A phage tail-like bacteriocin suppresses competitors in metapopulations of pathogenic bacteria.

Bacteria can repurpose their own bacteriophage viruses (phage) to kill competing bacteria. Phage-derived elements are frequently strain specific in their killing activity, although there is limited evidence that this specificity drives bacterial population dynamics. Here, we identified intact phage and their derived elements in a metapopulation of wild plant-associated Pseudomonas genomes. We discovered that the most abundant viral cluster encodes a phage remnant resembling a phage tail called a tailocin, which bacteria have co-opted to kill bacterial competitors. Each pathogenic Pseudomonas strain carries one of a few distinct tailocin variants that target the variable polysaccharides in the outer membrane of co-occurring pathogenic Pseudomonas strains. Analysis of herbarium samples from the past 170 years revealed that the same tailocin and bacterial receptor variants have persisted in Pseudomonas populations. These results suggest that tailocin genetic diversity can be mined to develop targeted "tailocin cocktails" for microbial control.

Optimizing bacteriophage treatment of resistant Pseudomonas.

Phage therapy is increasing in relevance as an alternative treatment to combat antibiotic resistant bacteria. Phage cocktails are the state-of-the-art method of administering phages in clinical settings, preferred over monophage treatment because of their ability to eliminate multiple bacterial strains and reduce resistance formation. In our study, we compare monophage applications and phage cocktails to our chosen method of phage sequential treatments. To do so, we isolated four novel bacteriophages capable of infecting Pseudomonas alcaligenes T3, a close relative of P. aeruginosa, and characterized them using sequencing and transmission electron microscopy. While investigating monophage treatments, we observed that different phage concentrations had a strong impact on the timing and amount of resistance formation. When using phage cocktails, we observed that P. alcaligenes were capable of forming resistance in the same timespan it took them to become resistant to single phages. We isolated mutants resistant to each single phage as well as mutants exposed to phage cocktails, resulting in bacteria resistant to all four phages at once. Sequencing these mutants showed that different treatments yielded unique single nucleotide polymorphism mutation patterns. In order to combat resistance formation, we added phages one by one in intervals of 24 h, thus managing to delay resistance development and keeping bacterial growth significantly lower compared to phage cocktails.IMPORTANCEWHO declared antimicrobial resistance a top threat to global health; while antibiotics have stood at the forefront in the fight against bacterial infection, the increasing number of multidrug-resistant bacteria highlights a need to branch out in order to address the threat of antimicrobial resistance. Bacteriophages, viruses solely infecting bacteria, could present a solution due to their abundance, versatility, and adaptability. For this study, we isolated new phages infecting a fast-mutating Pseudomonas alcaligenes strain capable of forming resistance within 30 h. By using a sequential treatment approach of adding one phage after another, we were able to curb bacterial growth significantly more compared to state-of-the-art phage cocktails.

Characterization of selected phages for biocontrol of food-spoilage pseudomonads.

Pseudomonas spp., such as P. fluorescens group, P. fragi, and P. putida, are the major psychrophilic spoilage bacteria in the food industry. Bacteriophages (phages) are a promising tool for controlling food-spoilage and food-poisoning bacteria; however, there are few reports on phages effective on food-spoilage bacteria such as Pseudomonas spp. In this study, 12 Pseudomonas phages were isolated from chicken and soil samples. Based on the host range and lytic activity at 30 °C and 4 °C and various combinations of phages, phages vB_PflP-PCS4 and vB_PflP-PCW2 were selected to prepare phage cocktails to control Pseudomonas spp. The phage cocktail consisting of vB_PflP-PCS4 and vB_PflP-PCW2 showed the strongest lytic activity and retarded regrowth of P. fluorescens and P. putida at 30 °C, 8 °C, and 4 °C at a multiplicity of infection of 100. Nucleotide sequence analysis of the genomic DNA indicated that vB_PflP-PCS4 and vB_PflP-PCW2 phages were lytic phages of the Podoviridae family and lacked tRNA, toxin, or virulence genes. A novel endolysin gene was found in the genomic DNA of phage vB_PflP-PCS4. The results of this study suggest that the phage cocktail consisting of vB_PflP-PCS4 and vB_PflP-PCW2 is a promising tool for the biocontrol of psychrophilic food-spoilage pseudomonads during cold storage and distribution.

PHIDA: A High Throughput Turbidimetric Data Analytic Tool to Compare Host Range Profiles of Bacteriophages Isolated Using Different Enrichment Methods.

Bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria and are present in niches where bacteria thrive. In recent years, the suggested application areas of lytic bacteriophage have been expanded to include therapy, biocontrol, detection, sanitation, and remediation. However, phage application is constrained by the phage's host range-the range of bacterial hosts sensitive to the phage and the degree of infection. Even though phage isolation and enrichment techniques are straightforward protocols, the correlation between the enrichment technique and host range profile has not been evaluated. Agar-based methods such as spotting assay and efficiency of plaquing (EOP) are the most used methods to determine the phage host range. These methods, aside from being labor intensive, can lead to subjective and incomplete results as they rely on qualitative observations of the lysis/plaques, do not reflect the lytic activity in liquid culture, and can overestimate the host range. In this study, phages against three bacterial genera were isolated using three different enrichment methods. Host range profiles of the isolated phages were quantitatively determined using a high throughput turbidimetric protocol and the data were analyzed with an accessible analytic tool "PHIDA". Using this tool, the host ranges of 9 Listeria, 14 Salmonella, and 20 Pseudomonas phages isolated with different enrichment methods were quantitatively compared. A high variability in the host range index (HRi) ranging from 0.86-0.63, 0.07-0.24, and 0.00-0.67 for Listeria, Salmonella, and Pseudomonas phages, respectively, was observed. Overall, no direct correlation was found between the phage host range breadth and the enrichment method in any of the three target bacterial genera. The high throughput method and analytics tool developed in this study can be easily adapted to any phage study and can provide a consensus for phage host range determination.

Novel anti-repression mechanism of H-NS proteins by a phage protein.

H-NS family proteins, bacterial xenogeneic silencers, play central roles in genome organization and in the regulation of foreign genes. It is thought that gene repression is directly dependent on the DNA binding modes of H-NS family proteins. These proteins form lateral protofilaments along DNA. Under specific environmental conditions they switch to bridging two DNA duplexes. This switching is a direct effect of environmental conditions on electrostatic interactions between the oppositely charged DNA binding and N-terminal domains of H-NS proteins. The Pseudomonas lytic phage LUZ24 encodes the protein gp4, which modulates the DNA binding and function of the H-NS family protein MvaT of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. However, the mechanism by which gp4 affects MvaT activity remains elusive. In this study, we show that gp4 specifically interferes with the formation and stability of the bridged MvaT-DNA complex. Structural investigations suggest that gp4 acts as an 'electrostatic zipper' between the oppositely charged domains of MvaT protomers, and stabilizes a structure resembling their 'half-open' conformation, resulting in relief of gene silencing and adverse effects on P. aeruginosa growth. The ability to control H-NS conformation and thereby its impact on global gene regulation and growth might open new avenues to fight Pseudomonas multidrug resistance.

Characterization of the first Pseudomonas grimontii bacteriophage, PMBT3.

The complete genome sequence of the virulent bacteriophage PMBT3, isolated on the proteolytic Pseudomonas grimontii strain MBTL2-21, showed no significant similarity to other known phage genome sequences, making this phage the first reported to infect a strain of P. grimontii. Electron microscopy revealed PMBT3 to be a member of the family Siphoviridae, with notably long and flexible whiskers. The linear, double-stranded genome of 87,196 bp has a mol% G+C content of 60.4 and contains 116 predicted protein-encoding genes. A putative tellurite resistance (terB) gene, originally reported to occur in the genome of a bacterium, was detected in the genome of phage PMBT3.

Metaviromes Reveal the Dynamics of Pseudomonas Host-Specific Phages Cultured and Uncultured by Plaque Assay.

Isolating single phages using plaque assays is a laborious and time-consuming process. Whether single isolated phages are the most lyse-effective, the most abundant in viromes, or those with the highest ability to make plaques in solid media is not well known. With the increasing accessibility of high-throughput sequencing, metaviromics is often used to describe viruses in environmental samples. By extracting and sequencing metaviromes from organic waste with and without exposure to a host-of-interest, we show a host-related phage community's shift, as well as identify the most enriched phages. Moreover, we isolated plaque-forming single phages using the same virome-host matrix to observe how enrichments in liquid media correspond to the metaviromic data. In this study, we observed a significant shift (p = 0.015) of the 47 identified putative Pseudomonas phages with a minimum twofold change above zero in read abundance when adding a Pseudomonas syringae DC3000 host. Surprisingly, it appears that only two out of five plaque-forming phages from the same organic waste sample, targeting the Pseudomonas strain, were highly abundant in the metavirome, while the other three were almost absent despite host exposure. Lastly, our sequencing results highlight how long reads from Oxford Nanopore elevates the assembly quality of metaviromes, compared to short reads alone.

Genomic Characterisation of Mushroom Pathogenic Pseudomonads and Their Interaction with Bacteriophages.

Bacterial diseases of the edible white button mushroom Agaricus bisporus caused by Pseudomonas species cause a reduction in crop yield, resulting in considerable economic loss. We examined bacterial pathogens of mushrooms and bacteriophages that target them to understand the disease and opportunities for control. The Pseudomonastolaasii genome encoded a single type III protein secretion system (T3SS), but contained the largest number of non-ribosomal peptide synthase (NRPS) genes, multimodular enzymes that can play a role in pathogenicity, including a putative tolaasin-producing gene cluster, a toxin causing blotch disease symptom. However, Pseudomonasagarici encoded the lowest number of NRPS and three putative T3SS while non-pathogenic Pseudomonas sp. NS1 had intermediate numbers. Potential bacteriophage resistance mechanisms were identified in all three strains, but only P. agarici NCPPB 2472 was observed to have a single Type I-F CRISPR/Cas system predicted to be involved in phage resistance. Three novel bacteriophages, NV1, ϕNV3, and NV6, were isolated from environmental samples. Bacteriophage NV1 and ϕNV3 had a narrow host range for specific mushroom pathogens, whereas phage NV6 was able to infect both mushroom pathogens. ϕNV3 and NV6 genomes were almost identical and differentiated within their T7-like tail fiber protein, indicating this is likely the major host specificity determinant. Our findings provide the foundations for future comparative analyses to study mushroom disease and phage resistance.

Progress on phage genomics of Pseudomonas spp.

Pseudomonas spp. are one of the most important ecological flora on the earth, widely distributed in freshwater, soil and other ecological environments. Pseudomonas phages are viruses hosted by Pseudomonas spp., which not only affect the survival and evolution of the hosts, but also play important roles in biomass circulation and energy flow. With the rapid development of genome sequencing technologies, the whole genome sequences of many Pseudomonas phages have been completed. As of July 2020, 247 Pseudomonas phage genomes were deposited in GenBank, accounting for 2.45% of the total 10,069 viral genomes. The genome sizes of Pseudomonas bacteriophages and the genetic contents are different, and the similarity between genomes is low, so the study on Pseudomonas bacteriophage genomes is relatively less. In this review, we summarize the characteristics, genetic diversity, and functional genes of Pseudomonas bacteriophages genomes in order to provide a reference for understanding the antagonistic coevolution of bacteria and phages and the genetic evolution of phages.

Insights into Mobile Genetic Elements of the Biocide-Degrading Bacterium Pseudomonas nitroreducens HBP-1.

The sewage sludge isolate Pseudomonas nitroreducens HBP-1 was the first bacterium known to completely degrade the fungicide 2-hydroxybiphenyl. PacBio and Illumina whole-genome sequencing revealed three circular DNA replicons: a chromosome and two plasmids. Plasmids were shown to code for putative adaptive functions such as heavy metal resistance, but with unclarified ability for self-transfer. About one-tenth of strain HBP-1's chromosomal genes are likely of recent horizontal influx, being part of genomic islands, prophages and integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs). P. nitroreducens carries two large ICEs with different functional specialization, but with homologous core structures to the well-known ICEclc of Pseudomonas knackmussii B13. The variable regions of ICEPni1 (96 kb) code for, among others, heavy metal resistances and formaldehyde detoxification, whereas those of ICEPni2 (171 kb) encodes complete meta-cleavage pathways for catabolism of 2-hydroxybiphenyl and salicylate, a protocatechuate pathway and peripheral enzymes for 4-hydroxybenzoate, ferulate, vanillin and vanillate transformation. Both ICEs transferred at frequencies of 10-6-10-8 per P. nitroreducens HBP-1 donor into Pseudomonas putida, where they integrated site specifically into tRNAGly-gene targets, as expected. Our study highlights the underlying determinants and mechanisms driving dissemination of adaptive properties allowing bacterial strains to cope with polluted environments.

Huge bacteriophages: bridging the gap?

Huge bacteriophages display genome sizes that bridge the gap between viral and bacterial genomes. Large Pseudomonas phages elaborate a nucleus-like structure in the infected bacterial cell and a tubulin-like phage protein forms a kind of spindle apparatus. While this probably represents cases of convergent evolution, these observations revive the discussion on the origin of eukaryotic cells.

'Drc', a structurally novel ssDNA-binding transcription regulator of N4-related bacterial viruses.

Bacterial viruses encode a vast number of ORFan genes that lack similarity to any other known proteins. Here, we present a 2.20 Å crystal structure of N4-related Pseudomonas virus LUZ7 ORFan gp14, and elucidate its function. We demonstrate that gp14, termed here as Drc (ssDNA-binding RNA Polymerase Cofactor), preferentially binds single-stranded DNA, yet contains a structural fold distinct from other ssDNA-binding proteins (SSBs). By comparison with other SSB folds and creation of truncation and amino acid substitution mutants, we provide the first evidence for the binding mechanism of this unique fold. From a biological perspective, Drc interacts with the phage-encoded RNA Polymerase complex (RNAPII), implying a functional role as an SSB required for the transition from early to middle gene transcription during phage infection. Similar to the coliphage N4 gp2 protein, Drc likely binds locally unwound middle promoters and recruits the phage RNA polymerase. However, unlike gp2, Drc does not seem to need an additional cofactor for promoter melting. A comparison among N4-related phage genera highlights the evolutionary diversity of SSB proteins in an otherwise conserved transcription regulation mechanism.

Bacteriophage of the Skin Microbiome in Patients with Psoriasis and Healthy Family Controls.

The bacteriophage (phage) component of the skin microbiome in patients with psoriasis has not been systematically explored. The purpose of this study is to investigate phage and bacterial components of the skin microbiome in patients with psoriasis and in healthy family controls. Lesional skin swabs of four different locations (elbow, forearm, knee, and scalp) were taken from patients with psoriasis. Healthy skin swabs of matched locations were taken from contralateral non-lesional skin and healthy family controls. Skin microbiomes were investigated using next-generation shotgun metagenomics sequencing. 81 skin microbiome samples (27 lesional skin samples and 54 healthy skin samples from contralateral non-lesional skin and family controls) obtained from 16 subjects with psoriasis and 16 matched family controls were sequenced and analyzed. Among phage species with abundant host bacteria, two significantly differential abundant phage species, Acinetobacter phage Presley and Pseudomonas phage O4 (adjusted P < 0.05), between psoriasis lesional skin and healthy skin were identified. Samples with high levels of these phage species had their host bacteria abundance suppressed (P = 0.03 and P < 0.001). Differential phage composition between lesional skin in patients with psoriasis and healthy skin from contralateral non-lesional sites and family controls, as well as the suppression of bacteria host of the respective phage, suggest possible avenues for probiotic phage therapeutics.

Green approach to phytopathogen: Characterization of lytic bacteriophages of Pseudomonas sp., an etiology of the bacterial blight of pomegranate.

Two morphologically different bacteriophages were isolated from the river and soil samples from various locations of Maharashtra, India against the phytopathogen Pseudomonas sp. that was recently reported to cause a new bacterial blight of pomegranate. Both the phages belonged to the order Caudovirales representing the families Siphoviridae (vB_Psp.S_PRɸL2) and Myoviridae (vB_Psp.M_SSɸL8). The multiplicity of infection ranged from 0.01 to 0.1, phage adsorption rate from 39% to 66%, latent period from 10 to 20 min with a burst size of 24-85 phage particles per infected host cell. The genome size of phages PRɸL2 and SSɸL8 was approximately 25.403 kb and 29.877 kb respectively. Restriction digestion pattern of phage genomic DNA was carried out for phage PRɸL2, Eco RI resulted in two bands and Hind III resulted in three bands while for phage SSɸL8, both Eco RI and Hind III each resulted in three bands. SDS-PAGE protein profile showed six bands for PRɸL2 and nine bands for SSɸL8 of different proteins. Phages showed high pH stability over a range of 4-9, temperature stability over a range of 4-50 °C and UV radiation showed a reduction up to 89.36% for PRɸL2 and 96% for SSɸL8. In short, the present research work discusses for the first time in-detailed characterization of phages of a phytopathogen Pseudomonas sp. from Maharashtra, India, which can be further efficiently used for biological control of the causative agent of a new bacterial blight disease of pomegranate.

Viral Capsid Trafficking along Treadmilling Tubulin Filaments in Bacteria.

Cargo trafficking along microtubules is exploited by eukaryotic viruses, but no such examples have been reported in bacteria. Several large Pseudomonas phages assemble a dynamic, tubulin-based (PhuZ) spindle that centers replicating phage DNA sequestered within a nucleus-like structure. Here, we show that capsids assemble on the membrane and then move rapidly along PhuZ filaments toward the phage nucleus for DNA packaging. The spindle rotates the phage nucleus, distributing capsids around its surface. PhuZ filaments treadmill toward the nucleus at a constant rate similar to the rate of capsid movement and the linear velocity of nucleus rotation. Capsids become trapped along mutant static PhuZ filaments that are defective in GTP hydrolysis. Our results suggest a transport and distribution mechanism in which capsids attached to the sides of filaments are trafficked to the nucleus by PhuZ polymerization at the poles, demonstrating that the phage cytoskeleton evolved cargo-trafficking capabilities in bacteria.

Different bacterial and viral pathogens trigger distinct immune responses in a globally invasive ant.

Invasive species populations periodically collapse from high to low abundance, sometimes even to extinction. Pathogens and the burden they place on invader immune systems have been hypothesised as a mechanism for these collapses. We examined the association of the bacterial pathogen (Pseudomonas spp.) and the viral community with immune gene expression in the globally invasive Argentine ant (Linepithema humile (Mayr)). RNA-seq analysis found evidence for 17 different viruses in Argentine ants from New Zealand, including three bacteriophages with one (Pseudomonas phage PS-1) likely to be attacking the bacterial host. Pathogen loads and prevalence varied immensely. Transcriptomic data showed that immune gene expression was consistent with respect to the viral classification of negative-sense, positive-sense and double-stranded RNA viruses. Genes that were the most strongly associated with the positive-sense RNA viruses such as the Linepithema humile virus 1 (LHUV-1) and the Deformed wing virus (DWV) were peptide recognition proteins assigned to the Toll and Imd pathways. We then used principal components analysis and regression modelling to determine how RT-qPCR derived immune gene expression levels were associated with viral and bacterial loads. Argentine ants mounted a substantial immune response to both Pseudomonas and LHUV-1 infections, involving almost all immune pathways. Other viruses including DWV and the Kashmir bee virus appeared to have much less immunological influence. Different pathogens were associated with varying immunological responses, which we hypothesize to interact with and influence the invasion dynamics of this species.

Characterization of Phage-Resistant Strains Derived from Pseudomonas tolaasii 6264, which Causes Brown Blotch Disease.

Pseudomonas tolaasii 6264 is a representative strain that causes bacterial blotch disease on the cultivated oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus. Bacteriophages are able to sterilize the pathogenic P. tolaasii strains, and therefore, they can be applied in creating disease-free mushroom cultivation farms, through a method known as "phage therapy". For successful phage therapy, the characterization of phage-resistant strains is necessary, since they are frequently induced from the original pathogenic bacteria in the presence of phages. When 10 different phages were incubated with P. tolaasii 6264, their corresponding phage-resistant strains were obtained. In this study, changes in pathogenic, genetic, and biochemical characteristics as well as the acquired phage resistance of these strains were investigated. In the phylogenetic analyses, all phage-resistant strains were identical to the original parent strain based on the sequence comparison of 16S rRNA genes. When various phage-resistant strains were examined by three different methods, pitting test, white line test, and hemolytic activity, they were divided into three groups: strains showing all positive results in three tests, two positive in the first two tests, and all negative. Nevertheless, all phage-resistant strains showed that their pathogenic activities were reduced or completely lost.

Investigation of O-polysaccharides from bacterial strains of Pseudomonas genus as potential receptors of bacteriophage BIM BV-45.

The structure of potential bacteriophage receptors located on cell walls of Gram-negative bacteria deposited at Belarusian collection of microorganisms was investigated. Studies by 1D and 2D 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy enabled to elucidate the structure of the O-specific polysaccharides (OPS) constituting lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of some Pseudomonas species. The capacity of bacteriophage to adsorb to LPS molecules was tested.

A Lytic Bacteriophage for Controlling Pseudomonas lactis in Raw Cow's Milk.

The control of bacterial growth during milk processing is crucial for the quality maintenance of commercial milk and milk products. During a period of cold storage prior to heat treatments, some psychrotrophic bacteria grow and produce extracellular heat-resistant lipases and proteases that cause product defects. The use of lytic bacteriophages (phages) that infect and kill bacteria could be a useful tool for suppressing bacterial growth during this cold storage phase. In this study, we isolated a Pseudomonas lactis strain and a phage from raw cow's milk. Quantitative characterization of the phage was used to elucidate whether this phage was active under low temperatures and neutral pH and whether it was inactivated during pasteurization. Phage titer determination was possible under conditions ranging from pH 4 to 9 and from 3°C to 25°C; the phage was inactivated under pasteurization conditions at 63°C for 30 min. Furthermore, we showed that this phage reduced viable bacterial cell counts in both skim and whole milk. The results of this study represent the potential uses of phages for controlling psychrotrophic bacterial growth in raw cow's milk during cold storage.IMPORTANCE Suppression of bacterial growth in raw milk under cold storage is crucial for the quality control of commercially supplied milk. The use of lytic phages as low-cost microbicides is an attractive prospect. Due to strict host specificities, phages must be isolated from the raw milk where the host bacteria are growing. We first isolated the P. lactis bacterial strain and then the phage infecting that strain. Partial phage genomic analysis showed that this is a newly isolated phage, different from any previously reported. This study reports a lytic phage for P. lactis, and we have presented evidence here that this phage reduced viable bacterial cell counts not only in rich medium but also in skim and whole milk. As a result, we have concluded that the phage reported in this study would be useful in milk processing.

Characterization of two related Erwinia myoviruses that are distant relatives of the PhiKZ-like Jumbo phages.

Bacteriophages are a major force in the evolution of bacteria due to their sheer abundance as well as their ability to infect and kill their hosts and to transfer genetic material. Bacteriophages that infect the Enterobacteriaceae family are of particular interest because this bacterial family contains dangerous animal and plant pathogens. Herein we report the isolation and characterization of two jumbo myovirus Erwinia phages, RisingSun and Joad, collected from apple trees. These two genomes are nearly identical with Joad harboring two additional putative gene products. Despite mass spectrometry data that support the putative annotation, 43% of their gene products have no significant BLASTP hit. These phages are also more closely related to Pseudomonas and Vibrio phages than to published Enterobacteriaceae phages. Of the 140 gene products with a BLASTP hit, 81% and 63% of the closest hits correspond to gene products from Pseudomonas and Vibrio phages, respectively. This relatedness may reflect their ecological niche, rather than the evolutionary history of their host. Despite the presence of over 800 Enterobacteriaceae phages on NCBI, the uniqueness of these two phages highlights the diversity of Enterobacteriaceae phages still to be discovered.