scholarly journals Combined Action of Human Commensal Bacteria and Amorphous Silica Nanoparticles on the Viability and Immune Responses of Dendritic Cells

2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Malachin ◽  
Elisa Lubian ◽  
Fabrizio Mancin ◽  
Emanuele Papini ◽  
Regina Tavano

ABSTRACT Dendritic cells (DCs) regulate the host-microbe balance in the gut and skin, tissues likely exposed to nanoparticles (NPs) present in drugs, food, and cosmetics. We analyzed the viability and the activation of DCs incubated with extracellular media (EMs) obtained from cultures of commensal bacteria (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus epidermidis) or pathogenic bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus) in the presence of amorphous silica nanoparticles (SiO2 NPs). EMs and NPs synergistically increased the levels of cytotoxicity and cytokine production, with different nanoparticle dose-response characteristics being found, depending on the bacterial species. E. coli and S. epidermidis EMs plus NPs at nontoxic doses stimulated the secretion of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), IL-12, IL-10, and IL-6, while E. coli and S. epidermidis EMs plus NPs at toxic doses stimulated the secretion of gamma interferon (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), IL-4, and IL-5. On the contrary, S. aureus and P. aeruginosa EMs induced cytokines only when they were combined with NPs at toxic concentrations. The induction of maturation markers (CD86, CD80, CD83, intercellular adhesion molecule 1, and major histocompatibility complex class II) by commensal bacteria but not by pathogenic ones was improved in the presence of noncytotoxic SiO2 NP doses. DCs consistently supported the proliferation and differentiation of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells secreting IFN-γ and IL-17A. The synergistic induction of CD86 was due to nonprotein molecules present in the EMs from all bacteria tested. At variance with this finding, the synergistic induction of IL-1β was prevalently mediated by proteins in the case of E. coli EMs and by nonproteins in the case of S. epidermidis EMs. A bacterial costimulus did not act on DCs after adsorption on SiO2 NPs but rather acted as an independent agonist. The inflammatory and immune actions of DCs stimulated by commensal bacterial agonists might be altered by the simultaneous exposure to engineered or environmental NPs.

2012 ◽  
Vol 19 (8) ◽  
pp. 1207-1217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Manuzak ◽  
Stephanie Dillon ◽  
Cara Wilson

ABSTRACTHuman peripheral blood contains antigen-presenting cells (APC), including dendritic cells (DC) and monocytes, that may encounter microbes that have translocated from the intestine to the periphery in disease states like HIV-1 infection and inflammatory bowel disease. We investigated the response of DC and monocytes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) to a panel of representative commensal enteric bacteria, includingEscherichia coli,Enterococcussp., andBacteroides fragilis. All three bacteria induced significant upregulation of the maturation and activation markers CD40 and CD83 on myeloid dendritic cells (mDC) and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDC). However, only mDC produced cytokines, including interleukin-10 (IL-10), IL-12p40/70, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), in response to bacterial stimulation. Cytokine profiles in whole PBMC differed depending on the stimulating bacterial species:B. fragilisinduced production of IL-23, IL-12p70, and IL-10, whereasE. coliandEnterococcusinduced an IL-10-predominant response. mDC and monocyte depletion experiments indicated that these cell types differentially produced IL-10 and IL-23 in response toE. coliandB. fragilis. Bacteroides thetaiotaomicrondid not induce levels of IL-23 similar to those ofB. fragilis, suggesting thatB. fragilismay have unique proinflammatory properties amongBacteroidesspecies. The addition of recombinant human IL-10 to PBMC cultures stimulated with commensal bacteria abrogated the IL-23 response, whereas blocking IL-10 significantly enhanced IL-23 production, suggesting that IL-10 controls the levels of IL-23 produced. These results indicate that blood mDC and monocytes respond differentially to innate stimulation with whole commensal bacteria and that IL-10 may play a role in controlling the proinflammatory response to translocated microbes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 89 (1) ◽  
pp. e00618-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seul A. Lee ◽  
Yiming Wang ◽  
Fang Liu ◽  
Stephen M. Riordan ◽  
Lu Liu ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTProgrammed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) is an immune checkpoint protein which is used by tumor cells for immune evasion. PD-L1 is upregulated in inflamed intestinal tissues. The intestinal tract is colonized by millions of bacteria, most of which are commensal bacterial species. We hypothesized that under inflammatory conditions, some commensal bacterial species contribute to increased PD-L1 expression in intestinal epithelium and examined this hypothesis. Human intestinal epithelial HT-29 cells with and without interferon (IFN)-γ sensitization were incubated with six strains of four enteric bacterial species. The mRNA and protein levels of PD-L1 in HT-29 cells were examined using quantitative real-time PCR and flow cytometry, respectively. The levels of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-18, IL-6, IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α secreted by HT-29 cells were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Apoptosis of HT-29 cells was measured using a caspase 3/7 assay. We found that Escherichia coli K12 significantly upregulated both PD-L1 mRNA and protein in IFN-γ-sensitized HT-29 cells. E. coli K12 induced the production of IL-8 in HT-29 cells, however, IL-8 did not affect HT-29 PD-L1 expression. Inhibition of the nuclear factor-kappa B pathway significantly reduced E. coli K12-induced PD-L1 expression in HT-29 cells. The other two E. coli strains and two enteric bacterial species did not significantly affect PD-L1 expression in HT-29 cells. Enterococcus faecalis significantly inhibited PD-L1 expression due to induction of cell death. Data from this study suggest that some gut bacterial species have the potential to affect immune function under inflammatory conditions via upregulating epithelial PD-L1 expression.


2014 ◽  
Vol 81 (1) ◽  
pp. 130-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Kirby ◽  
Minobu Nishimoto ◽  
Ruthie W. N. Chow ◽  
Edward E. K. Baidoo ◽  
George Wang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTTerpene synthesis in the majority of bacterial species, together with plant plastids, takes place via the 1-deoxy-d-xylulose 5-phosphate (DXP) pathway. The first step of this pathway involves the condensation of pyruvate and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate by DXP synthase (Dxs), with one-sixth of the carbon lost as CO2. A hypothetical novel route from a pentose phosphate to DXP (nDXP) could enable a more direct pathway from C5sugars to terpenes and also circumvent regulatory mechanisms that control Dxs, but there is no enzyme known that can convert a sugar into its 1-deoxy equivalent. Employing a selection for complementation of adxsdeletion inEscherichia coligrown on xylose as the sole carbon source, we uncovered two candidate nDXP genes. Complementation was achieved either via overexpression of the wild-typeE. coliyajOgene, annotated as a putative xylose reductase, or via various mutations in the nativeribBgene.In vitroanalysis performed with purified YajO and mutant RibB proteins revealed that DXP was synthesized in both cases from ribulose 5-phosphate (Ru5P). We demonstrate the utility of these genes for microbial terpene biosynthesis by engineering the DXP pathway inE. colifor production of the sesquiterpene bisabolene, a candidate biodiesel. To further improve flux into the pathway from Ru5P, nDXP enzymes were expressed as fusions to DXP reductase (Dxr), the second enzyme in the DXP pathway. Expression of a Dxr-RibB(G108S) fusion improved bisabolene titers more than 4-fold and alleviated accumulation of intracellular DXP.


2015 ◽  
Vol 83 (5) ◽  
pp. 2089-2098 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seongok Kim ◽  
Hyelyeon Hwang ◽  
Kwang-Pyo Kim ◽  
Hyunjin Yoon ◽  
Dong-Hyun Kang ◽  
...  

Cronobacterspp. are opportunistic pathogens that cause neonatal meningitis and sepsis with high mortality in neonates. Despite the peril associated withCronobacterinfection, the mechanisms of pathogenesis are still being unraveled. Hfq, which is known as an RNA chaperone, participates in the interaction with bacterial small RNAs (sRNAs) to regulate posttranscriptionally the expression of various genes. Recent studies have demonstrated that Hfq contributes to the pathogenesis of numerous species of bacteria, and its roles are varied between bacterial species. Here, we tried to elucidate the role of Hfq inC. sakazakiivirulence. In the absence ofhfq,C. sakazakiiwas highly attenuated in disseminationin vivo, showed defects in invasion (3-fold) into animal cells and survival (103-fold) within host cells, and exhibited low resistance to hydrogen peroxide (102-fold). Remarkably, the loss ofhfqled to hypermotility on soft agar, which is contrary to what has been observed in other pathogenic bacteria. The hyperflagellated bacteria were likely to be attributable to the increased transcription of genes associated with flagellar biosynthesis in a strain lackinghfq. Together, these data strongly suggest thathfqplays important roles in the virulence ofC. sakazakiiby participating in the regulation of multiple genes.


Microbiology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 167 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
James P. R. Connolly ◽  
Natasha C. A. Turner ◽  
Jennifer C. Hallam ◽  
Patricia T. Rimbi ◽  
Tom Flett ◽  
...  

Appropriate interpretation of environmental signals facilitates niche specificity in pathogenic bacteria. However, the responses of niche-specific pathogens to common host signals are poorly understood. d-Serine (d-ser) is a toxic metabolite present in highly variable concentrations at different colonization sites within the human host that we previously found is capable of inducing changes in gene expression. In this study, we made the striking observation that the global transcriptional response of three Escherichia coli pathotypes – enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) and neonatal meningitis-associated E. coli (NMEC) – to d-ser was highly distinct. In fact, we identified no single differentially expressed gene common to all three strains. We observed the induction of ribosome-associated genes in extraintestinal pathogens UPEC and NMEC only, and the induction of purine metabolism genes in gut-restricted EHEC, and UPEC indicating distinct transcriptional responses to a common signal. UPEC and NMEC encode dsdCXA – a genetic locus required for detoxification and hence normal growth in the presence of d-ser. Specific transcriptional responses were induced in strains accumulating d-ser (WT EHEC and UPEC/NMEC mutants lacking the d-ser-responsive transcriptional activator DsdC), corroborating the notion that d-ser is an unfavourable metabolite if not metabolized. Importantly, many of the UPEC-associated transcriptome alterations correlate with published data on the urinary transcriptome, supporting the hypothesis that d-ser sensing forms a key part of urinary niche adaptation in this pathotype. Collectively, our results demonstrate distinct pleiotropic responses to a common metabolite in diverse E. coli pathotypes, with important implications for niche selectivity.


2018 ◽  
Vol 84 (19) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yvonne Agersø ◽  
Birgitte Stuer-Lauridsen ◽  
Karin Bjerre ◽  
Michelle Geervliet Jensen ◽  
Eric Johansen ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTBacillus megaterium(n= 29),Bacillus velezensis(n= 26),Bacillus amyloliquefaciens(n= 6),Bacillus paralicheniformis(n= 28), andBacillus licheniformis(n= 35) strains from different sources, origins, and time periods were tested for the MICs for nine antimicrobial agents by the CLSI-recommended method (Mueller-Hinton broth, 35°C, for 18 to 20 h), as well as with a modified CLSI method (Iso-Sensitest [IST] broth, 37°C [35°C forB. megaterium], 24 h). This allows a proposal of species-specific epidemiological cutoff values (ECOFFs) for the interpretation of antimicrobial resistance in these species. MICs determined by the modified CLSI method were 2- to 16-fold higher than with the CLSI-recommended method for several antimicrobials. The MIC distributions differed between species for five of the nine antimicrobials. Consequently, use of the modified CLSI method and interpretation of resistance by use of species-specific ECOFFs is recommended. The genome sequences of all strains were determined and used for screening for resistance genes against the ResFinder database and for multilocus sequence typing. A putative chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (cat) gene was found in oneB. megateriumstrain with an elevated chloramphenicol MIC compared to the otherB. megateriumstrains. InB. velezensisandB. amyloliquefaciens, a putative tetracycline efflux gene,tet(L), was found in all strains (n= 27) with reduced tetracycline susceptibility but was absent in susceptible strains. AllB. paralicheniformisand 23% ofB. licheniformisstrains had elevated MICs for erythromycin and harboredermD. The presence of these resistance genes follows taxonomy suggesting they may be intrinsic rather than horizontally acquired. Reduced susceptibility to chloramphenicol, streptomycin, and clindamycin could not be explained in all species.IMPORTANCEWhen commercializing bacterial strains, likeBacillusspp., for feed applications or plant bioprotection, it is required that the strains are free of acquired antimicrobial resistance genes that could potentially spread to pathogenic bacteria, thereby adding to the pool of resistance genes that may cause treatment failures in humans or animals. Conversely, if antimicrobial resistance is intrinsic to a bacterial species, the risk of spreading horizontally to other bacteria is considered very low. Reliable susceptibility test methods and interpretation criteria at the species level are needed to accurately assess antimicrobial resistance levels. In the present study, tentative ECOFFs for fiveBacillusspecies were determined, and the results showed that the variation in MICs followed the respective species. Moreover, putative resistance genes, which were detected by whole-genome sequencing and suggested to be intrinsic rather that acquired, could explain the resistance phenotypes in most cases.


2019 ◽  
Vol 201 (22) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiuxin Qu ◽  
Neha K. Prasad ◽  
Michelle A. Yu ◽  
Shuyan Chen ◽  
Amy Lyden ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Conditionally essential (CE) genes are required by pathogenic bacteria to establish and maintain infections. CE genes encode virulence factors, such as secretion systems and effector proteins, as well as biosynthetic enzymes that produce metabolites not found in the host environment. Due to their outsized importance in pathogenesis, CE gene products are attractive targets for the next generation of antimicrobials. However, the precise manipulation of CE gene expression in the context of infection is technically challenging, limiting our ability to understand the roles of CE genes in pathogenesis and accordingly design effective inhibitors. We previously developed a suite of CRISPR interference-based gene knockdown tools that are transferred by conjugation and stably integrate into bacterial genomes that we call Mobile-CRISPRi. Here, we show the efficacy of Mobile-CRISPRi in controlling CE gene expression in an animal infection model. We optimize Mobile-CRISPRi in Pseudomonas aeruginosa for use in a murine model of pneumonia by tuning the expression of CRISPRi components to avoid nonspecific toxicity. As a proof of principle, we demonstrate that knock down of a CE gene encoding the type III secretion system (T3SS) activator ExsA blocks effector protein secretion in culture and attenuates virulence in mice. We anticipate that Mobile-CRISPRi will be a valuable tool to probe the function of CE genes across many bacterial species and pathogenesis models. IMPORTANCE Antibiotic resistance is a growing threat to global health. To optimize the use of our existing antibiotics and identify new targets for future inhibitors, understanding the fundamental drivers of bacterial growth in the context of the host immune response is paramount. Historically, these genetic drivers have been difficult to manipulate precisely, as they are requisite for pathogen survival. Here, we provide the first application of Mobile-CRISPRi to study conditionally essential virulence genes in mouse models of lung infection through partial gene perturbation. We envision the use of Mobile-CRISPRi in future pathogenesis models and antibiotic target discovery efforts.


2019 ◽  
Vol 85 (23) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofiya G. Shevchenko ◽  
Matthew Radey ◽  
Veronika Tchesnokova ◽  
Dagmara Kisiela ◽  
Evgeni V. Sokurenko

ABSTRACT While microbiome studies have focused on diversity at the species level or higher, bacterial species in microbiomes are represented by different, often multiple, strains. These strains could be clonally and phenotypically very different, making assessment of strain content vital to a full understanding of microbiome function. This is especially important with respect to antibiotic-resistant strains, the clonal spread of which may be dependent on competition between them and susceptible strains from the same species. The pandemic, multidrug-resistant, and highly pathogenic Escherichia coli subclone ST131-H30 (H30) is of special interest, as it has already been found persisting in the gut and bladder in healthy people. In order to rapidly assess E. coli clonal diversity, we developed a novel method based on deep sequencing of two loci used for sequence typing, along with an algorithm for analysis of the resulting data. Using this method, we assessed fecal and urinary samples from healthy women carrying H30 and were able to uncover considerable diversity, including strains with frequencies at <1% of the E. coli population. We also found that, even in the absence of antibiotic use, H30 could completely dominate the gut and, especially, urine of healthy carriers. Our study offers a novel tool for assessing a species’ clonal diversity (clonobiome) within the microbiome, which could be useful in studying the population structure and dynamics of multidrug-resistant and/or highly pathogenic strains in their natural environments. IMPORTANCE Bacterial species in the microbiome are often represented by multiple genetically and phenotypically different strains, making insight into subspecies diversity critical to a full understanding of the microbiome, especially with respect to opportunistic pathogens. However, methods allowing efficient high-throughput clonal typing are not currently available. This study combines a conventional E. coli typing method with deep amplicon sequencing to allow analysis of many samples concurrently. While our method was developed for E. coli, it may be adapted for other species, allowing microbiome researchers to assess clonal strain diversity in natural samples. Since assessment of subspecies diversity is particularly important for understanding the spread of antibiotic resistance, we applied our method to the study of a pandemic multidrug-resistant E. coli clone. The results we present suggest that this clone could be highly competitive in healthy carriers and that the mechanisms of colonization by such clones need to be studied.


mBio ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dagmara I. Kisiela ◽  
Sujay Chattopadhyay ◽  
Veronika Tchesnokova ◽  
Sandip Paul ◽  
Scott J. Weissman ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTSalmonellaandEscherichia colimannose-binding type 1 fimbriae exhibit highly similar receptor specificities, morphologies, and mechanisms of assembly but are nonorthologous in nature, i.e., not closely related evolutionarily. Their operons differ in chromosomal location, gene arrangement, and regulatory components. In the current study, we performed a comparative genetic and structural analysis of the major structural subunit, FimA, fromSalmonellaandE. coliand found that FimA pilins undergo diverse evolutionary adaptation in the different species. Whereas theE. coli fimAlocus is characterized by high allelic diversity, frequent intragenic recombination, and horizontal movement,Salmonella fimAshows structural diversity that is more than 5-fold lower without strong evidence of gene shuffling or homologous recombination. In contrast toSalmonellaFimA, the amino acid substitutions in theE. colipilin heavily target the protein regions that are predicted to be exposed on the external surface of fimbriae. Altogether, our results suggest thatE. coli, but notSalmonella, type 1 fimbriae display a high level of structural diversity consistent with a strong selection for antigenic variation under immune pressure. Thus, type 1 fimbriae in these closely related bacterial species appear to function in distinctly different physiological environments.IMPORTANCEE. coliandSalmonellaare enteric bacteria that are closely related from an evolutionary perspective. They are both notorious human pathogens, though with somewhat distinct ecologies and virulence mechanisms. Type 1 fimbriae are rod-shaped surface appendages found in mostE. coliandSalmonellaisolates. In both species, they mediate bacterial adhesion to mannose receptors on host cells and share essentially the same morphology and assembly mechanisms. Here we show that despite the strong resemblances in function and structure, they are exposed to very different natural selection environments. Sequence analysis indicates thatE. coli, but notSalmonella, fimbriae are subjected to strong immune pressure, resulting in a high level of major fimbrial protein gene shuffling and interbacterial transfer. Thus, evolutionary analysis tools can provide evidence of divergent physiological roles of functionally similar traits in different bacterial species.


2012 ◽  
Vol 78 (16) ◽  
pp. 5555-5564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atsushi Yoshii ◽  
Hiromitsu Moriyama ◽  
Toshiyuki Fukuhara

ABSTRACTKasugamycin (KSM), a unique aminoglycoside antibiotic, has been used in agriculture for many years to control not only rice blast caused by the fungusMagnaporthe griseabut also rice bacterial grain and seedling rot or rice bacterial brown stripe caused byBurkholderia glumaeorAcidovorax avenaesubsp.avenae, respectively. Since both bacterial pathogens are seed-borne and cause serious injury to rice seedlings, the emergence of KSM-resistantB. glumaeandA. avenaeisolates highlights the urgent need to understand the mechanism of resistance to KSM. Here, we identified a novel gene,aac(2′)-IIa, encoding a KSM 2′-N-acetyltransferase from both KSM-resistant pathogens but not from KSM-sensitive bacteria. AAC(2′)-IIa inactivates KSM, although it reveals no cross-resistance to other aminoglycosides. Theaac(2′)-IIagene fromB. glumaestrain 5091 was identified within the IncP genomic island inserted into the bacterial chromosome, indicating the acquisition of this gene by horizontal gene transfer. Although excision activity of the IncP island and conjugational gene transfer was not detected under the conditions tested, circular intermediates containing theaac(2′)-IIagene were detected. These results indicate that theaac(2′)-IIagene had been integrated into the IncP island of a donor bacterial species. Molecular detection of theaac(2′)-IIagene could distinguish whether isolates are resistant or susceptible to KSM. This may contribute to the production of uninfected rice seeds and lead to the effective control of these pathogens by KSM.


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