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Liu Z, Zhao Q, Xu C, Song H. Compensatory evolution of chromosomes and plasmids counteracts the plasmid fitness cost. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e70121. [PMID: 39170056 PMCID: PMC11336059 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.70121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/23/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Plasmids incur a fitness cost that has the potential to restrict the dissemination of resistance in bacterial pathogens. However, bacteria can overcome this disadvantage by compensatory evolution to maintain their resistance. Compensatory evolution can occur via both chromosomes and plasmids, but there are a few reviews regarding this topic, and most of them focus on plasmids. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the currently reported mechanisms underlying compensatory evolution on chromosomes and plasmids, elucidate key targets regulating plasmid fitness cost, and discuss future challenges in this field. We found that compensatory evolution on chromosomes primarily arises from mutations in transcriptional regulatory factors, whereas compensatory evolution of plasmids predominantly involves three pathways: plasmid copy number regulation, conjugation transfer efficiency, and expression of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes. Furthermore, the importance of reasonable selection of research subjects and effective integration of diverse advanced research methods is also emphasized in our future study on compensatory mechanisms. Overall, this review establishes a theoretical framework that aims to provide innovative ideas for minimizing the emergence and spread of AMR genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziyi Liu
- Key Laboratory of Applied Technology on Green‐Eco‐Healthy Animal Husbandry of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Animal Health Inspection & Internet Technology, Zhejiang International Science and Technology Cooperation Base for Veterinary Medicine and Health Management, China‐Australia Joint Laboratory for Animal Health Big Data AnalyticsCollege of Animal Science and Technology & College of Veterinary Medicine of Zhejiang A&F UniversityHangzhouChina
| | - Qiuyun Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Applied Technology on Green‐Eco‐Healthy Animal Husbandry of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Animal Health Inspection & Internet Technology, Zhejiang International Science and Technology Cooperation Base for Veterinary Medicine and Health Management, China‐Australia Joint Laboratory for Animal Health Big Data AnalyticsCollege of Animal Science and Technology & College of Veterinary Medicine of Zhejiang A&F UniversityHangzhouChina
| | - Chenggang Xu
- Key Laboratory of Applied Technology on Green‐Eco‐Healthy Animal Husbandry of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Animal Health Inspection & Internet Technology, Zhejiang International Science and Technology Cooperation Base for Veterinary Medicine and Health Management, China‐Australia Joint Laboratory for Animal Health Big Data AnalyticsCollege of Animal Science and Technology & College of Veterinary Medicine of Zhejiang A&F UniversityHangzhouChina
| | - Houhui Song
- Key Laboratory of Applied Technology on Green‐Eco‐Healthy Animal Husbandry of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Animal Health Inspection & Internet Technology, Zhejiang International Science and Technology Cooperation Base for Veterinary Medicine and Health Management, China‐Australia Joint Laboratory for Animal Health Big Data AnalyticsCollege of Animal Science and Technology & College of Veterinary Medicine of Zhejiang A&F UniversityHangzhouChina
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He K, Lin J, Liang Y, Cui J, Chen Q, Dong Y, Ma X, He D, Yuan L. Coexistence of a nonresistance-conferring IncI1 plasmid favors persistence of the blaCTX-M-bearing IncFII plasmid in Escherichia coli. Microbiol Spectr 2024; 12:e0424023. [PMID: 38687059 PMCID: PMC11237657 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.04240-23] [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: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The interaction between coexisting plasmids can affect plasmid-carried resistance gene persistence and spread. However, whether the persistence of the blaCTX-M gene in clinical Enterobacteriaceae is related to the interaction of coresident nonresistance-conferring plasmids has not been reported. This study was initiated to elucidate how a nonresistance-conferring IncI1 plasmid affected the blaCTX-M-bearing IncFII plasmid colocated on the same cell. Herein, we constructed three isogenic derivatives of E. coli C600, designated as C600FII, C600I1, and C600FII+I1, which harbored the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid and/or the nonresistance-IncI1 one. We discovered that strain C600FII+I1 conferred higher fitness advantages than strain C600FII; also, the stability of the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid was noticeably improved in an antibiotic-free environment when it coexisted with the IncI1 plasmid. To further explore why the IncI1 plasmid enhanced the persistence of the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid, we assessed the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid's copy numbers, conjugation frequencies, and rep gene expressions in strains C600FII and C600FII+I1. The results demonstrated that the rep expressions of the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid in strain C600FII+I1 was greatly decreased, along with the plasmid's copy numbers and mating efficiencies, compared to those in strain C600FII. Moreover, further study revealed that the intracellular ATP levels of strain C600FII+I1 were far lower than those of strain C600FII. Our findings confirmed that coexistence of the nonresistance-IncI1 plasmid can keep the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid more stable by increasing the fitness advantages of the host bacteria, which will pose a threat to preventing the long-term presence of the plasmid-carried blaCTX-M gene in clinical Enterobacteriaceae. IMPORTANCE So far, plasmid-carried blaCTX-M is still the most common extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) genotype in clinical settings worldwide. Except for the widespread use of third-generation cephalosporins, the interaction between coexisting plasmids can also affect the long-term stable existence of the blaCTX-M gene; however, the study on that is still sparse. In the present study, we assess the interaction of coinhabitant plasmids blaCTX-M-IncFII and nonresistance-IncI1. Our results confirmed that the increased fitness advantages of strain C600FII+I1 were attributable to the cohabitant nonresistance-IncI1 plasmid, which largely reduced the intracellular ATP levels of host bacteria, thus decreasing the rep gene expression of the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid, its copy numbers, and mating efficiencies, while the higher fitness advantages of strain C600FII+I1 enhanced the persistence of the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid. The results indicate that the nonresistance-IncI1 plasmid contributes to the long-term existence of the blaCTX-M-IncFII plasmid, implying a potentially new strategy for controlling the spread of resistance plasmids in clinical settings by targeting nonresistance plasmids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kun He
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Jiayu Lin
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yulei Liang
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Junling Cui
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Qiuru Chen
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yanbin Dong
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Xiaoyuan Ma
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Dandan He
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
- International Joint Research Center of National Animal Immunology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Li Yuan
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
- International Joint Research Center of National Animal Immunology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
- Key Laboratory of Quality and Safety Control of Poultry Products (Zhengzhou), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Zhengzhou, China
- Zhengzhou Key Laboratory of Research and Evaluation of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine, Zhengzhou, China
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3
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Weisberg AJ, Chang JH. Mobile Genetic Element Flexibility as an Underlying Principle to Bacterial Evolution. Annu Rev Microbiol 2023; 77:603-624. [PMID: 37437216 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-micro-032521-022006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/14/2023]
Abstract
Mobile genetic elements are key to the evolution of bacteria and traits that affect host and ecosystem health. Here, we use a framework of a hierarchical and modular system that scales from genes to populations to synthesize recent findings on mobile genetic elements (MGEs) of bacteria. Doing so highlights the role that emergent properties of flexibility, robustness, and genetic capacitance of MGEs have on the evolution of bacteria. Some of their traits can be stored, shared, and diversified across different MGEs, taxa of bacteria, and time. Collectively, these properties contribute to maintaining functionality against perturbations while allowing changes to accumulate in order to diversify and give rise to new traits. These properties of MGEs have long challenged our abilities to study them. Implementation of new technologies and strategies allows for MGEs to be analyzed in new and powerful ways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra J Weisberg
- Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA;
| | - Jeff H Chang
- Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA;
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Dewan I, Uecker H. A mathematician's guide to plasmids: an introduction to plasmid biology for modellers. MICROBIOLOGY (READING, ENGLAND) 2023; 169:001362. [PMID: 37505810 PMCID: PMC10433428 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.001362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
Plasmids, extrachromosomal DNA molecules commonly found in bacterial and archaeal cells, play an important role in bacterial genetics and evolution. Our understanding of plasmid biology has been furthered greatly by the development of mathematical models, and there are many questions about plasmids that models would be useful in answering. In this review, we present an introductory, yet comprehensive, overview of the biology of plasmids suitable for modellers unfamiliar with plasmids who want to get up to speed and to begin working on plasmid-related models. In addition to reviewing the diversity of plasmids and the genes they carry, their key physiological functions, and interactions between plasmid and host, we also highlight selected plasmid topics that may be of particular interest to modellers and areas where there is a particular need for theoretical development. The world of plasmids holds a great variety of subjects that will interest mathematical biologists, and introducing new modellers to the subject will help to expand the existing body of plasmid theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian Dewan
- Research Group Stochastic Evolutionary Dynamics, Department of Theoretical Biology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Hildegard Uecker
- Research Group Stochastic Evolutionary Dynamics, Department of Theoretical Biology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
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5
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Darby EM, Trampari E, Siasat P, Gaya MS, Alav I, Webber MA, Blair JMA. Molecular mechanisms of antibiotic resistance revisited. Nat Rev Microbiol 2023; 21:280-295. [PMID: 36411397 DOI: 10.1038/s41579-022-00820-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 234] [Impact Index Per Article: 234.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Antibiotic resistance is a global health emergency, with resistance detected to all antibiotics currently in clinical use and only a few novel drugs in the pipeline. Understanding the molecular mechanisms that bacteria use to resist the action of antimicrobials is critical to recognize global patterns of resistance and to improve the use of current drugs, as well as for the design of new drugs less susceptible to resistance development and novel strategies to combat resistance. In this Review, we explore recent advances in understanding how resistance genes contribute to the biology of the host, new structural details of relevant molecular events underpinning resistance, the identification of new resistance gene families and the interactions between different resistance mechanisms. Finally, we discuss how we can use this information to develop the next generation of antimicrobial therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth M Darby
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Microbiology and Infection, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | | | - Pauline Siasat
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Microbiology and Infection, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | | | - Ilyas Alav
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Microbiology and Infection, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Mark A Webber
- Quadram Institute Bioscience, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK.
- Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK.
| | - Jessica M A Blair
- College of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Microbiology and Infection, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
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Alba P, Carfora V, Feltrin F, Diaconu EL, Sorbara L, Dell'Aira E, Cerci T, Ianzano A, Donati V, Franco A, Battisti A. Evidence of structural rearrangements in ESBL-positive pESI(like) megaplasmids of S.Infantis. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2023; 370:7049104. [PMID: 36806934 PMCID: PMC9990980 DOI: 10.1093/femsle/fnad014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 02/17/2023] [Indexed: 02/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The increasing prevalence of pESI(like)-positive, multidrug-resistant (MDR) S. Infantis in Europe is a cause of major concern. As previously demonstrated, the pESI(like) megaplasmid is not only a carrier of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) genes (at least tet, dfr, and sul genes), but also harbours several virulence and fitness genes, and toxin/antitoxin systems that enhance its persistence in the S. Infantis host. In this study, five prototype pESI(like) plasmids, of either CTX-M-1 or CTX-M-65 ESBL-producing strains, were long-read sequenced using Oxford Nanopore Technology (ONT), and their complete sequences were resolved. Comparison of the structure and gene content of the five sequenced plasmids, and further comparison with previously published pESI(like) sequences, indicated that although the sequence of such pESI(like) 'mosaic' plasmids remains almost identical, their structures appear different and composed of regions inserted or transposed after different events. The results obtained in this study are essential to better understand the plasticity and the evolution of the pESI(like) megaplasmid, and therefore to better address risk management options and policy decisions to fight against AMR and MDR in Salmonella and other food-borne pathogens. Graphical representation of the pESI-like plasmid complete sequence (ID 12037823/11). Block colours indicate the function of the genes: red: repB gene; pink: class I integrons (IntI); yellow; mobile elements; blue: resistance genes; green: toxin/anti-toxin systems; grey: mer operon; light green: genes involve in conjugation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia Alba
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Virginia Carfora
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Fabiola Feltrin
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Elena Lavinia Diaconu
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Luigi Sorbara
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Elena Dell'Aira
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Tamara Cerci
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Angela Ianzano
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Valentina Donati
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Alessia Franco
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
| | - Antonio Battisti
- National Reference Laboratory for Antimicrobial Resistance, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Lazio e della Toscana "M. Aleandri," General Diagnostics Department, Rome 00178, Italy
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7
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Dong F, Quevedo AC, Wang X, Valsami-Jones E, Kreft JU. Experimental evolution of Pseudomonas putida under silver ion versus nanoparticle stress. Environ Microbiol 2021; 24:905-918. [PMID: 34904333 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Accepted: 11/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Whether the antibacterial properties of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are simply due to the release of silver ions (Ag+ ) or, additionally, nanoparticle-specific effects, is not clear. We used experimental evolution of the model environmental bacterium Pseudomonas putida to ask whether bacteria respond differently to Ag+ or AgNP treatment. We pre-evolved five cultures of strain KT2440 for 70 days without Ag to reduce confounding adaptations before dividing the fittest pre-evolved culture into five cultures each, evolving in the presence of low concentrations of Ag+ , well-defined AgNPs or Ag-free controls for a further 75 days. The mutations in the Ag+ or AgNP evolved populations displayed different patterns that were statistically significant. The non-synonymous mutations in AgNP-treated populations were mostly associated with cell surface proteins, including cytoskeletal membrane protein (FtsZ), membrane sensor and regulator (EnvZ and GacS) and periplasmic protein (PP_2758). In contrast, Ag+ treatment was selected for mutations linked to cytoplasmic proteins, including metal ion transporter (TauB) and those with metal-binding domains (ThiL and PP_2397). These results suggest the existence of AgNP-specific effects, either caused by sustained delivery of Ag+ from AgNP dissolution, more proximate delivery from cell-surface bound AgNPs, or by direct AgNP action on the cell's outer membrane.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feng Dong
- School of Biosciences & Institute of Microbiology and Infection (IMI) & Centre for Computational Biology (CCB), University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Ana C Quevedo
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Xiang Wang
- School of Biosciences & Institute of Microbiology and Infection (IMI) & Centre for Computational Biology (CCB), University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Eugenia Valsami-Jones
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Jan-Ulrich Kreft
- School of Biosciences & Institute of Microbiology and Infection (IMI) & Centre for Computational Biology (CCB), University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
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8
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Brockhurst MA, Harrison E. Ecological and evolutionary solutions to the plasmid paradox. Trends Microbiol 2021; 30:534-543. [PMID: 34848115 DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2021.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2021] [Revised: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 11/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
The 'plasmid paradox' arises because, although plasmids are common features of bacterial genomes, theoretically they should not exist: rates of conjugation were believed insufficient to allow plasmids to persist by infectious transmission, whereas the costs of plasmid maintenance meant that plasmids should be purged by negative selection regardless of whether they encoded beneficial accessory traits because these traits should eventually be captured by the chromosome, enabling the loss of the redundant plasmid. In the decade since the plasmid paradox was described, new data and theory show that a range of ecological and evolutionary mechanisms operate in bacterial populations and communities to explain the widespread distribution and stable maintenance of plasmids. We conclude, therefore, that multiple solutions to the plasmid paradox are now well understood. The current challenge for the field, however, is to better understand how these solutions operate in natural bacterial communities to explain and predict the distribution of plasmids and the dynamics of the horizontal gene transfer that they mediate in bacterial (pan)genomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A Brockhurst
- Division of Evolution and Genomic Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine, and Health, The University of Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PT, UK.
| | - Ellie Harrison
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
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Hall JPJ, Wright RCT, Harrison E, Muddiman KJ, Wood AJ, Paterson S, Brockhurst MA. Plasmid fitness costs are caused by specific genetic conflicts enabling resolution by compensatory mutation. PLoS Biol 2021; 19:e3001225. [PMID: 34644303 PMCID: PMC8544851 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2021] [Revised: 10/25/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasmids play an important role in bacterial genome evolution by transferring genes between lineages. Fitness costs associated with plasmid carriage are expected to be a barrier to gene exchange, but the causes of plasmid fitness costs are poorly understood. Single compensatory mutations are often sufficient to completely ameliorate plasmid fitness costs, suggesting that such costs are caused by specific genetic conflicts rather than generic properties of plasmids, such as their size, metabolic burden, or gene expression level. By combining the results of experimental evolution with genetics and transcriptomics, we show here that fitness costs of 2 divergent large plasmids in Pseudomonas fluorescens are caused by inducing maladaptive expression of a chromosomal tailocin toxin operon. Mutations in single genes unrelated to the toxin operon, and located on either the chromosome or the plasmid, ameliorated the disruption associated with plasmid carriage. We identify one of these compensatory loci, the chromosomal gene PFLU4242, as the key mediator of the fitness costs of both plasmids, with the other compensatory loci either reducing expression of this gene or mitigating its deleterious effects by up-regulating a putative plasmid-borne ParAB operon. The chromosomal mobile genetic element Tn6291, which uses plasmids for transmission, remained up-regulated even in compensated strains, suggesting that mobile genetic elements communicate through pathways independent of general physiological disruption. Plasmid fitness costs caused by specific genetic conflicts are unlikely to act as a long-term barrier to horizontal gene transfer (HGT) due to their propensity for amelioration by single compensatory mutations, helping to explain why plasmids are so common in bacterial genomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- James P. J. Hall
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Rosanna C. T. Wright
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
- Division of Evolution and Genomic Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Ellie Harrison
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Katie J. Muddiman
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - A. Jamie Wood
- Department of Biology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
- Department of Mathematics, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Steve Paterson
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Michael A. Brockhurst
- Division of Evolution and Genomic Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
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Kottara A, Carrilero L, Harrison E, Hall JPJ, Brockhurst MA. The dilution effect limits plasmid horizontal transmission in multispecies bacterial communities. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2021; 167. [PMID: 34494951 PMCID: PMC8549239 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.001086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
By transferring ecologically important traits between species, plasmids drive genomic divergence and evolutionary innovation in their bacterial hosts. Bacterial communities are often diverse and contain multiple coexisting plasmids, but the dynamics of plasmids in multi-species communities are poorly understood. Here, we show, using experimental multi-species communities containing two plasmids, that bacterial diversity limits the horizontal transmission of plasmids due to the ‘dilution effect’; this is an epidemiological phenomenon whereby living alongside less proficient host species reduces the expected infection risk for a focal host species. In addition, plasmid horizontal transmission was also affected by plasmid diversity, such that the rate of plasmid conjugation was reduced from co-infected host cells carrying both plasmids. In diverse microbial communities, plasmid spread may be limited by the dilution effect and plasmid–plasmid interactions, reducing the rate of horizontal transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anastasia Kottara
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PT, UK
| | - Laura Carrilero
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - Ellie Harrison
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - James P J Hall
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7ZB, UK
| | - Michael A Brockhurst
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PT, UK
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