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Niu H, Gu J, Zhang Y. Bacterial persisters: molecular mechanisms and therapeutic development. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2024; 9:174. [PMID: 39013893 PMCID: PMC11252167 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-024-01866-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2023] [Revised: 05/06/2024] [Accepted: 05/13/2024] [Indexed: 07/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Persisters refer to genetically drug susceptible quiescent (non-growing or slow growing) bacteria that survive in stress environments such as antibiotic exposure, acidic and starvation conditions. These cells can regrow after stress removal and remain susceptible to the same stress. Persisters are underlying the problems of treating chronic and persistent infections and relapse infections after treatment, drug resistance development, and biofilm infections, and pose significant challenges for effective treatments. Understanding the characteristics and the exact mechanisms of persister formation, especially the key molecules that affect the formation and survival of the persisters is critical to more effective treatment of chronic and persistent infections. Currently, genes related to persister formation and survival are being discovered and confirmed, but the mechanisms by which bacteria form persisters are very complex, and there are still many unanswered questions. This article comprehensively summarizes the historical background of bacterial persisters, details their complex characteristics and their relationship with antibiotic tolerant and resistant bacteria, systematically elucidates the interplay between various bacterial biological processes and the formation of persister cells, as well as consolidates the diverse anti-persister compounds and treatments. We hope to provide theoretical background for in-depth research on mechanisms of persisters and suggest new ideas for choosing strategies for more effective treatment of persistent infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongxia Niu
- School of Basic Medical Science and Key Laboratory of Blood-stasis-toxin Syndrome of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, 310053, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jiaying Gu
- School of Basic Medical Science and Key Laboratory of Blood-stasis-toxin Syndrome of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, 310053, Zhejiang, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 310003, Zhejiang, China.
- Jinan Microecological Biomedicine Shandong Laboratory, Jinan, 250022, Shandong, China.
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Ngo HG, Mohiuddin SG, Ananda A, Orman MA. UNRAVELING CRP/cAMP-MEDIATED METABOLIC REGULATION IN ESCHERICHIA COLI PERSISTER CELLS. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.06.10.598332. [PMID: 38915711 PMCID: PMC11195080 DOI: 10.1101/2024.06.10.598332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/26/2024]
Abstract
A substantial gap persists in our comprehension of how bacterial metabolism undergoes rewiring during the transition to a persistent state. Also, it remains unclear which metabolic mechanisms become indispensable for persister cell survival. To address these questions, we directed our efforts towards persister cells in Escherichia coli that emerge during the late stationary phase. These cells have been recognized for their exceptional resilience and are commonly believed to be in a dormant state. Our results demonstrate that the global metabolic regulator Crp/cAMP redirects the metabolism of these antibiotic-tolerant cells from anabolism to oxidative phosphorylation. Although our data indicates that persisters exhibit a reduced metabolic rate compared to rapidly growing exponential-phase cells, their survival still relies on energy metabolism. Extensive genomic-level analyses of metabolomics, proteomics, and single-gene deletions consistently emphasize the critical role of energy metabolism, specifically the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, electron transport chain (ETC), and ATP synthase, in sustaining the viability of persisters. Altogether, this study provides much-needed clarification regarding the role of energy metabolism in antibiotic tolerance and highlights the importance of using a multipronged approach at the genomic level to obtain a broader picture of the metabolic state of persister cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Han G. Ngo
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, TX, 77204
| | - Sayed Golam Mohiuddin
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, TX, 77204
| | - Aina Ananda
- Department of Biology, Monmouth University, NJ, 07764
| | - Mehmet A. Orman
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, TX, 77204
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3
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Mishra AK, Thakare RP, Santani BG, Yabaji SM, Dixit SK, Srivastava KK. Unlocking the enigma of phenotypic drug tolerance: Mechanisms and emerging therapeutic strategies. Biochimie 2024; 220:67-83. [PMID: 38168626 DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2023.12.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2023] [Revised: 12/09/2023] [Accepted: 12/27/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
In the ongoing battle against antimicrobial resistance, phenotypic drug tolerance poses a formidable challenge. This adaptive ability of microorganisms to withstand drug pressure without genetic alterations further complicating global healthcare challenges. Microbial populations employ an array of persistence mechanisms, including dormancy, biofilm formation, adaptation to intracellular environments, and the adoption of L-forms, to develop drug tolerance. Moreover, molecular mechanisms like toxin-antitoxin modules, oxidative stress responses, energy metabolism, and (p)ppGpp signaling contribute to this phenomenon. Understanding these persistence mechanisms is crucial for predicting drug efficacy, developing strategies for chronic bacterial infections, and exploring innovative therapies for refractory infections. In this comprehensive review, we dissect the intricacies of drug tolerance and persister formation, explore their role in acquired drug resistance, and highlight emerging therapeutic approaches to combat phenotypic drug tolerance. Furthermore, we outline the future landscape of interventions for persistent bacterial infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alok K Mishra
- Division of Microbiology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Jankipuram Extension, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, 226031, India; Department of Molecular Cell and Cancer Biology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA.
| | - Ritesh P Thakare
- Division of Microbiology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Jankipuram Extension, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, 226031, India; Department of Molecular Cell and Cancer Biology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, 01605, USA
| | - Bela G Santani
- Department of Microbiology, Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University (SGBAU), Amravati, Maharashtra, India
| | - Shivraj M Yabaji
- Division of Microbiology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Jankipuram Extension, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, 226031, India; National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL), Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Shivendra K Dixit
- Division of Medicine ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Izatnagar Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, 243122, India.
| | - Kishore K Srivastava
- Division of Microbiology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Jankipuram Extension, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, 226031, India.
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Joshi H, Kandari D, Maitra SS, Bhatnagar R, Banerjee N. Identification of genes associated with persistence in Mycobacterium smegmatis. Front Microbiol 2024; 15:1302883. [PMID: 38410395 PMCID: PMC10894938 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1302883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
The prevalence of bacterial persisters is related to their phenotypic diversity and is responsible for the relapse of chronic infections. Tolerance to antibiotic therapy is the hallmark of bacterial persistence. In this study, we have screened a transposon library of Mycobacterium smegmatis mc2155 strain using antibiotic tolerance, survival in mouse macrophages, and biofilm-forming ability of the mutants. Out of 10 thousand clones screened, we selected ten mutants defective in all the three phenotypes. Six mutants showed significantly lower persister abundance under different stress conditions. Insertions in three genes belonging to the pathways of oxidative phosphorylation msmeg_3233 (cydA), biotin metabolism msmeg_3194 (bioB), and oxidative metabolism msmeg_0719, a flavoprotein monooxygenase, significantly reduced the number of live cells, suggesting their role in pathways promoting long-term survival. Another group that displayed a moderate reduction in CFU included a glycosyltransferase, msmeg_0392, a hydrogenase subunit, msmeg_2263 (hybC), and a DNA binding protein, msmeg_2211. The study has revealed potential candidates likely to facilitate the long-term survival of M. smegmatis. The findings offer new targets to develop antibiotics against persisters. Further, investigating the corresponding genes in M. tuberculosis may provide valuable leads in improving the treatment of chronic and persistent tuberculosis infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hemant Joshi
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering, School of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
| | - Divya Kandari
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering, School of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
- Divacc Research Laboratories Pvt. Ltd., incubated under Atal Incubation Centre, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
| | - Subhrangsu Sundar Maitra
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering, School of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
| | - Rakesh Bhatnagar
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering, School of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
| | - Nirupama Banerjee
- Divacc Research Laboratories Pvt. Ltd., incubated under Atal Incubation Centre, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
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Pizzolato-Cezar LR, Spira B, Machini MT. Bacterial toxin-antitoxin systems: Novel insights on toxin activation across populations and experimental shortcomings. CURRENT RESEARCH IN MICROBIAL SCIENCES 2023; 5:100204. [PMID: 38024808 PMCID: PMC10643148 DOI: 10.1016/j.crmicr.2023.100204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The alarming rise in hard-to-treat bacterial infections is of great concern to human health. Thus, the identification of molecular mechanisms that enable the survival and growth of pathogens is of utmost urgency for the development of more efficient antimicrobial therapies. In challenging environments, such as presence of antibiotics, or during host infection, metabolic adjustments are essential for microorganism survival and competitiveness. Toxin-antitoxin systems (TASs) consisting of a toxin with metabolic modulating activity and a cognate antitoxin that antagonizes that toxin are important elements in the arsenal of bacterial stress defense. However, the exact physiological function of TA systems is highly debatable and with the exception of stabilization of mobile genetic elements and phage inhibition, other proposed biological functions lack a broad consensus. This review aims at gaining new insights into the physiological effects of TASs in bacteria and exploring the experimental shortcomings that lead to discrepant results in TAS research. Distinct control mechanisms ensure that only subsets of cells within isogenic cultures transiently develop moderate levels of toxin activity. As a result, TASs cause phenotypic growth heterogeneity rather than cell stasis in the entire population. It is this feature that allows bacteria to thrive in diverse environments through the creation of subpopulations with different metabolic rates and stress tolerance programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis R. Pizzolato-Cezar
- Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Chemistry, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Beny Spira
- Department of Microbiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - M. Teresa Machini
- Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Chemistry, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
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Wu Z, Wang Y, Li L, Zhen S, Du H, Wang Z, Xiao S, Wu J, Zhu L, Shen J, Wang Z. New insights into the antimicrobial action and protective therapeutic effect of tirapazamine towards Escherichia coli-infected mice. Int J Antimicrob Agents 2023; 62:106923. [PMID: 37433388 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2023.106923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Revised: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/13/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Escherichia coli is an important pathogen responsible for numerous cases of diarrhoea worldwide. The bioreductive agent tirapazamine (TPZ), which was clinically used to treat various types of cancers, has obvious antibacterial activity against E. coli strains. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the protective therapeutic effects of TPZ in E. coli-infected mice and provide insights into its antimicrobial action mechanism. METHODS The MIC and MBC tests, drug sensitivity test, crystal violet assay and proteomic analysis were used to detect the in vitro antibacterial activity of TPZ. The clinical symptoms of infected mice, tissue bacteria load, histopathological features and gut microbiota changes were regarded as indicators to evaluation the efficacy of TPZ in vivo. RESULTS Interestingly, TPZ-induced the reversal of drug resistance in E. coli by regulating the expression of resistance-related genes, which may have an auxiliary role in the clinical treatment of drug-resistant bacterial infections. More importantly, the proteomics analysis showed that TPZ upregulated 53 proteins and downregulated 47 proteins in E. coli. Among these, the bacterial defence response-related proteins colicin M and colicin B, SOS response-related proteins RecA, UvrABC system protein A, and Holliday junction ATP-dependent DNA helicase RuvB were all significantly upregulated. The quorum sensing-related protein glutamate decarboxylase, ABC transporter-related protein glycerol-3-phosphate transporter polar-binding protein, and ABC transporter polar-binding protein YtfQ were significantly downregulated. The oxidoreductase activity-related proteins pyridine nucleotide-disulfide oxidoreductase, glutaredoxin 2 (Grx2), NAD(+)-dependent aldehyde reductase, and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, which participate in the elimination of harmful oxygen free radicals in the oxidation-reduction process pathway, were also significantly downregulated. Moreover, TPZ improved the survival rate of infected mice; significantly reduced the bacteria load in the liver, spleen, and colon; and alleviated E. coli-associated pathological damages. The gut microbiota also changed in TPZ-treated mice, and these genera were considerably differentiated: Candidatus Arthromitus, Eubacterium coprostanoligenes group, Prevotellaceae UCG-001, Actinospica, and Bifidobacterium. CONCLUSIONS TPZ may represent an effective and promising lead molecule for the development of antimicrobial agents for the treatment of E. coli infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhouhui Wu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Yu Wang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Lei Li
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Sihui Zhen
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Heng Du
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Zhiwen Wang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Shuang Xiao
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Jinliang Wu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Lifei Zhu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Jiachen Shen
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China
| | - Zhen Wang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science and Technology College, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China.
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Niu H, Li T, Du Y, Lv Z, Cao Q, Zhang Y. Glutamate Transporters GltS, GltP and GltI Are Involved in Escherichia coli Tolerance In Vitro and Pathogenicity in Mouse Urinary Tract Infections. Microorganisms 2023; 11:1173. [PMID: 37317147 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11051173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2023] [Accepted: 04/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/16/2023] Open
Abstract
To verify the roles of GltS, GltP, and GltI in E. coli tolerance and pathogenicity, we quantified and compared the relative abundance of gltS, gltP, and gltI in log-phase and stationary-phase E. coli and constructed their knockout mutant strains in E. coli BW25113 and uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) separately, followed by analysis of their abilities to tolerate antibiotics and stressors, their capacity for adhesion to and invasion of human bladder epithelial cells, and their survival ability in mouse urinary tracts. Our results showed that gltS, gltP, and gltI transcripts were higher in stationary phase E. coli than in log-phase incubation. Furthermore, deletion of gltS, gltP, and gltI genes in E. coli BW25113 results in decreased tolerance to antibiotics (levofloxacin and ofloxacin) and stressors (acid pH, hyperosmosis, and heat), and loss of gltS, gltP, and gltI in uropathogenic E. coli UTI89 caused attenuated adhesion and invasion in human bladder epithelial cells and markedly reduced survival in mice. The results showed the important roles of the glutamate transporter genes gltI, gltP, and gltS in E. coli tolerance to antibiotics (levofloxacin and ofloxacin) and stressors (acid pH, hyperosmosis, and heat) in vitro and in pathogenicity in mouse urinary tracts and human bladder epithelial cells, as shown by reduced survival and colonization, which improves our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of bacterial tolerance and pathogenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongxia Niu
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310053, China
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Tuodi Li
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Yunjie Du
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Zhuoxuan Lv
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310053, China
| | - Qianqian Cao
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310053, China
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Pourhajibagher M, Parker S, Pourakbari B, Valian NK, Raoofian R, Bahador A. Enhancement of hypericin nanoparticle-mediated sonoinduced disruption of biofilm and persister cells of Streptococcus mutans by dermcidin-derived peptide DCD-1L. Photodiagnosis Photodyn Ther 2023; 41:103308. [PMID: 36709017 DOI: 10.1016/j.pdpdt.2023.103308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Revised: 12/28/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Streptococcus mutans is considered a major significant contributor to dental caries and its effective removal is difficult due to the formation of biofilm. Therefore, the development of adjuvant therapeutic strategies with anti-biofilm properties is a promising approach. In the present study, we examined the effect of dermcidin-derived peptide DCD-1 L on the antibacterial activity of hypericin nanoparticle (HypNP)-mediated antimicrobial sonodynamic therapy (aSDT) against persister cells growing- and biofilm cultures of S. mutans. MATERIALS AND METHODS Following synthesis and confirmation of HypNP, the fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) index of HypNP and DCD-1 L was determined by checkerboard assay. Cellular uptake of HypNP-DCD-1 L and generation of endogenous reactive oxygen species (ROS) were assessed and followed by the determination of antimicrobial sonoactivity of HypNP-DCD-1 L against persister cells growing- and biofilm cultures of S. mutans. The water-insoluble extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) and expression of the gtfD, comDE, and smuT genes were then evaluated in persister cells growing- and biofilm cultures of S. mutans. RESULTS There was a synergistic activity in the combination of HypNP and DCD-1 L against S. mutans with an FIC index value of 0.37. The HypNP-DCD-1L-mediated aSDT also displayed the highest cellular uptake and endogenous ROS generation by bacterial cells. When biofilm and persister cells of S. mutans were treated with HypNP-DCD-1 L and subsequently exposed to ultrasound waves, 5.1 log and 3.8 log reductions, respectively, in bacterial numbers were observed (P<0.05). According to the data, EPS in both persister cells growing- and biofilm cultures of S. mutans were significantly decreased after exposure to the HypNP-DCD-1L-mediated aSDT (P<0.05). In addition, the quantitative real-time PCR data illustrated the high level of similarities in very low-expression profiles of the gtfD before and after all treated groups for persister cells. While, following HypNP-DCD-1L-mediated aSDT treatment, the expression levels of gtfD, comDE, and smuT were significantly lower in treated persister cells growing- and biofilm cultures of S. mutans in comparison with control groups (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Combined, the results of this study indicate that ultrasound waves-activated HypNP-DCD-1 L can sonoinactivate S. mutans biofilms and persister cells, as well as reduce effectively pathogenicity potency of S. mutans. Hence, HypNP-DCD-1L-mediated aSDT may be proposed as a promising adjunctive therapeutic approach for dental caries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maryam Pourhajibagher
- Dental Research Center, Dentistry Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Steven Parker
- Leicester School of Pharmacy, De Montfort University, Leicester LE1 9BH, United Kingdom.
| | - Babak Pourakbari
- Pediatric Infectious Disease Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Pediatrics Center of Excellence, Children's Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Nasrin Keshavarz Valian
- Department of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Reza Raoofian
- Legal Medicine Research Center, Legal Medicine Organization, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Abbas Bahador
- Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Fellowship in Clinical Laboratory Sciences, BioHealth Lab, Tehran, Iran.
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Ju Y, Zhang F, Yu P, Zhang Y, Zhao P, Xu P, Sun L, Bao Y, Long H. A Bibliometric Analysis of Research on Bacterial Persisters. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2023; 2023:4302914. [PMID: 36644164 PMCID: PMC9839416 DOI: 10.1155/2023/4302914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2022] [Revised: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In the past two decades, the surge of research on bacterial persisters has been inspired as increasingly concerning about the frequent failure of antibiotics treatment. This study was aimed at presenting a bibliometric and visualized analysis of relative publications on bacterial persisters, which offered insights into the development and research trends of this field. METHODS The Web of Science Core Collection and Ovid MEDLINE databases were utilized to retrieve relevant publications on bacterial persisters from 2001 to 2021. After manual selection, data including titles, authors, journals, author keywords, addresses, the number of citations, and publication years were subsequently extracted. The data analysis and visual mapping were conducted with Excel, SPSS, R studio, and VOSviewer. RESULTS In this study, 1,903 relevant publications on bacterial persisters were included. During 2001-2021, there was an exponential growth in the quantity of publications. It was found that these studies were conducted by 7,182 authors from 74 different countries. The USA led the scientific production with the highest total number of publications (859) and citation frequency (52,022). The Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy was the most influential journal with 113 relevant publications. The cooccurrence analysis revealed that studies on bacterial persisters focused on four aspects: "the role of persisters in biofilms," "clinical persistent infection," "anti-persister treatment," and "mechanism of persister formation." CONCLUSION In the past two decades, the global field of bacterial persisters has significantly increased. The USA was the leading country in this field. Mechanistic studies continued to be the future hotspots, which may be helpful to adopt new strategies against persisters and solve the problem of chronic infection in the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Ju
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Fang Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Air Force Hospital of Western Theater Command, Chengdu, China
| | - Pingjing Yu
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Yu Zhang
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Ping Zhao
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Ping Xu
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Luwei Sun
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Yongqing Bao
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Haiyue Long
- Sichuan University Library, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Department of Pharmacy, The Air Force Hospital of Western Theater Command, Chengdu, China
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10
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Kim H, Kim JH, Cho H, Ko KS. Overexpression of a DNA Methyltransferase Increases Persister Cell Formation in Acinetobacter baumannii. Microbiol Spectr 2022; 10:e0265522. [PMID: 36416541 PMCID: PMC9769888 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02655-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Many mechanisms have been proposed to be involved in the formation of bacterial persister cells. In this study, we investigated the impact of dam encoding DNA methylation on persister cell formation in Acinetobacter. We constructed plasmids overexpressing dam encoding DNA-(adenine N6)-methyltransferase and four genes as possibly involved in persistence and introduced them into three A. baumannii strains. For persister cell formation assays, bacteria were exposed to ciprofloxacin, imipenem, cefotaxime, and rifampin, and the transcription levels of the genes were measured by qRT-PCR. In addition, growth curves of strains were determined. We found that all five genes were upregulated following antibiotic exposure. Dam overexpression increased persister cell formation rates and activated the four persister cell-involved genes. Among the four persister cell-involved genes, only RecC overexpression increase persister cell formation rates. While recC-overexpressing strains showed higher growth rates, dam-overexpressing strains showed decreased growth rates. In this study, we revealed that a DNA methyltransferase may regulate persister cell formation in A. baumannii, while RecC seems to mediate epigenetic regulation of persister cell formation. However, Dam and RecC may act at different persister cell formation states. IMPORTANCE Bacterial persister cells are not killed by high concentration of antibiotics, despite its antibiotic susceptibility. It has been known that they may cause antibiotic treatment failure and contribute to the evolution of antibiotic resistance. Although many mechanisms have been suggested and verified for persister cell formation, many remains to be uncovered. In this study, we report that DNA methyltransferase leads to an increase in persister cell formation, through transcriptional activation of several regulatory genes. Our results suggest that DNA methyltransferases could be target proteins to prevent formation of persister cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunkeun Kim
- Department of Microbiology, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Suwon, Republic of Korea
| | - Jee Hong Kim
- Department of Microbiology, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Suwon, Republic of Korea
| | - Hongbaek Cho
- Department of Biological Sciences, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, Republic of Korea
| | - Kwan Soo Ko
- Department of Microbiology, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Suwon, Republic of Korea
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11
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PurN Is Involved in Antibiotic Tolerance and Virulence in Staphylococcus aureus. Antibiotics (Basel) 2022; 11:antibiotics11121702. [PMID: 36551359 PMCID: PMC9774800 DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics11121702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Revised: 11/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Staphylococcus aureus can cause chronic infections which are closely related to persister formation. Purine metabolism is involved in S. aureus persister formation, and purN, encoding phosphoribosylglycinamide formyltransferase, is an important gene in the purine metabolism process. In this study, we generated a ΔpurN mutant of the S. aureus Newman strain and assessed its roles in antibiotic tolerance and virulence. The ΔpurN in the late exponential phase had a significant defect in persistence to antibiotics. Complementation of the ΔpurN restored its tolerance to different antibiotics. PurN significantly affected virulence gene expression, hemolytic ability, and biofilm formation in S. aureus. Moreover, the LD50 (3.28 × 1010 CFU/mL) of the ΔpurN for BALB/c mice was significantly higher than that of the parental strain (2.81 × 109 CFU/mL). Transcriptome analysis revealed that 58 genes that were involved in purine metabolism, alanine, aspartate, glutamate metabolism, and 2-oxocarboxylic acid metabolism, etc., were downregulated, while 24 genes involved in ABC transporter and transferase activity were upregulated in ΔpurN vs. parental strain. Protein-protein interaction network showed that there was a close relationship between PurN and GltB, and SaeRS. The study demonstrated that PurN participates in the formation of the late exponential phase S. aureus persisters via GltB and regulates its virulence by activating the SaeRS two-component system.
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Palladino G, Caroselli E, Tavella T, D'Amico F, Prada F, Mancuso A, Franzellitti S, Rampelli S, Candela M, Goffredo S, Biagi E. Metagenomic shifts in mucus, tissue and skeleton of the coral Balanophyllia europaea living along a natural CO 2 gradient. ISME COMMUNICATIONS 2022; 2:65. [PMID: 37938252 PMCID: PMC9723718 DOI: 10.1038/s43705-022-00152-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Revised: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 07/12/2022] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Using the Mediterranean coral Balanophyllia europaea naturally growing along a pH gradient close to Panarea island (Italy) as a model, we explored the role of host-associated microbiomes in coral acclimatization to ocean acidification (OA). Coral samples were collected at three sites along the gradient, mimicking seawater conditions projected for 2100 under different IPCC (The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) scenarios, and mucus, soft tissue and skeleton associated microbiomes were characterized by shotgun metagenomics. According to our findings, OA induced functional changes in the microbiomes genetic potential that could mitigate the sub-optimal environmental conditions at three levels: i. selection of bacteria genetically equipped with functions related to stress resistance; ii. shifts in microbial carbohydrate metabolism from energy production to maintenance of cell membranes and walls integrity; iii. gain of functions able to respond to variations in nitrogen needs at the holobiont level, such as genes devoted to organic nitrogen mobilization. We hence provided hypotheses about the functional role of the coral associated microbiome in favoring host acclimatation to OA, remarking on the importance of considering the crosstalk among all the components of the holobiont to unveil how and to what extent corals will maintain their functionality under forthcoming ocean conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgia Palladino
- Unit of Microbiome Science and Biotechnology, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy
| | - Erik Caroselli
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy
- Marine Science Group, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Selmi 3, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Teresa Tavella
- Unit of Microbiome Science and Biotechnology, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Federica D'Amico
- Unit of Microbiome Science and Biotechnology, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Fiorella Prada
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy
- Marine Science Group, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Selmi 3, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Arianna Mancuso
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy
- Marine Science Group, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Selmi 3, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Silvia Franzellitti
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy
- Animal and Environmental Physiology Laboratory, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Sant'Alberto 163, 48123, Ravenna, Italy
| | - Simone Rampelli
- Unit of Microbiome Science and Biotechnology, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Marco Candela
- Unit of Microbiome Science and Biotechnology, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy.
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy.
| | - Stefano Goffredo
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy.
- Marine Science Group, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, via Selmi 3, 40126, Bologna, Italy.
| | - Elena Biagi
- Unit of Microbiome Science and Biotechnology, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
- Fano Marine Center, The Inter-Institute Center for Research on Marine Biodiversity, Resources and Biotechnologies, viale Adriatico 1/N, 61032, Fano, Pesaro Urbino, Italy
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Martini MC, Vacca C, Torres Tejerizo GA, Draghi WO, Pistorio M, Lozano MJ, Lagares A, Del Papa MF. ubiF is involved in acid stress tolerance and symbiotic competitiveness in Rhizobium favelukesii LPU83. Braz J Microbiol 2022; 53:1633-1643. [PMID: 35704174 DOI: 10.1007/s42770-022-00780-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The acidity of soils significantly reduces the productivity of legumes mainly because of the detrimental effects of hydrogen ions on the legume plants, leading to the establishment of an inefficient symbiosis and poor biological nitrogen fixation. We recently reported the analysis of the fully sequenced genome of Rhizobium favelukesii LPU83, an alfalfa-nodulating rhizobium with a remarkable ability to grow, nodulate and compete in acidic conditions. To gain more insight into the genetic mechanisms leading to acid tolerance in R. favelukesii LPU83, we constructed a transposon mutant library and screened for mutants displaying a more acid-sensitive phenotype than the parental strain. We identified mutant Tn833 carrying a single-transposon insertion within LPU83_2531, an uncharacterized short ORF located immediately upstream from ubiF homolog. This gene encodes a protein with an enzymatic activity involved in the biosynthesis of ubiquinone. As the transposon was inserted near the 3' end of LPU83_2531 and these genes are cotranscribed as a part of the same operon, we hypothesized that the phenotype in Tn833 is most likely due to a polar effect on ubiF transcription.We found that a mutant in ubiF was impaired to grow at low pH and other abiotic stresses including 5 mM ascorbate and 0.500 mM Zn2+. Although the ubiF mutant retained the ability to nodulate alfalfa and Phaseolus vulgaris, it was unable to compete with the R. favelukesii LPU83 wild-type strain for nodulation in Medicago sativa and P. vulgaris, suggesting that ubiF is important for competitiveness. Here, we report for the first time an ubiF homolog being essential for nodulation competitiveness and tolerance to specific stresses in rhizobia.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Carla Martini
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Carolina Vacca
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Gonzalo A Torres Tejerizo
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Walter O Draghi
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Mariano Pistorio
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Mauricio J Lozano
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Antonio Lagares
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina
| | - María Florencia Del Papa
- Instituto de Biotecnología y Biología Molecular (IBBM, CCT-CONICET-La Plata), Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calles 115 49 y 50 (1900), Buenos Aires, La Plata, Argentina.
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Pleiotropic actions of phenothiazine drugs are detrimental to Gram-negative bacterial persister cells. Commun Biol 2022; 5:217. [PMID: 35264714 PMCID: PMC8907348 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03172-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 02/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacterial persister cells are temporarily tolerant to bactericidal antibiotics but are not necessarily dormant and may exhibit physiological activities leading to cell damage. Based on the link between fluoroquinolone-mediated SOS responses and persister cell recovery, we screened chemicals that target fluoroquinolone persisters. Metabolic inhibitors (e.g., phenothiazines) combined with ofloxacin (OFX) perturbed persister levels in metabolically active cell populations. When metabolically stimulated, intrinsically tolerant stationary phase cells also became OFX-sensitive in the presence of phenothiazines. The effects of phenothiazines on cell metabolism and physiology are highly pleiotropic: at sublethal concentrations, phenothiazines reduce cellular metabolic, transcriptional, and translational activities; impair cell repair and recovery mechanisms; transiently perturb membrane integrity; and disrupt proton motive force by dissipating the proton concentration gradient across the cell membrane. Screening a subset of mutant strains lacking membrane-bound proteins revealed the pleiotropic effects of phenothiazines potentially rely on their ability to inhibit a wide range of critical metabolic proteins. Altogether, our study further highlights the complex roles of metabolism in persister cell formation, survival and recovery, and suggests metabolic inhibitors such as phenothiazines can be selectively detrimental to persister cells.
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Abstract
Persisters are transiently nongrowing and antibiotic-tolerant phenotypic variants identified in major human pathogens, including intracellular Staphylococcus aureus. Due to their capacity to regrow once the environmental stress is relieved and to promote resistance, persisters possibly contribute to therapeutic failures. While persistence and its related quiescence have been mostly studied under starvation, little is known within host cell environments. Here, we examined how the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in different host cells affects dormancy depth of intracellular S. aureus. Using single-cell approaches, we found that host ROS induce variable dormant states in S. aureus persisters, displaying heterogeneous and increased lag times for resuscitation in liquid medium. Dormant persisters displayed decreased translation and energy metabolism, but remained infectious, exiting from dormancy and resuming growth when reinoculated in low-oxidative-stress cells. In high-oxidative-stress cells, ROS-induced ATP depletion was associated with the formation of visible dark foci similar to those induced by the protein aggregation inducer CCCP (carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone) and with the recruitment of the DnaK-ClpB chaperone system involved in the clearance of protein aggregates. ATP depletion led to higher fractions of dormant persisters than ROS, due to a counterbalancing effect of ROS-induced translational repression, suggesting a pivotal role of translation in the dormant phenotype. Consistently, protein synthesis inhibition limited dormancy to levels similar to those observed in low-oxidative-stress cells. This study supports the hypothesis that intracellular S. aureus persisters can reach heterogeneous dormancy depths and highlights the link between ROS, ATP depletion, dark focus formation, and subsequent dormancy state. IMPORTANCE By their capacity to survive to antibiotic pressure and to regrow and give rise to a susceptible population once this pressure is relieved, intracellular persisters of S. aureus may contribute to explain therapeutic failures and recurrent infections. Here, we show that the level of dormancy and the subsequent capacity to resuscitate from this resting state are dependent on the level of oxidative stress in the host cells where bacteria survive. This observation nourishes the debate as whether the most appropriate strategy to cope with S. aureus intracellular infections would consist of trying to push persisters to a deep dormancy state from which wakening is improbable or, on the contrary, to prevent ROS-induced dormancy and force bacteria to maintain regular metabolism in order to restore their responsiveness to antibiotics. Importantly also, our data highlight the interest in single-cell analyses with conventional enumeration of CFU to quantify persisters and study host-pathogen interactions.
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Tobramycin Stress Induced Differential Gene Expression in Acinetobacter baumannii. Curr Microbiol 2022; 79:88. [PMID: 35129693 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-022-02788-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Acinetobacter baumannii is a multidrug-resistant bacteria responsible for nosocomial infections with significant fatality rates globally. Therapeutic failure and relapse of infection has been associated with persister cells formation which can also lead to resistance in A. baumannii. In the present study, we observed that A. baumannii ATCC 17978 in exponential phase survived lethal concentrations of amikacin, rifampicin and ciprofloxacin by generating persister cells but was unable to survive tobramycin treatment. The transcriptome of A. baumannii ATCC 17978 was analyzed following exposure to a high concentration of tobramycin (10 × MIC) for a short period of time to study the possible mechanisms responsible for lethality. Tobramycin reduced the expression of genes involved in energy production (nuoH, nuoN, nuoM, cydA, sucC), oxidative stress protection (tauD, cysD), and nutrition uptake (ompW) significantly. In addition, hemerythrin (non-heme di-iron oxygen-binding protein) was found to be the most downregulated gene in response to tobramycin which needs to be further studied for its role in susceptibility to antibiotics. Tobramycin upregulated the expression of genes that are mainly involved in stress response (leucine catabolism, DNA repair and HicAB toxin-antitoxin system). The differentially expressed genes highlighted in the study provided insight into the probable molecular mechanism of tobramycin-induced cell death and revealed some novel targets that can be explored further for their potential to control A. baumannii.
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Van den Bergh B, Schramke H, Michiels JE, Kimkes TEP, Radzikowski JL, Schimpf J, Vedelaar SR, Burschel S, Dewachter L, Lončar N, Schmidt A, Meijer T, Fauvart M, Friedrich T, Michiels J, Heinemann M. Mutations in respiratory complex I promote antibiotic persistence through alterations in intracellular acidity and protein synthesis. Nat Commun 2022; 13:546. [PMID: 35087069 PMCID: PMC8795404 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28141-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Antibiotic persistence describes the presence of phenotypic variants within an isogenic bacterial population that are transiently tolerant to antibiotic treatment. Perturbations of metabolic homeostasis can promote antibiotic persistence, but the precise mechanisms are not well understood. Here, we use laboratory evolution, population-wide sequencing and biochemical characterizations to identify mutations in respiratory complex I and discover how they promote persistence in Escherichia coli. We show that persistence-inducing perturbations of metabolic homeostasis are associated with cytoplasmic acidification. Such cytoplasmic acidification is further strengthened by compromised proton pumping in the complex I mutants. While RpoS regulon activation induces persistence in the wild type, the aggravated cytoplasmic acidification in the complex I mutants leads to increased persistence via global shutdown of protein synthesis. Thus, we propose that cytoplasmic acidification, amplified by a compromised complex I, can act as a signaling hub for perturbed metabolic homeostasis in antibiotic persisters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bram Van den Bergh
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, Department of Molecular and Microbial Systems, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Center for Microbiology, Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, VIB, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Entomology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Hannah Schramke
- Molecular Systems Biology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Joran Elie Michiels
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, Department of Molecular and Microbial Systems, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Center for Microbiology, Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, VIB, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Tom E P Kimkes
- Molecular Systems Biology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Jakub Leszek Radzikowski
- Molecular Systems Biology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Johannes Schimpf
- Molecular Bioenergetics, Institute of Biochemistry, Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Silke R Vedelaar
- Molecular Systems Biology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Sabrina Burschel
- Molecular Bioenergetics, Institute of Biochemistry, Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Liselot Dewachter
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, Department of Molecular and Microbial Systems, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Center for Microbiology, Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, VIB, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Nikola Lončar
- Molecular Enzymology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Alexander Schmidt
- Proteomics Core Facility, Biozentrum, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Tim Meijer
- Molecular Systems Biology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Maarten Fauvart
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, Department of Molecular and Microbial Systems, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Center for Microbiology, Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, VIB, Leuven, Belgium
- imec, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Thorsten Friedrich
- Molecular Bioenergetics, Institute of Biochemistry, Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Jan Michiels
- Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, Department of Molecular and Microbial Systems, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
- Center for Microbiology, Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, VIB, Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Matthias Heinemann
- Molecular Systems Biology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, Groningen, The Netherlands.
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Kaushik V, Sharma S, Tiwari M, Tiwari V. Anti-persister strategies against stress induced bacterial persistence. Microb Pathog 2022; 164:105423. [PMID: 35092834 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2022.105423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2021] [Revised: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
The increase in antibiotic non-responsive bacteria is the leading concern in current research-oriented to eliminate pathogens. Nowadays, the excess use of antibiotics without specifically understanding the potentiality of killing pathogens and bacterial survival patterns has helped bacteria emerge indefatigably. Bacteria use various mechanisms such as resistance, persistence, and tolerance to ensure survival. Among these, persistence is a mechanism by which bacteria reside in their dormant state, bypassing the effects of treatments, making it crucial for bacterial survival. Persistent bacterial cells arise from the normal bacterial population as a slow-growing subset of bacteria with no metabolic flux. This behavior renders it to survive for a longer duration and at higher concentrations of antibiotics. They are one of the underlying causes of recurrence of bacterial infections. The present article explains the detailed molecular mechanisms and strategies of bacterial persistence, including the toxin-antitoxin modules, DNA damage, the formation of inactive ribosomal complexes, (p)ppGpp network, antibiotic-induced persistence, which are triggered by drug-induced stress. The article also comprehensively covers the epigenetic memory of persistence in bacteria, and anti-persistent therapeutics like antimicrobial molecules, synthetic peptides, acyldepsipeptide antibiotics, and endolysin therapy to reduce persister cell formation and control their frequency. These strategies could be utilized in combating the pathogenic bacteria undergoing persistence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vaishali Kaushik
- Department of Biochemistry, Central University of Rajasthan, Bandarsindri, Ajmer, 305817, India
| | - Saroj Sharma
- Department of Biochemistry, Central University of Rajasthan, Bandarsindri, Ajmer, 305817, India
| | - Monalisa Tiwari
- Department of Biochemistry, Central University of Rajasthan, Bandarsindri, Ajmer, 305817, India
| | - Vishvanath Tiwari
- Department of Biochemistry, Central University of Rajasthan, Bandarsindri, Ajmer, 305817, India.
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Wan Y, Wang M, Chan EWC, Chen S. Membrane Transporters of the Major Facilitator Superfamily Are Essential for Long-Term Maintenance of Phenotypic Tolerance to Multiple Antibiotics in E. coli. Microbiol Spectr 2021; 9:e0184621. [PMID: 34787438 PMCID: PMC8597633 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.01846-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Antibiotic tolerance is not only the key underlying the cause of recurrent and chronic bacterial infections but it is also a factor linked to exacerbation of diseases, such as tuberculosis, cystic fibrosis-associated lung infection, and candidiasis. This phenomenon was previously attributed to a switch to physiological dormancy in a bacterial subpopulation triggered by environmental signals. However, we recently showed that expression of phenotypic antibiotic tolerance during nutrient starvation is highly dependent on robust production of proteins that actively maintain the bacterial transmembrane proton motive force (PMF), even under a nutrient-deficient environment. To investigate why PMF needs to be maintained for expression of phenotypic antibiotic tolerance, we tested the relative functional role of known transporters and efflux pumps in tolerance development by assessing the effect of deletion of specific efflux pump and transporter-encoding genes on long-term maintenance of antibiotic tolerance in an Escherichia coli population under starvation. We identified eight specific efflux pumps and transporters and two known efflux pump components, namely, ChaA, EmrK, EmrY, SsuA, NhaA, GadC, YdjK, YphD, TolC, and ChaB, that play a key role in tolerance development and maintenance. In particular, deletion of each of the nhaA and chaB genes is sufficient to totally abolish the tolerance phenotypes during prolonged antimicrobial treatment. These findings therefore depict active, efflux-mediated bacterial tolerance mechanisms and facilitate design of intervention strategies to prevent and treat chronic and recurrent infections due to persistence of antibiotic-tolerant subpopulations in the human body. IMPORTANCE We recently showed that the antibiotic-tolerant subpopulation of bacteria or persisters actively maintain the transmembrane proton motive force (PMF) to survive starvation stress for a prolonged period. This work further shows that the reason why antibiotic persisters need to maintain PMF is that PMF is required to support a range of efflux or transportation functions. Intriguingly, we found that tolerance-maintaining efflux activities were mainly encoded by 10 efflux or transporter genes. Because our study showed that deletion of even one of these genes could cause a significant reduction in tolerance level, we conclude that the products of these genes play an essential role in enhancing the survival fitness of bacteria during starvation or under other adverse environmental conditions. These gene products are therefore excellent targets for future design of antimicrobial agents that eradicate antibiotic tolerant persisters and prevent occurrence of chronic and recurrent human infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yingkun Wan
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Miaomiao Wang
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Edward Wai Chi Chan
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
- State Key Lab of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Sheng Chen
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
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Mohiuddin SG, Ghosh S, Ngo HG, Sensenbach S, Karki P, Dewangan NK, Angardi V, Orman MA. Cellular Self-Digestion and Persistence in Bacteria. Microorganisms 2021; 9:2269. [PMID: 34835393 PMCID: PMC8626048 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9112269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2021] [Revised: 10/25/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Cellular self-digestion is an evolutionarily conserved process occurring in prokaryotic cells that enables survival under stressful conditions by recycling essential energy molecules. Self-digestion, which is triggered by extracellular stress conditions, such as nutrient depletion and overpopulation, induces degradation of intracellular components. This self-inflicted damage renders the bacterium less fit to produce building blocks and resume growth upon exposure to fresh nutrients. However, self-digestion may also provide temporary protection from antibiotics until the self-digestion-mediated damage is repaired. In fact, many persistence mechanisms identified to date may be directly or indirectly related to self-digestion, as these processes are also mediated by many degradative enzymes, including proteases and ribonucleases (RNases). In this review article, we will discuss the potential roles of self-digestion in bacterial persistence.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Mehmet A. Orman
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77004, USA; (S.G.M.); (S.G.); (H.G.N.); (S.S.); (P.K.); (N.K.D.); (V.A.)
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Wang M, Chan EWC, Wan Y, Wong MHY, Chen S. Active maintenance of proton motive force mediates starvation-induced bacterial antibiotic tolerance in Escherichia coli. Commun Biol 2021; 4:1068. [PMID: 34521984 PMCID: PMC8440630 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02612-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Accepted: 08/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent evidence suggests that metabolic shutdown alone does not fully explain how bacteria exhibit phenotypic antibiotic tolerance. In an attempt to investigate the range of starvation-induced physiological responses underlying tolerance development, we found that active maintenance of the transmembrane proton motive force (PMF) is essential for prolonged expression of antibiotic tolerance in bacteria. Eradication of tolerant sub-population could be achieved by disruption of PMF using the ionophore CCCP, or through suppression of PMF maintenance mechanisms by simultaneous inhibition of the phage shock protein (Psp) response and electron transport chain (ETC) complex activities. We consider disruption of bacterial PMF a feasible strategy for treatment of chronic and recurrent bacterial infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miaomiao Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Edward Wai Chi Chan
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Yingkun Wan
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Marcus Ho-Yin Wong
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Sheng Chen
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
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22
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Activation of metabolic and stress responses during subtoxic expression of the type I toxin hok in Erwinia amylovora. BMC Genomics 2021; 22:74. [PMID: 33482720 PMCID: PMC7821729 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-021-07376-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2020] [Accepted: 01/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems, abundant in prokaryotes, are composed of a toxin gene and its cognate antitoxin. Several toxins are implied to affect the physiological state and stress tolerance of bacteria in a population. We previously identified a chromosomally encoded hok-sok type I TA system in Erwinia amylovora, the causative agent of fire blight disease on pome fruit trees. A high-level induction of the hok gene was lethal to E. amylovora cells through unknown mechanisms. The molecular targets or regulatory roles of Hok were unknown. Results Here, we examined the physiological and transcriptomic changes of Erwinia amylovora cells expressing hok at subtoxic levels that were confirmed to confer no cell death, and at toxic levels that resulted in killing of cells. In both conditions, hok caused membrane rupture and collapse of the proton motive force in a subpopulation of E. amylovora cells. We demonstrated that induction of hok resulted in upregulation of ATP biosynthesis genes, and caused leakage of ATP from cells only at toxic levels. We showed that overexpression of the phage shock protein gene pspA largely reversed the cell death phenotype caused by high levels of hok induction. We also showed that induction of hok at a subtoxic level rendered a greater proportion of stationary phase E. amylovora cells tolerant to the antibiotic streptomycin. Conclusions We characterized the molecular mechanism of toxicity by high-level of hok induction and demonstrated that low-level expression of hok primes the stress responses of E. amylovora against further membrane and antibiotic stressors. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-021-07376-w.
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23
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Xu Y, Liu S, Zhang Y, Zhang W. DNA adenine methylation is involved in persister formation in E. coli. Microbiol Res 2021; 246:126709. [PMID: 33578264 DOI: 10.1016/j.micres.2021.126709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2020] [Revised: 01/04/2021] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is a major cause of urinary tract infections (UTI). UPEC persister bacteria play crucial roles in clinical treatment failure and relapse. Although DNA methylation is known to regulate gene expression, its role in persister formation has not been investigated. Here, we show that Δdam (adenine methylase) mutant from UPEC strain UTI89 had significant defect in persister formation and complementation of the Δdam mutant restored this defect. Using PacBio sequencing of methylome and RNA sequencing of Δdam, we defined, for the first time, the role of Dam in persister formation. We found that Δdam mutation had an overwhelming effect on demethylation of the genome and the demethylation sites affected expression of genes involved in broad transcriptional and metabolic processes. Using comparative COG analysis of methylome and transcriptome, we demonstrate that Dam mediates persister formation through transcriptional control, cell motility, DNA repair and metabolite transport processes. These findings provide the first evidence and molecular basis for DNA methylation mediated persister formation and implicate Dam DNA methylation as a potential drug target for persister bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanyuan Xu
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, 200040, China
| | - Shuang Liu
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, 200040, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, 21205, USA.
| | - Wenhong Zhang
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, 200040, China.
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24
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Luo JM, Zhu WC, Cao ST, Lu ZY, Zhang MH, Song B, Shen YB, Wang M. Improving Biotransformation Efficiency of Arthrobacter simplex by Enhancement of Cell Stress Tolerance and Enzyme Activity. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2021; 69:704-716. [PMID: 33406824 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.0c06592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Arthrobacter simplex exhibits excellent Δ1-dehydrogenation ability, but the acquisition of the desirable strain is limited due to lacking of comprehensive genetic manipulation. Herein, a promoter collection for fine-tuning gene expression was achieved. Next, the expression level was enhanced and directed evolution of the global transcriptional factor (IrrE) was applied to enhance cell viability in systems containing more substrate and ethanol, thus contributing to higher production. IrrE promotes a stronger antioxidant defense system, more energy generation, and changed signal transduction. Using a stronger promoter, the enzyme activities were boosted but their positive effects on biotransformation performance were inferior to cell stress tolerance when exposed to challenging systems. Finally, an optimal strain was created by collectively reinforcing cell stress tolerance and catalytic enzyme activity, achieving a yield 261.8% higher relative to the initial situation. Our study provided effective methods for steroid-transforming strains with high efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-Mei Luo
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
| | - Wen-Cheng Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
| | - Shu-Ting Cao
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
| | - Zhi-Yi Lu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
| | - Meng-Han Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
| | - Bo Song
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
| | - Yan-Bing Shen
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
| | - Min Wang
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology (Tianjin University of Science and Technology), Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, P. R. China
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25
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Li T, Wang J, Cao Q, Li F, Han J, Zhu B, Zhang Y, Niu H. Identification of Novel Genes Involved in Escherichia coli Persistence to Tosufloxacin. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2020; 10:581986. [PMID: 33117736 PMCID: PMC7561378 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2020.581986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2020] [Accepted: 09/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Persisters are metabolically quiescent phenotypic variants of the wild type that are tolerant to cidal antibiotics, and the mechanisms of persister formation and survival are complex and not completely understood. To identify genes involved in persistence to tosufloxacin, which has higher activity against persisters than most other quinolones, we screened the E. coli KEIO mutant library using a different condition from most persister mutant screens (6 h) with a longer exposure of 18 h with tosufloxacin. We identified 18 mutants (acrA, acrB, ddlB, dnaG, gltI, hlpA, lpcA, recG, recN, rfaH, ruvC, surA, tatC, tolQ, uvrD, xseA, and ydfI) that failed to form tosufloxacin tolerant persisters. Among them, gltI, hlpA, ruvC, ddlB, ydfI, and tatC are unique genes involved in E. coli persistence to tosufloxacin which have not been reported before. Furthermore, deletion mutants in genes coding periplasmic proteins (surA, lpcA, hlpA, and gltI) had more defect in persistence to tosufloxacin than the other identified mutants, with surA and lpcA mutants being the most prominent. The “deep” persister phenotype of surA and lpcA mutants was further confirmed both in vitro and in vivo. Compared with the wild type strain E. coli BW25113 in vitro, the persister phenotype of the surA and lpcA mutants was decreased more than 100–1,000-fold in persistence to various antibiotics, acidic, hyperosmotic and heat conditions. In addition, in both stationary phase bacteria and biofilm bacteria infection mouse models, the surA and lpcA mutants had lower survival and persistence than the parent uropathogenic strain UTI89, suggesting that the in vitro identified persister mechanisms (surA and lpcA) are operative and valid for in vivo persistence. Our findings provide new insight into the mechanisms of persister formation and maintenance under tosufloxacin and will likely provide novel therapeutic and vaccine targets for developing more effective treatment and prevention of persistent E. coli infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tuodi Li
- Institute of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Juan Wang
- Institute of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Qianqian Cao
- Institute of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Fei Li
- Institute of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Jiangyuan Han
- Institute of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Bingdong Zhu
- Institute of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Hongxia Niu
- Institute of Pathogenic Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
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26
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Li W, Zhao Y, Yu J, Lin L, Ramanathan S, Wang G, Lin X, Pang H. TonB-Dependent Receptors Affect the Spontaneous Oxytetracycline Resistance Evolution in Aeromonas hydrophila. J Proteome Res 2020; 20:154-163. [PMID: 32911932 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.9b00708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
It is well known that most microbial populations develop their intrinsic antibiotics resistance at low concentrations in antibiotics environments, but the factors influencing spontaneous resistance are still largely unknown. In this study, Aeromonas hydrophila strains with different resistance levels to oxytetracycline (OXY) were induced by sublethal antibiotic selection pressure, and differential expression of proteins was compared among them using iTRAQ-based quantitative proteomics. Our following bioinformatic analysis showed that energy metabolism-related proteins were downregulated, while several iron-related proteins were upregulated in high OXY-resistant strains. To further investigate the role of spontaneous OXY resistance evolution, four TonB-dependent receptor-coded genes were deleted, and their OXY susceptibility capabilities and antibiotic evolutionary assays were performed, respectively. Our results showed that the deletion of these genes did not affect the susceptibility to OXY, but showed different evolution rates in the spontaneous OXY evolution compared with wild-type strain, especially for AHA_0971 and AHA_4251. Therefore, this study indicates the important role of TonB-dependent receptor proteins during the bacterial antibiotics resistance evolution and may provide a new prophylactic strategy against the development of antibiotic resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wanxin Li
- Shenzhen Institute of Guangdong Ocean University, Shenzhen 510000, PR China.,Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University), Fujian Province University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China
| | - Yiyang Zhao
- Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University), Fujian Province University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China
| | - Jing Yu
- Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University), Fujian Province University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China
| | - Ling Lin
- Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University), Fujian Province University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China
| | - Srinivasan Ramanathan
- Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University), Fujian Province University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China
| | - Guibin Wang
- Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University), Fujian Province University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center for Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing 102206, PR China
| | - Xiangmin Lin
- Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China.,Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University), Fujian Province University, Fuzhou 35002, PR China
| | - Huanying Pang
- Shenzhen Institute of Guangdong Ocean University, Shenzhen 510000, PR China.,Fisheries College, Guangdong Ocean University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Biology and Epidemiology for Aquatic Economic Animals, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Control for Diseases of Aquatic Economic Animals, Zhanjiang 524025, PR China
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27
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Salcedo-Sora JE, Kell DB. A Quantitative Survey of Bacterial Persistence in the Presence of Antibiotics: Towards Antipersister Antimicrobial Discovery. Antibiotics (Basel) 2020; 9:E508. [PMID: 32823501 PMCID: PMC7460088 DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics9080508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2020] [Revised: 08/08/2020] [Accepted: 08/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Bacterial persistence to antibiotics relates to the phenotypic ability to survive lethal concentrations of otherwise bactericidal antibiotics. The quantitative nature of the time-kill assay, which is the sector's standard for the study of antibiotic bacterial persistence, is an invaluable asset for global, unbiased, and cross-species analyses. Methods: We compiled the results of antibiotic persistence from antibiotic-sensitive bacteria during planktonic growth. The data were extracted from a sample of 187 publications over the last 50 years. The antibiotics used in this compilation were also compared in terms of structural similarity to fluorescent molecules known to accumulate in Escherichia coli. Results: We reviewed in detail data from 54 antibiotics and 36 bacterial species. Persistence varies widely as a function of the type of antibiotic (membrane-active antibiotics admit the fewest), the nature of the growth phase and medium (persistence is less common in exponential phase and rich media), and the Gram staining of the target organism (persistence is more common in Gram positives). Some antibiotics bear strong structural similarity to fluorophores known to be taken up by E. coli, potentially allowing competitive assays. Some antibiotics also, paradoxically, seem to allow more persisters at higher antibiotic concentrations. Conclusions: We consolidated an actionable knowledge base to support a rational development of antipersister antimicrobials. Persistence is seen as a step on the pathway to antimicrobial resistance, and we found no organisms that failed to exhibit it. Novel antibiotics need to have antipersister activity. Discovery strategies should include persister-specific approaches that could find antibiotics that preferably target the membrane structure and permeability of slow-growing cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesus Enrique Salcedo-Sora
- Department of Biochemistry and Systems Biology, Institute of Systems, Molecular and Integrative Biology, Biosciences Building, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool L69 7ZB, UK;
| | - Douglas B. Kell
- Department of Biochemistry and Systems Biology, Institute of Systems, Molecular and Integrative Biology, Biosciences Building, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool L69 7ZB, UK;
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Centre for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, Building 220, Kemitorvet, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
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28
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Ovsepian A, Larsen MH, Vegge CS, Ingmer H. Ciprofloxacin-induced persister-cells in Campylobacter jejuni. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2020; 166:849-853. [PMID: 32697188 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.000953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Campylobacter jejuni is a major bacterial foodborne-pathogen. Ciprofloxacin is an important antibiotic for the treatment of C. jejuni, albeit high rates of fluoroquinolone resistance have limited its usefulness. Persister-cells are transiently antibiotic-tolerant fractions of bacterial populations and their occurrence has been associated with recalcitrant and persistent bacterial infections. Here, time-kill assays with ciprofloxacin (200×MIC, 25 µg ml-1) were performed in C. jejuni strains 81-176 and RM1221 and persister-cells were found. The frequency of survivors after 8 h of ciprofloxacin exposure was approx. 10-3 for both strains, while after 22 h the frequency was between 10-5-10-7, depending on the strain and growth-phase. Interestingly, the stationary-phase cultures did not display more persister-cells compared to exponential-phase cultures, in contrast to what has been observed in other bacterial species. Persister-cells after ampicillin exposure (100×MIC, 200 µg ml-1) were not detected, implying that persister-cell formation in C. jejuni is antibiotic-specific. In attempts to identify the mechanism of ciprofloxacin persister-cell formation, stringent or SOS responses were not found to play major roles. Overall, this study reports ciprofloxacin persister-cells in C. jejuni and challenges the notion of persister-cells as plainly dormant non-growing cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Armen Ovsepian
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Stigboejlen 4, DK-1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Marianne Halberg Larsen
- Present address: Chr. Hansen, Hørsholm, Denmark.,Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Stigboejlen 4, DK-1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Christina Skovgaard Vegge
- Present address: Bacthera, Hørsholm, Denmark.,Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Stigboejlen 4, DK-1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Hanne Ingmer
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Stigboejlen 4, DK-1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
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29
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Abokhalil RN, Elkhatib WF, Aboulwafa MM, Hassouna NA. Persisters of Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis: A Common Phenomenon and Different Behavior Profiles. Curr Microbiol 2020; 77:1233-1244. [PMID: 32123985 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-020-01926-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2019] [Accepted: 02/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Persisters of infectious agents are capable of surviving antibiotic treatment so the emergence of these subpopulations need to be overcome. In this study, we aimed to isolate, characterize and inhibit persister subpopulation in two clinical isolates Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis. Different behavior profiles between the two isolates could be observed. The results of dose-dependent killing curve revealed that 2.3% (Klebsiella pneumoniae) versus 1.3% (Proteus mirabilis) persister cells could be recovered using 500 and 30 ug/ml ciprofloxacin, respectively. Upon resuscitation, persister cells exhibited only 65% versus 30% percentage growth and 5 versus 7 times cell elongation relative to Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis, respectively. The levels of persister cells to ciprofloxacin of Klebsiella pneumoniae were dramatically decreased by about 79, 92, 97 and 83% in average by pre-exposure to hyperosmotic stress, temperature, different pHs, and hydrogen peroxide, respectively, while those of Proteus mirabilis were minimally decreased with corresponding reduction percentages of about 12%, 24 & 25%, and 0%. Regarding combating persisters, Klebsiella pneumoniae showed different response as compared to Proteus mirabilis. Among the tested sugars, the highest reduction of Klebsiella pneumoniae persister cells was obtained with pre-priming with sucrose while for Proteus mirabilis persister cells, the highest reduction was obtained with pre-priming with glucose. Using sodium salicylate with ciprofloxacin could eradicate persisters of Klebsiella pneumoniae at any tested concentration while for Proteus mirabilis it caused some reduction in persister cells at certain concentrations. Complete eradication of persisters was obtained by combining silver nitrate with ciprofloxacin for each test isolate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rana N Abokhalil
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Organization of African Unity St., Abbassia, POB: 11566, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Walid F Elkhatib
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Organization of African Unity St., Abbassia, POB: 11566, Cairo, Egypt
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Industries, Badr University in Cairo (BUC), Entertainment Area, Badr City, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Mohammad M Aboulwafa
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Organization of African Unity St., Abbassia, POB: 11566, Cairo, Egypt.
| | - Nadia A Hassouna
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Organization of African Unity St., Abbassia, POB: 11566, Cairo, Egypt
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30
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iTRAQ-based proteomic analyses of the plant-pathogenic bacterium Acidovorax citrulli during entrance into and resuscitation from the viable but nonculturable state. J Proteomics 2020; 211:103547. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2019.103547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2019] [Revised: 09/28/2019] [Accepted: 10/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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31
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Muropeptides Stimulate Growth Resumption from Stationary Phase in Escherichia coli. Sci Rep 2019; 9:18043. [PMID: 31792329 PMCID: PMC6888817 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-54646-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2019] [Accepted: 11/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
When nutrients run out, bacteria enter a dormant metabolic state. This low or undetectable metabolic activity helps bacteria to preserve their scant reserves for the future needs, yet it also diminishes their ability to scan the environment for new growth-promoting substrates. However, neighboring microbial growth is a reliable indicator of a favorable environment and can thus serve as a cue for exiting dormancy. Here we report that for Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa this cue is provided by the basic peptidoglycan unit (i.e. muropeptide). We show that several forms of muropeptides from a variety of bacterial species can stimulate growth resumption of dormant cells and the sugar – peptide bond is crucial for this activity. These results, together with previous research that identifies muropeptides as a germination signal for bacterial spores, and their detection by mammalian immune cells, show that muropeptides are a universal cue for bacterial growth.
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32
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Bacterial persistence: Fundamentals and clinical importance. J Microbiol 2019; 57:829-835. [PMID: 31463787 DOI: 10.1007/s12275-019-9218-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2019] [Revised: 06/19/2019] [Accepted: 06/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The threat of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is increasing worldwide. Bacteria utilize persistence and resistance to survive antibiotic stress. For a long time, persistence has been studied only under laboratory conditions. Hence, studies of bacterial persistence are limited. Recently, however, the high incidence of infection relapses caused by persister cells in immunocompromised patients has emphasized the importance of persister research. Furthermore, persister pathogens are one of the causes of chronic infectious diseases, leading to the overuse of antibiotics and the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Therefore, understanding the precise mechanism of persister formation is important for continued use of available antibiotics. In this review, we aimed to provide an overview of the persister studies published to date and the current knowledge of persister formation mechanisms. Recent studies of the features and mechanisms of persister formation are analyzed from the perspective of the nature of the persister cell.
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33
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Khlebodarova TM, Likhoshvai VA. Molecular Mechanisms of Non-Inherited Antibiotic Tolerance in Bacteria and Archaea. Mol Biol 2019. [DOI: 10.1134/s0026893319040058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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34
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Muller I, Jex AR, Kappe SHI, Mikolajczak SA, Sattabongkot J, Patrapuvich R, Lindner S, Flannery EL, Koepfli C, Ansell B, Lerch A, Emery-Corbin SJ, Charnaud S, Smith J, Merrienne N, Swearingen KE, Moritz RL, Petter M, Duffy MF, Chuenchob V. Transcriptome and histone epigenome of Plasmodium vivax salivary-gland sporozoites point to tight regulatory control and mechanisms for liver-stage differentiation in relapsing malaria. Int J Parasitol 2019; 49:501-513. [PMID: 31071319 PMCID: PMC9973533 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpara.2019.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2018] [Revised: 02/01/2019] [Accepted: 02/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Plasmodium vivax is the key obstacle to malaria elimination in Asia and Latin America, largely attributed to its ability to form resilient hypnozoites (sleeper cells) in the host liver that escape treatment and cause relapsing infections. The decision to form hypnozoites is made early in the liver infection and may already be set in sporozoites prior to invasion. To better understand these early stages of infection, we undertook a comprehensive transcriptomic and histone epigenetic characterization of P. vivax sporozoites. Through comparisons with recently published proteomic data for the P. vivax sporozoite, our study found that although highly transcribed, transcripts associated with functions needed for early infection of the vertebrate host are not detectable as proteins and may be regulated through translational repression. We identified differential transcription between the sporozoite and published transcriptomes of asexual blood stages and mixed versus hypnozoite-enriched liver stages. These comparisons point to multiple layers of transcriptional, post-transcriptional and post-translational control that appear active in sporozoites and to a lesser extent hypnozoites, but are largely absent in replicating liver schizonts or mixed blood stages. We also characterised histone epigenetic modifications in the P. vivax sporozoite and explored their role in regulating transcription. Collectively, these data support the hypothesis that the sporozoite is a tightly programmed stage to infect the human host and identify mechanisms for hypnozoite formation that may be further explored in liver stage models.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ivo Muller
- Population Health and Immunity Division, The Walter and
Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, 1G Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria,
3052, Australia,Malaria: Parasites & Hosts Unit, Institut Pasteur, 28
Rue de Dr. Roux, 75015, Paris, France,Department of Medical Biology, The University of Melbourne,
Victoria, 3010, Australia
| | - Aaron R. Jex
- Population Health and Immunity Division, The Walter and
Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, 1G Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria,
3052, Australia,Department of Medical Biology, The University of Melbourne,
Victoria, 3010, Australia,Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The
University of Melbourne, Corner of Park and Flemington Road, Parkville, Victoria,
3010, Australia
| | - Stefan H. I. Kappe
- Seattle Children’s Research Institute, 307 Westlake
Avenue North, Suite 500, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Sebastian A. Mikolajczak
- Seattle Children’s Research Institute, 307 Westlake
Avenue North, Suite 500, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Jetsumon Sattabongkot
- Mahidol Vivax Research Center, Faculty of Tropical
Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
| | | | - Scott Lindner
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Center
for Malaria Research, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802,
USA
| | - Erika L. Flannery
- Seattle Children’s Research Institute, 307 Westlake
Avenue North, Suite 500, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Cristian Koepfli
- Population Health and Immunity Division, The Walter and
Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, 1G Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria,
3052, Australia
| | - Brendan Ansell
- Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The
University of Melbourne, Corner of Park and Flemington Road, Parkville, Victoria,
3010, Australia
| | - Anita Lerch
- Population Health and Immunity Division, The Walter and
Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, 1G Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria,
3052, Australia
| | - Samantha J Emery-Corbin
- Population Health and Immunity Division, The Walter and
Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, 1G Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria,
3052, Australia
| | - Sarah Charnaud
- Population Health and Immunity Division, The Walter and
Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, 1G Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria,
3052, Australia
| | - Jeffrey Smith
- Population Health and Immunity Division, The Walter and
Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research, 1G Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria,
3052, Australia
| | - Nicolas Merrienne
- Malaria: Parasites & Hosts Unit, Institut Pasteur, 28
Rue de Dr. Roux, 75015, Paris, France
| | | | | | - Michaela Petter
- Department of Medicine Royal Melbourne Hospital, The Peter
Doherty Institute, The University of Melbourne, 792 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne,
Victoria 3000, Australia,Institute of Microbiology, University Hospital Erlangen,
Erlangen 91054, Germany
| | - Michael F. Duffy
- Department of Medicine Royal Melbourne Hospital, The Peter
Doherty Institute, The University of Melbourne, 792 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne,
Victoria 3000, Australia
| | - Vorada Chuenchob
- Seattle Children’s Research Institute, 307 Westlake
Avenue North, Suite 500, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
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35
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Zhang L, Yu W, Tang Y, Li H, Ma X, Liu Z. RNA chaperone hfq mediates persistence to multiple antibiotics in Aeromonas veronii. Microb Pathog 2019; 132:124-128. [PMID: 31054368 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2019.04.045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2019] [Revised: 04/17/2019] [Accepted: 04/30/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Pathogenic Aeromonas veronii results in great healthy and economic losses in fishes and human. The multiple drug tolerance of bacterial persister is the major cause for recurrent infections. Ubiquitous RNA-binding protein Hfq is liable for antibiotic tolerance and persisiter production. We showed that the hfq deletion in A. veronii retarded the growth, reduced the tolerances to diverse antibiotics, and lowered the persistence. Such effects might be mediated by the downregulations of RelE, CspD, ClpB, RpoS, OxyR, and upregulation of OppB. Our study supports the role of Hfq in persister formation and provides clues for the avoidance of recalcitrant infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Biological Resources of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences and Pharmacy, Hainan University, 570228, Haikou, China.
| | - Wenjing Yu
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Biological Resources of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences and Pharmacy, Hainan University, 570228, Haikou, China.
| | - Yanqiong Tang
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Biological Resources of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences and Pharmacy, Hainan University, 570228, Haikou, China.
| | - Hong Li
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Biological Resources of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences and Pharmacy, Hainan University, 570228, Haikou, China.
| | - Xiang Ma
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Biological Resources of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences and Pharmacy, Hainan University, 570228, Haikou, China.
| | - Zhu Liu
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Biological Resources of Ministry of Education, School of Life Sciences and Pharmacy, Hainan University, 570228, Haikou, China.
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36
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Niveshika, Maurya SK, Tiwari B, Chakraborty S, Verma E, Mishra R, Mishra AK. Cyanobacterial bioactive compound EMTAHDCA recovers splenomegaly, affects protein profile of E. coli and spleen of lymphoma bearing mice. Mol Biol Rep 2019; 46:2617-2629. [DOI: 10.1007/s11033-019-04659-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2018] [Accepted: 01/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
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37
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Identification of novel genes involved in high hydrostatic pressure resistance of Escherichia coli. Food Microbiol 2019; 78:171-178. [DOI: 10.1016/j.fm.2018.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2018] [Revised: 09/19/2018] [Accepted: 10/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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38
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Mandal S, Njikan S, Kumar A, Early JV, Parish T. The relevance of persisters in tuberculosis drug discovery. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2019; 165:492-499. [PMID: 30775961 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.000760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Bacterial persisters are a subpopulation of cells that exhibit phenotypic resistance during exposure to a lethal dose of antibiotics. They are difficult to target and thought to contribute to the long treatment duration required for tuberculosis. Understanding the molecular and cellular biology of persisters is critical to finding new tuberculosis drugs that shorten treatment. This review focuses on mycobacterial persisters and describes the challenges they pose in tuberculosis therapy, their characteristics and formation, how persistence leads to resistance, and the current approaches being used to target persisters within mycobacterial drug discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soma Mandal
- TB Discovery Research, Infectious Disease Research Institute, 1616 Eastlake Ave. E, Suite 400, Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | - Samuel Njikan
- TB Discovery Research, Infectious Disease Research Institute, 1616 Eastlake Ave. E, Suite 400, Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | - Anuradha Kumar
- TB Discovery Research, Infectious Disease Research Institute, 1616 Eastlake Ave. E, Suite 400, Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | - Julie V Early
- TB Discovery Research, Infectious Disease Research Institute, 1616 Eastlake Ave. E, Suite 400, Seattle, WA 98102, USA
| | - Tanya Parish
- TB Discovery Research, Infectious Disease Research Institute, 1616 Eastlake Ave. E, Suite 400, Seattle, WA 98102, USA
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39
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Sulaiman JE, Lam H. Application of proteomics in studying bacterial persistence. Expert Rev Proteomics 2019; 16:227-239. [DOI: 10.1080/14789450.2019.1575207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jordy Evan Sulaiman
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, Kowloon, Hong Kong
| | - Henry Lam
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, Kowloon, Hong Kong
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40
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SmpB down-regulates proton-motive force for the persister tolerance to aminoglycosides in Aeromonas veronii. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2018; 507:407-413. [PMID: 30449596 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2018.11.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2018] [Accepted: 11/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Bacterial persisters comprise a small fraction of phenotypically heterogeneous variants with transient capability for survival when exposed to high concentrations of antibiotic. In aquatic pathogenic bacteria Aeromonas veronii, Small Protein B (SmpB), the core factor of trans-translation system, was identified as a new persistence-related gene. The SmpB deletion exhibited a higher susceptibility and lower persister cell formation under aminoglycosides antibiotics pressure compared with wild type. The transcriptional and translational activities of smpB gene were significantly enhanced by the gentamicin challenge in exponential phase, but not changed in stationary phase. The transcriptomic analysis revealed that the smpB deletion stimulated the production of proton-motive force (PMF). The cell survival induced by carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenyl hydrazone (CCCP) further verified that SmpB variation affected the quantities of PMF. Taken together, these results uncovered a novel mechanism of persister formation mediated by SmpB under aminoglycosides treatments.
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41
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Dean CR, Barkan DT, Bermingham A, Blais J, Casey F, Casarez A, Colvin R, Fuller J, Jones AK, Li C, Lopez S, Metzger LE, Mostafavi M, Prathapam R, Rasper D, Reck F, Ruzin A, Shaul J, Shen X, Simmons RL, Skewes-Cox P, Takeoka KT, Tamrakar P, Uehara T, Wei JR. Mode of Action of the Monobactam LYS228 and Mechanisms Decreasing In Vitro Susceptibility in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2018; 62:e01200-18. [PMID: 30061293 PMCID: PMC6153799 DOI: 10.1128/aac.01200-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2018] [Accepted: 07/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The monobactam scaffold is attractive for the development of new agents to treat infections caused by drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria because it is stable to metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs). However, the clinically used monobactam aztreonam lacks stability to serine β-lactamases (SBLs) that are often coexpressed with MBLs. LYS228 is stable to MBLs and most SBLs. LYS228 bound purified Escherichia coli penicillin binding protein 3 (PBP3) similarly to aztreonam (derived acylation rate/equilibrium dissociation constant [k2/Kd ] of 367,504 s-1 M-1 and 409,229 s-1 M-1, respectively) according to stopped-flow fluorimetry. A gel-based assay showed that LYS228 bound mainly to E. coli PBP3, with weaker binding to PBP1a and PBP1b. Exposing E. coli cells to LYS228 caused filamentation consistent with impaired cell division. No single-step mutants were selected from 12 Enterobacteriaceae strains expressing different classes of β-lactamases at 8× the MIC of LYS228 (frequency, <2.5 × 10-9). At 4× the MIC, mutants were selected from 2 of 12 strains at frequencies of 1.8 × 10-7 and 4.2 × 10-9 LYS228 MICs were ≤2 μg/ml against all mutants. These frequencies compared favorably to those for meropenem and tigecycline. Mutations decreasing LYS228 susceptibility occurred in ramR and cpxA (Klebsiella pneumoniae) and baeS (E. coli and K. pneumoniae). Susceptibility of E. coli ATCC 25922 to LYS228 decreased 256-fold (MIC, 0.125 to 32 μg/ml) after 20 serial passages. Mutants accumulated mutations in ftsI (encoding the target, PBP3), baeR, acrD, envZ, sucB, and rfaI These results support the continued development of LYS228, which is currently undergoing phase II clinical trials for complicated intraabdominal infection and complicated urinary tract infection (registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under identifiers NCT03377426 and NCT03354754).
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles R Dean
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - David T Barkan
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Alun Bermingham
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Johanne Blais
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Fergal Casey
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Anthony Casarez
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Richard Colvin
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - John Fuller
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Adriana K Jones
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Cindy Li
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Sara Lopez
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Louis E Metzger
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Mina Mostafavi
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Ramadevi Prathapam
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Dita Rasper
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Folkert Reck
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Alexey Ruzin
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Jacob Shaul
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Xiaoyu Shen
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Robert L Simmons
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Peter Skewes-Cox
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Kenneth T Takeoka
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Pramila Tamrakar
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Tsuyoshi Uehara
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
| | - Jun-Rong Wei
- Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Emeryville, California, USA
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42
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Khlebodarova TM, Likhoshvai VA. Persister Cells - a Plausible Outcome of Neutral Coevolutionary Drift. Sci Rep 2018; 8:14309. [PMID: 30254316 PMCID: PMC6156226 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-32637-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 09/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The phenomenon of bacterial persistence - a non-inherited antibiotic tolerance in a minute fraction of the bacterial population, was observed more than 70 years ago. Nowadays, it is suggested that "persister cells" undergo an alternative scenario of the cell cycle; however, pathways involved in its emergence are still not identified. We present a mathematically grounded scenario of such possibility. We have determined that population drift in the space of multiple neutrally coupled mutations, which we called "neutrally coupled co-evolution" (NCCE), leads to increased dynamic complexity of bacterial populations via appearance of cells capable of carrying out a single cell cycle in two or more alternative ways and that universal properties of the coupled transcription-translation system underlie this phenotypic multiplicity. According to our hypothesis, modern persister cells have derived from such cells and regulatory mechanisms that govern the consolidation of this phenomenon represented the trigger. We assume that the described type of neutrally coupled co-evolution could play an important role in the origin of extremophiles, both in bacteria and archaea.
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Affiliation(s)
- T M Khlebodarova
- Department of Systems Biology, Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Siberian Branch, Novosibirsk, Russia.
| | - V A Likhoshvai
- Department of Systems Biology, Institute of Cytology and Genetics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Siberian Branch, Novosibirsk, Russia
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43
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Inactivation of TCA cycle enhances Staphylococcus aureus persister cell formation in stationary phase. Sci Rep 2018; 8:10849. [PMID: 30022089 PMCID: PMC6052003 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-29123-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2017] [Accepted: 07/03/2018] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Persister cells constitute a small subpopulation of bacteria that display remarkably high antibiotic tolerance and for pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus are suspected as culprits of chronic and recurrent infections. Persisters formed during exponential growth are characterized by low ATP levels but less is known of cells in stationary phase. By enrichment from a transposon mutant library in S. aureus we identified mutants that in this growth phase displayed enhanced persister cell formation. We found that inactivation of either sucA or sucB, encoding the subunits of the α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase of the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA cycle), increased survival to lethal concentrations of ciprofloxacin by 10–100 fold as did inactivation of other TCA cycle genes or atpA encoding a subunit of the F1F0 ATPase. In S. aureus, TCA cycle activity and gene expression are de-repressed in stationary phase but single cells with low expression may be prone to form persisters. While ATP levels were not consistently affected in high persister mutants they commonly displayed reduced membrane potential, and persistence was enhanced by a protein motive force inhibitor. Our results show that persister cell formation in stationary phase does not correlate with ATP levels but is associated with low membrane potential.
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44
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Song B, Zhou Q, Xue HJ, Liu JJ, Zheng YY, Shen YB, Wang M, Luo JM. IrrE Improves Organic Solvent Tolerance and Δ 1-Dehydrogenation Productivity of Arthrobacter simplex. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2018; 66:5210-5220. [PMID: 29746123 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.8b01311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
During steroid bioconversion, organic solvents are widely used for facilitating hydrophobic substrate dissolution in industry. Thus, strains that tolerate organic solvents are highly desirable. IrrE, a global transcriptional factor, was introduced into Arthrobacter simplex with Δ1-dehydrogenation ability. The results evidenced that IrrE did not affect cell biological traits and biotransformation performance under non-stress conditions. However, the recombinant strain achieved a productivity higher than that of the control strain in systems containing more ethanol and substrate, which coincided with cell viability under ethanol stress, the major stress factor during biotransformation. It also demonstrated that IrrE caused genome-wide transcriptional perturbation, and several defense proteins or systems were linked with higher organic solvent tolerance. IrrE simultaneously enhanced cell resistance to various stresses, and its horizontal impacts showed strain and stress dependence. In conclusion, the introduction of exogenous global regulators is an efficient approach to enhance organic solvent tolerance in steroid-transforming strains, resulting in higher productivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Song
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
| | - Qin Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
| | - Hai-Jie Xue
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
| | - Jia-Jia Liu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
| | - Yuan-Yuan Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
| | - Yan-Bing Shen
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
| | - Min Wang
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
| | - Jian-Mei Luo
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Lab of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology , Tianjin University of Science and Technology , Tianjin 300457 , People's Republic of China
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45
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Cui P, Niu H, Shi W, Zhang S, Zhang W, Zhang Y. Identification of Genes Involved in Bacteriostatic Antibiotic-Induced Persister Formation. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:413. [PMID: 29559967 PMCID: PMC5845583 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.00413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2017] [Accepted: 02/21/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Persister cells are metabolically quiescent multi-drug tolerant fraction of a genetically sensitive bacterial population and are thought to be responsible for relapse of many persistent infections. Persisters can be formed naturally in the stationary phase culture, and also can be induced by bacteriostatic antibiotics. However, the molecular basis of bacteriostatic antibiotic induced persister formation is unknown. Here, we established a bacteriostatic antibiotic induced persister model and screened the Escherichia coli single gene deletion mutant library for mutants with defect in rifampin or tetracycline induced persistence to ofloxacin. Thirsty-seven and nine genes were found with defects in rifampin- and tetracycline-induced persister formation, respectively. Six mutants were found to overlap in both rifampin and tetracycline induced persister screens: recA, recC, ruvA, uvrD, fis, and acrB. Interestingly, four of these mutants (recA, recC, ruvA, and uvrD) mapped to DNA repair pathway, one mutant mapped to global transcriptional regulator (fis) and one to efflux (acrB). The stationary phase culture of the identified mutants and parent strain BW25113 were subjected to different antibiotics including ofloxacin, ampicillin, gentamicin, and stress conditions including starvation and acid pH 4.0. All the six mutants showed less tolerance to ofloxacin, but only some of them were more sensitive to other specific stress conditions. Complementation of five of the six common mutants restored the persister level to that of the parent strain in both stationary phase and static antibiotic-induced conditions. In addition to the DNA repair pathways shared by both rifampin and tetracycline induced persisters, genes involved in rifampin-induced persisters map also to transporters, LPS biosynthesis, flagella biosynthesis, metabolism (folate and energy), and translation, etc. These findings suggest that persisters generated by different ways may share common mechanisms of survival, and also shed new insight into the molecular basis of static antibiotic induced antagonism of cidal antibiotics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Cui
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Hongxia Niu
- Lanzhou Center for Tuberculosis Research – Institute of Pathogenic Biology – Gansu Provincial Key Laboratory of Evidence Based Medicine and Clinical Translation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Wanliang Shi
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Shuo Zhang
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Wenhong Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
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46
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Zhang S, Liu S, Wu N, Yuan Y, Zhang W, Zhang Y. Small Non-coding RNA RyhB Mediates Persistence to Multiple Antibiotics and Stresses in Uropathogenic Escherichia coli by Reducing Cellular Metabolism. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:136. [PMID: 29467745 PMCID: PMC5808207 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.00136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2017] [Accepted: 01/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
As dormant phenotypic variants of bacteria, persisters account for many chronic infections affecting human health. Despite numerous studies, the role of small non-coding RNA (sRNA) in bacterial persistence has not been reported. To investigate the role of Hfq-interacting sRNA in persistence, we constructed the deletion mutants of 20 Hfq-interacting sRNAs (RyhB, GcvB, MgrR, RybB, MicF, SgrS, RprA, DicF, SsrS, FnrS, GadY, DsrA, OmrB, ArcZ, RyeB, RydC, OmrA, MicA, MicC, and ChiX) to assess their persistence capacity in uropathogenic Escherichia coli strain UTI89 and identified a new sRNA RyhB being involved in persister formation. The ryhB-knockout mutant had significant defect in persistence to a diverse range of antibiotics (levofloxacin, cefotaxime, gentamicin) and stresses (hyperosmosis, acid, and heat) in both exponential phase and stationary phase. In addition, the effect of RyhB on persistence was synergistic with ppGpp and Fur protein. RNA-Seq analysis indicated that the ryhB-knockout mutant had a hyperactive metabolic state compared with the parent strain. Interestingly, increased adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels and altered NAD+/NADH ratios were observed in the ryhB-knockout mutant. Our findings represent a new level of persistence regulation via sRNA and may provide novel therapeutic targets for interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shanshan Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Shuang Liu
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Nan Wu
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Youhua Yuan
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wenhong Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.,Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
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Sahukhal GS, Pandey S, Elasri MO. msaABCR operon is involved in persister cell formation in Staphylococcus aureus. BMC Microbiol 2017; 17:218. [PMID: 29166860 PMCID: PMC5700755 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-017-1129-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2017] [Accepted: 11/15/2017] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Persister cells comprise a phenotypic variant that shows extreme antibiotic tolerance resulting in treatment failures of bacterial infections. While this phenomenon has posed a great threat in public health, mechanisms underlying their formation in Staphylococcus aureus remain largely unknown. Increasing evidences of the presence of persister cells in recalcitrant infections underscores the great urgency to unravel the mechanism by which these cells develop. Previously, we characterized msaABCR operon that plays roles in regulation of virulence, biofilm development and antibiotic resistance. We also characterized the function of MsaB protein and showed that MsaB is a putative transcription factor that binds target DNA in response to nutrients availability. Results In this study, we compared the number of persister cell in wild type, msaABCR deletion mutant and the complemented strain in two backgrounds USA300 LAC and Mu50. Herein, we report that msaABCR deletion mutant forms significantly less number of persister cells relative to wild type after challenge with various antibiotics in planktonic and biofilm growth conditions. Complementation of the msaABCR operon restored wild type phenotype. Combined antibiotic therapy along with msaABCR deletion significantly improves the killing kinetics of stationary phase and biofilm S. aureus cells. Transcriptomics analysis showed that msaABCR regulates several metabolic genes, transcription factors, transporters and enzymes that may play role in persister cells formation, which we seek to define in the future. Conclusions This study presented a new regulator, msaABCR operon, that is involved in the persister cells formation, which is a poorly understood in S. aureus. Indeed, we showed that msaABCR deletion significantly reduces the persister cells formation in all growth phases tested. Although, we have not yet defined the mechanism, we have shown that msaABCR regulates several metabolic, transporters, and extracellular proteases genes that have been previously linked with persister cells formation in other bacterial systems. Taken together, this study showed that inactivation of the msaABCR operon enhances the effectiveness of antibiotics for the treatment of S. aureus infections, especially in context of persister cells. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12866-017-1129-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gyan S Sahukhal
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive # 5018, Hattiesburg, MS, 39406-0001, USA
| | - Shanti Pandey
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive # 5018, Hattiesburg, MS, 39406-0001, USA
| | - Mohamed O Elasri
- Department of Biological Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive # 5018, Hattiesburg, MS, 39406-0001, USA.
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Xu T, Wang XY, Cui P, Zhang YM, Zhang WH, Zhang Y. The Agr Quorum Sensing System Represses Persister Formation through Regulation of Phenol Soluble Modulins in Staphylococcus aureus. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:2189. [PMID: 29163457 PMCID: PMC5681930 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.02189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2017] [Accepted: 10/25/2017] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The opportunistic pathogen Staphylococcus aureus has become an increasing threat to public health. While the Agr quorum sensing (QS) system is a master regulator of S. aureus virulence, its dysfunction has been frequently reported to promote bacteremia and mortality in clinical infections. Here we show that the Agr system is involved in persister formation in S. aureus. Mutation of either agrCA or agrD but not RNAIII resulted in increased persister formation of stationary phase cultures. RNA-seq analysis showed that in stationary phase AgrCA/AgrD and RNAIII mutants showed consistent up-regulation of virulence associated genes (lip and splE, etc.) and down-regulation of metabolism genes (bioA and nanK, etc.). Meanwhile, though knockout of agrCA or agrD strongly repressed expression of phenol soluble modulin encoding genes psmα1-4, psmβ1-2 and phenol soluble modulins (PSM) transporter encoding genes in the pmt operon, mutation of RNAIII enhanced expression of the genes. We further found that knockout of psmα1-4 or psmβ1-2 augmented persister formation and that co-overexpression of PSMαs and PSMβs reversed the effects of AgrCA mutation on persister formation. We also detected the effects on persister formation by mutations of metabolism genes (arcA, hutU, narG, nanK, etc.) that are potentially regulated by Agr system. It was found that deletion of the ManNAc kinase encoding gene nanK decreased persister formation. Taken together, these results shed new light on the PSM dependent regulatory role of Agr system in persister formation and may have implications for clinical treatment of MRSA persistent infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Xu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xu-Yang Wang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Peng Cui
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yu-Meng Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wen-Hong Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
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Liu S, Wu N, Zhang S, Yuan Y, Zhang W, Zhang Y. Variable Persister Gene Interactions with (p)ppGpp for Persister Formation in Escherichia coli. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:1795. [PMID: 28979246 PMCID: PMC5611423 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2017] [Accepted: 09/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Persisters comprise a group of phenotypically heterogeneous metabolically quiescent bacteria with multidrug tolerance and contribute to the recalcitrance of chronic infections. Although recent work has shown that toxin-antitoxin (TA) system HipAB depends on stringent response effector (p)ppGppin persister formation, whether other persister pathways are also dependent on stringent response has not been explored. Here we examined the relationship of (p)ppGpp with 15 common persister genes (dnaK, clpB, rpoS, pspF, tnaA, sucB, ssrA, smpB, recA, umuD, uvrA, hipA, mqsR, relE, dinJ) using Escherichia coli as a model. By comparing the persister levels of wild type with their single gene knockout and double knockout mutants with relA, we divided their interactions into five types, namely A "dependent" (dnaK, recA), B "positive reinforcement" (rpoS, pspF, ssrA, recA), C "antagonistic" (clpB, sucB, umuD, uvrA, hipA, mqsR, relE, dinJ), D "epistasis" (clpB, rpoS, tnaA, ssrA, smpB, hipA), and E "irrelevant" (dnaK, clpB, rpoS, tnaA, sucB, smpB, umuD, uvrA, hipA, mqsR, relE, dinJ). We found that the persister gene interactions are intimately dependent on bacterial culture age, cell concentrations (diluted versus undiluted culture), and drug classifications, where the same gene may belong to different groups with varying antibiotics, culture age or cell concentrations. Together, this study represents the first attempt to systematically characterize the intricate relationships among the different mechanisms of persistence and as such provide new insights into the complexity of the persistence phenomenon at the level of persister gene network interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuang Liu
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan UniversityShanghai, China
| | - Nan Wu
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan UniversityShanghai, China
| | - Shanshan Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan UniversityShanghai, China
| | - Youhua Yuan
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan UniversityShanghai, China
| | - Wenhong Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan UniversityShanghai, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Key Lab of Molecular Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Department of Infectious Diseases, Huashan Hospital, Fudan UniversityShanghai, China
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, BaltimoreMD, United States
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Rahman T, Yarnall B, Doyle DA. Efflux drug transporters at the forefront of antimicrobial resistance. EUROPEAN BIOPHYSICS JOURNAL: EBJ 2017; 46:647-653. [PMID: 28710521 PMCID: PMC5599465 DOI: 10.1007/s00249-017-1238-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2016] [Revised: 05/19/2017] [Accepted: 06/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Bacterial antibiotic resistance is rapidly becoming a major world health consideration. To combat antibiotics, microorganisms employ their pre-existing defence mechanisms that existed long before man’s discovery of antibiotics. Bacteria utilise levels of protection that range from gene upregulation, mutations, adaptive resistance, and production of resistant phenotypes (persisters) to communal behaviour, as in swarming and the ultimate defence of a biofilm. A major part of all of these responses involves the use of antibiotic efflux transporters. At the single cell level, it is becoming apparent that the use of efflux pumps is the first line of defence against an antibiotic, as these pumps decrease the intracellular level of antibiotic while the cell activates the various other levels of protection. This frontline of defence involves a coordinated network of efflux transporters. In the future, inhibition of this efflux transporter network, as a target for novel antibiotic therapy, will require the isolation and then biochemical/biophysical characterisation of each pump against all known and new antibiotics. This depth of knowledge is required so that we can fully understand and tackle the mechanisms of developing antimicrobial resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tahmina Rahman
- University of Southampton, Biological Sciences, Highfield Campus, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK.,Wessex Kidney Centre, Queen Alexandra Hospital, Cosham, Portsmouth, PO6 3LY, UK
| | - Benjamin Yarnall
- University of Southampton, Biological Sciences, Highfield Campus, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK
| | - Declan A Doyle
- University of Southampton, Biological Sciences, Highfield Campus, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK.
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