Staphylococcus aureus Efflux Pumps and Tolerance to Ciprofloxacin and Chlorhexidine following Induction by Mupirocin

Author(s):  
Q.C. Truong-Bolduc ◽  
Y. Wang ◽  
J. L. Reedy ◽  
J.M. Vyas ◽  
D.C. Hooper

Mupirocin induced expression of genes encoding efflux pumps NorA and MepA as well as a YFP fluorescence reporter of NorA. Mupirocin exposure also produced reduced susceptibility to pump substrates ciprofloxacin and chlorhexidine, a change that was dependent on intact norA and mepA , respectively.

2010 ◽  
Vol 192 (10) ◽  
pp. 2525-2534 ◽  
Author(s):  
Que Chi Truong-Bolduc ◽  
David C. Hooper

ABSTRACT MgrA is a global regulator in Staphylococcus aureus that controls the expression of diverse genes encoding virulence factors and multidrug resistance (MDR) efflux transporters. We identified pknB, which encodes the (Ser/Thr) kinase PknB, in the S. aureus genome. PknB was able to autophosphorylate as well as phosphorylate purified MgrA. We demonstrated that rsbU, which encodes a Ser/Thr phosphatase and is involved in the activation of the SigB regulon, was able to dephosphorylate MgrA-P but not PknB-P. Serines 110 and 113 of MgrA were found to be phosphorylated, and Ala substitutions at these positions resulted in reductions in the level of phosphorylation of MgrA. DNA gel shift binding assays using norA and norB promoters showed that MgrA-P was able to bind the norB promoter but not the norA promoter, a pattern which was the reverse of that for unphosphorylated MgrA. The double mutant MgrAS110A-S113A bound to the norA promoter but not the norB promoter. The double mutant led to a 2-fold decrease in norA transcripts and a 2-fold decrease in the MICs of norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin in strain RN6390. Thus, phosphorylation of MgrA results in loss of binding to the norA promoter, but with a gain of the ability to bind the norB promoter. Loss of the ability to phosphorylate MgrA by Ala substitution resulted in increased repression of norA expression and in reductions in susceptibilities to NorA substrates.


2000 ◽  
Vol 66 (9) ◽  
pp. 3931-3938 ◽  
Author(s):  
St�phane Bronner ◽  
Patricia Stoessel ◽  
Alain Gravet ◽  
Henri Monteil ◽  
Gilles Pr�vost

ABSTRACT A competitive reverse transcription-PCR method was developed for the semiquantitation of the expression of genes encoding bicomponent leucotoxins of Staphylococcus aureus, e.g., Panton-Valentine leucocidin (lukPV), gamma-hemolysin (hlgA and hlgCB), and LukE-LukD (lukED). The optimization procedure included RNA preparation; reverse transcription; the use of various amounts of enzymes, antisense primer, and RNA; and the final amplification chain reaction. Reproducible results were obtained, with sensitivity for detection of cDNA within the range of 1 mRNA/104 CFU to 102 mRNA/CFU, depending on the gene. Both specific mRNAs were more significantly expressed at the late-exponential phase of growth. Expression was about 100-fold higher in yeast extract-Casamino Acids-pyruvate medium than in heart infusion medium. Expression of the widely distributed gamma-hemolysin locus in the NTCC 8178 strain was around 10-fold diminished compared with that in the ATCC 49775 strain. Because of the lower level of hlgA expression, the corresponding protein, which is generally not abundant in culture supernatant, should be investigated for its contribution to the leucotoxin-associated virulence. The agr, sar, and agr sar mutant strains revealed a great dependence with regard to leucotoxin expression on the global regulatory system inS. aureus, except that expression of hlgA was not affected in the agr mutant.


2006 ◽  
Vol 188 (16) ◽  
pp. 5783-5796 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antje Michel ◽  
Franziska Agerer ◽  
Christof R. Hauck ◽  
Mathias Herrmann ◽  
Joachim Ullrich ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus is an important pathogen, causing a wide range of infections including sepsis, wound infections, pneumonia, and catheter-related infections. In several pathogens ClpP proteases were identified by in vivo expression technologies to be important for virulence. Clp proteolytic complexes are responsible for adaptation to multiple stresses by degrading accumulated and misfolded proteins. In this report clpP, encoding the proteolytic subunit of the ATP-dependent Clp protease, was deleted, and gene expression of ΔclpP was determined by global transcriptional analysis using DNA-microarray technology. The transcriptional profile reveals a strong regulatory impact of ClpP on the expression of genes encoding proteins that are involved in the pathogenicity of S. aureus and adaptation of the pathogen to several stresses. Expression of the agr system and agr-dependent extracellular virulence factors was diminished. Moreover, the loss of clpP leads to a complete transcriptional derepression of genes of the CtsR- and HrcA-controlled heat shock regulon and a partial derepression of genes involved in oxidative stress response, metal homeostasis, and SOS DNA repair controlled by PerR, Fur, MntR, and LexA. The levels of transcription of genes encoding proteins involved in adaptation to anaerobic conditions potentially regulated by an Fnr-like regulator were decreased. Furthermore, the expression of genes whose products are involved in autolysis was deregulated, leading to enhanced autolysis in the mutant. Our results indicate a strong impact of ClpP proteolytic activity on virulence, stress response, and physiology in S. aureus.


2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (32) ◽  
pp. 10870-10884 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Andrew N. Alexander ◽  
Mariia Radaeva ◽  
Dustin T. King ◽  
Henry F. Chambers ◽  
Artem Cherkasov ◽  
...  

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections cause significant mortality and morbidity globally. MRSA resistance to β-lactam antibiotics is mediated by two divergons that control levels of a β-lactamase, PC1, and a penicillin-binding protein poorly acylated by β-lactam antibiotics, PBP2a. Expression of genes encoding these proteins is controlled by two integral membrane proteins, BlaR1 and MecR1, which both have an extracellular β-lactam–binding sensor domain. Here, we solved the X-ray crystallographic structures of the BlaR1 and MecR1 sensor domains in complex with avibactam, a diazabicyclooctane β-lactamase inhibitor at 1.6–2.0 Å resolution. Additionally, we show that S. aureus SF8300, a clinically relevant strain from the USA300 clone of MRSA, responds to avibactam by up-regulating the expression of the blaZ and pbp2a antibiotic-resistance genes, encoding PC1 and PBP2a, respectively. The BlaR1–avibactam structure of the carbamoyl-enzyme intermediate revealed that avibactam is bound to the active-site serine in two orientations ∼180° to each other. Although a physiological role of the observed alternative pose remains to be validated, our structural results hint at the presence of a secondary sulfate-binding pocket that could be exploited in the design of future inhibitors of BlaR1/MecR1 sensor domains or the structurally similar class D β-lactamases. The MecR1–avibactam structure adopted a singular avibactam orientation similar to one of the two states observed in the BlaR1–avibactam structure. Given avibactam up-regulates expression of blaZ and pbp2a antibiotic resistance genes, we suggest further consideration and research is needed to explore what effects administering β-lactam–avibactam combinations have on treating MRSA infections.


2009 ◽  
Vol 191 (13) ◽  
pp. 4056-4069 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefanie Donat ◽  
Karin Streker ◽  
Tanja Schirmeister ◽  
Sonja Rakette ◽  
Thilo Stehle ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The function of the Staphylococcus aureus eukaryotic-like serine/threonine protein kinase PknB was investigated by performing transcriptome analysis using DNA microarray technology and biochemical assays. The transcriptional profile revealed a strong regulatory impact of PknB on the expression of genes encoding proteins which are involved in purine and pyrimidine biosynthesis, cell wall metabolism, autolysis, and glutamine synthesis. Functional activity of overexpressed and purified PknB kinase was demonstrated using the myelin basic protein as a surrogate substrate. Phosphorylation occurred in a time-dependent manner with Mn2+ as a preferred cofactor. Furthermore, biochemical characterization revealed regulation of adenylosuccinate synthase (PurA) activity by phosphorylation. Phosphorylated PurA showed a 1.8-fold decrease in enzymatic activity compared to unphosphorylated PurA. Loss of PknB led to formation of larger cell clusters, and a pknB deletion strain showed 32-fold-higher sensitivity to the cell wall-active antibiotic tunicamycin. The results of this study strongly indicate that PknB has a role in regulation of purine biosynthesis, autolysis, and central metabolic processes in S. aureus.


2008 ◽  
Vol 191 (5) ◽  
pp. 1656-1665 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anand Ballal ◽  
Binata Ray ◽  
Adhar C. Manna

ABSTRACT The expression of genes involved in the pathogenesis of Staphylococcus aureus is controlled by global regulatory loci, including two-component regulatory systems and transcriptional regulators (e.g., sar family genes). Most members of the SarA family have been partially characterized and shown to regulate a large numbers of target genes. Here, we describe the characterization of sarZ, a sarA paralog from S. aureus, and its regulatory relationship with other members of its family. Expression of sarZ was growth phase dependent with maximal expression in the early exponential phase of growth. Transcription of sarZ was reduced in an mgrA mutant and returned to a normal level in a complemented mgrA mutant strain, which suggests that mgrA acts as an activator of sarZ transcription. Purified MgrA protein bound to the sarZ promoter region, as determined by gel shift assays. Among the sarA family of genes analyzed, inactivation of sarZ increased sarS transcription, while it decreased agr transcription. The expression of potential target genes involved in virulence was evaluated in single and double mutants of sarZ with mgrA, sarX, and agr. Northern and zymogram analyses indicated that the sarZ gene product played a role in regulating several virulence genes, particularly those encoding exoproteins. Gel shift assays demonstrated nonspecific binding of purified SarZ protein to the promoter regions of the sarZ-regulated target genes. These results demonstrate the important role played by SarZ in controlling regulatory and virulence gene expression in S. aureus.


Antibiotics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray S. Almeida ◽  
Priscilla R. Freitas ◽  
Ana Carolina J. Araújo ◽  
Irwin R. A. Menezes ◽  
Eduardo L. Santos ◽  
...  

Considering the evidence that essential oils, as well as safrole, could modulate bacterial growth in different resistant strains, this study aims to characterize the phytochemical profile and evaluate the antibacterial and antibiotic-modulating properties of the essential oil Ocotea odorífera (EOOO) and safrole against efflux pump (EP)-carrying strains. The EOOO was extracted by hydrodistillation, and the phytochemical analysis was performed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The antibacterial and antibiotic-modulating activities of the EOOO and safrole against resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were analyzed through the broth microdilution method. The EP-inhibiting potential of safrole in association with ethidium bromide or antibiotics was evaluated using the S. aureus 1199B and K2068 strains, which carry genes encoding efflux proteins associated with antibiotic resistance to norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin, respectively. A reduction in the MIC of ethidium bromide or antibiotics was used as a parameter of EP inhibition. The phytochemical analysis identified 16 different compounds in the EOOO including safrole as the principal constituent. While the EOOO and safrole exerted clinically relevant antibacterial effects against S. aureus only, they potentiated the antibacterial activity of norfloxacin against all strains evaluated by our study. The ethidium bromide and antibiotic assays using the strains of S. aureus SA1119B and K2068, as well as molecular docking analysis, indicated that safrole inhibits the NorA and MepA efflux pumps in S. aureus. In conclusion, Ocotea odorifera and safrole presented promising antibacterial and antibiotic-enhancing properties, which should be explored in the development of drugs to combat antibacterial resistance, especially in strains bearing genes encoding efflux proteins.


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