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1.
Int J Mol Sci ; 24(2)2023 Jan 12.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36675049

RESUMEN

Enterocin DD14 (EntDD14) is a two-peptide leaderless bacteriocin produced by the Enterococcus faecalis 14 strain previously isolated from meconium. This bacteriocin is mainly active against Gram-positive bacteria. Leaderless bacteriocins do not undergo post-translational modifications and are therefore immediately active after their synthesis. As a result, the cells that produce such bacteriocins have developed means of protection against them which often involve transport systems. In this and our previous work, we constructed different mutants deleted in the genes involved in the transport functions, thus covering all the supposed components of this transport system, using Listeria innocua ATCC 33090 as the indicator strain to assess the activity of externalized EntDD14. We also assessed the self-resistance of the WT and all its engineered derivative mutants against EntDD14, provided extracellularly, in order to evaluate their self-resistance. The results obtained highlight that the ABC transporter constituted by the DdG, H, I, and J proteins contributes to EntDD14 export as well as resistance to an external supply of EntDD14. Our results also have established the essential role of the DdE and DdF proteins as primary transporters dedicated to the externalization of EntDD14. Moreover, the in silico data showed that DdE and DdF appear to assemble in a formation that forms an essential channel for the exit of EntDD14. This channel DdEF may interact with the ABC transporter DdGHIJ in order to control the flow of bacteriocin across the membrane, although the nature of this interaction remains to be elucidated.


Asunto(s)
Bacteriocinas , Bacteriocinas/genética , Bacteriocinas/farmacología , Bacteriocinas/metabolismo , Péptidos/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecalis/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/metabolismo , Transportadoras de Casetes de Unión a ATP/metabolismo
2.
Res Microbiol ; 173(8): 103982, 2022.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35931249

RESUMEN

In this work, the physiological roles of the primary peroxide scavenging activities of Enterococcus faecium AUS0004 strain were analysed. This healthcare-associated pathogen harbours genes encoding putative NADH peroxidase (Npr), alkyl hydroperoxide reductase (AhpCF), glutathione peroxidase (Gpx) and manganese-dependent catalase (Mn-Kat). Gene expression analyses showed that npr and kat genes are especially and significantly induced in cells treated with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and cumene hydroperoxide (CuOOH), which suggested an important function of these enzymes to protect E. faecium against peroxide stress. Mutants affected in one or several predicted anti-oxidative activities mentioned above showed that neither the peroxidases nor the catalase are implicated in the defence against peroxide challenges. However, our investigations allowed us to show that Npr is responsible for the degradation of approximately 45% of metabolically derived H2O2 which avoids accumulation of the peroxide to lethal concentrations.


Asunto(s)
Enterococcus faecium , Glutatión Peroxidasa , Catalasa/genética , Enterococcus faecium/genética , Peróxidos , Peróxido de Hidrógeno/farmacología , Peroxidasas
3.
Int J Mol Sci ; 22(23)2021 Nov 28.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34884682

RESUMEN

Bacteriocins synthesis is initiated from an inactive precursor, which is composed of an N-terminal leader peptide attached to a C-terminal pro-peptide. However, leaderless bacteriocins (LLB) do not possess this N-terminal leader peptide nor undergo post-translational modifications. These atypical bacteriocins are observed to be immediately active after their translation in the cytoplasm. However, although considered to be simple, the biosynthetic pathway of LLB remains to be fully understood. Enterocin DD14 (EntDD14) is a two-peptide LLB produced by Enterococcus faecalis 14, which is a strain isolated from meconium. In silico analysis of DNA encoding EntDD14 located a cluster of 10 genes ddABCDEFGHIJ, where ddE and ddF encode the peculiar DdE and DdF proteins, carrying pleckstrin homology (PH) domains. These modules are quite common in Eucarya proteins and are known to be involved in intracellular signaling or cytoskeleton organization. To elucidate their role within the EntDD14 genetic determinants, we constructed deletion mutants of the ddE and ddF genes. As a result, the mutants were unable to export EntDD14 outside of the cytoplasm even though there was a clear expression of structural genes ddAB encoding EntDD14, and genes ddHIJ encoding an ABC transporter. Importantly, in these mutant strains (ΔddE and ΔddF), EntDD14 was detected by mass spectrometry in the intracellular soluble fraction exerting, upon its accumulation, a toxic effect on the producing strain as revealed by cell-counting and confocal microscopy analysis. Taken together, these results clearly indicate that PH domain-containing proteins, such as DdE and DdF, are involved in the transport of the leaderless two-peptide EntDD14.


Asunto(s)
Bacteriocinas/metabolismo , Dominios Homólogos a Pleckstrina , Bacteriocinas/genética , Hidrocarburos Aromáticos con Puentes/metabolismo , Simulación por Computador , Enterococcus faecalis , Operón
4.
Res Microbiol ; 172(6): 103876, 2021.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34474124

RESUMEN

The manganese superoxide dismutase (SodA) of E. faecium strain AUS0004 has been characterised. It is most closely related to Enterococcus hirae, Enterococcus durans, Enterococcus villorium, and Enterococcus mundtii with 100%, 91,55%, 90,85%, and 90,58% homology, respectively, but more distant from SodA of E. faecalis (81.68%). A sodA deletion mutant has been constructed. Compared to the parental strain, the ΔsodA mutant was affected in aerobic growth and more sensitive to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), cumene hydroperoxide (CuOOH), and the superoxide anion (O2•-) generator menadione. The E. faecium strain AUS0004 is part of those bacteria accumulating H2O2 to high concentrations (around 5 mM) starting from late exponential growth phase. Accumulation of the peroxide was around 25% less in the mutant suggesting that this part of H2O2 is due to the dismutation of O2•- by SodA. The sodA gene of E. faecium AUS0004 was induced by oxygen, peroxides and menadione but the corresponding regulator remains hitherto unknown. Finally, we showed that SodA activity is important for virulence in the Galleria mellonella model.


Asunto(s)
Proteínas Bacterianas/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecium/enzimología , Superóxido Dismutasa/metabolismo , Aerobiosis , Animales , Antioxidantes/metabolismo , Proteínas Bacterianas/química , Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , Derivados del Benceno/farmacología , Enterococcus faecium/crecimiento & desarrollo , Enterococcus faecium/patogenicidad , Inducción Enzimática , Genoma Bacteriano , Peróxido de Hidrógeno/metabolismo , Peróxido de Hidrógeno/farmacología , Mariposas Nocturnas/microbiología , Estrés Oxidativo , Filogenia , Superóxido Dismutasa/química , Superóxido Dismutasa/genética , Superóxidos/metabolismo , Superóxidos/farmacología , Virulencia
5.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32671042

RESUMEN

Enterocin DD14 (EntDD14) is a two-peptide leaderless bacteriocin produced by Enterococcus faecalis 14, a strain previously isolated from meconium. EntDD14 has a strong antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacteria. Leaderless bacteriocins, unlike bacteriocins with leader peptides, are immediately active after their translation, and a producing strain has then to develop specific mechanisms to protect both intra and extracellular compartments. The in silico analysis of Ent. faecalis 14 genome allowed to locate downstream of structural ddAB genes, 8 other adjacent genes, designed ddCDEFGHIJ, which collectively may form three operons. To gain insights on immunity mechanisms of Ent. faecalis 14, mutant strains knocked out in ddAB genes encoding bacteriocin precursor peptides (Δbac) and/or ABC transporter (ΔddI) of EntDD14 were constructed and characterized. Importantly, Δbac mutant strains, from which structural ddAB genes were deleted, resulted unable to produce EntDD14 and sensitive to exogenous EntDD14 showing their involvement in the Ent. faecalis 14 immunity system. Moreover, the sensitivity of Δbac mutants appeared not to be associated with the down-regulation of ddCDEFGHIJ gene expression since they were similarly expressed in both Δbac and wild-type strains during the log phase while they were found significantly down-regulated in the Δbac mutant strain after 24 h of growth. Data gathered from this study suggest also the implication of the ABC transporter (ddHIJ) in the active export of EntDD14 but ruled-out its involvement in the primary self-immunity system. Interestingly, non-bacteriocin producing Ent. faecalis JH2-2 cells transformed with ddAB, or ddAB plus genes encoding the ABC transporter (ddAB-HIJ) did not produce EntDD14 and remained sensitive to its action. Of note, trans-complementation of the Δbac mutant strain with these constructions allowed to recover the WT phenotype. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study delineating the role of the intracellular two-peptide leaderless bacteriocins in their self-immunity.

6.
Appl Microbiol Biotechnol ; 104(3): 1175-1186, 2020 Feb.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-31828406

RESUMEN

Enterococcus faecium is frequently isolated from fermented food; in particular, they positively contribute to the aroma compound generation in traditional cheese. Citrate fermentation is a desirable property in these bacteria, but this feature is not uniformly distributed among E. faecium strains. In the present study, three selected E. faecium strains, IQ110 (cit-), GM70 (cit+ type I), and Com12 (cit+ type II), were analyzed in their production of aroma compounds in milk. End products and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were determined by solid-phase micro-extraction combined with gas chromatography mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS). Principal component analysis (PCA) of aroma compound profiles revealed a different VOC composition for the three strains. In addition, resting cell experiments of E. faecium performed in the presence of leucine, citrate, or pyruvate as aroma compound precursors allowed us to determine metabolic differences between the studied strains. GM70 (cit+ type I) showed an active citrate metabolism, with increased levels of diacetyl and acetoin generation relative to Com12 or to citrate defective IQ110 strains. In addition, in the experimental conditions tested, a defective citrate-fermenting phenotype for the Com12 strain was found, while its leucine degradation and pyruvate metabolism were conserved. In conclusion, rational selection of E. faecium strains could be performed based on genotypic and phenotypic analyses. This would result in a performing strain, such as GM70, that could positively contribute to flavor, with typical notes of diacetyl, acetoin, 3-methyl butanal, and 3-methyl butanol in an adjuvant culture.


Asunto(s)
Ácido Cítrico/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecium/metabolismo , Leucina/metabolismo , Leche/química , Compuestos Orgánicos Volátiles/metabolismo , Animales , Enterococcus faecium/genética , Fermentación , Microbiología de Alimentos , Cromatografía de Gases y Espectrometría de Masas , Leche/microbiología , Odorantes , Gusto
7.
Cell Rep ; 29(8): 2184-2191.e3, 2019 Nov 19.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-31747593

RESUMEN

Whereas the primary actions of ß-lactams are well characterized, their downstream effects are less well understood. Although their targets are extracellular, ß-lactams stimulate respiration in Escherichia coli leading to increased intracellular accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Here, we show that ß-lactams over a large concentration range trigger a strong increase in ROS production in Enterococcus faecalis under aerobic, but not anaerobic, conditions. Both amoxicillin, to which the bacterium is susceptible, and cefotaxime, to which E. faecalis is resistant, triggers this response. This stimulation of ROS formation depends mainly on demethylmenaquinone (DMK), a component of the E. faecalis respiratory chain, but in contrast to E. coli is observed only in the absence of respiration. Our results suggest that in E. faecalis, ß-lactams increase electron flux through the respiratory chain, thereby stimulating the auto-oxidation of reduced DMK in the absence of respiration, which triggers increased extracellular ROS production.


Asunto(s)
Enterococcus faecalis/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus faecalis/metabolismo , Especies Reactivas de Oxígeno/metabolismo , beta-Lactamas/farmacología , Amoxicilina/metabolismo , Escherichia coli/efectos de los fármacos , Escherichia coli/metabolismo , Estrés Oxidativo/efectos de los fármacos , Vitamina K 2/análogos & derivados , Vitamina K 2/farmacología
8.
J Antimicrob Chemother ; 74(11): 3162-3169, 2019 11 01.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-31339997

RESUMEN

BACKGROUND: Enterococci intrinsically resistant to cephalosporins represent a major cause of healthcare-associated infections, and the emergence of MDR makes therapeutic approaches particularly challenging. OBJECTIVES: Teichoic acids are cell wall glycopolymers present in Gram-positive bacteria. Teichoic acids can be modified by d-alanylation, which requires four proteins encoded by the dltABCD operon. Our objective was to evaluate the Dlt system as a druggable target to treat enterococcal infections. METHODS: The susceptibility of a d-alanylation-deficient strain of Enterococcus faecalis to ß-lactam antibiotics individually and/or in combination was analysed. Moreover, a DltA inhibitor was synthesized to test pharmacological inhibition of d-alanylation in vivo and in host using the animal model Galleria mellonella with different clinical isolates of E. faecalis and Enterococcus faecium. RESULTS: Most cephalosporins used as mono treatment had no impact on survival of the parental strain, but were slightly lethal for the dltA mutant of E. faecalis. Addition of a very low concentration of amoxicillin significantly increased killing of the dltA mutant under these conditions. The most spectacular effect was obtained with a combination of cefotaxime (1 mg/L) and amoxicillin (0.03 mg/L). In the presence of the inhibitor, the WT strain was as susceptible to this combination treatment as the dltA mutant. This molecule associated with the antibiotics was also effective in killing other E. faecalis clinical isolates and successfully prevented death of Galleria infected with either E. faecalis or E. faecium. CONCLUSIONS: The combined results support the potential usefulness of the Dlt system as a target to potentiate antibiotic combination therapies for the treatment of drug-resistant enterococci.


Asunto(s)
Antibacterianos/farmacología , Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , Enterococcus/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus/crecimiento & desarrollo , Ácidos Teicoicos/genética , beta-Lactamas/farmacología , Subfamilia D de Transportadores de Casetes de Unión al ATP/genética , Animales , Proteínas Bacterianas/antagonistas & inhibidores , Enterococcus/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus faecalis/genética , Enterococcus faecium/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus faecium/genética , Infecciones por Bacterias Grampositivas/microbiología , Larva/microbiología , Pruebas de Sensibilidad Microbiana , Mariposas Nocturnas/microbiología , Ácidos Teicoicos/química
9.
Front Microbiol ; 9: 2443, 2018.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-30364306

RESUMEN

During a 2-year study, the presence of human pathogenic bacteria and noroviruses was investigated in shellfish, seawater and/or surface sediments collected from three French coastal shellfish-harvesting areas as well as in freshwaters from the corresponding upstream catchments. Bacteria isolated from these samples were further analyzed. Escherichia coli isolates classified into the phylogenetic groups B2, or D and enterococci from Enterococcus faecalis and E. faecium species were tested for the presence of virulence genes and for antimicrobial susceptibility. Salmonella members were serotyped and the most abundant serovars (Typhimurium and its monophasic variants and Mbandaka) were genetically characterized by high discriminative subtyping methods. Campylobacter and Vibrio were identified at the species level, and haemolysin-producing Vibrio parahaemolyticus were searched by tdh- and trh- gene detection. Main results showed a low prevalence of Salmonella in shellfish samples where only members of S. Mbandaka were found. Campylobacter were more frequently isolated than Salmonella and a different distribution of Campylobacter species was observed in shellfish compared to rivers, strongly suggesting possible additional inputs of bacteria. Statistical associations between enteric bacteria, human noroviruses (HuNoVs) and concentration of fecal indicator bacteria revealed that the presence of Salmonella was correlated with that of Campylobacter jejuni and/or C. coli as well as to E. coli concentration. A positive correlation was also found between the presence of C. lari and the detection of HuNoVs. This study highlights the importance of simultaneous detection and characterization of enteric and marine pathogenic bacteria and human noroviruses not only in shellfish but also in catchment waters for a hazard assessment associated with microbial contamination of shellfish.

10.
PLoS One ; 10(8): e0136625, 2015.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-26322633

RESUMEN

BACKGROUND: Enterococcus faecium and faecalis are Gram-positive opportunistic pathogens that have become leading causes of nosocomial infections over the last decades. Especially multidrug resistant enterococci have become a challenging clinical problem worldwide. Therefore, new treatment options are needed and the identification of alternative targets for vaccine development has emerged as a feasible alternative to fight the infections caused by these pathogens. RESULTS: We extrapolate the transcriptomic data from a mice peritonitis infection model in E. faecalis to identify putative up-regulated surface proteins under infection conditions in E. faecium. After the bionformatic analyses two metal binding lipoproteins were identified to have a high homology (>72%) between the two species, the manganese ABC transporter substrate-binding lipoprotein (PsaAfm,) and the zinc ABC transporter substrate-binding lipoprotein (AdcAfm). These candidate lipoproteins were overexpressed in Escherichia coli and purified. The recombinant proteins were used to produce rabbit polyclonal antibodies that were able to induce specific opsonic antibodies that mediated killing of the homologous strain E. faecium E155 as well as clinical strains E. faecium E1162, Enterococcus faecalis 12030, type 2 and type 5. Mice were passively immunized with the antibodies raised against recombinant lipoproteins, showing significant reduction of colony counts in mice livers after the bacterial challenge and demonstrating the efficacy of these metal binding lipoproteins as promising vaccine candidates to treat infections caused by these enterococcal pathogens. CONCLUSION: Overall, our results demonstrate that these two metal binding lipoproteins elicited specific, opsonic and protective antibodies, with an extensive cross-reactivity and serotype-independent coverage among these two important nocosomial pathogens. Pointing these two protein antigens as promising immunogens, that can be used as single components or as carrier proteins together with polysaccharide antigens in vaccine development against enterococcal infections.


Asunto(s)
Transportadoras de Casetes de Unión a ATP/inmunología , Vacunas Bacterianas/inmunología , Enterococcus faecalis/inmunología , Enterococcus faecium/inmunología , Infecciones por Bacterias Grampositivas/prevención & control , Lipoproteínas/inmunología , Animales , Anticuerpos Antibacterianos/sangre , Antígenos Bacterianos/inmunología , Proteínas de Transporte de Catión/inmunología , Femenino , Infecciones por Bacterias Grampositivas/inmunología , Infecciones por Bacterias Grampositivas/microbiología , Inmunoglobulina G/sangre , Manganeso/metabolismo , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos BALB C , Proteínas Opsoninas/inmunología , Peritonitis/microbiología , Fagocitosis/inmunología , Vacunación , Zinc/metabolismo
11.
J Bacteriol ; 197(20): 3283-93, 2015 Oct.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-26260456

RESUMEN

UNLABELLED: Enterococci are naturally tolerant to typically bactericidal cell wall-active antibiotics, meaning that their growth is inhibited but they are not killed even when exposed to a high concentration of the drug. The molecular reasons for this extraordinary tolerance are still incompletely understood. Previous work showed that resistance to killing collapsed specifically in mutants affected in superoxide dismutase (Sod) activity, arguing that bactericidal antibiotic treatment led to induction of a superoxide burst. In the present work, we show that loss of antibiotic tolerance in ΔsodA mutants of pathogenic enterococci is dependent on the energy source present during antibiotic treatment. Hexoses induce greater killing than the pentose ribose, and no killing was observed with glycerol as the energy source. These results point to glycolytic reactions as crucial for antibiotic-mediated killing of ΔsodA mutants. A transposon mutant library was constructed in Enterococcus faecalis ΔsodA mutants and screened for restored tolerance of vancomycin. Partially restored tolerance was observed in mutants with transposon integrations into intergenic regions upstream of regulators implicated in arginine catabolism. In these mutants, the arginine deiminase operon was highly upregulated. A model for the action of cell wall-active antibiotics in tolerant and nontolerant bacteria is proposed. IMPORTANCE: Antibiotic tolerance is a serious clinical concern, since tolerant bacteria have considerably increased abilities to resist killing by bactericidal drugs. Using enterococci as models for highly antibiotic-tolerant pathogens, we showed that tolerance of these bacteria is linked to their superoxide dismutase (Sod), arguing that bactericidal antibiotics induce generation of reactive oxygen species inside cells. Wild-type strains are tolerant because they detoxify these deleterious molecules by the activity of Sod, whereas Sod-deficient strains are killed. This study showed that killing depends on the energy source present during treatment and that an increase in arginine catabolism partially restored tolerance of the Sod mutants. These results are used to propose a mode-of-action model of cell wall-active antibiotics in tolerant and nontolerant bacteria.


Asunto(s)
Antibacterianos/farmacología , Arginina/metabolismo , Farmacorresistencia Bacteriana/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/enzimología , Superóxido Dismutasa/metabolismo , Metabolismo de los Hidratos de Carbono , Elementos Transponibles de ADN , Enterococcus faecalis/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus faecalis/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/metabolismo , Regulación Bacteriana de la Expresión Génica/fisiología , Regulación Enzimológica de la Expresión Génica , Pruebas de Sensibilidad Microbiana , Mutagénesis Insercional , Mutación , Penicilinas/farmacología , Superóxido Dismutasa/genética , Vancomicina/farmacología
12.
PLoS One ; 9(11): e111880, 2014.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-25369230

RESUMEN

Infections by opportunistic bacteria have significant contributions to morbidity and mortality of hospitalized patients and also lead to high expenses in healthcare. In this setting, one of the major clinical problems is caused by Gram-positive bacteria such as enterococci and staphylococci. In this study we extract, purify, identify and characterize immunogenic surface-exposed proteins present in the vancomycin resistant enterococci (VRE) strain Enterococcus faecium E155 using three different extraction methods: trypsin shaving, biotinylation and elution at high pH. Proteomic profiling was carried out by gel-free and gel-nanoLC-MS/MS analyses. The total proteins found with each method were 390 by the trypsin shaving, 329 by the elution at high pH, and 45 using biotinylation. An exclusively extracytoplasmic localization was predicted in 39 (10%) by trypsin shaving, in 47 (15%) by elution at high pH, and 27 (63%) by biotinylation. Comparison between the three extraction methods by Venn diagram and subcellular localization predictors (CELLO v.2.5 and Gpos-mPLoc) allowed us to identify six proteins that are most likely surface-exposed: the SCP-like extracellular protein, a low affinity penicillin-binding protein 5 (PBP5), a basic membrane lipoprotein, a peptidoglycan-binding protein LysM (LysM), a D-alanyl-D-alanine carboxypeptidase (DdcP) and the peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase (PpiC). Due to their close relationship with the peptidoglycan, we chose PBP5, LysM, DdcP and PpiC to test their potential as vaccine candidates. These putative surface-exposed proteins were overexpressed in Escherichia coli and purified. Rabbit polyclonal antibodies raised against the purified proteins were able to induce specific opsonic antibodies that mediated killing of the homologous strain E. faecium E155 as well as clinical strains E. faecium E1162, Enterococcus faecalis 12030, type 2 and type 5. Passive immunization with rabbit antibodies raised against these proteins reduced significantly the colony counts of E. faecium E155 in mice, indicating the effectiveness of these surface-related proteins as promising vaccine candidates to target different enterococcal pathogens.


Asunto(s)
Anticuerpos Antibacterianos/sangre , Bacteriemia/prevención & control , Enterococcus faecalis/inmunología , Enterococcus faecium/inmunología , Infecciones por Bacterias Grampositivas/prevención & control , Peptidoglicano/inmunología , Animales , Proteínas de la Membrana Bacteriana Externa/inmunología , Vacunas Bacterianas/inmunología , Reacciones Cruzadas , Femenino , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos BALB C , Conejos , Vacunación
13.
Curr Microbiol ; 68(3): 352-7, 2014 Mar.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-24170270

RESUMEN

Lysozyme is an important and widespread component of the innate immune response that constitutes the first line of defense against bacterial pathogens. The bactericidal effect of this enzyme relies on its capacity to hydrolyze the bacterial cell wall and also on a nonenzymatic mechanism involving its cationic antimicrobial peptide (CAMP) properties, which leads to membrane permeabilization. In this paper, we report our findings on the lysozyme resistance ability of Rhodococcus equi, a pulmonary pathogen of young foals and, more recently, of immunocompromised patients, whose pathogenic capacity is conferred by a large virulence plasmid. Our results show that (i) R. equi can be considered to be moderately resistant to lysozyme, (ii) the activity of lysozyme largely depends on its muramidase action rather than on its CAMP activity, and (iii) the virulence plasmid confers part of its lysozyme resistance capacity to R. equi. This study is the first one to demonstrate the influence of the virulence plasmid on the stress resistance capacity of R. equi and improves our understanding of the mechanisms enabling R. equi to resist the host defenses.


Asunto(s)
Péptidos Catiónicos Antimicrobianos/metabolismo , Farmacorresistencia Bacteriana , Muramidasa/metabolismo , Rhodococcus equi/efectos de los fármacos , Genes Bacterianos , Plásmidos , Rhodococcus equi/genética
14.
J Antimicrob Chemother ; 68(9): 2083-91, 2013 Sep.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-23649229

RESUMEN

OBJECTIVES: Tolerance refers to the phenomenon that bacteria do not significantly die when exposed to bactericidal antibiotics. Enterococci are known for their high tolerance to these drugs, but the molecular reasons why they resist killing are not understood. In a previous study we showed that the superoxide dismutase (SOD) is implicated in this tolerance. This conclusion was based on the results obtained with one particular strain of Enterococcus faecalis and therefore the objective of the present communication was to analyse whether dependence of tolerance on active SOD is a general phenomenon for enterococci and another Gram-positive pathogen, Staphylococcus aureus. METHODS: Mutants deficient in SOD activity were constructed in pathogenic enterococci. The wild-type sodA gene was cloned into an expression vector and transformed into SOD-deficient strains for complementation with varying levels of SOD activity. Previously constructed SOD-deficient strains of S. aureus were also included in this study. Tolerance to vancomycin and penicillin was then tested. RESULTS: We demonstrated that the dependence on SOD of tolerance to vancomycin and penicillin is a common trait of antibiotic-susceptible pathogenic enterococci. By varying the levels of expression we could also show that tolerance to vancomycin is directly correlated to SOD activity. Interestingly, deletion of the sodA gene in a non-tolerant Enterococcus faecium strain did not further sensitize the mutant to bactericidal antibiotics. Finally, we showed that the SOD enzymes of S. aureus are also implicated in tolerance to vancomycin. CONCLUSION: High tolerance of enterococci to cell wall active antibiotics can be reversed by SOD deficiency.


Asunto(s)
Antibacterianos/farmacología , Pared Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Tolerancia a Medicamentos , Enterococcus faecalis/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus faecium/efectos de los fármacos , Staphylococcus aureus/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus faecalis/enzimología , Enterococcus faecium/enzimología , Eliminación de Gen , Prueba de Complementación Genética , Pruebas de Sensibilidad Microbiana , Penicilinas/farmacología , Staphylococcus aureus/enzimología , Superóxido Dismutasa/genética , Superóxido Dismutasa/metabolismo , Vancomicina/farmacología
15.
J Bacteriol ; 194(22): 6066-73, 2012 Nov.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-22961856

RESUMEN

Lysozyme is a key component of the innate immune response in humans that provides a first line of defense against microbes. The bactericidal effect of lysozyme relies both on the cell wall lytic activity of this enzyme and on a cationic antimicrobial peptide activity that leads to membrane permeabilization. Among Gram-positive bacteria, the opportunistic pathogen Enterococcus faecalis has been shown to be extremely resistant to lysozyme. This unusual resistance is explained partly by peptidoglycan O-acetylation, which inhibits the enzymatic activity of lysozyme, and partly by d-alanylation of teichoic acids, which is likely to inhibit binding of lysozyme to the bacterial cell wall. Surprisingly, combined mutations abolishing both peptidoglycan O-acetylation and teichoic acid alanylation are not sufficient to confer lysozyme susceptibility. In this work, we identify another mechanism involved in E. faecalis lysozyme resistance. We show that exposure to lysozyme triggers the expression of EF1843, a protein that is not detected under normal growth conditions. Analysis of peptidoglycan structure from strains with EF1843 loss- and gain-of-function mutations, together with in vitro assays using recombinant protein, showed that EF1843 is a peptidoglycan N-acetylglucosamine deacetylase. EF1843-mediated peptidoglycan deacetylation was shown to contribute to lysozyme resistance by inhibiting both lysozyme enzymatic activity and, to a lesser extent, lysozyme cationic antimicrobial activity. Finally, EF1843 mutation was shown to reduce the ability of E. faecalis to cause lethality in the Galleria mellonella infection model. Taken together, our results reveal that peptidoglycan deacetylation is a component of the arsenal that enables E. faecalis to thrive inside mammalian hosts, as both a commensal and a pathogen.


Asunto(s)
Amidohidrolasas/metabolismo , Proteínas Bacterianas/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecalis/enzimología , Enterococcus faecalis/patogenicidad , Regulación Bacteriana de la Expresión Génica/fisiología , Amidohidrolasas/genética , Animales , Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , ADN Bacteriano , Regulación Enzimológica de la Expresión Génica/fisiología , Larva/microbiología , Mariposas Nocturnas/microbiología , Muramidasa , Mutación , Plásmidos , Virulencia
16.
Microbiology (Reading) ; 158(Pt 10): 2661-2666, 2012 Oct.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-22878395

RESUMEN

Two pathways for glycerol dissimilation are present in Enterococcus faecalis. Either glycerol is first phosphorylated by glycerol kinase and then oxidized by glycerol-3-phosphate oxidase with molecular oxygen as the electron acceptor (GlpO/GlpK pathway), or it is first oxidized by glycerol dehydrogenase with NAD(+) as the acceptor of the reduction equivalents and then phosphorylated by dihydroxyacetone kinase (GldA/DhaK pathway). The final end product in both cases is dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP). The genes of the GldA/DhaK pathway are present in a four-gene operon structure encoding GldA, a small hypothetical protein (EF1359), and two subunits of dihydroxyacetone kinase (DhaK and DhaL). We demonstrate in this study that protein EF1359 is part of a phosphorylation cascade which phosphorylates dihydroxyacetone in a phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP)-dependent reaction via EI, HPr, EF1359 and DhaLK. Furthermore we show that aerobic dissimilation of glycerol via the GldA/DhaK pathway is dependent on active NADH oxidase to regenerate NADH in Ent. faecalis. A refined model of the aerobic metabolism of glycerol via the GldA/DhaK pathway is presented.


Asunto(s)
Enterococcus faecalis/metabolismo , Glicerol/metabolismo , Complejos Multienzimáticos/metabolismo , NADH NADPH Oxidorreductasas/metabolismo , Fosfoenolpiruvato/metabolismo , Fosfotransferasas (Aceptor de Grupo Alcohol)/metabolismo , Transportadoras de Casetes de Unión a ATP/genética , Transportadoras de Casetes de Unión a ATP/metabolismo , Aerobiosis , Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , Proteínas Bacterianas/metabolismo , Dihidroxiacetona/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecalis/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/crecimiento & desarrollo , Regulación Bacteriana de la Expresión Génica , Complejos Multienzimáticos/genética , NADH NADPH Oxidorreductasas/genética , Operón , Fosfotransferasas (Aceptor de Grupo Alcohol)/genética
17.
PLoS One ; 7(6): e38458, 2012.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-22723861

RESUMEN

BACKGROUND: Enterococcus faecalis is one of the leading causes of nosocomial infections. Due to its innate and acquired resistance to most antibiotics, identification of new targets for antimicrobial treatment of E. faecalis is a high priority. The multiple peptide resistance factor MprF, which was first described in Staphylococcus aureus, modifies phosphatidylglycerol with lysin and reduces the negative charge of the membrane, thus increasing resistance to cationic antimicrobial peptides. We studied the effect of mprF in E. faecalis regarding influence on bacterial physiology and virulence. RESULTS: Two putative mprF paralogs (mprF1 and mprF2) were identified in E. faecalis by BLAST search using the well-described S. aureus gene as a lead. Two deletion mutants in E. faecalis 12030 were created by homologous recombination. Analysis of both mutants by thin-layer chromatography showed that inactivation of mprF2 abolishes the synthesis of three distinct amino-phosphatidylglycerols (PGs). In contrast, deletion of mprF1 did not interfere with the biosynthesis of amino-PG. Inactivation of mprF2 increased susceptibility against several antimicrobial peptides and resulted in a 42% increased biofilm formation compared to wild-type mprF. However, resistance to opsonic killing was increased in the mutant, while virulence in a mouse bacteremia model was unchanged. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that only mprF2 is involved in the aminoacylation of PG in enterococci, and is probably responsible for synthesis of Lys-PG, Ala-PG, and Arg-PG, while mprF1 does not seem to have a role in aminoacylation. As in other Gram-positive pathogens, aminoacylation through MprF2 increases resistance against cationic antimicrobial peptides. Unlike mprF found in other bacteria, mprF2 does not seem to be a major virulence factor in enterococci.


Asunto(s)
Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , Proteínas Bacterianas/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecalis/patogenicidad , Infecciones por Bacterias Grampositivas/microbiología , Animales , Péptidos Catiónicos Antimicrobianos/farmacología , Biopelículas/crecimiento & desarrollo , Farmacorresistencia Bacteriana/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/crecimiento & desarrollo , Eliminación de Gen , Ratones , Fosfolípidos/metabolismo , Análisis de Secuencia de ADN , Factores de Virulencia/genética , Factores de Virulencia/metabolismo
18.
PLoS One ; 6(12): e29023, 2011.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-22194979

RESUMEN

Spread of antibiotic resistance among bacteria responsible for nosocomial and community-acquired infections urges for novel therapeutic or prophylactic targets and for innovative pathogen-specific antibacterial compounds. Major challenges are posed by opportunistic pathogens belonging to the low GC% gram-positive bacteria. Among those, Enterococcus faecalis is a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections associated with life-threatening issues and increased hospital costs. To better understand the molecular properties of enterococci that may be required for virulence, and that may explain the emergence of these bacteria in nosocomial infections, we performed the first large-scale functional analysis of E. faecalis V583, the first vancomycin-resistant isolate from a human bloodstream infection. E. faecalis V583 is within the high-risk clonal complex 2 group, which comprises mostly isolates derived from hospital infections worldwide. We conducted broad-range screenings of candidate genes likely involved in host adaptation (e.g., colonization and/or virulence). For this purpose, a library was constructed of targeted insertion mutations in 177 genes encoding putative surface or stress-response factors. Individual mutants were subsequently tested for their i) resistance to oxidative stress, ii) antibiotic resistance, iii) resistance to opsonophagocytosis, iv) adherence to the human colon carcinoma Caco-2 epithelial cells and v) virulence in a surrogate insect model. Our results identified a number of factors that are involved in the interaction between enterococci and their host environments. Their predicted functions highlight the importance of cell envelope glycopolymers in E. faecalis host adaptation. This study provides a valuable genetic database for understanding the steps leading E. faecalis to opportunistic virulence.


Asunto(s)
Membrana Celular/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecalis/genética , Biblioteca de Genes , Marcación de Gen , Pruebas Genéticas , Mutación/genética , Factores de Virulencia/metabolismo , Animales , Antibacterianos/farmacología , Adhesión Bacteriana/efectos de los fármacos , Células CACO-2 , Membrana Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Farmacorresistencia Bacteriana/efectos de los fármacos , Farmacorresistencia Bacteriana/genética , Enterococcus faecalis/efectos de los fármacos , Enterococcus faecalis/crecimiento & desarrollo , Enterococcus faecalis/patogenicidad , Células Epiteliales/efectos de los fármacos , Células Epiteliales/metabolismo , Células Epiteliales/microbiología , Genes Bacterianos/genética , Infecciones por Bacterias Grampositivas/microbiología , Humanos , Modelos Animales , Modelos Biológicos , Mariposas Nocturnas/efectos de los fármacos , Mariposas Nocturnas/microbiología , Proteínas Opsoninas/metabolismo , Fagocitosis/efectos de los fármacos , Fenotipo , Plásmidos/genética , Estrés Fisiológico/efectos de los fármacos , Estrés Fisiológico/genética , Virulencia/efectos de los fármacos , Virulencia/genética , Factores de Virulencia/genética
19.
J Mol Microbiol Biotechnol ; 19(3): 159-68, 2010.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-20938209

RESUMEN

A promoter-probe vector designated pVEPhoZ-P has been developed to provide a convenient system to analyze transcription activities of promoters. It was constructed on the basis of pVE14218, a plasmid which lacks the replication protein and in which the 5' part of alkaline phosphatase (AP) phoZ gene of Enterococcus faecalis was inserted. The pVEPhoZ vector was used to clone promoters of interest. The resulting promoter-probe vectors were integrated in the phoZ chromosomal locus by homologous recombination. This procedure generates recombinant clones with a single copy of phoZ functional allele placed under the control of the desired promoter. This system was investigated with different promoters of E. faecalis genes, namely those of sigV encoding an ECF sigma factor, croRS encoding a two-component system and dhaK operon. In all cases, expression data obtained previously for the three promoters were properly reported for this new tool. The pVEPhoZ-P promoter-probe vector is easy to use and it showed higher reporter activity in comparison to systems based on ß-galactosidase. Therefore, this system constitutes a useful molecular tool for the study of promoters in E. faecalis or other bacterial species that possess a homologous phoZ gene.


Asunto(s)
Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , Proteínas Bacterianas/metabolismo , Enterococcus faecalis/genética , Regulación Bacteriana de la Expresión Génica , Técnicas Genéticas , Vectores Genéticos , Regiones Promotoras Genéticas , Clonación Molecular , Enterococcus faecalis/metabolismo , Recombinación Genética
20.
PLoS One ; 5(3): e9658, 2010 Mar 11.
Artículo en Inglés | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-20300180

RESUMEN

BACKGROUND: Enterococcus faecalis is one of the leading agents of nosocomial infections. To cause diseases, pathogens or opportunistic bacteria have to adapt and survive to the defense systems encountered in the host. One of the most important compounds of the host innate defense response against invading microorganisms is lysozyme. It is found in a wide variety of body fluids, as well as in cells of the innate immune system. Lysozyme could act either as a muramidase and/or as a cationic antimicrobial peptide. Like Staphylococcus aureus, E. faecalis is one of the few bacteria that are completely lysozyme resistant. RESULTS: This study revealed that oatA (O-acetyl transferase) and dlt (D-Alanylation of lipoteicoic acids) genes contribute only partly to the lysozyme resistance of E. faecalis and that a specific transcriptional regulator, the extracytoplasmic function SigV sigma factor plays a key role in this event. Indeed, the sigV single mutant is as sensitive as the oatA/dltA double mutant, and the sigV/oatA/dltA triple mutant displays the highest level of lysozyme sensitivity suggesting synergistic effects of these genes. In S. aureus, mutation of both oatA and dlt genes abolishes completely the lysozyme resistance, whereas this is not the case in E. faecalis. Interestingly SigV does not control neither oatA nor dlt genes. Moreover, the sigV mutants clearly showed a reduced capacity to colonize host tissues, as they are significantly less recovered than the parental JH2-2 strain from organs of mice subjected to intravenous or urinary tract infections. CONCLUSIONS: This work led to the discovery of an original model of lysozyme resistance mechanism which is obviously more complex than those described for other Gram positive pathogens. Moreover, our data provide evidences for a direct link between lysozyme resistance and virulence of E. faecalis.


Asunto(s)
Enterococcus faecalis/patogenicidad , Muramidasa/química , Acetiltransferasas/genética , Animales , Péptidos Catiónicos Antimicrobianos/química , Proteínas Bacterianas/genética , Ligasas de Carbono-Oxígeno/genética , Cartilla de ADN/genética , Inmunidad Innata , Ratones , Modelos Genéticos , Muramidasa/metabolismo , Mutagénesis , Mutación , Factor sigma/genética , Virulencia
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