天蚕素A-马盖宁杂合肽对耐甲氧西林金黄色葡萄球菌抑菌机制的研究

【目的】研究天蚕素A-马盖宁杂合肽对耐甲氧西林金黄色葡萄球菌(MRSA)DNA作用的抑菌机制。【方法】利用激光扫描共聚焦显微镜(CLSM)、凝胶阻滞分析、紫外光谱分析、荧光光谱分析的方法。【结果】天蚕素A-马盖宁杂合肽对MRSA的最小抑菌浓度(MIC)为64 mg/L,杂合肽可以在细菌胞内形成累积,并能与体外基因组DNA发生结合作用。同时杂合肽可以引起DNA构象的改变,荧光光谱分析结果表明杂合肽能与溴化乙锭(EB)竞争性地嵌入基因组DNA中,作用方式类似于EB与DNA的结合方式,杂合肽与DNA的结合表现为混合式作用方式。【结论】天蚕素A-马盖宁进入细菌胞内,与MRSA基因组DNA结合,并以混合式作用方式与DNA发生了结合,通过胞内靶向机制发挥抑菌作用。     

金黄色葡萄球菌非编码小RNA的研究进展

金黄色葡萄球菌(Staphylococcus aureus,S.aureus)是困扰全球公共卫生及人类健康的重要病原菌,其引起的各种临床感染与该菌表达的多种毒力因子密切相关,而这些毒力因子表达受到调节性因子的精确调控,在细菌致病机制中发挥着核心作用。非编码小RNA(Small non-coding RNA,s RNA)是基因表达的一类重要调节因子,可使细菌对环境因素做出反应,调节其应激适应性及毒力因子表达。但到目前为止,仅少数金黄色葡萄球菌s RNA的生物学功能得到阐述。本文将针对这些调节性s RNA的研究进展作一综述。     

Aureolysin of Staphylococcus warneri M accelerates its proteolytic cascade,and participates in biofilm formation

The aureolysin (Aur) gene of S. warneri M (aurWM) was cloned and sequenced. Analyses of the aurWM-inactivated mutant (S. warneri Mau) suggested that AurWM was probably associated with efficient processing of the PROM protease (homolog of V8/SspA serine protease), whereas considerable amount of mature-PROC protease (homolog of SspB cysteine protease) accumulated without AurWM. Additionally, AurWM appeared to affect biofilm formation in an uncertain suppressive way.     

Anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory effects of ethanol extract from Houttuynia cordata poultice

Houttuynia cordata (HC) has been commonly used as many traditional remedies in local areas of Japan. Although many pharmacological activities of HC have been reported, the mechanism underlying the effect of HC remains unknown. We conducted the interview survey in Japan to verify how HC was actually used. The interview survey revealed that HC poultice (HCP) prepared from smothering fresh leaves of HC was most frequently used for the treatment of purulent skin diseases including furuncle and carbuncle with high effectiveness. Ethanol extract of HCP (eHCP) showed anti-bacterial effects against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and showed an anti-biofilm activity against MRSA. eHCP showed dose-dependent inhibition of S. aureus lipoteichoic acid (LTA)-induced interleukin-8 and CCL20 production in human keratinocyte without any cytotoxicity. These results suggest that HCP is effective for skin abscess and its underlying mechanism might be the complicated multiple activities for both bacteria and host cells.     

P-glycoprotein models of the apo and ATP-bound states based on homology with Sav1866 and MalK

We exploit the biochemical and sequence similarity between Staphylococcus aureus Sav1866 and P-glycoprotein to develop a homology model of P-glycoprotein representing an ATP-bound state, which captures the major features of the low-resolution EM structure and is consistent with cysteine mutagenesis studies. Using insights from the MalK crystal structures and BtuCD simulations, we model two nucleotide-free conformations. Conformational changes are characterized by pincering rigid-body rotations of the nucleotide-binding domains, inducing transmembrane domain reorganizations which correspond to the two lowest frequency normal modes of the protein. These conformations (see supplementary material) may characterize some of the major steps in the nucleotide catalytic cycle.     

Structural protein analysis of the polyvalent staphylococcal bacteriophage 812

Phage 812 is a polyvalent phage with a very broad host range in the genus Staphylococcus, which makes it a suitable candidate for phage therapy of staphylococcal infections. This proteomic study, combining the results of both 1-DE and 2-DE followed by PMF, led to the identification of 24 virion proteins. Twenty new proteins, not yet identified by proteome analysis of closely related staphylococcal phages K and G1 were identified using this approach. Fifteen proteins were assigned unambiguously to the head-tail genome module; the remaining nine proteins are encoded by genes of the left or right arms of the phage genome. As expected, the most abundant proteins in the electrophoretic patterns are the major capsid protein, the major tail sheath protein and proteins identical to ORF 50 and ORF 95 of phage K, although their function is only putative. Identification of these 20 new proteins contributes substantially to a detailed characterization of phage virions, knowledge of which is necessary for rational phage therapy.     

Exploring the therapeutic potential of staphylococcal phage formulations: Current challenges and applications in phage therapy

Unconstrained consumption of antibiotics throughout the expanse of the 21st century has resulted in increased antimicrobial resistance (AMR) among bacterial pathogens, a transpiring predicament affecting the public healthcare sector. The upsurge of multidrug-resistant pathogens, including Staphylococcus aureus, synchronously with the breakdown of the conventional antibiotic pipeline has led to the exploration of alternate strategies. Phage therapy applications have thus gained immense prominence among the scientific community to conquer this notorious pathogen associated with wide-ranging clinical manifestations, especially in immunosuppressed individuals. In this direction, a plethora of phage formulations like topical solutions, medicated dressings impregnated with phages, liposomal entrapments, etc., have been considered as an effective and upcoming strategy. Owing to the synergistic effect of phages with other antibacterial agents, they can be easily exploited for biomedical application. This review primarily focuses on the therapeutic implications of S. aureus phages in the biotechnological and medical arena. Through this review article, we have also discussed the current status and the incurring challenges in phage therapy.