scholarly journals Potential of Host Defense Peptide Prodrugs as Neutrophil Elastase-Dependent Anti-Infective Agents for Cystic Fibrosis

2013 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 978-985 ◽  
Author(s):  
Éanna Forde ◽  
Hilary Humphreys ◽  
Catherine M. Greene ◽  
Deirdre Fitzgerald-Hughes ◽  
Marc Devocelle
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Host Defense ◽  
Bactericidal Activity ◽  
Neutrophil Elastase ◽  
Activity Levels ◽  
Host Defense Peptides ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Host Defense Peptide ◽  
Low Toxicity

ABSTRACTHost defense peptides (HDPs) are short antimicrobial peptides of the innate immune system. Deficiencies in HDPs contribute to enhanced susceptibility to infections, e.g., in cystic fibrosis (CF). Exogenous HDPs can compensate for these deficiencies, but their development as antimicrobials is limited by cytotoxicity. Three HDP prodrugs were designed so their net positive charge is masked by a promoiety containing a substrate for the enzyme neutrophil elastase (NE). This approach can confine activation to sites with high NE levels. Enzyme-labile peptides were synthesized, and their activation was investigated using purified NE. Susceptibilities ofPseudomonas aeruginosato parent and prodrug peptides in the presence and absence of NE-rich CF human bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid and different NaCl concentrations were compared. The effect of the HDP promoiety on cytotoxicity was determined with cystic fibrosis bronchial epithelial (CFBE41o-) cells. NE in CF BAL fluids activated the HDP prodrugs, restoring bactericidal activity against reference and clinical isolates ofP. aeruginosa. However, activation also required the addition of 300 mM NaCl. Under these conditions, the bactericidal activity levels of the HDP prodrugs differed, with pro-P18 demonstrating the greatest activity (90% to 100% of that of the parent, P18, at 6.25 μg/ml). Cytotoxic effects on CFBE41o- cells were reduced by the addition of the promoiety to HDPs. We demonstrate here for the first time the selective activation of novel HDP prodrugs by a host disease-associated enzyme atin vivoconcentrations of the CF lung. This approach may lead to the development of novel therapeutic agents with low toxicity that are active under the challenging conditions of the CF lung.

scholarly journals In Vitro and In Vivo Antibiotic Capacity of Two Host Defense Peptides

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Iván Arenas ◽  
Marco Antonio Ibarra ◽  
Felix L. Santana ◽  
Elba Villegas ◽  
Robert E. W. Hancock ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Host Defense ◽  
Foot Ulcer ◽  
Diabetic Foot Ulcer ◽  
Immunomodulatory Activity ◽  
Host Defense Peptides ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Serovar Typhimurium ◽  
Infective Activity

ABSTRACT Two nonamidated host defense peptides named Pin2[G] and FA1 were evaluated against three types of pathogenic bacteria: two (Staphylococcus aureus UPD13 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa UPD3) isolated from diabetic foot ulcer patients, and another (Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium [ATCC 14028]) from a commercial collection. In vitro experiments showed that the antimicrobial performance of the synthetic peptides Pin2[G] and FA1 was modest, although FA1 was more effective than Pin2[G]. In contrast, Pin2[G] had superior in vivo anti-infective activity to FA1 in rabbit wound infections by the diabetic foot ulcer pathogens S. aureus UPD13 and P. aeruginosa UPD3. Indeed, Pin2[G] reduced bacterial colony counts of both S. aureus UPD13 and P. aeruginosa UPD3 by >100,000-fold after 48 to 72 h on skin wounds of infected rabbits, while in similar infected wounds, FA1 had no major effects at 72 to 96 h of treatment. Ceftriaxone was equally effective versus Pseudomonas but less effective versus S. aureus infections. Additionally, the two peptides were evaluated in mice against intragastrically inoculated S. enterica serovar Typhimurium (ATCC 14028). Only Pin2[G] at 0.56 mg/kg was effective in reducing systemic (liver) infection by >67-fold, equivalent to the effect of treatment with levofloxacin. Pin2[G] showed superior immunomodulatory activity in increasing chemokine production by a human bronchial cell line and suppressing polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (poly[I:C])-induced proinflammatory IL-6 production. These data showed that the in vitro antimicrobial activity of these peptides was not correlated with their in vivo anti-infective activity and suggest that other factors such as immunomodulatory activity were more important.

scholarly journals The Antibacterial Activity of LL-37 against Treponema denticola Is Dentilisin Protease Independent and Facilitated by the Major Outer Sheath Protein Virulence Factor

2011 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 1107-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graciela Rosen ◽  
Michael N. Sela ◽  
Gilad Bachrach
Keyword(s):  
Periodontal Disease ◽  
Host Defense ◽  
Surface Protein ◽  
Human Saliva ◽  
Treponema Denticola ◽  
Host Defense Peptides ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Outer Sheath ◽  
Major Surface

Host defense peptides are innate immune effectors that possess both bactericidal activities and immunomodulatory functions. Deficiency in the human host defense peptide LL-37 has previously been correlated with severe periodontal disease.Treponema denticolais an oral anaerobic spirochete closely associated with the pathogenesis of periodontal disease. TheT. denticolamajor surface protein (MSP), involved in adhesion and cytotoxicity, and the dentilisin serine protease are key virulence factors of this organism. In this study, we examined the interactions between LL-37 andT. denticola. The threeT. denticolastrains tested were susceptible to LL-37. Dentilisin was found to inactivate LL-37 by cleaving it at the Lys, Phe, Gln, and Val residues. However, dentilisin deletion did not increase the susceptibility ofT. denticolato LL-37. Furthermore, dentilisin activity was found to be inhibited by human saliva. In contrast, a deficiency of theT. denticolaMSP increased resistance to LL-37. The MSP-deficient mutant bound less fluorescently labeled LL-37 than the wild-type strain. MSP demonstrated specific, dose-dependent LL-37 binding. In conclusion, though capable of LL-37 inactivation, dentilisin does not protectT. denticolafrom LL-37. Rather, the rapid, MSP-mediated binding of LL-37 to the treponemal outer sheath precedes cleavage by dentilisin. Moreover,in vivo, saliva inhibits dentilisin, thus preventing LL-37 restriction and ensuring its bactericidal and immunoregulatory activities.

scholarly journals Host Defense Peptide Resistance Contributes to Colonization and Maximal Intestinal Pathology by Crohn's Disease-Associated Adherent-Invasive Escherichia coli

2014 ◽  
Vol 82 (8) ◽  
pp. 3383-3393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph B. McPhee ◽  
Cherrie L. Small ◽  
Sarah A. Reid-Yu ◽  
John R. Brannon ◽  
Hervé Le Moual ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Crohn’S Disease ◽  
Crohn's Disease ◽  
Host Defense ◽  
Bacterial Killing ◽  
Host Defense Peptides ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Host Defense Peptide ◽  
Defense Peptides ◽  
High Level

ABSTRACTHost defense peptides secreted by colonocytes and Paneth cells play a key role in innate host defenses in the gut. In Crohn's disease, the burden of tissue-associatedEscherichia colicommonly increases at epithelial surfaces where host defense peptides concentrate, suggesting that this bacterial population might actively resist this mechanism of bacterial killing. Adherent-invasiveE. coli(AIEC) is associated with Crohn's disease; however, the colonization determinants of AIEC in the inflamed gut are undefined. Here, we establish that host defense peptide resistance contributes to host colonization by Crohn's-associated AIEC. We identified a plasmid-encoded genomic island (called PI-6) in AIEC strain NRG857c that confers high-level resistance to α-helical cationic peptides and α- and β-defensins. Deletion of PI-6 sensitized strain NRG857c to these host defense molecules, reduced its competitive fitness in a mouse model of infection, and attenuated its ability to induce cecal pathology. This phenotype is due to two genes in PI-6,arlA, which encodes a Mig-14 family protein implicated in defensin resistance, andarlC, an OmpT family outer membrane protease. Implicit in these findings are new bacterial targets whose inhibition might limit AIEC burden and disease in the gut.

scholarly journals In VitroActivities of Synthetic Host Defense Propeptides Processed by Neutrophil Elastase against Cystic Fibrosis Pathogens

2011 ◽  
Vol 55 (5) ◽  
pp. 2487-2489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephane Desgranges ◽  
Florie Le Prieult ◽  
Alan Daly ◽  
Jennifer Lydon ◽  
Marian Brennan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Airway Inflammation ◽  
Serine Protease ◽  
Host Defense ◽  
Neutrophil Elastase ◽  
Net Charge ◽  
Host Defense Peptide ◽  
Chronic Airway

ABSTRACTThe antimicrobial and hemolytic activities of a host defense peptide can be controlled by its modification as a propeptide of reduced net charge, which can then be processed by neutrophil elastase, a serine protease involved in chronic airway inflammation and infections associated with cystic fibrosis.

scholarly journals Functional and Transcriptional Adaptations of Blood Monocytes Recruited to the Cystic Fibrosis Airway Microenvironment In Vitro

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 2530
Author(s):  
Bijean D. Ford ◽  
Diego Moncada Giraldo ◽  
Camilla Margaroli ◽  
Vincent D. Giacalone ◽  
Milton R. Brown ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Bactericidal Activity ◽  
Scavenger Receptor ◽  
Receptor Expression ◽  
Blood Monocytes ◽  
Bacterial Killing ◽  
Blood Neutrophils ◽  
Vitro Model

Cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease is dominated by the recruitment of myeloid cells (neutrophils and monocytes) from the blood which fail to clear the lung of colonizing microbes. In prior in vitro studies, we showed that blood neutrophils migrated through the well-differentiated lung epithelium into the CF airway fluid supernatant (ASN) mimic the dysfunction of CF airway neutrophils in vivo, including decreased bactericidal activity despite an increased metabolism. Here, we hypothesized that, in a similar manner to neutrophils, blood monocytes undergo significant adaptations upon recruitment to CFASN. To test this hypothesis, primary human blood monocytes were transmigrated in our in vitro model into the ASN from healthy control (HC) or CF subjects to mimic in vivo recruitment to normal or CF airways, respectively. Surface phenotype, metabolic and bacterial killing activities, and transcriptomic profile by RNA sequencing were quantified post-transmigration. Unlike neutrophils, monocytes were not metabolically activated, nor did they show broad differences in activation and scavenger receptor expression upon recruitment to the CFASN compared to HCASN. However, monocytes recruited to CFASN showed decreased bactericidal activity. RNASeq analysis showed strong effects of transmigration on monocyte RNA profile, with differences between CFASN and HCASN conditions, notably in immune signaling, including lower expression in the former of the antimicrobial factor ISG15, defensin-like chemokine CXCL11, and nitric oxide-producing enzyme NOS3. While monocytes undergo qualitatively different adaptations from those seen in neutrophils upon recruitment to the CF airway microenvironment, their bactericidal activity is also dysregulated, which could explain why they also fail to protect CF airways from infection.

scholarly journals Mechanistic Fingerprinting Reveals Kinetic Signatures of Resistance to Daptomycin and Host Defense Peptides in Streptococcus mitis-oralis

Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 404
Author(s):  
Michael R. Yeaman ◽  
Liana C. Chan ◽  
Nagendra N. Mishra ◽  
Arnold S. Bayer
Keyword(s):  
Flow Cytometry ◽  
Host Defense ◽  
Durable Resistance ◽  
Cross Resistance ◽  
Streptococcus Mitis ◽  
Host Defense Peptides ◽  
Strain Pair ◽  
Defense Peptides

Streptococcus mitis-oralis (S. mitis-oralis) infections are increasingly prevalent in specific populations, including neutropenic cancer and endocarditis patients. S. mitis-oralis strains have a propensity to evolve rapid, high-level and durable resistance to daptomycin (DAP-R) in vitro and in vivo, although the mechanism(s) involved remain incompletely defined. We examined mechanisms of DAP-R versus cross-resistance to cationic host defense peptides (HDPs), using an isogenic S. mitis-oralis strain-pair: (i) DAP-susceptible (DAP-S) parental 351-WT (DAP MIC = 0.5 µg/mL), and its (ii) DAP-R variant 351-D10 (DAP MIC > 256 µg/mL). DAP binding was quantified by flow cytometry, in-parallel with temporal (1–4 h) killing by either DAP or comparative prototypic cationic HDPs (hNP-1; LL-37). Multicolor flow cytometry was used to determine kinetic cell responses associated with resistance or susceptibility to these molecules. While overall DAP binding was similar between strains, a significant subpopulation of 351-D10 cells hyper-accumulated DAP (>2–4-fold vs. 351-WT). Further, both DAP and hNP-1 induced cell membrane (CM) hyper-polarization in 351-WT, corresponding to significantly greater temporal DAP-killing (vs. 351-D10). No strain-specific differences in CM permeabilization, lipid turnover or regulated cell death were observed post-exposure to DAP, hNP-1 or LL-37. Thus, the adaptive energetics of the CM appear coupled to the outcomes of interactions of S. mitis-oralis with DAP and selected HDPs. In contrast, altered CM permeabilization, proposed as a major mechanism of action of both DAP and HDPs, did not differentiate DAP-S vs. DAP-R phenotypes in this S. mitis-oralis strain-pair.

scholarly journals Disruption of Cross-Feeding Inhibits Pathogen Growth in the Sputa of Patients with Cystic Fibrosis

mSphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey M. Flynn ◽  
Lydia C. Cameron ◽  
Talia D. Wiggen ◽  
Jordan M. Dunitz ◽  
William R. Harcombe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Antibiotic Susceptibility ◽  
Susceptibility Testing ◽  
Anaerobic Bacteria ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Growth Environment ◽  
Polymicrobial Infections

ABSTRACT A critical limitation in the management of chronic polymicrobial infections is the lack of correlation between antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) and patient responses to therapy. Underlying this disconnect is our inability to accurately recapitulate the in vivo environment and complex polymicrobial communities in vitro. However, emerging evidence suggests that, if modeled and tested accurately, interspecies relationships can be exploited by conventional antibiotics predicted to be ineffective by standard AST. As an example, under conditions where Pseudomonas aeruginosa relies on cocolonizing organisms for nutrients (i.e., cross-feeding), multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa may be indirectly targeted by inhibiting the growth of its metabolic partners. While this has been shown in vitro using synthetic bacterial communities, the efficacy of a “weakest-link” approach to controlling host-associated polymicrobial infections has not yet been demonstrated. To test whether cross-feeding inhibition can be leveraged in clinically relevant contexts, we collected sputa from cystic fibrosis (CF) subjects and used enrichment culturing to isolate both P. aeruginosa and anaerobic bacteria from each sample. Predictably, both subpopulations showed various antibiotic susceptibilities when grown independently. However, when P. aeruginosa was cultured and treated under cooperative conditions in which it was dependent on anaerobic bacteria for nutrients, the growth of both the pathogen and the anaerobe was constrained despite their intrinsic antibiotic resistance profiles. These data demonstrate that the control of complex polymicrobial infections may be achieved by exploiting obligate or facultative interspecies relationships. Toward this end, in vitro susceptibility testing should evolve to more accurately reflect in vivo growth environments and microbial interactions found within them. IMPORTANCE Antibiotic efficacy achieved in vitro correlates poorly with clinical outcomes after treatment of chronic polymicrobial diseases; if a pathogen demonstrates susceptibility to a given antibiotic in the lab, that compound is often ineffective when administered clinically. Conversely, if a pathogen is resistant in vitro, patient treatment with that same compound can elicit a positive response. This discordance suggests that the in vivo growth environment impacts pathogen antibiotic susceptibility. Indeed, here we demonstrate that interspecies relationships among microbiotas in the sputa of cystic fibrosis patients can be targeted to indirectly inhibit the growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The therapeutic implication is that control of chronic lung infections may be achieved by exploiting obligate or facultative relationships among airway bacterial community members. This strategy is particularly relevant for pathogens harboring intrinsic multidrug resistance and is broadly applicable to chronic polymicrobial airway, wound, and intra-abdominal infections.

scholarly journals Thiol Peroxidase Is an Important Component of Streptococcus pneumoniae in Oxygenated Environments

2012 ◽  
Vol 80 (12) ◽  
pp. 4333-4343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barak Hajaj ◽  
Hasan Yesilkaya ◽  
Rachel Benisty ◽  
Maayan David ◽  
Peter W. Andrew ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Streptococcus Pneumoniae ◽  
Mass Spectrometry Analysis ◽  
Activity Levels ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Spectrometry Analysis ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Thiol Peroxidase ◽  
Fine Tune

ABSTRACTStreptococcus pneumoniaeis an aerotolerant Gram-positive bacterium that causes an array of diseases, including pneumonia, otitis media, and meningitis. During aerobic growth,S. pneumoniaeproduces high levels of H2O2. SinceS. pneumoniaelacks catalase, the question of how it controls H2O2levels is of critical importance. Thepsalocus encodes an ABC Mn2+-permease complex (psaBCA) and a putative thiol peroxidase,tpxD. This study shows thattpxDencodes a functional thiol peroxidase involved in the adjustment of H2O2homeostasis in the cell. Kinetic experiments showed that recombinant TpxD removed H2O2efficiently. However,in vivoexperiments revealed that TpxD detoxifies only a fraction of the H2O2generated by the pneumococcus. Mass spectrometry analysis demonstrated that TpxD Cys58undergoes selective oxidationin vivo, under conditions where H2O2is formed, confirming the thiol peroxidase activity. Levels of TpxD expression and synthesisin vitrowere significantly increased in cells grown under aerobic versus anaerobic conditions. The challenge with D39 and TIGR4 with H2O2resulted intpxDupregulation, whilepsaBCAexpression was oppositely affected. However, the challenge of ΔtpxDmutants with H2O2did not affectpsaBCA, implying that TpxD is involved in the regulation of thepsaoperon, in addition to its scavenging activity. Virulence studies demonstrated a notable difference in the survival time of mice infected intranasally with D39 compared to that of mice infected intranasally with D39ΔtpxD. However, when bacteria were administered directly into the blood, this difference disappeared. The findings of this study suggest that TpxD constitutes a component of the organism's fundamental strategy to fine-tune cellular processes in response to H2O2.

scholarly journals Human β-Defensin 3 Inhibits Cell Wall Biosynthesis in Staphylococci

2010 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. 2793-2800 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera Sass ◽  
Tanja Schneider ◽  
Miriam Wilmes ◽  
Christian Körner ◽  
Alessandro Tossi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Cell Wall ◽  
Host Defense ◽  
Transcriptional Response ◽  
Cell Wall Biosynthesis ◽  
Host Defense Peptides ◽  
Lipid Ii ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Host Defense Peptide

ABSTRACT Human β-defensin 3 (hBD3) is a highly charged (+11) cationic host defense peptide, produced by epithelial cells and neutrophils. hBD3 retains antimicrobial activity against a broad range of pathogens, including multiresistant Staphylococcus aureus, even under high-salt conditions. Whereas antimicrobial host defense peptides are assumed to act by permeabilizing cell membranes, the transcriptional response pattern of hBD3-treated staphylococcal cells resembled that of vancomycin-treated cells (V. Sass, U. Pag, A. Tossi, G. Bierbaum, and H. G. Sahl, Int. J. Med. Microbiol. 298:619-633, 2008) and suggested that inhibition of cell wall biosynthesis is a major component of the killing process. hBD3-treated cells, inspected by transmission electron microscopy, showed localized protrusions of cytoplasmic contents, and analysis of the intracellular pool of nucleotide-activated cell wall precursors demonstrated accumulation of the final soluble precursor, UDP-MurNAc-pentapeptide. Accumulation is typically induced by antibiotics that inhibit membrane-bound steps of cell wall biosynthesis and also demonstrates that hBD3 does not impair the biosynthetic capacity of cells and does not cause gross leakage of small cytoplasmic compounds. In in vitro assays of individual membrane-associated cell wall biosynthesis reactions (MraY, MurG, FemX, and penicillin-binding protein 2 [PBP2]), hBD3 inhibited those enzymes which use the bactoprenol-bound cell wall building block lipid II as a substrate; quantitative analysis suggested that hBD3 may stoichiometrically bind to lipid II. We report that binding of hBD3 to defined, lipid II-rich sites of cell wall biosynthesis may lead to perturbation of the biosynthesis machinery, resulting in localized lesions in the cell wall as demonstrated by electron microscopy. The lesions may then allow for osmotic rupture of cells when defensins are tested under low-salt conditions.

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