A novel enzyme conferring streptothricin resistance alters the toxicity of streptothricin D from broad-spectrum to bacteria-specific. - Related Documents




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11401.0000A novel enzyme conferring streptothricin resistance alters the toxicity of streptothricin D from broad-spectrum to bacteria-specific. Streptothricins (STs) produced by Streptomyces strains are broad-spectrum antibiotics. All STs consist of a carbamoylated D-gulosamine to which the beta-lysine homopolymer (1 to 7 residues) and the amide form of the unusual amino acid streptolidine (streptolidine lactam) are attached. Although many ST-resistance genes have been identified in bacteria, including clinically isolated pathogens and ST-producing Streptomyces strains, only one resistance mechanism has been identified to date. This mechanism involves the modification of the ST molecule by monoacetylation of the moiety of the beta-lysine(s). In this study, we successfully isolated a novel ST-resistance gene (sttH) from Streptomyces albulus, which is a known ST nonproducer. The in vitro analysis of SttH demonstrated that this enzyme catalyzes the hydrolysis of the amide bond of streptolidine lactam, thereby conferring ST resistance. Interestingly, the selective toxicity of ST-D possessing 3x beta-lysine moiety was altered from broad-spectrum to bacteria-specific by the hydrolysis of streptolidine lactam, although ST-F (1 x beta-lysine) was detoxified by SttH in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes (yeasts). STs have not been clinically developed due to their toxicities; however, in this study, we showed that hydrolyzed ST-D (ST-D-acid) exhibits potent antibacterial activity even when its toxicity against eukaryotic cells is reduced by SttH. This suggests that ST-D-acid is a potential candidate for clinical development or for use as a new lead compound for drug discovery.200616641084
27710.9988Penicillin-binding proteins in Actinobacteria. Because some Actinobacteria, especially Streptomyces species, are β-lactam-producing bacteria, they have to have some self-resistant mechanism. The β-lactam biosynthetic gene clusters include genes for β-lactamases and penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs), suggesting that these are involved in self-resistance. However, direct evidence for the involvement of β-lactamases does not exist at the present time. Instead, phylogenetic analysis revealed that PBPs in Streptomyces are distinct in that Streptomyces species have much more PBPs than other Actinobacteria, and that two to three pairs of similar PBPs are present in most Streptomyces species examined. Some of these PBPs bind benzylpenicillin with very low affinity and are highly similar in their amino-acid sequences. Furthermore, other low-affinity PBPs such as SCLAV_4179 in Streptomyces clavuligerus, a β-lactam-producing Actinobacterium, may strengthen further the self-resistance against β-lactams. This review discusses the role of PBPs in resistance to benzylpenicillin in Streptomyces belonging to Actinobacteria.201525351947
27620.9988Self-resistance in Streptomyces, with Special Reference to β-Lactam Antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance is one of the most serious public health problems. Among bacterial resistance, β-lactam antibiotic resistance is the most prevailing and threatening area. Antibiotic resistance is thought to originate in antibiotic-producing bacteria such as Streptomyces. In this review, β-lactamases and penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) in Streptomyces are explored mainly by phylogenetic analyses from the viewpoint of self-resistance. Although PBPs are more important than β-lactamases in self-resistance, phylogenetically diverse β-lactamases exist in Streptomyces. While class A β-lactamases are mostly detected in their enzyme activity, over two to five times more classes B and C β-lactamase genes are identified at the whole genomic level. These genes can subsequently be transferred to pathogenic bacteria. As for PBPs, two pairs of low affinity PBPs protect Streptomyces from the attack of self-producing and other environmental β-lactam antibiotics. PBPs with PASTA domains are detectable only in class A PBPs in Actinobacteria with the exception of Streptomyces. None of the Streptomyces has PBPs with PASTA domains. However, one of class B PBPs without PASTA domain and a serine/threonine protein kinase with four PASTA domains are located in adjacent positions in most Streptomyces. These class B type PBPs are involved in the spore wall synthesizing complex and probably in self-resistance. Lastly, this paper emphasizes that the resistance mechanisms in Streptomyces are very hard to deal with, despite great efforts in finding new antibiotics.201627171072
450430.9988Resistance of enterococci to aminoglycosides and glycopeptides. High-level resistance to aminoglycosides in enterococci often is mediated by aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes, and the corresponding genes generally are located on self-transferable plasmids. These enzymes are similar to those in staphylococci but differ from the modifying enzymes of gram-negative bacteria. Three classes of enzymes are distinguished, depending upon the reaction catalyzed. All but amikacin and netilmicin confer high-level resistance to the antibiotics that are modified in vitro. However, the synergistic activity of these last two antibiotics in combination with beta-lactam agents can be suppressed, as has always been found in relation to high-level resistance to the aminoglycosides. Acquisition of glycopeptide resistance by enterococci recently was reported. Strains of two phenotypes have been distinguished: those that are resistant to high levels of vancomycin and teicoplanin and those that are inducibly resistant to low levels of vancomycin and susceptible to teicoplanin. In strains of Enterococcus faecium highly resistant to glycopeptides, we have characterized plasmids ranging from 34 to 40 kilobases that are often self-transferable to other gram-positive organisms. The resistance gene vanA has been cloned, and its nucleotide sequence has been determined. Hybridization experiments showed that this resistance determinant is present in all of our enterococcal strains that are highly resistant to glycopeptides. The vanA gene is part of a cluster of plasmid genes responsible for synthesis of peptidoglycan precursors containing a depsipeptide instead of the usual D-alanyl-D-alanine terminus. Reduced affinity of glycopeptides to these precursors confers resistance to the antibiotics.19921520800
632540.9988Repressed multidrug resistance genes in Streptomyces lividans. Multidrug resistance (MDR) systems are ubiquitously present in prokaryotes and eukaryotes and defend both types of organisms against toxic compounds in the environment. Four families of MDR systems have been described, each family removing a broad spectrum of compounds by a specific membrane-bound active efflux pump. In the present study, at least four MDR systems were identified genetically in the soil bacterium Streptomyces lividans. The resistance genes of three of these systems were cloned and sequenced. Two of them are accompanied by a repressor gene. These MDR gene sequences are found in most other Streptomyces species investigated. Unlike the constitutively expressed MDR genes in Escherichia coli and other gram-negative bacteria, all of the Streptomyces genes were repressed under laboratory conditions, and resistance arose by mutations in the repressor genes.200312937892
20750.9988Synthesis of an amphiphilic vancomycin aglycone derivative inspired by polymyxins: overcoming glycopeptide resistance in Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria in synergy with teicoplanin in vitro. Gram-negative bacteria possess intrinsic resistance to glycopeptide antibiotics so these important antibacterial medications are only suitable for the treatment of Gram-positive bacterial infections. At the same time, polymyxins are peptide antibiotics, structurally related to glycopeptides, with remarkable activity against Gram-negative bacteria. With the aim of breaking the intrinsic resistance of Gram-negative bacteria against glycopeptides, a polycationic vancomycin aglycone derivative carrying an n-decanoyl side chain and five aminoethyl groups, which resembles the structure of polymyxins, was prepared. Although the compound by itself was not active against the Gram-negative bacteria tested, it synergized with teicoplanin against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii, and it was able to potentiate vancomycin against these Gram-negative strains. Moreover, it proved to be active against vancomycin- and teicoplanin-resistant Gram-positive bacteria.202236463278
836760.9988A hybrid NRPS-PKS gene cluster related to the bleomycin family of antitumor antibiotics in Alteromonas macleodii strains. Although numerous marine bacteria are known to produce antibiotics via hybrid NRPS-PKS gene clusters, none have been previously described in an Alteromonas species. In this study, we describe in detail a novel hybrid NRPS-PKS cluster identified in the plasmid of the Alteromonasmacleodii strain AltDE1 and analyze its relatedness to other similar gene clusters in a sequence-based characterization. This is a mobile cluster, flanked by transposase-like genes, that has even been found inserted into the chromosome of some Alteromonasmacleodii strains. The cluster contains separate genes for NRPS and PKS activity. The sole PKS gene appears to carry a novel acyltransferase domain, quite divergent from those currently characterized. The predicted specificities of the adenylation domains of the NRPS genes suggest that the final compound has a backbone very similar to bleomycin related compounds. However, the lack of genes involved in sugar biosynthesis indicates that the final product is not a glycopeptide. Even in the absence of these genes, the presence of the cluster appears to confer complete or partial resistance to phleomycin, which may be attributed to a bleomycin-resistance-like protein identified within the cluster. This also suggests that the compound still shares significant structural similarity to bleomycin. Moreover, transcriptomic evidence indicates that the NRPS-PKS cluster is expressed. Such sequence-based approaches will be crucial to fully explore and analyze the diversity and potential of secondary metabolite production, especially from increasingly important sources like marine microbes.201324069455
27470.9987Genes for a beta-lactamase, a penicillin-binding protein and a transmembrane protein are clustered with the cephamycin biosynthetic genes in Nocardia lactamdurans. Three genes encoding a typical beta-lactamase, a penicillin-binding protein (PBP4) and a transmembrane protein are located in the cluster of cephamycin biosynthetic genes in Nocardia lactamdurans. The similarity of the N. lactamdurans beta-lactamase to class A beta-lactamases from clinical isolates supports the hypothesis that antibiotic resistance genes in pathogenic bacteria are derived from antibiotic-producing organisms. The beta-lactamase is secreted and is active against penicillins (including the biosynthetic intermediates penicillin N and isopenicillin N), but not against cephamycin C. The beta-lactamase is synthesized during the active growth phase, prior to the formation of three cephamycin biosynthetic enzymes. The PBP of N. lactamdurans is a low-M(r) protein that is very similar to DD-carboxypeptidases of Streptomyces and Actinomadura. The pbp gene product expressed in Streptomyces lividans accumulates in the membrane fraction. By disruption of N. lactamdurans protoplasts, the PBP4 was shown to be located in the plasma membrane. Eight PBPs were found in the membranes of N. lactamdurans, none of which bind cephamycin C, which explains the resistance of this strain to its own antibiotic. A transmembrane protein encoded by the cmcT gene of the cluster also accumulates in the membrane fraction and is probably related to the control of synthesis and secretion of the antibiotic. A balanced synthesis of beta-lactam antibiotics, beta-lactamase and PBP is postulated to be critical for the survival of beta-lactam-producing actinomycetes.19938440253
977880.9987Antibiotic class with potent in vivo activity targeting lipopolysaccharide synthesis in Gram-negative bacteria. Here, we describe the identification of an antibiotic class acting via LpxH, a clinically unexploited target in lipopolysaccharide synthesis. The lipopolysaccharide synthesis pathway is essential in most Gram-negative bacteria and there is no analogous pathway in humans. Based on a series of phenotypic screens, we identified a hit targeting this pathway that had activity on efflux-defective strains of Escherichia coli. We recognized common structural elements between this hit and a previously published inhibitor, also with activity against efflux-deficient bacteria. With the help of X-ray structures, this information was used to design inhibitors with activity on efflux-proficient, wild-type strains. Optimization of properties such as solubility, metabolic stability and serum protein binding resulted in compounds having potent in vivo efficacy against bloodstream infections caused by the critical Gram-negative pathogens E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Other favorable properties of the series include a lack of pre-existing resistance in clinical isolates, and no loss of activity against strains expressing extended-spectrum-β-lactamase, metallo-β-lactamase, or carbapenemase-resistance genes. Further development of this class of antibiotics could make an important contribution to the ongoing struggle against antibiotic resistance.202438579010
444390.9987Cellular Studies of an Aminoglycoside Potentiator Reveal a New Inhibitor of Aminoglycoside Resistance. Aminoglycosides are a group of broad-spectrum antibiotics that have been used in the clinic for almost a century. The rapid spread of bacterial genes coding for aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes has, however, dramatically decreased the utility of aminoglycosides. We have previously reported several aminoglycoside potentiators that work by inhibiting aminoglycoside N-6'-acetyltransferase, one of the most common determinants of aminoglycoside resistance. Among these, prodrugs that combine the structure of an aminoglycoside with that of pantothenate into one molecule are especially promising. We report here a series of cellular studies to investigate the activity and mechanism of action of these prodrugs further. Our results reveal a new aminoglycoside resistance inhibitor, as well as the possibility that these prodrugs are transformed into more than one inhibitor in bacteria. We also report that the onset of the potentiators is rapid. Their low cell cytotoxicity, good stability, and potentiation of various aminoglycosides, against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, make them interesting compounds for the development of new drugs.201830059603
5958100.9987Genome-wide identification of fitness-genes in aminoglycoside-resistant Escherichia coli during antibiotic stress. Resistance against aminoglycosides is widespread in bacteria. This study aimed to identify genes that are important for growth of E. coli during aminoglycoside exposure, since such genes may be targeted to re-sensitize resistant E. coli to treatment. We constructed three transposon mutant libraries each containing > 230.000 mutants in E. coli MG1655 strains harboring streptomycin (aph(3″)-Ib/aph(6)-Id), gentamicin (aac(3)-IV), or neomycin (aph(3″)-Ia) resistance gene(s). Transposon Directed Insertion-site Sequencing (TraDIS), a combination of transposon mutagenesis and high-throughput sequencing, identified 56 genes which were deemed important for growth during streptomycin, 39 during gentamicin and 32 during neomycin exposure. Most of these fitness-genes were membrane-located (n = 55) and involved in either cell division, ATP-synthesis or stress response in the streptomycin and gentamicin exposed libraries, and enterobacterial common antigen biosynthesis or magnesium sensing/transport in the neomycin exposed library. For validation, eight selected fitness-genes/gene-clusters were deleted (minCDE, hflCK, clsA and cpxR associated with streptomycin and gentamicin resistance, and phoPQ, wecA, lpp and pal associated with neomycin resistance), and all mutants were shown to be growth attenuated upon exposure to the corresponding antibiotics. In summary, we identified genes that are advantageous in aminoglycoside-resistant E. coli during antibiotic stress. In addition, we increased the understanding of how aminoglycoside-resistant E. coli respond to antibiotic exposure.202438378700
9777110.9987Colistin resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii is mediated by complete loss of lipopolysaccharide production. Infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) Gram-negative bacteria represent a major global health problem. Polymyxin antibiotics such as colistin have resurfaced as effective last-resort antimicrobials for use against MDR Gram-negative pathogens, including Acinetobacter baumannii. Here we show that A. baumannii can rapidly develop resistance to polymyxin antibiotics by complete loss of the initial binding target, the lipid A component of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), which has long been considered to be essential for the viability of Gram-negative bacteria. We characterized 13 independent colistin-resistant derivatives of A. baumannii type strain ATCC 19606 and showed that all contained mutations within one of the first three genes of the lipid A biosynthesis pathway: lpxA, lpxC, and lpxD. All of these mutations resulted in the complete loss of LPS production. Furthermore, we showed that loss of LPS occurs in a colistin-resistant clinical isolate of A. baumannii. This is the first report of a spontaneously occurring, lipopolysaccharide-deficient, Gram-negative bacterium.201020855724
4436120.9987Bacterial resistance to vancomycin: five genes and one missing hydrogen bond tell the story. A plasmid-borne transposon encodes enzymes and regulator proteins that confer resistance of enterococcal bacteria to the antibiotic vancomycin. Purification and characterization of individual proteins encoded by this operon has helped to elucidate the molecular basis of vancomycin resistance. This new understanding provides opportunities for intervention to reverse resistance.19968807824
6323130.9987Reduced Susceptibility to Antiseptics Is Conferred by Heterologous Housekeeping Genes. Antimicrobial resistance is common in the microbial inhabitants of the human oral cavity. Antimicrobials are commonly encountered by oral microbes as they are present in our diet, both naturally and anthropogenically, and also used in oral healthcare products and amalgam fillings. We aimed to determine the presence of genes in the oral microbiome conferring reduced susceptibility to common antimicrobials. From an Escherichia coli library, 12,277 clones were screened and ten clones with reduced susceptibility to triclosan were identified. The genes responsible for this phenotype were identified as fabI, originating from a variety of different bacteria. The gene fabI encodes an enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase (ENR), which is essential for fatty acid synthesis in bacteria. Triclosan binds to ENR, preventing fatty acid synthesis. By introducing the inserts containing fabI, ENR is likely overexpressed in E. coli, reducing the inhibitory effect of triclosan. Another clone was found to have reduced susceptibility to cetyltrimethylammonium bromide and cetylpyridinium chloride. This phenotype was conferred by a UDP-glucose 4-epimerase gene, galE, homologous to one from Veillonella parvula. The product of galE is involved in lipopolysaccharide production. Analysis of the E. coli host cell surface showed that the charge was more positive in the presence of galE, which likely reduces the binding of these positively charged antiseptics to the bacteria. This is the first time galE has been shown to confer resistance against quaternary ammonium compounds and represents a novel, epimerase-based, global cell adaptation, which confers resistance to cationic antimicrobials.201828604259
219140.9987Mechanisms of bacterial resistance to macrolide antibiotics. Macrolides have been used in the treatment of infectious diseases since the late 1950s. Since that time, a finding of antagonistic action between erythromycin and spiramycin in clinical isolates1 led to evidence of the biochemical mechanism and to the current understanding of inducible or constitutive resistance to macrolides mediated by erm genes containing, respectively, the functional regulation mechanism or constitutively mutated regulatory region. These resistant mechanisms to macrolides are recognized in clinically isolated bacteria. (1) A methylase encoded by the erm gene can transform an adenine residue at 2058 (Escherichia coli equivalent) position of 23S rRNA into an 6N, 6N-dimethyladenine. Position 2058 is known to reside either in peptidyltransferase or in the vicinity of the enzyme region of domain V. Dimethylation renders the ribosome resistant to macrolides (MLS). Moreover, another finding adduced as evidence is that a mutation in the domain plays an important role in MLS resistance: one of several mutations (transition and transversion) such as A2058G, A2058C or U, and A2059G, is usually associated with MLS resistance in a few genera of bacteria. (2) M (macrolide antibiotics)- and MS (macrolide and streptogramin type B antibiotics)- or PMS (partial macrolide and streptogramin type B antibiotics)-phenotype resistant bacteria cause decreased accumulation of macrolides, occasionally including streptogramin type B antibiotics. The decreased accumulation, probably via enhanced efflux, is usually inferred from two findings: (i) the extent of the accumulated drug in a resistant cell increases as much as that in a susceptible cell in the presence of an uncoupling agent such as carbonylcyanide-m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP), 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP), and arsenate; (ii) transporter proteins, in M-type resistants, have mutual similarity to the 12-transmembrane domain present in efflux protein driven by proton-motive force, and in MS- or PMS-type resistants, transporter proteins have mutual homology to one or two ATP-binding segments in efflux protein driven by ATP. (3) Two major macrolide mechanisms based on antibiotic inactivation are dealt with here: degradation due to hydrolysis of the macrolide lactone ring by an esterase encoded by the ere gene; and modification due to macrolide phosphorylation and lincosamide nucleotidylation mediated by the mph and lin genes, respectively. But enzymatic mechanisms that hydrolyze or modify macrolide and lincosamide antibiotics appear to be relatively rare in clinically isolated bacteria at present. (4) Important developments in macrolide antibiotics are briefly featured. On the basis of information obtained from extensive references and studies of resistance mechanisms to macrolide antibiotics, the mode of action of the drugs, as effectors, and a hypothetical explanation of the regulation of the mechanism with regard to induction of macrolide resistance are discussed.199911810493
275150.9987Penicillin-Binding Proteins, β-Lactamases, and β-Lactamase Inhibitors in β-Lactam-Producing Actinobacteria: Self-Resistance Mechanisms. The human society faces a serious problem due to the widespread resistance to antibiotics in clinical practice. Most antibiotic biosynthesis gene clusters in actinobacteria contain genes for intrinsic self-resistance to the produced antibiotics, and it has been proposed that the antibiotic resistance genes in pathogenic bacteria originated in antibiotic-producing microorganisms. The model actinobacteria Streptomyces clavuligerus produces the β-lactam antibiotic cephamycin C, a class A β-lactamase, and the β lactamases inhibitor clavulanic acid, all of which are encoded in a gene supercluster; in addition, it synthesizes the β-lactamase inhibitory protein BLIP. The secreted clavulanic acid has a synergistic effect with the cephamycin produced by the same strain in the fight against competing microorganisms in its natural habitat. High levels of resistance to cephamycin/cephalosporin in actinobacteria are due to the presence (in their β-lactam clusters) of genes encoding PBPs which bind penicillins but not cephalosporins. We have revised the previously reported cephamycin C and clavulanic acid gene clusters and, in addition, we have searched for novel β-lactam gene clusters in protein databases. Notably, in S. clavuligerus and Nocardia lactamdurans, the β-lactamases are retained in the cell wall and do not affect the intracellular formation of isopenicillin N/penicillin N. The activity of the β-lactamase in S. clavuligerus may be modulated by the β-lactamase inhibitory protein BLIP at the cell-wall level. Analysis of the β-lactam cluster in actinobacteria suggests that these clusters have been moved by horizontal gene transfer between different actinobacteria and have culminated in S. clavuligerus with the organization of an elaborated set of genes designed for fine tuning of antibiotic resistance and cell wall remodeling for the survival of this Streptomyces species. This article is focused specifically on the enigmatic connection between β-lactam biosynthesis and β-lactam resistance mechanisms in the producer actinobacteria.202235628478
4439160.9986beta-lactam resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae: penicillin-binding proteins and non-penicillin-binding proteins. The beta-lactams are by far the most widely used and efficacious of all antibiotics. Over the past few decades, however, widespread resistance has evolved among most common pathogens. Streptococcus pneumoniae has become a paradigm for understanding the evolution of resistance mechanisms, the simplest of which, by far, is the production of beta-lactamases. As these enzymes are frequently plasmid encoded, resistance can readily be transmitted between bacteria. Despite the fact that pneumococci are naturally transformable organisms, no beta-lactamase-producing strain has yet been described. A much more complex resistance mechanism has evolved in S. pneumoniae that is mediated by a sophisticated restructuring of the targets of the beta-lactams, the penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs); however, this may not be the whole story. Recently, a third level of resistance mechanisms has been identified in laboratory mutants, wherein non-PBP genes are mutated and resistance development is accompanied by deficiency in genetic transformation. Two such non-PBP genes have been described: a putative glycosyltransferase, CpoA, and a histidine protein kinase, CiaH. We propose that these non-PBP genes are involved in the biosynthesis of cell wall components at a step prior to the biosynthetic functions of PBPs, and that the mutations selected during beta-lactam treatment counteract the effects caused by the inhibition of penicillin-binding proteins.199910447877
8366170.9986Novel LanT associated lantibiotic clusters identified by genome database mining. BACKGROUND: Frequent use of antibiotics has led to the emergence of antibiotic resistance in bacteria. Lantibiotic compounds are ribosomally synthesized antimicrobial peptides against which bacteria are not able to produce resistance, hence making them a good alternative to antibiotics. Nisin is the oldest and the most widely used lantibiotic, in food preservation, without having developed any significant resistance against it. Having their antimicrobial potential and a limited number, there is a need to identify novel lantibiotics. METHODOLOGY/FINDINGS: Identification of novel lantibiotic biosynthetic clusters from an ever increasing database of bacterial genomes, can provide a major lead in this direction. In order to achieve this, a strategy was adopted to identify novel lantibiotic biosynthetic clusters by screening the sequenced genomes for LanT homolog, which is a conserved lantibiotic transporter specific to type IB clusters. This strategy resulted in identification of 54 bacterial strains containing the LanT homologs, which are not the known lantibiotic producers. Of these, 24 strains were subjected to a detailed bioinformatic analysis to identify genes encoding for precursor peptides, modification enzyme, immunity and quorum sensing proteins. Eight clusters having two LanM determinants, similar to haloduracin and lichenicidin were identified, along with 13 clusters having a single LanM determinant as in mersacidin biosynthetic cluster. Besides these, orphan LanT homologs were also identified which might be associated with novel bacteriocins, encoded somewhere else in the genome. Three identified gene clusters had a C39 domain containing LanT transporter, associated with the LanBC proteins and double glycine type precursor peptides, the only known example of such a cluster is that of salivaricin. CONCLUSION: This study led to the identification of 8 novel putative two-component lantibiotic clusters along with 13 having a single LanM and 3 with LanBC genes. Putative lantibiotic clusters identified here hold the potential for the discovery of novel lantibiotic(s).201424621781
9783180.9986Synergism between Rifampicin and Cationic Polyurethanes Overcomes Intrinsic Resistance of Escherichia coli. Antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria are emergent pathogens, causing millions of infections worldwide. While there are several classes of antibiotics that are effective against Gram-positive bacteria, the outer membrane (OM) of Gram-negative bacteria excludes high-molecular-weight hydrophobic antibiotics, making these species intrinsically resistant to several classes of antibiotics, including polyketides, aminocoumarins, and macrolides. The overuse of antibiotics such as β-lactams has also promoted the spread of resistance genes throughout Gram-negative bacteria, including the production of extended spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs). The combination of innate and acquired resistance makes it extremely challenging to identify antibiotics that are effective against Gram-negative bacteria. In this study, we have demonstrated the synergistic effect of outer membrane-permeable cationic polyurethanes with rifampicin, a polyketide that would otherwise be excluded by the OM, on different strains of E. coli, including a clinically isolated uropathogenic multidrug-resistant (MDR) E. coli. Rifampicin combined with a low-dose treatment of a cationic polyurethane reduced the MIC in E. coli of rifampicin by up to 64-fold. The compositions of cationic polyurethanes were designed to have low hemolysis and low cell cytotoxicity while maintaining high antibacterial activity. Our results demonstrate the potential to rescue the large number of available OM-excluded antibiotics to target normally resistant Gram-negative bacteria via synergistic action with these cationic polyurethanes, acting as a novel antibiotic adjuvant class.202134085824
6317190.9986O-specific polysaccharide confers lysozyme resistance to extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli. Extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC) is the leading cause of bloodstream and other extraintestinal infections in human and animals. The greatest challenge encountered by ExPEC during an infection is posed by the host defense mechanisms, including lysozyme. ExPEC have developed diverse strategies to overcome this challenge. The aim of this study was to characterize the molecular mechanism of ExPEC resistance to lysozyme. For this, 15,000 transposon mutants of a lysozyme-resistant ExPEC strain NMEC38 were screened; 20 genes were identified as involved in ExPEC resistance to lysozyme-of which five were located in the gene cluster between galF and gnd, and were further confirmed to be involved in O-specific polysaccharide biosynthesis. The O-specific polysaccharide was able to inhibit the hydrolytic activity of lysozyme; it was also required by the complete lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-mediated protection of ExPEC against the bactericidal activity of lysozyme. The O-specific polysaccharide was further shown to be able to directly interact with lysozyme. Furthermore, LPS from ExPEC strains of different O serotypes was also able to inhibit the hydrolytic activity of lysozyme. Because of their cell surface localization and wide distribution in Gram-negative bacteria, O-specific polysaccharides appear to play a long-overlooked role in protecting bacteria against exogenous lysozyme.201829405825