scholarly journals Unraveling the basic biology and clinical significance of the chlamydial plasmid

2011 ◽  
Vol 208 (11) ◽  
pp. 2159-2162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel D. Rockey
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Nonhuman Primates ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Live Attenuated Vaccines ◽  
Sexually Transmitted ◽  
Ocular Infections ◽  
Chlamydial Species ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Basic Biology ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions

Chlamydial plasmids are small, highly conserved, nonconjugative, and nonintegrative DNA molecules that are nearly ubiquitous in many chlamydial species, including Chlamydia trachomatis. There has been significant recent progress in understanding chlamydial plasmid participation in host–microbe interactions, disease, and immune responses. Work in mouse model systems and, very recently, in nonhuman primates demonstrates that plasmid-deficient chlamydial strains function as live attenuated vaccines against genital and ocular infections. Collectively, these studies open new avenues of research into developing vaccines against trachoma and sexually transmitted chlamydial infections.

scholarly journals Comparative evaluation of the genomes of common bacterial members of the Drosophila intestinal community

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina Petkau ◽  
David Fast ◽  
Aashna Duggal ◽  
Edan Foley
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Intestinal Bacteria ◽  
Lactobacillus Brevis ◽  
Host Responses ◽  
Gene Products ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Microbial Products ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions ◽  
Alternative Sources

Drosophila melanogaster is an excellent model to explore the molecular exchanges that occur between an animal intestine and their microbial passengers. For example, groundbreaking studies in flies uncovered a sophisticated web of host responses to intestinal bacteria. The outcomes of these responses define critical events in the host, such as the establishment of immune responses, access to nutrients, and the rate of larval development. Despite our steady march towards illuminating the host machinery that responds to bacterial presence in the gut, we know remarkably little about the microbial products that influence bacterial association with a fly host. To address this deficiency, we sequenced and characterized the genomes of three common Drosophila-associated microbes: Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus brevis and Acetobacter pasteurianus. In each case, we compared the genomes of Drosophila-associated strains to the genomes of strains isolated from alternative sources. This approach allowed us to identify molecular functions common to Drosophila-associated microbes, and, in the case of A. pasteurianus, to identify genes that are essential for association with the host. Of note, many of the gene products unique to fly-associated strains have established roles in the stabilization of host-microbe interactions. We believe that these data provide a valuable starting point for a more thorough examination of the microbial perspective on host-microbe relationships.

scholarly journals A community perspective on the concept of marine holobionts: current status, challenges, and future directions

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon M Dittami ◽  
Enrique Arboleda ◽  
Jean-Christophe Auguet ◽  
Arite Bigalke ◽  
Enora Briand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Stable Relationship ◽  
Living Together ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions ◽  
Experimental Model Systems

Host-microbe interactions play crucial roles in marine ecosystems, but we still have very little understanding of the mechanisms that govern these relationships, the evolutionary processes that shape them, and their ecological consequences. The holobiont concept is a renewed paradigm in biology that can help to describe and understand these complex systems. It posits that a host and its associated microbiota, living together in a stable relationship, form the holobiont, and have to be studied together as a coherent biological and functional unit to understand its biology, ecology, and evolution. Here we discuss critical concepts and opportunities in marine holobiont research and identify key challenges in the field. We highlight the potential economic, sociological, and environmental impacts of the holobiont concept in marine biological, evolutionary, and environmental sciences with comparisons to terrestrial sciences where appropriate. Given the connectivity and the unexplored biodiversity specific to marine ecosystems, a deeper understanding of such complex systems requires further technological and conceptual advances, e.g. the development of controlled experimental model systems for holobionts from all major lineages and the modeling of (info)chemical-mediated interactions between organisms. The most significant challenge is to bridge cross-disciplinary research on tractable model systems in order to address key ecological and evolutionary questions. This will be crucial to decipher the roles of marine holobionts in biogeochemical cycles, but also developing concrete applications of the holobiont concept e.g. to increase yield or disease resistance in aquacultures or to protect and restore marine ecosystems through management projects.

scholarly journals A community perspective on the concept of marine holobionts: current status, challenges, and future directions

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon M Dittami ◽  
Enrique Arboleda ◽  
Jean-Christophe Auguet ◽  
Arite Bigalke ◽  
Enora Briand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Stable Relationship ◽  
Living Together ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions ◽  
Experimental Model Systems

Host-microbe interactions play crucial roles in marine ecosystems, but we still have very little understanding of the mechanisms that govern these relationships, the evolutionary processes that shape them, and their ecological consequences. The holobiont concept is a renewed paradigm in biology that can help to describe and understand these complex systems. It posits that a host and its associated microbiota, living together in a stable relationship, form the holobiont, and have to be studied together as a coherent biological and functional unit to understand its biology, ecology, and evolution. Here we discuss critical concepts and opportunities in marine holobiont research and identify key challenges in the field. We highlight the potential economic, sociological, and environmental impacts of the holobiont concept in marine biological, evolutionary, and environmental sciences with comparisons to terrestrial sciences where appropriate. Given the connectivity and the unexplored biodiversity specific to marine ecosystems, a deeper understanding of such complex systems requires further technological and conceptual advances, e.g. the development of controlled experimental model systems for holobionts from all major lineages and the modeling of (info)chemical-mediated interactions between organisms. The most significant challenge is to bridge cross-disciplinary research on tractable model systems in order to address key ecological and evolutionary questions. This will be crucial to decipher the roles of marine holobionts in biogeochemical cycles, but also developing concrete applications of the holobiont concept e.g. to increase yield or disease resistance in aquacultures or to protect and restore marine ecosystems through management projects.

scholarly journals Highlights of the 11th International Bordetella Symposium: from Basic Biology to Vaccine Development

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 842-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas H. Carbonetti ◽  
Carl Heinz Wirsing von König ◽  
Ruiting Lan ◽  
Francoise Jacob-Dubuisson ◽  
Peggy A. Cotter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Information Exchange ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Bacterial Pathogen ◽  
Genomic Analysis ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Young Infants ◽  
Basic Biology ◽  
Pertussis Epidemiology

ABSTRACTPertussis is a severe respiratory disease caused by infection with the bacterial pathogenBordetella pertussis. The disease affects individuals of all ages but is particularly severe and sometimes fatal in unvaccinated young infants. OtherBordetellaspecies cause diseases in humans, animals, and birds. Scientific, clinical, public health, vaccine company, and regulatory agency experts on these pathogens and diseases gathered in Buenos Aires, Argentina from 5 to 8 April 2016 for the 11th InternationalBordetellaSymposium to discuss recent advances in our understanding of the biology of these organisms, the diseases they cause, and the development of new vaccines and other strategies to prevent these diseases. Highlights of the meeting included pertussis epidemiology in developing nations, genomic analysis ofBordetellabiology and evolution, regulation of virulence factor expression, new model systems to studyBordetellabiology and disease, effects of different vaccines on immune responses, maternal immunization as a strategy to prevent newborn disease, and novel vaccine development for pertussis. In addition, the group approved the formation of an InternationalBordetellaSociety to promote research and information exchange on bordetellae and to organize future meetings. A new Bordetella.org website will also be developed to facilitate these goals.

scholarly journals A model symbiosis reveals a role for sheathed-flagellum rotation in the release of immunogenic lipopolysaccharide

eLife ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caitlin A Brennan ◽  
Jason R Hunt ◽  
Natacha Kremer ◽  
Benjamin C Krasity ◽  
Michael A Apicella ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Unknown Function ◽  
Vibrio Fischeri ◽  
Host Responses ◽  
Tissue Tropism ◽  
Human Pathogens ◽  
Bacterial Flagella ◽  
Host Immune Responses ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions

Bacterial flagella mediate host–microbe interactions through tissue tropism during colonization, as well as by activating immune responses. The flagellar shaft of some bacteria, including several human pathogens, is encased in a membranous sheath of unknown function. While it has been hypothesized that the sheath may allow these bacteria to evade host responses to the immunogenic flagellin subunit, this unusual structural feature has remained an enigma. Here we demonstrate that the rotation of the sheathed flagellum in both the mutualist Vibrio fischeri and the pathogen Vibrio cholerae promotes release of a potent bacteria-derived immunogen, lipopolysaccharide, found in the flagellar sheath. We further present a new role for the flagellar sheath in triggering, rather than circumventing, host immune responses in the model squid-vibrio symbiosis. Such an observation not only has implications for the study of bacterial pathogens with sheathed flagella, but also raises important biophysical questions of sheathed-flagellum function.

scholarly journals A community perspective on the concept of marine holobionts: current status, challenges, and future directions

PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e10911
Author(s):  
Simon M. Dittami ◽  
Enrique Arboleda ◽  
Jean-Christophe Auguet ◽  
Arite Bigalke ◽  
Enora Briand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Conservation Management ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions ◽  
Experimental Model Systems ◽  
The Impact

Host-microbe interactions play crucial roles in marine ecosystems. However, we still have very little understanding of the mechanisms that govern these relationships, the evolutionary processes that shape them, and their ecological consequences. The holobiont concept is a renewed paradigm in biology that can help to describe and understand these complex systems. It posits that a host and its associated microbiota with which it interacts, form a holobiont, and have to be studied together as a coherent biological and functional unit to understand its biology, ecology, and evolution. Here we discuss critical concepts and opportunities in marine holobiont research and identify key challenges in the field. We highlight the potential economic, sociological, and environmental impacts of the holobiont concept in marine biological, evolutionary, and environmental sciences. Given the connectivity and the unexplored biodiversity specific to marine ecosystems, a deeper understanding of such complex systems requires further technological and conceptual advances, e.g., the development of controlled experimental model systems for holobionts from all major lineages and the modeling of (info)chemical-mediated interactions between organisms. Here we propose that one significant challenge is to bridge cross-disciplinary research on tractable model systems in order to address key ecological and evolutionary questions. This first step is crucial to decipher the main drivers of the dynamics and evolution of holobionts and to account for the holobiont concept in applied areas, such as the conservation, management, and exploitation of marine ecosystems and resources, where practical solutions to predict and mitigate the impact of human activities are more important than ever.

scholarly journals Protective Plant Immune Responses are Elicited by Bacterial Outer Membrane Vesicles

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah M. McMillan ◽  
Sophia G. Zebell ◽  
Jean B. Ristaino ◽  
Xinnian Dong ◽  
Meta J. Kuehn
Keyword(s):  
Immune Responses ◽  
Outer Membrane ◽  
Pseudomonas Syringae ◽  
Membrane Vesicles ◽  
Outer Membrane Vesicles ◽  
Plant Responses ◽  
Bacterial Survival ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Bacterial Outer Membrane ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions

SummaryBacterial outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) perform a variety of functions in bacterial survival and virulence. In mammalian systems, OMVs activate immune responses and have been exploited as vaccines. However, little work has focused on the role that OMVs play during interactions with plant hosts. Here we report that OMVs from the pathogenic Pseudomonas syringae and the beneficial Pseudomonas fluorescens activate plant immune responses that protect against bacterial and oomycete pathogens. OMVs from these two species display different sensitivity to biochemical stressors, which could indicate differences in OMV cargo packaging. Furthermore, our study shows that OMV-induced protective immune responses are T3SS- and protein-independent, while OMV-mediated seedling growth inhibition largely depends on protein cargo. Importantly, OMV-mediated plant responses are distinct from those triggered by PAMP/MAMPs or effector molecules alone. OMVs provide a unique opportunity to study virulence factors in combination and add a new layer of interaction and complexity to host-microbe interactions.

scholarly journals A community perspective on the concept of marine holobionts: state-of-the-art, challenges, and future directions

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon M Dittami ◽  
Enrique Arboleda ◽  
Jean-Christophe Auguet ◽  
Arite Bigalke ◽  
Enora Briand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Functional Unit ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Significant Challenge ◽  
Living Together ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions ◽  
Bridge Functional

Host-microbe interactions play crucial roles in marine ecosystems, but we still have very little understanding of the mechanisms that govern these relationships, the evolutionary processes that shape them, and their ecological consequences. The holobiont concept is a renewed paradigm in biology that can help describe and understand these complex systems. It posits that a host and its associated microbiota, living together in a long-lasting relationship, form the holobiont, and have to be studied together, as a coherent biological and functional unit, in order to understand the biology, ecology and evolution of the organisms. Here we discuss critical concepts and opportunities in marine holobiont research and identify key challenges in the field. We highlight the potential economic, sociological, and environmental impacts of the holobiont concept in marine biological, evolutionary, and environmental sciences with comparisons to terrestrial science whenever appropriate. A deeper understanding of such complex systems, however, will require further technological and conceptual advances. The most significant challenge will be to bridge functional research on simple and tractable model systems and global approaches. This will require scientists to work together as an (inter)active community in order to address, for instance, ecological and evolutionary questions and the roles of holobionts in biogeochemical cycles.

scholarly journals Dual and Triple Epithelial Coculture Model Systems with Donor-Derived Microbiota and THP-1 Macrophages To Mimic Host-Microbe Interactions in the Human Sinonasal Cavities

mSphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte De Rudder ◽  
Marta Calatayud Arroyo ◽  
Sarah Lebeer ◽  
Tom Van de Wiele
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Community ◽  
Epithelial Cells ◽  
Respiratory Tract ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Upper Respiratory Tract ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Upper Respiratory ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions ◽  
Nasal Microbiota

ABSTRACT The epithelium of the human sinonasal cavities is colonized by a diverse microbial community, modulating epithelial development and immune priming and playing a role in respiratory disease. Here, we present a novel in vitro approach enabling a 3-day coculture of differentiated Calu-3 respiratory epithelial cells with a donor-derived bacterial community, a commensal species (Lactobacillus sakei), or a pathobiont (Staphylococcus aureus). We also assessed how the incorporation of macrophage-like cells could have a steering effect on both epithelial cells and the microbial community. Inoculation of donor-derived microbiota in our experimental setup did not pose cytotoxic stress on the epithelial cell layers, as demonstrated by unaltered cytokine and lactate dehydrogenase release compared to a sterile control. Epithelial integrity of the differentiated Calu-3 cells was maintained as well, with no differences in transepithelial electrical resistance observed between coculture with donor-derived microbiota and a sterile control. Transition of nasal microbiota from in vivo to in vitro conditions maintained phylogenetic richness, and yet a decrease in phylogenetic and phenotypic diversity was noted. Additional inclusion and coculture of THP-1-derived macrophages did not alter phylogenetic diversity, and yet donor-independent shifts toward higher Moraxella and Mycoplasma abundance were observed, while phenotypic diversity was also increased. Our results demonstrate that coculture of differentiated airway epithelial cells with a healthy donor-derived nasal community is a viable strategy to mimic host-microbe interactions in the human upper respiratory tract. Importantly, including an immune component allowed us to study host-microbe interactions in the upper respiratory tract more in depth. IMPORTANCE Despite the relevance of the resident microbiota in sinonasal health and disease and the need for cross talk between immune and epithelial cells in the upper respiratory tract, these parameters have not been combined in a single in vitro model system. We have developed a coculture system of differentiated respiratory epithelium and natural nasal microbiota and incorporated an immune component. As indicated by absence of cytotoxicity and stable cytokine profiles and epithelial integrity, nasal microbiota from human origin appeared to be well tolerated by host cells, while microbial community composition remained representative for that of the human (sino)nasal cavity. Importantly, the introduction of macrophage-like cells enabled us to obtain a differential readout from the epithelial cells dependent on the donor microbial background to which the cells were exposed. We conclude that both model systems offer the means to investigate host-microbe interactions in the upper respiratory tract in a more representative way.

Immunological Responses to Gut Bacteria

2012 ◽  
Vol 95 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia M Green-Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Immune System ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Immune Responses ◽  
Innate Immune ◽  
Innate Immune Responses ◽  
Host Defenses ◽  
Immunological Responses ◽  
Host Health ◽  
Microbe Interactions ◽  
Host Microbe Interactions

Abstract The integral nature of interactions between the gut microbiota and host is especially evident with respect to effects on the immune system and host defenses. Host-microbiota interactions are increasingly being revealed as complex and dynamic, with far-reaching effects on varied aspects of host health. This review focuses on adaptive and innate immune responses to the gut microbiota and the bidirectional nature of these host-microbe interactions.

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