An infection-induced RhoB-Beclin 1-Hsp90 complex enhances clearance of uropathogenic Escherichia coli

AbstractHost cells use several anti-bacterial pathways to defend against pathogens. Here, using a uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) infection model, we demonstrate that bacterial infection upregulates RhoB, which subsequently promotes intracellular bacteria clearance by inducing LC3 lipidation and autophagosome formation. RhoB binds with Beclin 1 through its residues at 118 to 140 and the Beclin 1 CCD domain, with RhoB Arg133 being the key binding residue. Binding of RhoB to Beclin 1 enhances the Hsp90-Beclin 1 interaction, preventing Beclin 1 degradation. RhoB also directly interacts with Hsp90, maintaining RhoB levels. UPEC infections increase RhoB, Beclin 1 and LC3 levels in bladder epithelium in vivo, whereas Beclin 1 and LC3 levels as well as UPEC clearance are substantially reduced in RhoB+/− and RhoB−/− mice upon infection. We conclude that when stimulated by UPEC infections, host cells promote UPEC clearance through the RhoB-Beclin 1-HSP90 complex, indicating RhoB may be a useful target when developing UPEC treatment strategies.

Download Full-text

Genome Expression Analysis of Nonproliferating Intracellular Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium Unravels an Acid pH-Dependent PhoP-PhoQ Response Essential for Dormancy

Infection and Immunity ◽

10.1128/iai.01080-12 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 81 (1) ◽

pp. 154-165 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Cristina Núñez-Hernández ◽

Alberto Tierrez ◽

Álvaro D. Ortega ◽

M. Graciela Pucciarelli ◽

Marta Godoy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Metabolic Reprogramming ◽

Host Cells ◽

Infection Model ◽

Intracellular Bacteria ◽

Virulence Plasmid ◽

Intracellular Growth ◽

Content Type ◽

Serovar Typhimurium

Genome-wide expression analyses have provided clues on howSalmonellaproliferates inside cultured macrophages and epithelial cells. However,in vivostudies show thatSalmonelladoes not replicate massively within host cells, leaving the underlying mechanisms of such growth control largely undefined.In vitroinfection models based on fibroblasts or dendritic cells reveal limited proliferation of the pathogen, but it is presently unknown whether these phenomena reflect events occurringin vivo. Fibroblasts are distinctive, since they represent a nonphagocytic cell type in whichS. entericaserovar Typhimurium actively attenuates intracellular growth. Here, we show in the mouse model thatS. Typhimurium restrains intracellular growth within nonphagocytic cells positioned in the intestinal lamina propria. This response requires a functional PhoP-PhoQ system and is reproduced in primary fibroblasts isolated from the mouse intestine. The fibroblast infection model was exploited to generate transcriptome data, which revealed that ∼2% (98 genes) of theS. Typhimurium genome is differentially expressed in nongrowing intracellular bacteria. Changes include metabolic reprogramming to microaerophilic conditions, induction of virulence plasmid genes, upregulation of the pathogenicity islands SPI-1 and SPI-2, and shutdown of flagella production and chemotaxis. Comparison of relative protein levels of several PhoP-PhoQ-regulated functions (PagN, PagP, and VirK) in nongrowing intracellular bacteria and extracellular bacteria exposed to diverse PhoP-PhoQ-inducing signals denoted a regulation responding to acidic pH. These data demonstrate thatS. Typhimurium restrains intracellular growthin vivoand support a model in which dormant intracellular bacteria could sense vacuolar acidification to stimulate the PhoP-PhoQ system for preventing intracellular overgrowth.

Download Full-text

Mechanistic insights into synergy between nalidixic acid and tetracycline against clinical isolates of Acinetobacter baumannii and Escherichia coli

Communications Biology ◽

10.1038/s42003-021-02074-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Amit Gaurav ◽

Varsha Gupta ◽

Sandeep K. Shrivastava ◽

Ranjana Pathania

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Acinetobacter Baumannii ◽

Nalidixic Acid ◽

Bacterial Infections ◽

Clinical Isolates ◽

Hospital Environment ◽

Infection Model ◽

Drug Resistant ◽

E Coli

AbstractThe increasing prevalence of antimicrobial resistance has become a global health problem. Acinetobacter baumannii is an important nosocomial pathogen due to its capacity to persist in the hospital environment. It has a high mortality rate and few treatment options. Antibiotic combinations can help to fight multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial infections, but they are rarely used in the clinics and mostly unexplored. The interaction between bacteriostatic and bactericidal antibiotics are mostly reported as antagonism based on the results obtained in the susceptible model laboratory strain Escherichia coli. However, in the present study, we report a synergistic interaction between nalidixic acid and tetracycline against clinical multi-drug resistant A. baumannii and E. coli. Here we provide mechanistic insight into this dichotomy. The synergistic combination was studied by checkerboard assay and time-kill curve analysis. We also elucidate the mechanism behind this synergy using several techniques such as fluorescence spectroscopy, flow cytometry, fluorescence microscopy, morphometric analysis, and real-time polymerase chain reaction. Nalidixic acid and tetracycline combination displayed synergy against most of the MDR clinical isolates of A. baumannii and E. coli but not against susceptible isolates. Finally, we demonstrate that this combination is also effective in vivo in an A. baumannii/Caenorhabditis elegans infection model (p < 0.001)

Download Full-text

Bactericidal Activities of Meropenem and Ertapenem against Extended-Spectrum-β-Lactamase-Producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae in a Neutropenic Mouse Thigh Model

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy ◽

10.1128/aac.00752-06 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 51 (4) ◽

pp. 1481-1486 ◽

Cited By ~ 34

Author(s):

C. Andrew DeRyke ◽

Mary Anne Banevicius ◽

Hong Wei Fan ◽

David P. Nicolau

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Klebsiella Pneumoniae ◽

Infection Model ◽

Bacterial Reduction ◽

Efficacy Analysis ◽

Percent Time ◽

Extended Spectrum ◽

Wide Range

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to examine the in vivo efficacies of meropenem and ertapenem against extended-spectrum-β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing isolates with a wide range of MICs. Human-simulated dosing regimens in mice were designed to approximate the free drug percent time above the MIC (fT>MIC) observed for humans following meropenem at 1 g every 8 h and ertapenem at 1 g every 24 h. An in vivo neutropenic mouse thigh infection model was used to examine the bactericidal effects against 31 clinical ESBL Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates and 2 non-ESBL isolates included for comparison at a standard 105 inoculum. Three isolates were examined at a high 107 inoculum as well. Meropenem displayed greater in vitro potency, with a median MIC (range) (μg/ml) of 0.125 (0.03 to 32), than did ertapenem, with 0.5 (0.012 to 128). Seven of the 31 ESBL isolates were removed from the efficacy analysis due to their inability to establish infection in the mouse model. When MICs were ≤1.5 μg/ml for ertapenem (≤0.5 μg/ml for meropenem), similar reductions in CFU (≈ 2-log kill) were observed for both ertapenem (fT>MIC ≥ 23%) and meropenem (fT>MIC ≥ 75%). Ertapenem showed bacterial regrowth for seven of eight isolates, with MICs of ≥2 μg/ml (fT>MIC ≤ 20%), while meropenem displayed antibacterial potency that varied from a static effect to a 1-log bacterial reduction in these isolates (fT>MIC = 30 to 65%). At a 107 inoculum, both agents eradicated bacteria due to adequate exposures (fT>MIC = 20 to 45%). Due to low MICs, no difference in bacterial kill was noted for the majority of ESBL isolates tested. However, for isolates with raised ertapenem MICs of ≥2 μg/ml, meropenem displayed sustained efficacy due to its greater in vitro potency and higher resultant fT>MIC.

Download Full-text

Biological Cost of Single and Multiple Norfloxacin Resistance Mutations in Escherichia coli Implicated in Urinary Tract Infections

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy ◽

10.1128/aac.49.6.2343-2351.2005 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 49 (6) ◽

pp. 2343-2351 ◽

Cited By ~ 91

Author(s):

Patricia Komp Lindgren ◽

Linda L. Marcusson ◽

Dorthe Sandvang ◽

Niels Frimodt-Møller ◽

Diarmaid Hughes

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Urinary Tract ◽

Infection Model ◽

Resistance Mutations ◽

Topoisomerase Iv ◽

E Coli ◽

Tract Infections ◽

Subsequent Selection

ABSTRACT Resistance to fluoroquinolones in urinary tract infection (UTIs) caused by Escherichia coli is associated with multiple mutations, typically those that alter DNA gyrase and DNA topoisomerase IV and those that regulate AcrAB-TolC-mediated efflux. We asked whether a fitness cost is associated with the accumulation of these multiple mutations. Mutants of the susceptible E. coli UTI isolate Nu14 were selected through three to five successive steps with norfloxacin. Each selection was performed with the MIC of the selected strain. After each selection the MIC was measured; and the regions of gyrA, gyrB, parC, and parE, previously associated with resistance mutations, and all of marOR and acrR were sequenced. The first selection step yielded mutations in gyrA, gyrB, and marOR. Subsequent selection steps yielded mutations in gyrA, parE, and marOR but not in gyrB, parC, or acrR. Resistance-associated mutations were identified in almost all isolates after selection steps 1 and 2 but in less than 50% of isolates after subsequent selection steps. Selected strains were competed in vitro, in urine, and in a mouse UTI infection model against the starting strain, Nu14. First-step mutations were not associated with significant fitness costs. However, the accumulation of three or more resistance-associated mutations was usually associated with a large reduction in biological fitness, both in vitro and in vivo. Interestingly, in some lineages a partial restoration of fitness was associated with the accumulation of additional mutations in late selection steps. We suggest that the relative biological costs of multiple mutations may influence the evolution of E. coli strains that develop resistance to fluoroquinolones.

Download Full-text

In Vitro and in Vivo Adherence of Uropathogenic Escherichia Coli Strains

The Journal of Urology ◽

10.1016/s0022-5347(17)46083-6 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 135 (6) ◽

pp. 1319-1321 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Walter J. Hopkins ◽

Jean L. Jensen ◽

David T. Uehling ◽

Edward Balish

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Uropathogenic Escherichia Coli

Download Full-text

Efficient Killing of Multidrug-Resistant Intracellular Bacteria by AIEgens in Vivo

10.26434/chemrxiv.12579611 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Ying Li ◽

Fei Liu ◽

Jiangjiang Zhang ◽

Xiaoye Liu ◽

Peihong Xiao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Membrane Damage ◽

Multidrug Resistant ◽

Host Cells ◽

Comparable Efficacy ◽

Intracellular Bacteria ◽

New Agents ◽

Immune Clearance ◽

Infected Cells ◽

Dose Levels

<a>Bacteria infected cells acting as “Trojan horses” not only protect bacteria from antibiotic therapies and immune clearance, but also increase the dissemination of pathogens from the initial sites of infection. Antibiotics are hard and insufficient to treat such hidden intracellular bacteria, especially the multidrug</a>-resistant (MDR) bacteria. Herein, aggregation-induced emission luminogens (AIEgens) such as TBPs showed potent broad-spectrum bactericidal activity against both <a></a><a>extracellular and intracellular</a> Gram-positive pathogens at low-dose levels. TBPs triggered reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated membrane damage to kill bacteria, regardless of light irradiation. Additionally, such AIEgens activated mitochondria dependent autophagy to eliminate intracellular bacteria in host cells. Compared to the routinely used vancomycin in clinics, TBPs showed comparable efficacy against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in vivo. Our studies demonstrate that AIEgens are promising new agents for the treatment of MDR bacteria associated infections.

Download Full-text

In Vivo Pharmacodynamic Characterization of a Novel Odilorhabdin Antibiotic, NOSO-502, against Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae in a Murine Thigh Infection Model

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy ◽

10.1128/aac.01067-18 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 62 (9) ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Miao Zhao ◽

Alexander J. Lepak ◽

Karen Marchillo ◽

Jamie VanHecker ◽

David R. Andes

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Klebsiella Pneumoniae ◽

Subcutaneous Administration ◽

Dose Fractionation ◽

Infection Model ◽

Pharmacokinetic Studies ◽

Time Curve ◽

Content Type ◽

The Mean

ABSTRACT NOSO-502 is a novel odilorhabdin antibiotic with potent activity against Enterobacteriaceae. The goal of these studies was to determine which pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) indices and magnitude best correlated with efficacy in the murine thigh infection model. Six Escherichia coli and 6 Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates were utilized. MICs were determined using CLSI methods and ranged from 1 to 4 mg/liter. A neutropenic murine thigh infection model was utilized for all treatment studies. Single-dose plasma pharmacokinetics were determined in mice after subcutaneous administration of 7.81, 31.25, 125, and 500 mg/kg of body weight. Pharmacokinetic studies exhibited peak concentration (Cmax) values of 1.49 to 84.6 mg/liter, area under the concentration-time curve from 0 h to infinity (AUC0–∞) values of 1.94 to 352 mg · h/liter, and beta elimination half-lives of 0.41 to 1.1 h. Dose fractionation studies were performed using total drug doses of 7.81 mg/kg to 2,000 mg/kg fractionated into regimens of every 3 h (q3h), q6h, q12h, or q24h. Nonlinear regression analysis demonstrated that AUC/MIC was the PK/PD parameter that best correlated with efficacy (R2, 0.86). In subsequent studies, we used the neutropenic murine thigh infection model to determine the magnitude of NOSO-502 AUC/MIC needed for the efficacy against a diverse group of Enterobacteriaceae. Mice were treated with 4-fold-increasing doses (range, 3.91 to 1,000 mg/kg) of NOSO-502 every 6 h. The mean 24-h free-drug AUC/MIC (fAUC)/MIC) magnitudes associated with net stasis and 1-log kill endpoint for K. pneumoniae were 4.22 and 17.7, respectively. The mean fAUC/MIC magnitude associated with net stasis endpoint for E. coli was 10.4. NOSO-502 represents a promising novel, first-in-class odilorhabdin antibiotic with in vivo potency against Enterobacteriaceae.

Download Full-text

Intestine and Environment of the Chicken as Reservoirs for Extraintestinal Pathogenic Escherichia coli Strains with Zoonotic Potential

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.01324-08 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 75 (1) ◽

pp. 184-192 ◽

Cited By ~ 133

Author(s):

Christa Ewers ◽

Esther-Maria Antï¿½o ◽

Ines Diehl ◽

Hans-C. Philipp ◽

Lothar H. Wieler

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Virulence Gene ◽

Infection Model ◽

E Coli ◽

Gene Profiles ◽

Pathogenic Escherichia Coli ◽

Zoonotic Risk ◽

Resistant Strains ◽

Genetic Pool

ABSTRACT Although research has increasingly focused on the pathogenesis of avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) infections and the “APEC pathotype” itself, little is known about the reservoirs of these bacteria. We therefore compared outbreak strains isolated from diseased chickens (n = 121) with nonoutbreak strains, including fecal E. coli strains from clinically healthy chickens (n = 211) and strains from their environment (n = 35) by determining their virulence gene profiles, phylogenetic backgrounds, responses to chicken serum, and in vivo pathogenicities in a chicken infection model. In general, by examining 46 different virulence-associated genes we were able to distinguish the three groups of avian strains, but some specific fecal and environmental isolates had a virulence gene profile that was indistinguishable from that determined for outbreak strains. In addition, a substantial number of phylogenetic EcoR group B2 strains, which are known to include potent human and animal extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) strains, were identified among the APEC strains (44.5%) as well as among the fecal E. coli strains from clinically healthy chickens (23.2%). Comparably high percentages (79.2 to 89.3%) of serum-resistant strains were identified for all three groups of strains tested, bringing into question the usefulness of this phenotype as a principal marker for extraintestinal virulence. Intratracheal infection of 5-week-old chickens corroborated the pathogenicity of a number of nonoutbreak strains. Multilocus sequence typing data revealed that most strains that were virulent in chicken infection experiments belonged to sequence types that are almost exclusively associated with extraintestinal diseases not only in birds but also in humans, like septicemia, urinary tract infection, and newborn meningitis, supporting the hypothesis that not the ecohabitat but the phylogeny of E. coli strains determines virulence. These data provide strong evidence for an avian intestinal reservoir hypothesis which could be used to develop intestinal intervention strategies. These strains pose a zoonotic risk because either they could be transferred directly from birds to humans or they could serve as a genetic pool for ExPEC strains.

Download Full-text

In Vivo Bioluminescent Monitoring of Therapeutic Efficacy and Pharmacodynamic Target Assessment of Antofloxacin against Escherichia coli in a Neutropenic Murine Thigh Infection Model

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy ◽

10.1128/aac.01281-17 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 62 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Yu-Feng Zhou ◽

Meng-Ting Tao ◽

Yu-Zhang He ◽

Jian Sun ◽

Ya-Hong Liu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Subcutaneous Administration ◽

Free Drug ◽

Infection Model ◽

Bioluminescent Imaging ◽

Time Curve ◽

Content Type ◽

E Coli ◽

Tract Infections

ABSTRACT Antimicrobial resistance among uropathogens has increased the rates of infection-related morbidity and mortality. Antofloxacin is a novel fluoroquinolone with broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against urinary Gram-negative bacilli, such as Escherichia coli. This study monitored the in vivo efficacy of antofloxacin using bioluminescent imaging and determined pharmacokinetic (PK)/pharmacodynamic (PD) targets against E. coli isolates in a neutropenic murine thigh infection model. The PK properties were determined after subcutaneous administration of antofloxacin at 2.5, 10, 40, and 160 mg/kg of body weight. Following thigh infection, the mice were treated with 2-fold-increasing doses of antofloxacin from 2.5 to 80 mg/kg administered every 12 h. Efficacy was assessed by quantitative determination of the bacterial burdens in thigh homogenates and was compared with the bioluminescent density. Antofloxacin demonstrated both static and killing endpoints in relation to the initial burden against all study strains. The PK/PD index area under the concentration-time curve (AUC)/MIC correlated well with efficacy (R 2 = 0.92), and the dose-response relationship was relatively steep, as observed with escalating doses of antofloxacin. The mean free drug AUC/MIC targets necessary to produce net bacterial stasis and 1-log10 and 2-log10 kill for each isolate were 38.7, 66.1, and 147.0 h, respectively. In vivo bioluminescent imaging showed a rapid decrease in the bioluminescent density at free drug AUC/MIC exposures that exceeded the stasis targets. The integration of these PD targets combined with the results of PK studies with humans will be useful in setting optimal dosing regimens for the treatment of urinary tract infections due to E. coli.

Download Full-text

A Conserved PapB Family Member, TosR, Regulates Expression of the Uropathogenic Escherichia coli RTX Nonfimbrial Adhesin TosA while Conserved LuxR Family Members TosE and TosF Suppress Motility

Infection and Immunity ◽

10.1128/iai.01608-14 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 82 (9) ◽

pp. 3644-3656 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Michael D. Engstrom ◽

Christopher J. Alteri ◽

Harry L. T. Mobley

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Urinary Tract ◽

Virulence Factors ◽

Upper Urinary Tract ◽

Host Cells ◽

Promoter Regions ◽

Content Type ◽

Tract Infections

ABSTRACTA heterogeneous subset of extraintestinal pathogenicEscherichia coli(ExPEC) strains, referred to as uropathogenicE. coli(UPEC), causes most uncomplicated urinary tract infections. However, no core set of virulence factors exists among UPEC strains. Instead, the focus of the analysis of urovirulence has shifted to studying broad classes of virulence factors and the interactions between them. For example, the RTX nonfimbrial adhesin TosA mediates adherence to host cells derived from the upper urinary tract. The associatedtosoperon is well expressedin vivobut poorly expressedin vitroand encodes TosCBD, a predicted type 1 secretion system. TosR and TosEF are PapB and LuxR family transcription factors, respectively; however, no role has been assigned to these potential regulators. Thus, the focus of this study was to determine how TosR and TosEF regulatetosAand affect the reciprocal expression of adhesins and flagella. Among a collection of sequenced UPEC strains, 32% (101/317) were found to encode TosA, and nearly all strains (91% [92/101]) simultaneously carried the putative regulatory genes. Deletion oftosRalleviatestosArepression. Thetospromoter was localized upstream oftosRusing transcriptional fusions of putative promoter regions withlacZ. TosR binds to this region, affecting a gel shift. A 100-bp fragment 220 to 319 bp upstream oftosRinhibits binding, suggesting localization of the TosR binding site. TosEF, on the other hand, downmodulate motility when overexpressed by preventing the expression offliC, encoding flagellin. Deletion oftosEFincreased motility. Thus, we present an additional example of the reciprocal control of adherence and motility.

Download Full-text