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Lories B, Belpaire TER, Smeets B, Steenackers HP. Competition quenching strategies reduce antibiotic tolerance in polymicrobial biofilms. NPJ Biofilms Microbiomes 2024; 10:23. [PMID: 38503782 PMCID: PMC10951329 DOI: 10.1038/s41522-024-00489-6] [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: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 03/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Bacteria typically live in dense communities where they are surrounded by other species and compete for a limited amount of resources. These competitive interactions can induce defensive responses that also protect against antimicrobials, potentially complicating the antimicrobial treatment of pathogens residing in polymicrobial consortia. Therefore, we evaluate the potential of alternative antivirulence strategies that quench this response to competition. We test three competition quenching approaches: (i) interference with the attack mechanism of surrounding competitors, (ii) inhibition of the stress response systems that detect competition, and (iii) reduction of the overall level of competition in the community by lowering the population density. We show that either strategy can prevent the induction of antimicrobial tolerance of Salmonella Typhimurium in response to competitors. Competition quenching strategies can thus reduce tolerance of pathogens residing in polymicrobial communities and could contribute to the improved eradication of these pathogens via traditional methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bram Lories
- Department of Microbial and Molecular Systems, Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics (CMPG), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Tom E R Belpaire
- Department of Microbial and Molecular Systems, Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics (CMPG), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Division of Mechatronics, Biostatistics, and Sensors (MeBioS), Department of Biosystems, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Bart Smeets
- Division of Mechatronics, Biostatistics, and Sensors (MeBioS), Department of Biosystems, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Hans P Steenackers
- Department of Microbial and Molecular Systems, Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics (CMPG), KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
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Martínez OF, Duque HM, Franco OL. Peptidomimetics as Potential Anti-Virulence Drugs Against Resistant Bacterial Pathogens. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:831037. [PMID: 35516442 PMCID: PMC9062693 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.831037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 02/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The uncontrollable spread of superbugs calls for new approaches in dealing with microbial-antibiotic resistance. Accordingly, the anti-virulence approach has arisen as an attractive unconventional strategy to face multidrug-resistant pathogens. As an emergent strategy, there is an imperative demand for discovery, design, and development of anti-virulence drugs. In this regard, peptidomimetic compounds could be a valuable source of anti-virulence drugs, since these molecules circumvent several shortcomings of natural peptide-based drugs like proteolytic instability, immunogenicity, toxicity, and low bioavailability. Some emerging evidence points to the feasibility of peptidomimetics to impair pathogen virulence. Consequently, in this review, we shed some light on the potential of peptidomimetics as anti-virulence drugs to overcome antibiotic resistance. Specifically, we address the anti-virulence activity of peptidomimetics against pathogens' secretion systems, biofilms, and quorum-sensing systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Osmel Fleitas Martínez
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Genômicas e Biotecnologia, Centro de Análises Proteômicas e Bioquímicas, Universidade Católica de Brasília, Brasília, Brazil.,Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, S-Inova Biotech, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande, Brazil
| | - Harry Morales Duque
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Genômicas e Biotecnologia, Centro de Análises Proteômicas e Bioquímicas, Universidade Católica de Brasília, Brasília, Brazil
| | - Octávio Luiz Franco
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Genômicas e Biotecnologia, Centro de Análises Proteômicas e Bioquímicas, Universidade Católica de Brasília, Brasília, Brazil.,Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, S-Inova Biotech, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande, Brazil
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3
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Defending against the Type Six Secretion System: beyond Immunity Genes. Cell Rep 2021; 33:108259. [PMID: 33053336 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.108259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2020] [Revised: 07/10/2020] [Accepted: 09/21/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The bacterial type six secretion system (T6SS) delivers toxic effector proteins into neighboring cells, but bacteria must protect themselves against their own T6SS. Immunity genes are the best-characterized defenses, protecting against specific cognate effectors. However, the prevalence of the T6SS and the coexistence of species with heterologous T6SSs suggest evolutionary pressure selecting for additional defenses against it. Here we review defenses against the T6SS beyond self-associated immunity genes, such as diverse stress responses that can recognize T6SS-inflicted damage and coordinate induction of molecular armor, repair pathways, and overall survival. Some of these stress responses are required for full survival even in the presence of immunity genes. Finally, we propose that immunity gene-independent protection is, mechanistically, bacterial innate immunity and that such defenses and the T6SS have co-evolved and continue to shape one another in polymicrobial communities.
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Inhibiting Type VI Secretion System Activity with a Biomimetic Peptide Designed To Target the Baseplate Wedge Complex. mBio 2021; 12:e0134821. [PMID: 34372705 PMCID: PMC8406304 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01348-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Human health is threatened by bacterial infections that are increasingly resistant to multiple drugs. A recently emerged strategy consists of disarming pathogenic bacteria by targeting and blocking their virulence factors. The type VI secretion system (T6SS) is a widespread secretion nanomachine encoded and employed by pathogenic strains to establish their virulence process during host invasion. Given the conservation of T6SS in several human bacterial pathogens, the discovery of an effective broad-spectrum T6SS virulence blocker represents an attractive target for development of antivirulence therapies. Here, we identified and validated a protein-protein interaction interface, TssK-TssG, as a key factor in the assembly of the T6SS baseplate (BP) complex in the pathogen enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC). In silico and biochemical studies revealed that the determinants of the interface are broadly conserved among pathogenic species, suggesting a role for this interface as a target for T6SS inhibition. Based on the high-resolution structure of the TssKFGE wedge complex, we rationally designed a biomimetic cyclic peptide (BCP) that blocks the assembly of the EAEC BP complex and inhibits the function of T6SS in bacterial cultures. Our BCP is the first compound completely designed from prior structural knowledge with anti-T6SS activity that can be used as a model to target human pathogens.
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Sensing of intracellular Hcp levels controls T6SS expression in Vibrio cholerae. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2104813118. [PMID: 34161288 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2104813118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The type 6 secretion system (T6SS) is a bacterial weapon broadly distributed in gram-negative bacteria and used to kill competitors and predators. Featuring a long and double-tubular structure, this molecular machine is energetically costly to produce and thus is likely subject to diverse regulation strategies that are largely ill defined. In this study, we report a quantity-sensing control of the T6SS that down-regulates the expression of secreted components when they accumulate in the cytosol due to T6SS inactivation. Using Vibrio cholerae strains that constitutively express an active T6SS, we demonstrate that mRNA levels of secreted components, including the inner-tube protein component Hcp, were down-regulated in T6SS structural gene mutants while expression of the main structural genes remained unchanged. Deletion of both hcp gene copies restored expression from their promoters, while Hcp overexpression negatively impacted expression. We show that Hcp directly interacts with the RpoN-dependent T6SS regulator VasH, and deleting the N-terminal regulator domain of VasH abolishes this interaction as well as the expression difference of hcp operons between T6SS-active and inactive strains. We find that negative regulation of hcp also occurs in other V. cholerae strains and the pathogens Aeromonas dhakensis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa This Hcp-dependent sensing control is likely an important energy-conserving mechanism that enables T6SS-encoding organisms to quickly adjust T6SS expression and prevent wasteful build-up of its major secreted components in the absence of their efficient export out of the bacterial cell.
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Lunar Silva I, Cascales E. Molecular Strategies Underlying Porphyromonas gingivalis Virulence. J Mol Biol 2021; 433:166836. [PMID: 33539891 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2021.166836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2020] [Revised: 01/15/2021] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The anaerobic Gram-negative bacterium Porphyromonas gingivalis is considered the keystone of periodontitis diseases, a set of inflammatory conditions that affects the tissues surrounding the teeth. In the recent years, the major virulence factors exploited by P. gingivalis have been identified and characterized, including a cocktail of toxins, mainly proteases called gingipains, which promote gingival tissue invasion. These effectors use the Sec pathway to cross the inner membrane and are then recruited and transported across the outer membrane by the type IX secretion system (T9SS). In P. gingivalis, most secreted effectors are attached to anionic lipopolysaccharides (A-LPS), and hence form a virulence coat at the cell surface. P. gingivalis produces additional virulence factors to evade host immune responses, such as capsular polysaccharide, fimbriae and outer membrane vesicles. In addition to periodontitis, it is proposed that this broad repertoire of virulence factors enable P. gingivalis to be involved in diverse human diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, and neurodegenerative, Alzheimer, and cardiovascular disorders. Here, we review the major virulence determinants of P. gingivalis and discuss future directions to better understand their mechanisms of action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignacio Lunar Silva
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Syst èmes Macromol éculaires (LISM), Institut de Microbiologie, Bioénergies and Biotechnologie (IM2B), Aix-Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), UMR7255, 31 Chemin Joseph Aiguier CS7071, 13009 Marseille Cedex 20, France.
| | - Eric Cascales
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Syst èmes Macromol éculaires (LISM), Institut de Microbiologie, Bioénergies and Biotechnologie (IM2B), Aix-Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), UMR7255, 31 Chemin Joseph Aiguier CS7071, 13009 Marseille Cedex 20, France.
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Zhang L, Wu Z, Wang X, Tan G, Song J. Insights into the Draft Genome Sequence of the Kiwifruit-Associated Pathogenic Isolate Pseudomonas fluorescens AHK-1. Curr Microbiol 2019; 76:552-557. [PMID: 30824950 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-019-01655-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2018] [Accepted: 02/19/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Pseudomonas fluorescens is a physiologically diverse species of bacteria present in many habitats, which possesses multifunctional traits that provide it with the capability to exhibit biological control activities, promote plant health or cause plant disease. Here, we present the draft genome sequence of the kiwifruit-associated pathogenic isolate AHK-1 of P. fluorescens, which was isolated from the diseased leaves of kiwifruit plants. The genome size of AHK-1 was found to be 7,035,786 bp, with a G + C content of 60.88%. It is predicted to contain a total of 6327 genes, of which 3998 were homologous to genes in the other two sequenced P. fluorescens isolates (SBW25 and GcM5-1A) and 946 were unique to AHK-1 based on comparative genomic analysis. Furthermore, we identified several candidate virulence factors in the genome of AHK-1, including the fliA gene encoding flagellar biosynthetic protein for biosynthesis, and the genes for components of type VI, III, and IV secretion systems. This genomic resource will serve as a reference for better understanding the genetics of pathogenic and non-pathogenic strains, and will help to elucidate the pathogenic mechanisms of P. fluorescens associated with plant disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lixin Zhang
- Department of Plant Pathology, College of Plant Protection, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, 230036, China
| | - Zhiran Wu
- Department of Plant Pathology, College of Plant Protection, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, 230036, China
| | - Xia Wang
- Department of Plant Pathology, College of Plant Protection, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, 230036, China
| | - Genjia Tan
- Department of Plant Pathology, College of Plant Protection, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, 230036, China
| | - Jianghua Song
- College of Horticulture, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, 230036, China.
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Elhosseiny NM, Attia AS. Acinetobacter: an emerging pathogen with a versatile secretome. Emerg Microbes Infect 2018; 7:33. [PMID: 29559620 PMCID: PMC5861075 DOI: 10.1038/s41426-018-0030-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2017] [Revised: 12/08/2017] [Accepted: 01/09/2018] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Acinetobacter baumannii is a notorious pathogen that has emerged as a healthcare nightmare in recent years because it causes serious infections that are associated with high morbidity and mortality rates. Due to its exceptional ability to acquire resistance to almost all available antibiotics, A. baumannii is currently ranked as the first pathogen on the World Health Organization’s priority list for the development of new antibiotics. The versatile range of effectors secreted by A. baumannii represents a large proportion of the virulence arsenal identified in this bacterium to date. Thus, these factors, together with the secretory machinery responsible for their extrusion into the extracellular milieu, are key targets for novel therapeutics that are greatly needed to combat this deadly pathogen. In this review, we provide a comprehensive, up-to-date overview of the organization and regulatory aspects of the Acinetobacter secretion systems, with a special emphasis on their versatile substrates that could be targeted to fight the deadly infections caused by this elusive pathogen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noha M Elhosseiny
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, 11562, Egypt
| | - Ahmed S Attia
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, 11562, Egypt.
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Kim YH, Bhatt L, Ahn HJ, Yang Z, Lee WK, Nam HW. Suppressors for Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2/4 (HER2/4): A New Family of Anti-Toxoplasmic Agents in ARPE-19 Cells. THE KOREAN JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY 2017; 55:491-503. [PMID: 29103264 PMCID: PMC5678465 DOI: 10.3347/kjp.2017.55.5.491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2017] [Revised: 09/17/2017] [Accepted: 09/26/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The effects of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) were evaluated on growth inhibition of intracellular Toxoplasma gondii in host ARPE-19 cells. The number of tachyzoites per parasitophorous vacuolar membrane (PVM) was counted after treatment with TKIs. T. gondii protein expression was assessed by western blot. Immunofluorescence assay was performed using Programmed Cell Death 4 (PDCD4) and T. gondii GRA3 antibodies. The TKIs were divided into 3 groups; non-epidermal growth factor receptor (non-EGFR), anti-human EGFR 2 (anti-HER2), and anti-HER2/4 TKIs, respectively. Group I TKIs (nintedanib, AZD9291, and sunitinib) were unable to inhibit proliferation without destroying host cells. Group II TKIs (lapatinib, gefitinib, erlotinib, and AG1478) inhibited proliferation up to 98% equivalent to control pyrimethamine (5 μM) at 20 μM and higher, without affecting host cells. Group III TKIs (neratinib, dacomitinib, afatinib, and pelitinib) inhibited proliferation up to 98% equivalent to pyrimethamine at 1–5 μM, but host cells were destroyed at 10–20 μM. In Group I, TgHSP90 and SAG1 inhibitions were weak, and GRA3 expression was moderately inhibited. In Group II, TgHSP90 and SAG1 expressions seemed to be slightly enhanced, while GRA3 showed none to mild inhibition; however, AG1478 inhibited all proteins moderately. Protein expression was blocked in Group III, comparable to pyrimethamine. PDCD4 and GRA3 were well localized inside the nuclei in Group I, mildly disrupted in Group II, and were completely disrupted in Group III. This study suggests the possibility of a vital T. gondii TK having potential HER2/4 properties, thus anti-HER2/4 TKIs may inhibit intracellular parasite proliferation with minimal adverse effects on host cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yeong Hoon Kim
- Department of Ophthalmology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Korea
| | - Lokraj Bhatt
- Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Korea
| | - Hye-Jin Ahn
- Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Korea
| | - Zhaoshou Yang
- Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Korea
| | - Won-Kyu Lee
- Osong Medical Innovation Foundation, Cheongju 28160, Korea
| | - Ho-Woo Nam
- Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Korea
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Yang Z, Ahn HJ, Park YH, Nam HW. Afatinib Reduces STAT6 Signaling of Host ARPE-19 Cells Infected with Toxoplasma gondii. THE KOREAN JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY 2016; 54:31-8. [PMID: 26951976 PMCID: PMC4792312 DOI: 10.3347/kjp.2016.54.1.31] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2015] [Revised: 11/03/2015] [Accepted: 11/07/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Specific gene expressions of host cells by spontaneous STAT6 phosphorylation are major strategy for the survival of intracellular Toxoplasma gondii against parasiticidal events through STAT1 phosphorylation by infection provoked IFN-γ. We determined the effects of small molecules of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) on the growth of T. gondii and on the relationship with STAT1 and STAT6 phosphorylation in ARPE-19 cells. We counted the number of T. gondii RH tachyzoites per parasitophorous vacuolar membrane (PVM) after treatment with TKIs at 12-hr intervals for 72 hr. The change of STAT6 phosphorylation was assessed via western blot and immunofluorescence assay. Among the tested TKIs, Afatinib (pan ErbB/EGFR inhibitor, 5 µM) inhibited 98.0% of the growth of T. gondii, which was comparable to pyrimethamine (5 µM) at 96.9% and followed by Erlotinib (ErbB1/EGFR inhibitor, 20 µM) at 33.8% and Sunitinib (PDGFR or c-Kit inhibitor, 10 µM) at 21.3%. In the early stage of the infection (2, 4, and 8 hr after T. gondii challenge), Afatinib inhibited the phosphorylation of STAT6 in western blot and immunofluorescence assay. Both JAK1 and JAK3, the upper hierarchical kinases of cytokine signaling, were strongly phosphorylated at 2 hr and then disappeared entirely after 4 hr. Some TKIs, especially the EGFR inhibitors, might play an important role in the inhibition of intracellular replication of T. gondii through the inhibition of the direct phosphorylation of STAT6 by T. gondii.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhaoshou Yang
- Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea
| | - Hye-Jin Ahn
- Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea
| | - Young-Hoon Park
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea
| | - Ho-Woo Nam
- Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea
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Generation of reactive oxygen species by lethal attacks from competing microbes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:2181-6. [PMID: 25646446 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1425007112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 112] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Whether antibiotics induce the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that contribute to cell death is an important yet controversial topic. Here, we report that lethal attacks from bacterial and viral species also result in ROS production in target cells. Using soxS as an ROS reporter, we found soxS was highly induced in Escherichia coli exposed to various forms of attacks mediated by the type VI secretion system (T6SS), P1vir phage, and polymyxin B. Using a fluorescence ROS probe, we found enhanced ROS levels correlate with induced soxS in E. coli expressing a toxic T6SS antibacterial effector and in E. coli treated with P1vir phage or polymyxin B. We conclude that both contact-dependent and contact-independent interactions with aggressive competing bacterial species and viruses can induce production of ROS in E. coli target cells.
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