining the role of these genes, including various capsule types, in the infection process. These data are essential for understanding and therapy of bacterial meningitis. Moreover, our system offers possibilities for the study of additional infections-bacterial, fungal, and viral. IMPORTANCE The interactions of newborn meningitis (NBM) with the neurovascular unit are very complex and are hard to study. This work presents a new platform to study NBM in a system that enables monitoring of multicellular interactions and identifies processes that were not observed before.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rossana Rauti
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Urbino, Italy
| | - Sharon Navok
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Dvora Biran
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Keshet Tadmor
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | | | - Eliora Z. Ron
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Ben M. Maoz
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- The Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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Colarusso A, Caterino M, Fabbri A, Fiorentini C, Vergara A, Sica F, Parrilli E, Tutino ML. High yield purification and first structural characterization of the full-length bacterial toxin CNF1. Biotechnol Prog 2017; 34:150-159. [PMID: 29063721 DOI: 10.1002/btpr.2574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2017] [Revised: 09/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The Cytotoxic Necrotizing Factor 1 (CNF1) is a bacterial toxin secreted by certain Escherichia coli strains causing severe pathologies, making it a protein of pivotal interest in toxicology. In parallel, the CNF1 capability to influence important neuronal processes, like neuronal arborization, astrocytic support, and efficient ATP production, has been efficiently used in the treatment of neurological diseases, making it a promising candidate for therapy. Nonetheless, there are still some unsolved issues about the CNF1 mechanism of action and structuration probably caused by the difficulty to achieve sufficient amounts of the full-length protein for further studies. Here, we propose an efficient strategy for the production and purification of this toxin as a his-tagged recombinant protein from E. coli extracts (CNF1-H8). CNF1-H8 was expressed at the low temperature of 15°C to diminish its characteristic degradation. Then, its purification was achieved using an immobilized metal affinity chromatography (IMAC) and a size exclusion chromatography so as to collect up to 8 mg of protein per liter of culture in a highly pure form. Routine dynamic light scattering (DLS) experiments showed that the recombinant protein preparations were homogeneous and preserved this state for a long time. Furthermore, CNF1-H8 functionality was confirmed by testing its activity on purified RhoA and on HEp-2 cultured cells. Finally, a first structural characterization of the full-length toxin in terms of secondary structure and thermal stability was performed by circular dichroism (CD). These studies demonstrate that our system can be used to produce high quantities of pure recombinant protein for a detailed structural analysis. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 34:150-159, 2018.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Colarusso
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia, Napoli, 80126, Italy
| | - Marco Caterino
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia, Napoli, 80126, Italy
| | - Alessia Fabbri
- Italian Center for Global Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, 299, Roma, 00161, Italy
| | - Carla Fiorentini
- Italian Center for Global Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, 299, Roma, 00161, Italy
| | - Alessandro Vergara
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia, Napoli, 80126, Italy.,CEINGE Biotecnologie Avanzate scarl, Via G. Salvatore, Napoli, 80100, Italy.,Institute of Biostructures and Biomaging, CNR, Napoli, Italia Via Mezzocannone 16, Napoli, 80134, Italy
| | - Filomena Sica
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia, Napoli, 80126, Italy.,Institute of Biostructures and Biomaging, CNR, Napoli, Italia Via Mezzocannone 16, Napoli, 80134, Italy
| | - Ermenegilda Parrilli
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia, Napoli, 80126, Italy
| | - Maria Luisa Tutino
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario Monte Sant'Angelo, Via Cinthia, Napoli, 80126, Italy
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