1
|
Lee DH, Cha JH, Kim DW, Lee K, Kim YS, Oh HY, Cho YH, Cha CJ. Colistin-degrading proteases confer collective resistance to microbial communities during polymicrobial infections. MICROBIOME 2022; 10:129. [PMID: 35982474 PMCID: PMC9389796 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-022-01315-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 06/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The increasing prevalence of resistance against the last-resort antibiotic colistin is a significant threat to global public health. Here, we discovered a novel colistin resistance mechanism via enzymatic inactivation of the drug and proposed its clinical importance in microbial communities during polymicrobial infections. RESULTS A bacterial strain of the Gram-negative opportunistic pathogen Stenotrophomonas maltophilia capable of degrading colistin and exhibiting a high-level colistin resistance was isolated from the soil environment. A colistin-degrading protease (Cdp) was identified in this strain, and its contribution to colistin resistance was demonstrated by growth inhibition experiments using knock-out (Δcdp) and complemented (Δcdp::cdp) mutants. Coculture and coinfection experiments revealed that S. maltophilia carrying the cdp gene could inactivate colistin and protect otherwise susceptible Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which may seriously affect the clinical efficacy of the drug for the treatment of cystic fibrosis patients with polymicrobial infection. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that Cdp should be recognized as a colistin resistance determinant that confers collective resistance at the microbial community level. Our study will provide vital information for successful clinical outcomes during the treatment of complex polymicrobial infections, particularly including S. maltophilia and other colistin-susceptible Gram-negative pathogens such as P. aeruginosa. Video abstract.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Do-Hoon Lee
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17456, Republic of Korea
| | - Ju-Hee Cha
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17456, Republic of Korea
| | - Dae-Wi Kim
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17456, Republic of Korea
- Division of Life Sciences, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, 54896, Republic of Korea
| | - Kihyun Lee
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17456, Republic of Korea
| | - Yong-Seok Kim
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17456, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyo-Young Oh
- Department of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy and Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, CHA University, Seongnam, 13488, Republic of Korea
| | - You-Hee Cho
- Department of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy and Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, CHA University, Seongnam, 13488, Republic of Korea
| | - Chang-Jun Cha
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong, 17456, Republic of Korea.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Piotrowska M, Dziewit L, Ostrowski R, Chmielowska C, Popowska M. Molecular Characterization and Comparative Genomics of IncQ-3 Plasmids Conferring Resistance to Various Antibiotics Isolated from a Wastewater Treatment Plant in Warsaw (Poland). Antibiotics (Basel) 2020; 9:antibiotics9090613. [PMID: 32957637 PMCID: PMC7557826 DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics9090613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Revised: 09/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
As small, mobilizable replicons with a broad host range, IncQ plasmids are widely distributed among clinical and environmental bacteria. They carry antibiotic resistance genes, and it has been shown that they confer resistance to β-lactams, fluoroquinolones, aminoglycosides, trimethoprim, sulphonamides, and tetracycline. The previously proposed classification system divides the plasmid group into four subgroups, i.e., IncQ-1, IncQ-2, IncQ-3, and IncQ-4. The last two subgroups have been poorly described so far. The aim of this study was to analyze five newly identified IncQ-3 plasmids isolated from a wastewater treatment plant in Poland and to compare them with all known plasmids belonging to the IncQ-3 subgroup whose sequences were retrieved from the NCBI database. The complete nucleotide sequences of the novel plasmids were annotated and bioinformatic analyses were performed, including identification of core genes and auxiliary genetic load. Furthermore, functional experiments testing plasmid mobility were carried out. Phylogenetic analysis based on three core genes (repA, mobA/repB, and mobC) revealed the presence of three main clusters of IncQ-3 replicons. Apart from having a highly conserved core, the analyzed IncQ-3 plasmids were vectors of antibiotic resistance genes, including (I) the qnrS2 gene that encodes fluoroquinolone resistance and (II) β-lactam, trimethoprim, and aminoglycoside resistance genes within integron cassettes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marta Piotrowska
- Department of Bacterial Physiology, Institute of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-096 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Lukasz Dziewit
- Department of Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology, Institute of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-096 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Rafał Ostrowski
- Department of Bacterial Physiology, Institute of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-096 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Cora Chmielowska
- Department of Bacterial Genetics, Institute of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-096 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Magdalena Popowska
- Department of Bacterial Physiology, Institute of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, 02-096 Warsaw, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Zhang H, Chang M, Zhang X, Cai P, Dai Y, Song T, Wu Z, Xu H, Qiao M. Functional Identification and Evolutionary Analysis of Two Novel Plasmids Mediating Quinolone Resistance in Proteus vulgaris. Microorganisms 2020; 8:microorganisms8071074. [PMID: 32708454 PMCID: PMC7409132 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms8071074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2020] [Revised: 07/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) remains one of the main mechanisms of bacterial quinolone resistance and plays an important role in the transmission of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). In this study, two novel plasmids, p3M-2A and p3M-2B, which mediate quinolone resistance in Proteus vulgaris strain 3M (P3M) were identified. Of these, only p3M-2B appeared to be a qnrD-carrying plasmid. Both p3M-2A and p3M-2B could be transferred into Escherichia coli, and the latter caused a twofold change in ciprofloxacin resistance, according to the measured minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). Plasmid curing/complementation and qRT-PCR results showed that p3M-2A can directly regulate the expression of qnrD in p3M-2B under treatment with ciprofloxacin, in which process, ORF1 was found to play an important role. Sequence alignments and phylogenetic analysis revealed the evolutionary relationships of all reported qnrD-carrying plasmids and showed that ORF1–4 in p3M-2B is the most conserved backbone for the normal function of qnrD-carrying plasmids. The identified direct repeats (DR) suggested that, from an evolutionary perspective, p3M-2B may have originated from the 2683-bp qnrD-carrying plasmid and may increase the possibility of plasmid recombination and then of qnrD transfer. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first identification of a novel qnrD-carrying plasmid isolated from a P. vulgaris strain of shrimp origin and a plasmid that plays a regulatory role in qnrD expression. This study also sheds new light on plasmid evolution and on the mechanism of horizontal transfer of ARGs encoded by plasmids.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hongyang Zhang
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
| | - Mingding Chang
- Zhengzhou University Industrial Technology Institute Co. Ltd., Zhengzhou 450000, China;
| | - Xiaochen Zhang
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
| | - Peiyan Cai
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
| | - Yixin Dai
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
| | - Tongzhen Song
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
| | - Zhenzhou Wu
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
| | - Haijin Xu
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
| | - Mingqiang Qiao
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China; (H.Z.); (X.Z.); (P.C.); (Y.D.); (T.S.); (Z.W.); (H.X.)
- Correspondence:
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Kim DW, Thawng CN, Lee K, Wellington EMH, Cha CJ. A novel sulfonamide resistance mechanism by two-component flavin-dependent monooxygenase system in sulfonamide-degrading actinobacteria. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2019; 127:206-215. [PMID: 30928844 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.03.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2019] [Revised: 03/18/2019] [Accepted: 03/19/2019] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Sulfonamide-degrading bacteria have been discovered in various environments, suggesting the presence of novel resistance mechanisms via drug inactivation. In this study, Microbacterium sp. CJ77 capable of utilizing various sulfonamides as a sole carbon source was isolated from a composting facility. Genome and proteome analyses revealed that a gene cluster containing a flavin-dependent monooxygenase and a flavin reductase was highly up-regulated in response to sulfonamides. Biochemical analysis showed that the two-component monooxygenase system was key enzymes for the initial cleavage of sulfonamides. Co-expression of the two-component system in Escherichia coli conferred decreased susceptibility to sulfamethoxazole, indicating that the genes encoding drug-inactivating enzymes are potential resistance determinants. Comparative genomic analysis revealed that the gene cluster containing sulfonamide monooxygenase (renamed as sulX) and flavin reductase (sulR) was highly conserved in a genomic island shared among sulfonamide-degrading actinobacteria, all of which also contained sul1-carrying class 1 integrons. These results suggest that the sulfonamide metabolism may have evolved in sulfonamide-resistant bacteria which had already acquired the class 1 integron under sulfonamide selection pressures. Furthermore, the presence of multiple insertion sequence elements and putative composite transposon structures containing the sulX gene cluster indicated potential mobilization. This is the first study to report that sulX responsible for both sulfonamide degradation and resistance is prevalent in sulfonamide-degrading actinobacteria and its genetic signatures indicate horizontal gene transfer of the novel resistance gene.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dae-Wi Kim
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong 17456, Republic of Korea
| | - Cung Nawl Thawng
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong 17456, Republic of Korea
| | - Kihyun Lee
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong 17456, Republic of Korea
| | | | - Chang-Jun Cha
- Department of Systems Biotechnology and Center for Antibiotic Resistome, Chung-Ang University, Anseong 17456, Republic of Korea.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Polymorphism of antibiotic-inactivating enzyme driven by ecology expands the environmental resistome. ISME JOURNAL 2017; 12:267-276. [PMID: 29028006 DOI: 10.1038/ismej.2017.168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2017] [Revised: 08/10/2017] [Accepted: 08/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The environmental resistome has been recognized as the origin and reservoir of antibiotic resistance genes and considered to be dynamic and ever expanding. In this study, a targeted gene sequencing approach revealed that the polymorphic diversity of the aminoglycoside-inactivating enzyme AAC(6')-Ib was ecological niche-specific. AAC(6')-Ib-cr, previously known as a clinical variant, was prevalent in various soils and the intestines of chickens and humans, suggesting that this variant might not have arisen from adaptive mutations in the clinic but instead originated from the environment. Furthermore, ecologically dominant polymorphic variants of AAC(6')-Ib were characterized and found to display different substrate specificities for quinolones and aminoglycosides, conferring the altered resistance spectra. Interestingly, a novel variant with the D179Y substitution showed an extended resistance spectrum to the recently developed fluoroquinolone gemifloxacin. Our results suggest that soil and animal microbiomes could be major reservoirs of antibiotic resistance; polymorphic diversity expands the antibiotic resistome in the environment, resulting in the potential emergence of novel resistance.
Collapse
|