Salmonella-Based Biorodenticides: Past Applications and Current Contradictions

The idea of using pathogens to control pests has existed since the end of the 19th century. Enterobacteria from the genus Salmonella, discovered at that time, are the causative agents of many serious diseases in mammals often leading to death. Mostly, the strains of Salmonella are able to infect a wide spectrum of hosts belonging to vertebrates, but some of them show host restriction. Several strains of these bacteria have been used as biorodenticides due to the host restriction until they were banned in many countries in the second part of the 20th century. The main reason for the ban was their potential pathogenicity for some domestic animals and poultry and the outbreaks of gastroenteritis in humans. Since that time, a lot of data regarding the host specificity and host restriction of different strains of Salmonella have been accumulated, and the complexity of the molecular mechanisms affecting it has been uncovered. In this review, we summarize the data regarding the history of studying and application of Salmonella-based rodenticides, discuss molecular systems controlling the specificity of Salmonella interactions within its multicellular hosts at different stages of infection, and attempt to reconstruct the network of genes and their allelic variants which might affect the host-restriction mechanisms.

Differences in immune responses of pigs vaccinated with Salmonella Typhimurium and S. Choleraesuis strains and challenged with S. Choleraesuis

S. Choleraesuis (Choleraesuis) and S. Typhimurium (Typhimurium) cause salmonellosis in pigs and humans. The effects of vaccine strains pSV-less Typhimurium OU5048 and Choleraesuis OU7266 and SPI-2-mutant Choleraesuis SC2284 on the immune responses of pigs against Typhimurium, Choleraesuis, and S. Enteritidis (Enteritidis) with or without the virulence plasmid (pSV) were determined. After oral vaccination of three vaccine groups and challenge with Choleraesuis CN36, the level of Salmonella-specific IgG in sera and the bactericidal effects and superoxide generation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) against the above strains were determined using ELISA and NBT assay, respectively. Among three vaccine strains tested, OU7266 stimulated the highest Salmonella-specific IgG levels. Complement inactivation increased IgG concentration, while E. coli absorption reduced IgG levels. The pSV-containing strains were less resistant to serum killing than the pSV-less strains, and Enteritidis exhibited the lowest resistance to serum killing. Serovars tested, vaccine strains, and timeline periods postvaccination and challenge were important factors affecting superoxide production. The two Choleraesuis vaccine strains stimulated greater levels of superoxide from PMNs and PBMCs than the Typhimurium strains. The PMNs and PBMCs in challenged and vaccinated pigs reduced more superoxide than those in challenged hosts. In vaccinated hosts, pSV-less Salmonella strains triggered lower levels of PMN/PBMC-generated superoxide upon challenge than strains with pSV against Enteritidis and Choleraesuis. Overall, Choleraesuis OU7266 may be better than the other vaccine strains in generating the greatest IgG levels, serum bactericidal activity and superoxide levels. The pSV likely influences the immune responses.

Hyperinvasiveness of Salmonella enterica serovar Choleraesuis linked to hyperexpression of type III secretion systems in vitro

Salmonella enterica serovars Choleraesuis and Typhimurium are among the non-typhoid Salmonella serovars that are important zoonotic pathogens. In clinical observation, S. Typhimurium typically causes diarrheal diseases; however, S. Choleraesuis shows high predilection to cause bacteremia. The mechanism why S. Choleraesuis is more invasive to humans remains unknown. In this study, we compared the S. Typhimurium LT2 and S. Choleraesuis SC-B67 proteomes through stable isotope labeling of amino acid in cell culture (SILAC). In SILAC, the expression of many virulence proteins in two type III secretion systems (T3SSs) were significantly higher in S. Choleraesuis than in S. Typhimurium. Similar differences were also found at the transcriptional level. Compared to S. Typhimurium, S. Choleraesuis showed a higher penetration level to Caco-2 (>100-fold) and MDCK (>10-fold) monolayers. In mice after oral challenge, the invasion of spleen and liver was also higher in S. Choleraesuis than in S. Typhimurium. The transcription of hilD in S. Choleraesuis was increased in physiological (1 mM) or high (10 mM) concentrations of Mg2+, but not in low (8 μM) concentration. We conclude that S. Choleraesuis showed hyperinvasiveness in cellular as well as mouse models due to hyperexpression of T3SS genes.

The core proteome and pan proteome of Salmonella Paratyphi A epidemic strains

Comparative proteomics of the multiple strains within the same species can reveal the genetic variation and relationships among strains without the need to assess the genomic data. Similar to comparative genomics, core proteome and pan proteome can also be obtained within multiple strains under the same culture conditions. In this study we present the core proteome and pan proteome of four epidemic Salmonella Paratyphi A strains cultured under laboratory culture conditions. The proteomic information was obtained using a Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) technique. The expression profiles of these strains were conservative, similar to the monomorphic genome of S. Paratyphi A. Few strain-specific proteins were found in these strains. Interestingly, non-core proteins were found in similar categories as core proteins. However, significant fluctuations in the abundance of some core proteins were also observed, suggesting that there is elaborate regulation of core proteins in the different strains even when they are cultured in the same environment. Therefore, core proteome and pan proteome analysis of the multiple strains can demonstrate the core pathways of metabolism of the species under specific culture conditions, and further the specific responses and adaptations of the strains to the growth environment.

Proteomic analysis of intestinal mucosa responses to Salmonella enterica serovar typhimurium in naturally infected pig

Salmonella enterica serovar typhimurium (S. typhimurium) is one of the most frequent Salmonella serotypes isolated from European pigs. Despite the advances in understanding the mechanisms involved in host-pathogen interactions and host cell responses to S. typhimurium, the global change that occurs in naturally exposed populations has been poorly characterized. Here, we present a proteomics study on intestinal mucosa of pigs naturally infected with S. typhimurium, in order to better understand the pathogenesis of salmonellosis and the pathways which might be affected after infection. Samples were analyzed by 2D-DIGE and 44 different proteins exhibited statistically significant differences. The data set was analyzed by employing the Ingenuity Pathway Analysis and the physiological function most significantly perturbed were immunological and infectious disease, cellular assembly and organization and metabolism. The pathways implicated in the porcine immune response to S. typhimurium were gluconeogenesis and Rho GDI/RhoA signaling, and our results suggest that keratins and the intermediate filaments could play an important role in the damage of the mucosa and in the success of infection. The role of these findings in salmonellosis has been discussed, as well as the importance of analyzing naturally infected animals to have a complete picture of the infection. Also, we compared the results found in this work with those obtained in a similar study using experimentally infected animals.

Changes in the proteome of Salmonella enterica serovar Thompson as stress adaptation to sublethal concentrations of thymol

Thymol is a natural biocide and component of some essential oils from herbs. Its inhibitory effect on the growth of different microorganisms is well documented. The precise targets of the antibacterial action of thymol is not yet been fully established, the action seems to take place in different ways. The strain Salmonella enterica serovar Thompson MCV1 was grown in the presence of a sublethal concentration (0.01%) of thymol. The proteins extracted from treated and untreated cells were subjected to 2-D PAGE, followed by in-gel spot digestion and subsequent MALDI-TOF analysis. The analysis of gels showed many proteins that were either upregulated or downregulated by the presence of thymol, with significant changes in proteins belonging to different functional classes. In particular, the thioredoxin-1 was not expressed in the treated cells, indicating that its absence could be a consequence of the stress caused by the presence of thymol. On the other hand, different chaperon proteins were upregulated or de novo synthesis such as GroEL and DnaK, key proteins in the protection mechanism toward thermal stress. Outer membrane proteins were upregulated in treated cells; indeed the bacterial envelope stress response is trigged by the accumulation of misfolded outer membrane proteins. Moreover, the thymol seems to impair the citrate metabolic pathway, as well as many enzymes involved in the synthesis of ATP. Definitely, thymol plays a role in altering very different pathways of cell metabolism.

Proteomic analysis of plasma membranes of cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. Strain PCC 6803 in response to high pH stress

Cyanobacteria are unique prokaryotes possessing plasma-, outer- and thylakoid membranes. The plasma membrane of a cyanobacterial cell serves as a crucial barrier against its environment and is essential for biogenesis of cyanobacterial photosystems. Previously, we have identified 79 different proteins in the plasma membrane of Synechocystis sp. Strain PCC 6803 based on 2D- and 1D- gels and MALDI-TOF MS. In this work, we have performed a proteomic study screening for high-pH-stress proteins in Synechocystis. 2-D gel profiles of plasma membranes isolated from both control and high pH-treated cells were constructed and compared quantitatively based on different protein staining methods including DIGE analysis. A total of 55 differentially expressed protein spots were identified using MALDI-TOF MS and MALDI-TOF/TOF MS, corresponding to 39 gene products. Twenty-five proteins were enhanced/induced and 14 reduced by high pH. One-third of the enhanced/induced proteins were transport and binding proteins of ABC transporters including 3 phosphate transport proteins. Other proteins include MinD involved in cell division, Cya2 in signaling and proteins involved in photosynthesis and respiration. Furthermore, among these proteins regulated by high pH, eight were found to be hypothetical proteins. Functional significance of the high-pH-stress proteins is discussed integrating current knowledge on cyanobacterial cell physiology.

Growth phase-dependent regulation of the global virulence regulator Rot in clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus

Current models for global virulence regulation in Staphylococcus aureus are mainly based on studies performed with only a limited number of laboratory strains derived from NCTC8325. In these strains the small regulatory RNA, RNAIII, has a central role in virulence gene regulation. Recently, RNAIII was suggested to control transcription of target genes partly by inhibiting translation of the transcriptional regulator Rot. The present study was undertaken to examine if the model for RNAIII/Rot-dependent virulence regulation is conserved among clinical strains. To this end, we used Rot antibodies to directly assess the amount of Rot protein in 4 well-characterized S. aureus laboratory strains (8325-4, COL, Newman, and UAMS-1) and in 9 strains of clinical origin (encompassing USA300 and Mu50). Additionally, the cellular amount of RNAIII and rot mRNA was determined in all strains. The experiments revealed considerable variation in the Rot and RNAIII levels between strains. However, in the majority of strains the cellular amount of Rot was inversely correlated to the RNAIII level. As we demonstrate that Rot is a stable protein and that the level of rot transcript appeared similar in all strains, our data support that the model for RNAIII-mediated inhibition of rot mRNA translation is conserved among clinical strains. Assessment of Rot-dependent regulation of target genes revealed that Rot is a positive regulator of spa (protein A) transcription in all strains examined. In contrast, Rot repression of sspA (serine protease) and hlb (beta-hemolysin) transcription was not conserved between strains. From this study, we conclude that while the paradigm for understanding RNAIII-dependent regulation of Rot is well-conserved, regulation of single genes is subject to considerable strain variation. We propose that variation in global regulatory networks contribute considerably to the phenotypic variation observed between S. aureus isolates.

Proteomic analysis of the adaptive response of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium to growth under anaerobic conditions

In order to survive in the host and initiate infection, Salmonella enterica needs to undergo a transition between aerobic and anaerobic growth by modulating its central metabolic pathways. In this study, a comparative analysis of the proteome of S. enterica serovar Typhimurium grown in the presence or absence of oxygen was performed. The most prominent changes in expression were measured in a semiquantitative manner using difference in-gel electrophoresis (DIGE) to reveal the main protein factors involved in the adaptive response to anaerobiosis. A total of 38 proteins were found to be induced anaerobically, while 42 were repressed. The proteins of interest were in-gel digested with trypsin and identified by MALDI TOF mass spectrometry using peptide mass fingerprinting. In the absence of oxygen, many fermentative enzymes catalysing reactions in the mixed-acid or arginine fermentations were overexpressed. In addition, the enzyme fumarate reductase, which is known to provide an alternative electron acceptor for the respiratory chains in the absence of oxygen, was shown to be induced. Increases in expression of several glycolytic and pentose phosphate pathway enzymes, as well as two malic enzymes, were detected, suggesting important roles for these in anaerobic metabolism. Substantial decreases in expression were observed for a large number of periplasmic transport proteins. The majority of these are involved in the uptake of amino acids and peptides, but permeases transporting iron, thiosulphate, glucose/galactose, glycerol 3-phosphate and dicarboxylic acids were also repressed. Decreases in expression were also observed for a superoxide dismutase, ATP synthase, inositol monophosphatase, and several chaperone and hypothetical proteins. The changes were monitored in two different isolates, and despite their very similar expression patterns, some variability in the adaptive response to anaerobiosis was also observed.