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Ganesh P, Veena K, Senthil R, Iswamy K, Ponmalar EM, Mariappan V, Girija ASS, Vadivelu J, Nagarajan S, Challabathula D, Shankar EM. Biofilm-Associated Agr and Sar Quorum Sensing Systems of Staphylococcus aureus Are Inhibited by 3-Hydroxybenzoic Acid Derived from Illicium verum. ACS Omega 2022; 7:14653-14665. [PMID: 35557687 PMCID: PMC9088959 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.1c07178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Biofilm-producing Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is less sensitive to conventional antibiotics than free-living planktonic cells. Here, we evaluated the antibiofilm activity of Illicium verum (I. verum) and one of its constituent compounds 3-hydroxybenzoic acid (3-HBA) against multi-drug-resistant S. aureus. We performed gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) to identify the major constituents in the methanolic extract of I. verum. Ligand-receptor interactions were studied by molecular docking, and in vitro investigations were performed using crystal violet assay, spreading assay, hemolysis, proteolytic activity, and growth curve analysis. The methanolic extract of I. verum inhibited S. aureus at 4.8 mg/mL, and GC-MS analysis revealed anethole, m-methoxybenzaldehyde, and 3-HBA as the major constituents. Molecular docking attributed the antibiofilm activity to an active ligand present in 3-HBA, which strongly interacted with the active site residues of AgrA and SarA of S. aureus. At a subinhibitory concentration of 2.4 mg/mL, the extract showed biofilm inhibition. Similarly, 3-HBA inhibited biofilm activity at 25 μg/mL (90.34%), 12.5 μg/mL (77.21%), and 6.25 μg/mL (62.69%) concentrations. Marked attrition in bacterial spreading was observed at 2.4 mg/mL (crude extract) and 25 μg/mL (3-HBA) concentrations. The methanol extract of I. verum and 3-HBA markedly inhibited β-hemolytic and proteolytic activities of S. aureus. At the lowest concentration, the I. verum extract (2.4 mg/mL) and 3-HBA (25 μg/mL) did not inhibit bacterial growth. Optical microscopy and SEM analysis confirmed that I. verum and 3-HBA significantly reduced biofilm dispersion without disturbing bacterial growth. Together, we found that the antibiofilm activity of I. verum and 3-HBA strongly targeted the Agr and Sar systems of S. aureus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pitchaipillai
Sankar Ganesh
- Department
of Microbiology, Saveetha Dental College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Velappanchavadi, PH Road, Chennai 600077, Tamilnadu, India
| | - Krishnamurthy Veena
- Infection
Biology, Department of Life Sciences, Central
University of Tamil Nadu, Neelakudi, Tiruvarur 610005, Tamilnadu, India
| | - Renganathan Senthil
- Department
of Bioinformatics, Marudupandiyar College, Vallam, Thanjavur 613403, Tamilnadu, India
| | - Koneti Iswamy
- Infection
Biology, Department of Life Sciences, Central
University of Tamil Nadu, Neelakudi, Tiruvarur 610005, Tamilnadu, India
| | - Esaki Muthu Ponmalar
- Sri
Sairam Siddha Medical College and Research Centre, West Tambaram, Chennai 600044, Tamilnadu, India
| | - Vanitha Mariappan
- Center
for Toxicology and Health Risk Studies, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, Malaysia
| | - A. S. Smiline Girija
- Department
of Microbiology, Saveetha Dental College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Velappanchavadi, PH Road, Chennai 600077, Tamilnadu, India
| | - Jamuna Vadivelu
- Department
of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Malaysia
| | - Samuthira Nagarajan
- Department
of Chemistry, Central University of Tamil
Nadu, Neelakudi, Tiruvarur 610005, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Dinakar Challabathula
- Department
of Life Sciences, Central University of
Tamil Nadu, Neelakudi, Tiruvarur 610005, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Esaki Muthu Shankar
- Infection
Biology, Department of Life Sciences, Central
University of Tamil Nadu, Neelakudi, Tiruvarur 610005, Tamilnadu, India
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