大蒜素对铜绿假单胞菌生物膜早期黏附及胞外多糖的影响

目的研究大蒜素对铜绿假单胞菌PA01菌株生物膜（biofilm,BF）早期黏附及胞外多糖复合物（Extracellular Polymeric Substances,EPS）的影响。方法利用荧光多功能酶标仪检测各组不同时间点96孔板中pGF-Puv转化PA01菌株的荧光强度,计算黏附率以表示干预对不同时间点细菌黏附的影响,利用荧光显微镜下定性观察细菌的黏附量;应用异硫氰酸标记的刀豆蛋白A（FITC conjugated concanavalin A,FITC-conA）特异性结合细菌EPS,荧光显微镜下定性观察各组EPS的变化;利用硫酸-苯酚法定量各组细菌EPS的产量。结果6h组,大蒜素高浓度干预后细菌的黏附率由0．70±0．03下降至0．50±0．01,t=15．014,P〈0．05,大蒜素低浓度干预后黏附率也有下降,但不及高浓度组明显;除了9h组其他时间组趋势与6h组大致相似,可能与大蒜素含量下降有关。荧光显微镜观察可见生理盐水对照组细菌菌落分布,干预组黏附的细菌稀疏散在分布,以高浓度为甚。FITC-conA可使胞外多糖显色,在荧光显微镜下观察可见大蒜素干预后EPS减少,稀薄;EPS定量实验,EPS总量大蒜素高浓度干预组（181．19±1．59）μg较生理盐水对照组（602．66±21．94）μg有明显降低,t=60．589,P〈0．05。结论大蒜素可显著减少PA01菌株黏附及产EPS的能力。     

大蒜素对铜绿假单胞菌生物膜群体密度感应系统调控毒力因子表达的影响

目的通过体外测定铜绿假单胞菌（Pseudomonas aeruginosa）群体密度感应（Quorum Sensing,QS）系统调控的毒力因子表达,比较大蒜素干预前后毒性因子表达的差异以及对铜绿假单胞菌PAO1成熟生物膜（biofilm,BF）的影响。方法应用ELISA法比较处理前后外毒素A的含量差异;利用弹性蛋白一刚果红染色的方法,测定处理前后弹性蛋白酶活性;用蒽酮一硫酸法测定鼠李糖脂;利用荧光酶标仪检测青脓素含量变化;利用激光共聚焦显微镜观察干预前后大蒜素对铜绿假单胞菌成熟BF的影响。结果大蒜素干预后与生理盐水对照组比较,外毒素A、弹性蛋白酶、鼠李糖脂和青脓素表达分别由（19．630±0．573）pg/μl、（0．467±0．003）、（2．009±0．063）g／L、（9325．833±367．675）下降到（6．529±0．289）pg／μl、（0．032±0．001）、（0．269±0．009）g／L、（7819．167±111．800）。激光共聚焦显微镜观察可见生理盐水对照组细菌菌落云集呈蘑菇状分布,干预组黏附的细菌稀疏散在平坦分布。结论大蒜素可抑制铜绿假单胞菌群体密度感应系统调控的毒力因子表达,减弱其毒力,干扰BF分化成熟。     

Lactonase-expressing Lactobacillus plantarum NC8 attenuates the virulence factors of multiple drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in co-culturing environment

Pseudomonas aeruginosa possesses an arcade of both cell-associated and extracellular cytotoxic virulence factors which are regulated by a multi-component quorum sensing system. Many research studies report success of lactonase in combating the pathogenicity of P. aeruginosa but delivery of lactonase remains a challenge. The present study aims at developing a delivery vehicle for lactonase. Lactobacillus plantarum NC8 was used as host for aiiA (Bacillus thuringiensis 4A3 lactonase gene) using pSIP409 expression vector. pSIP409: aiiA construct was stably maintained in L. plantarum NC8. Co-culturing of multi-drug resistant (MDR) clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa and PAO1 with recombinant L. plantarum NC8 led to significant reduction (p < 0.001) in extracellular virulence factors like pyocyanin, protease, elastase and rhamnolipids in P. aeruginosa and also showed significant reduction in adhesion of P. aeruginosa strains to uroepithelial cells in vitro. This study shows the heterologous expression of AiiA lactonase in L. plantarum NC8. Co-culturing of lactonase expressing L. plantarum NC8 with MDR P. aeruginosa strains led to attenuation of their virulence significantly. These results underscore the potential application of recombinant L. plantarum NC8 with anti-quorum sensing properties to control infections caused by multidrug resistant P. aeruginosa.     

A new quorum-sensing inhibitor attenuates virulence and decreases antibiotic resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Quorum sensing (QS) has been a novel target for the treatment of infectious diseases. Here structural analogs of Pseudomonas aeruginosa autoinducer N-acyl homoserine lactone (AHL) were investigated for QS inhibitor (QSI) activity and a novel QSI was discovered, N-decanoyl-L-homoserine benzyl ester (C2). Virulence assays showed that C2 down-regulated total protease and elastase activities, as well as the production of rhamnolipid, that are controlled by QS in P. aeruginosa wild-type strain PAO1 without affecting growth. C2 was also shown to inhibit swarming motility of PAO1. Using a microdilution checkerboard method, we identified synergistic interactions between C2 and several antibiotics, tobramycin, gentamycin, cefepime, and meropenem. Data from real-time RT-PCR suggested that C2 inhibited the expression of lasR (29.67%), lasI (21.57%), rhlR (28.20%), and rhlI (29.03%).     

Reduced expression of virulence factors in multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains

MDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains are isolated from clinical specimens with increasing frequency. It seems that acquiring genes which determine antibiotic resistance usually comes at a biological cost of impaired bacterial physiology. There is no information on investigations comparing phenotypic differences in MDR and MDS P. aeruginosa strains in literature. The study included 150 clinical P. aeruginosa isolates (75 classified as MDS and 75 as MDR). PFGE analysis revealed five pairs of identical isolates in the group of MDR strains and the results obtained for these strains were not included in the statistical analyses. MDR strains adhered to polystyrene to a lesser extent than MDS strains. The growth rate in the liquid medium was significantly lower for MDR strains. Detectable amounts of alginate were present in the culture supernatants of seven MDS and six MDR strains. The MDR P. aeruginosa strains which were investigated produced significantly lower amounts of extracellular material binding Congo Red, lower lipolytic, elastase, LasA protease, phospholipase C activity and pyocyanin quantity in culture supernatants when compared with MDS strains. No significant differences were observed between MDR and MDS strains in proteolytic activity. In conclusion, the MDR P. aeruginosa strains have impaired virulence when compared to MDS strains.     

Rhamnolipid production: effect of oxidative stress on virulence factors and proteome of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA1

Under specific environmental conditions, Pseudomonas aeruginosa produces a biodegradable surfactant rhamnolipid. Evidences suggest that this biosurfactant is involved in protecting cells against oxidative stress; however, the effects of oxidative stress on its production and other virulence factors are still unclear. Here we show that rhamnolipid production is dependent on the aeration surface when P. aeruginosa is cultured in shaken flasks, as well as in production of elastases and alkaline proteases. The production of alginate, lipase, and pyocyanin was not detected in our shaken-flask experiments. P. aeruginosa was treated with hydrogen peroxide to trigger its oxidative stress response, and the proteome profile was analyzed. We identified 14 proteins that were expressed differently between samples that were treated and not treated with peroxide; these proteins are potentially involved in the rhamnolipid production/secretion pathway and oxidative stress.     

Flagella, motility and invasive virulence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

The role of motility as a virulence factor in Pseudomonas aeruginosa burn wound sepsis was examined using mutants deficient in the Fla or Mot phenotype. Physiological profiles of parental strains and Fla- and Mot- mutants were similar with respect to antibiograms, O antigen types, growth rates, and proteolytic, exotoxin A and phospholipase activities, providing evidence for isogenicity. Lethality studies using a subcutaneous mouse burn model showed that three Fla- mutants and one Mot- mutant were much less virulent (10(2) to 10(5) times) than the parent wild-type. Topical challenges in the flame burn model showed that a Fla- mutant of strain M-2 was approximately tenfold less virulent. A reduction in virulence, although somewhat less than tenfold, was also observed in the scald burn model for M-2 Fla-, and Mot- strains. Tissue colonization experiments revealed a characteristic, rapidly systemic infection in burned mice challenged with wild-type organisms. Nonmotile mutants similarly proliferated in the burn wound, but the characteristic bacteraemia and systemic invasion were markedly absent. The infection remained localized in the skin wound and the mice survived. The pattern of infection by nonmotile mutants in the colonization studies was very similar to that obtained with Fla+ cells in burned animals passively treated with antiflagellar antibody. These results add substantial support to the concept of motility as a P. aeruginosa virulence factor in invasive infections.     

Analysis of FimX, a phosphodiesterase that governs twitching motility in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Type IV pili (Tfp) are polar surface structures of Pseudomonas aeruginosa required for twitching motility, biofilm formation and adherence. One protein required for the assembly of tfp is FimX, which possesses both GGDEF and EAL domains characteristic of diguanylate cyclases and phosphodiesterases respectively. In this work we demonstrate that FimX has phosphodiesterase activity towards bis-(3'-5')-cyclic dimeric guanosine monophosphate (c-di-GMP), but does not show diguanylate cyclase activity. Instead, the imperfect GGDEF domain of FimX likely serves to activate phosphodiesterase activity when bound to GTP, as has recently been described for the Caulobacter crescentus composite GGDEF-EAL protein, CC3396. Bacteria expressing FimX in which either the GGDEF or EAL domain is deleted or mutated have phenotypes indistinguishable from a DeltafimX strain, demonstrating the importance of both domains to function. Previous work has shown that FimX localizes to the bacterial pole. In this work we show that restriction of FimX to a single pole requires intact GGDEF and EAL domains. Deletion of the amino-terminal REC domain of FimX, which contains a putative polar localization signal, results in a protein that still supports intermediate levels of pilus assembly and function. RFP-FimXDeltaREC, unlike RFP-FimX, is no longer localized to the bacterial pole, while transmission electron microscopy shows that surface pili can originate from non-polar sites in this mutant. Although DeltafimX mutants show limited in vitro cytotoxicity, they are as virulent as the wild-type strain in a murine model of acute pneumonia.     

Swarming of Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a complex adaptation leading to increased production of virulence factors and antibiotic resistance

In addition to exhibiting swimming and twitching motility, Pseudomonas aeruginosa is able to swarm on semisolid (viscous) surfaces. Recent studies have indicated that swarming is a more complex type of motility influenced by a large number of different genes. To investigate the adaptation process involved in swarming motility, gene expression profiles were analyzed by performing microarrays on bacteria from the leading edge of a swarm zone compared to bacteria growing in identical medium under swimming conditions. Major shifts in gene expression patterns were observed under swarming conditions, including, among others, the overexpression of a large number of virulence-related genes such as those encoding the type III secretion system and its effectors, those encoding extracellular proteases, and those associated with iron transport. In addition, swarming cells exhibited adaptive antibiotic resistance against polymyxin B, gentamicin, and ciprofloxacin compared to what was seen for their planktonic (swimming) counterparts. By analyzing a large subset of up-regulated genes, we were able to show that two virulence genes, lasB and pvdQ, were required for swarming motility. These results clearly favored the conclusion that swarming of P. aeruginosa is a complex adaptation process in response to a viscous environment resulting in a substantial change in virulence gene expression and antibiotic resistance.     

Interrelationships between colonies, biofilms, and planktonic cells of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a gram-negative bacterium and an opportunistic human pathogen that causes chronic infections in immunocompromised individuals. These infections are hard to treat, partly due to the high intrinsic resistance of the bacterium to clinically used antibiotics and partly due to the formation of antibiotic-tolerant biofilms. The three most common ways of growing bacteria in vitro are as planktonic cultures, colonies on agar plates, and biofilms in continuous-flow systems. Biofilms are known to express genes different from those of planktonic cells, and biofilm cells are generally believed to closely resemble planktonic cells in stationary phase. However, few, if any, studies have examined global gene expression in colonies. We used a proteomic approach to investigate the interrelationships between planktonic cells, colonies, and biofilms under comparable conditions. Our results show that protein profiles in colonies resemble those of planktonic cells. Furthermore, contrary to what has been reported previously, the protein profiles of biofilms were found to more closely resemble those of exponentially growing planktonic cells than those of planktonic cells in the stationary phase. These findings raise some intriguing questions about the true nature of biofilms.     

Nitrosative stress inhibits production of the virulence factor alginate in mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Alginate is a critical virulence factor contributing to the poor clinical prognosis associated with the conversion of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to mucoid phenotypes in cystic fibrosis (CF). An important mechanism of action is its ability to scavenge host innate-immune reactive species. We have previously analyzed the bacterial response to nitrosative stress by S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO), a physiological NO√ donor with diminished levels in the CF lung. GSNO substantially increased bacterial nitrosative and oxidative defenses and so we hypothesized a similar increase in alginate production would occur. However, in mucoid P. aeruginosa, there was decreased expression of the majority of alginate synthetic genes. This microarray data was confirmed both by RT-PCR and at the functional level by direct measurements of alginate production. Our data suggest that the lowered levels of innate-immune nitrosative mediators (such as GSNO) in the CF lung exacerbate the effects of mucoid P. aeruginosa, by failing to suppress alginate biosynthesis.