scholarly journals The Gene Expression Profile of Uropathogenic Escherichia coli in Women with Uncomplicated Urinary Tract Infections Is Recapitulated in the Mouse Model

mBio ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Arwen E. Frick-Cheng ◽  
Anna Sintsova ◽  
Sara N. Smith ◽  
Michael Krauthammer ◽  
Kathryn A. Eaton ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the primary causative agent of uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTIs). UPEC fitness and virulence determinants have been evaluated in a variety of laboratory settings, including a well-established mouse model of UTI. However, the extent to which bacterial physiologies differ between experimental models and human infections remains largely understudied. To address this important issue, we compared the transcriptomes of three different UPEC isolates in human infection and under a variety of laboratory conditions, including LB culture, filter-sterilized urine culture, and the UTI mouse model. We observed high correlation in gene expression between the mouse model and human infection in all three strains examined (Pearson correlation coefficients of 0.86 to 0.87). Only 175 of 3,266 (5.4%) genes shared by all three strains had significantly different expression levels, with the majority of them (145 genes) downregulated in patients. Importantly, gene expression levels of both canonical virulence factors and metabolic machinery were highly similar between the mouse model and human infection, while the in vitro conditions displayed more substantial differences. Interestingly, comparison of gene expression between the mouse model and human infection hinted at differences in bladder oxygenation as well as nutrient composition. In summary, our work strongly validates the continued use of this mouse model for the study of the pathogenesis of human UTI. IMPORTANCE Different experimental models have been used to study UPEC pathogenesis, including in vitro cultures in different media, tissue culture, and mouse models of infection. The last is especially important since it allows evaluation of mechanisms of pathogenesis and potential therapeutic strategies against UPEC. Bacterial physiology is greatly shaped by environment, and it is therefore critical to understand how closely bacterial physiology in any experimental model relates to human infection. In this study, we found strong correlation in bacterial gene expression between the mouse model and human UTI using identical strains, suggesting that the mouse model accurately mimics human infection, definitively supporting its continued use in UTI research.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arwen E. Frick-Cheng ◽  
Anna Sintsova ◽  
Sara N. Smith ◽  
Michael Krauthammer ◽  
Kathryn A. Eaton ◽  
...  

AbstractUropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the primary causative agent of uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTIs). UPEC fitness and virulence determinants have been evaluated in a variety of laboratory settings that include a well-established mouse model of UTI. However, the extent to which bacterial physiology differs between experimental models and human infections remains largely understudied. To address this important question, we compared the transcriptomes of three different UPEC isolates in human infection and a variety of laboratory conditions including LB culture, filter-sterilized urine culture, and the UTI mouse model. We observed high correlation in gene expression between the mouse model and human infection in all three strains examined (Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.86-0.87). Only 175 of 3,266 (5.4%) genes shared by all three strains had significantly different expression levels, with the majority of them (145 genes) down-regulated in patients. Importantly, gene expression of both canonical virulence factors and metabolic machinery were highly similar between the mouse model and human infection, while the in vitro conditions displayed more substantial differences. Interestingly, comparison of gene expression between the mouse model and human infection hint at differences in bladder oxygenation as well as nutrient composition. In summary, our work strongly validates the continued use of this mouse model for the study of the pathogenesis of human UTI.ImportanceDifferent experimental models have been used to study UPEC pathogenesis including in vitro cultures in different media, tissue culture, as well as mouse models of infection. The latter is especially important since it allows evaluation of mechanisms of pathogenesis and potential therapeutic strategies against UPEC. Bacterial physiology is greatly shaped by environment and it is therefore critical to understand how closely bacterial physiology in any experimental model relates to human infection. In this study, we found a very strong correlation in bacterial gene expression between the mouse model and human UTI using identical strains, suggesting that the mouse model accurately mimics human infection, definitively supporting its continued use in UTI research.


2003 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 1002-1009 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. B. Kerrn ◽  
N. Frimodt-Møller ◽  
F. Espersen

ABSTRACT Resistance to antibiotics used for the treatment of urinary tract infections (UTIs) is increasing worldwide. The impact of in vitro resistance on clinical outcome in UTIs requires further study, since most studies of both humans and animals have evaluated only the efficacy of antibiotics toward bacteria susceptible in vitro. We were interested in evaluating the relationship between the in vitro antibacterial effect and the in vivo efficacy after antibiotic treatment. We simulated a natural ascending UTI by use of the ascending UTI mouse model and used Escherichia coli strains with various susceptibilities to amdinocillin (mecillinam) and sulfamethizole. Mice were treated for 3 days with antibiotic doses approximating human urinary tract concentrations after a standard oral dose. For a susceptible strain (MIC, 0.5 μg/ml) and a resistant strain (MIC, 128 μg/ml), respectively, there were significant reductions in bacterial counts in the urine, bladder, and kidneys after treatment with amdinocillin, whereas for a strain for which the MIC was 16 μg/ml, there was a significant reduction in bacterial counts in the kidneys only (P < 0.05). Treatment with sulfamethizole resulted in a significant reduction in bacterial counts in all samples from a susceptible strain (MIC, 128 μg/ml) and a resistant strain (MIC, 512 μg/ml). Infection with a sulII gene-positive strain (MIC, >2,048 μg/ml) could not be treated with sulfamethizole, as no effect could be demonstrated in the urine, bladder, or kidneys. For amdinocillin, there was no clear-cut relationship between the in vitro susceptibility and the in vivo outcome, while for sulfamethizole, we found a relationship between the MIC for the strain and the effect in the urinary tract.


2006 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. 3565-3575 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktoria Roos ◽  
Per Klemm

ABSTRACT Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are an important health problem worldwide, with many million cases each year. Escherichia coli is the most common organism causing UTIs in humans. The asymptomatic bacteriuria E. coli strain 83972 is an excellent colonizer of the human urinary tract, where it causes long-term bladder colonization. The strain has been used for prophylactic purposes in patients prone to more severe and recurrent UTIs. For this study, we used DNA microarrays to monitor the expression profile of strain 83972 in the human urinary tract. Significant differences in expression levels were seen between the in vivo expression profiles of strain 83972 in three patients and the corresponding in vitro expression profiles in lab medium and human urine. The data revealed an in vivo lifestyle of microaerobic growth with respiration of nitrate coupled to degradation of sugar acids and amino acids, with no signs of attachment to host tissues. Interestingly, genes involved in NO protection and metabolism showed significant up-regulation in the patients. This is one of the first studies to address bacterial whole-genome expression in humans and the first study to investigate global gene expression of an E. coli strain in the human urinary tract.


2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (6) ◽  
pp. 2343-2351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Komp Lindgren ◽  
Linda L. Marcusson ◽  
Dorthe Sandvang ◽  
Niels Frimodt-Møller ◽  
Diarmaid Hughes

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.


Author(s):  
Rachana Kanaujia ◽  
Amit Kumar ◽  
Malay Bajpai

Background: Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most common infections. For treatment of UTIs, there are limited antibiotics due to increased resistance among uropathogens. Two older antibiotics; Nitrofurantoin and Fosfomycin have become novel oral therapeutic options against uropathogens. Aim of the study was to identify UTI causing micro-organisms and evaluate in-vitro activity of nitrofurantoin and fosfomycin against most common isolated organism (E. coli).Methods: Results of urine samples culture and susceptibility testing over a period of 1 year were analysed and included in this study.Results: Micro-organisms were isolated from 568 urine samples. Most commonly isolated organism was Escherichia coli (40.50%), followed by Klebsiella spp. (20.07%) and Staphylococcus spp. (17.07%). Susceptibility of E. coli to nitrofurantoin and fosfomycin was 91.74% and 65.65% respectively. Conclusion: Good activity of nitrofurantoin and fosfomycin against E. coli indicates that these two drugs are potential therapeutic alternatives for urinary tract infections.


1998 ◽  
Vol 66 (8) ◽  
pp. 3856-3861 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. E. Stapleton ◽  
M. R. Stroud ◽  
S. I. Hakomori ◽  
W. E. Stamm

ABSTRACT Women with a history of recurrent Escherichia coliurinary tract infections (UTIs) are significantly more likely to be nonsecretors of blood group antigens than are women without such a history, and vaginal epithelial cells (VEC) from women who are nonsecretors show enhanced adherence of uropathogenic E. coli isolates compared with cells from secretors. We previously extracted glycosphingolipids (GSLs) from native VEC and determined that nonsecretors (but not secretors) selectively express two extended globoseries GSLs, sialosyl galactosyl globoside (SGG) and disialosyl galactosyl globoside (DSGG), which specifically bound uropathogenicE. coli R45 expressing a P adhesin. In this study, we demonstrated, by purifying the compounds from this source, that SGG and DSGG are expressed in human kidney tissue. We also demonstrated that SGG and DSGG isolated from human kidneys bind uropathogenic E. coli isolates expressing each of the three classes ofpap-encoded adhesins, including cloned isolates expressing PapG from J96, PrsG from J96, and PapG from IA2, and the wild-type isolates IA2 and R45. We metabolically 35S labeled these five E. coli isolates and measured their relative binding affinities to serial dilutions of SGG and DSGG as well as to globotriaosylceramide (Gb3) and globotetraosylceramide (Gb4), two other globoseries GSLs present in urogenital tissues. Each of the five E. coli isolates bound to SGG with the highest apparent avidity compared with their binding to DSGG, Gb3, and Gb4, and each isolate had a unique pattern of GSL binding affinity. These studies further suggest that SGG likely plays an important role in the pathogenesis of UTI and that its presence may account for the increased binding of E. colito uroepithelial cells from nonsecretors and for the increased susceptibility of nonsecretors to recurrent UTI.


Author(s):  
Santosh Paudel ◽  
Kamal Bagale ◽  
Swapnil Patel ◽  
Nicholas J. Kooyers ◽  
Ritwij Kulkarni

Gram-positive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an emerging cause of hospital-associated urinary tract infections (UTI), especially in catheterized individuals. Despite being rare, MRSA UTI are prone to potentially life-threatening exacerbations such as bacteremia that can be refractory to routine antibiotic therapy. To delineate the molecular mechanisms governing MRSA urinary pathogenesis, we exposed three S. aureus clinical isolates, including two MRSA strains to human urine for 2h and analyzed virulence characteristics and changes in gene expression. The in vitro virulence assays showed that human urine rapidly alters adherence to human bladder epithelial cells and fibronectin, hemolysis of sheep RBCs, and surface hydrophobicity in a staphylococcal strain-specific manner. In addition, RNA-Seq analysis of uropathogenic strain MRSA-1369 revealed that 2h-long exposure to human urine alters MRSA transcriptome, by modifying expression of genes encoding enzymes catalyzing metabolic pathways, virulence factors, and transcriptional regulators. In summary, our results provide important insights into how human urine specifically and rapidly alters MRSA physiology and facilitates MRSA survival in the nutrient-limiting and hostile urinary microenvironment. Importance: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an uncommon cause of urinary tract infections (UTI) in the general population. However, it is important to understand MRSA pathophysiology in the urinary tract because isolation of MRSA in urine samples often precedes potentially life-threatening MRSA bacteremia. In this report, we describe how exposure to human urine alters MRSA global gene expression and virulence. We hypothesize that these alterations may aid MRSA in acclimating to the nutrient-limiting, immunologically hostile conditions within the urinary tract leading to MRSA-UTI.


2020 ◽  
Vol 202 (20) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric C. DiBiasio ◽  
Hilary J. Ranson ◽  
James R. Johnson ◽  
David C. Rowley ◽  
Paul S. Cohen ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the leading cause of human urinary tract infections (UTIs), and many patients experience recurrent infection after successful antibiotic treatment. The source of recurrent infections may be persistent bacterial reservoirs in vivo that are in a quiescent state and thus are not susceptible to antibiotics. Here, we show that multiple UPEC strains require a quorum to proliferate in vitro with glucose as the carbon source. At low cell density, the bacteria remain viable but enter a quiescent, nonproliferative state. Of the clinical UPEC isolates tested to date, 35% (51/145) enter this quiescent state, including isolates from the recently emerged, multidrug-resistant pandemic lineage ST131 (i.e., strain JJ1886) and isolates from the classic endemic lineage ST73 (i.e., strain CFT073). Moreover, quorum-dependent UPEC quiescence is prevented and reversed by small-molecule proliferants that stimulate colony formation. These proliferation cues include d-amino acid-containing peptidoglycan (PG) tetra- and pentapeptides, as well as high local concentrations of l-lysine and l-methionine. Peptidoglycan fragments originate from the peptidoglycan layer that supports the bacterial cell wall but are released as bacteria grow. These fragments are detected by a variety of organisms, including human cells, other diverse bacteria, and, as we show here for the first time, UPEC. Together, these results show that for UPEC, (i) sensing of PG stem peptide and uptake of l-lysine modulate the quorum-regulated decision to proliferate and (ii) quiescence can be prevented by both intra- and interspecies PG peptide signaling. IMPORTANCE Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the leading cause of urinary tract infections (UTIs). During pathogenesis, UPEC cells adhere to and infiltrate bladder epithelial cells, where they may form intracellular bacterial communities (IBCs) or enter a nongrowing or slowly growing quiescent state. Here, we show in vitro that UPEC strains at low population density enter a reversible, quiescent state by halting division. Quiescent cells resume proliferation in response to sensing a quorum and detecting external signals, or cues, including peptidoglycan tetra- and pentapeptides.


2019 ◽  
Vol 201 (16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Alteri ◽  
Stephanie D. Himpsl ◽  
Allyson E. Shea ◽  
Harry L. T. Mobley

ABSTRACTBacterial metabolism is necessary for adaptation to the host microenvironment. Flexible metabolic pathways allow uropathogenicEscherichia coli(UPEC) to harmlessly reside in the human intestinal tract and cause disease upon extraintestinal colonization.E. coliintestinal colonization requires carbohydrates as a carbon source, while UPEC extraintestinal colonization requires gluconeogenesis and the tricarboxylic acid cycle. UPEC containing disruptions in two irreversible glycolytic steps involving 6-carbon (6-phosphofructokinase;pfkA) and 3-carbon (pyruvate kinase;pykA) substrates have no fitness defect during urinary tract infection (UTI); however, both reactions are catalyzed by isozymes: 6-phosphofructokinases Pfk1 and Pfk2, encoded bypfkAandpfkB, and pyruvate kinases Pyk II and Pyk I, encoded bypykAandpykF. UPEC strains lacking one or both phosphofructokinase-encoding genes (pfkBandpfkA pfkB) and strains lacking one or both pyruvate kinase genes (pykFandpykA pykF) were investigated to determine their regulatory roles in carbon flow during glycolysis by examining their fitness during UTI andin vitrogrowth requirements. Loss of a single phosphofructokinase-encoding gene has no effect on fitness, while thepfkA pfkBdouble mutant outcompeted the parental strain in the bladder. A defect in bladder and kidney colonization was observed with loss ofpykF, while loss ofpykAresulted in a fitness advantage. ThepykA pykFmutant was indistinguishable from wild-typein vivo, suggesting that the presence of Pyk II rather than the loss of Pyk I itself is responsible for the fitness defect in thepykFmutant. These findings suggest thatE. colisuppresses latent enzymes to survive in the host urinary tract.IMPORTANCEUrinary tract infections are the most frequently diagnosed urologic disease, with uropathogenicEscherichia coli(UPEC) infections placing a significant financial burden on the health care system by generating more than two billion dollars in annual costs. This, in combination with steadily increasing antibiotic resistances to present day treatments, necessitates the discovery of new antimicrobial agents to combat these infections. By broadening our scope beyond the study of virulence properties and investigating bacterial physiology and metabolism, we gain a better understanding of how pathogens use nutrients and compete within host microenvironments, enabling us to cultivate new therapeutics to exploit and target pathogen growth requirements in a specific host environment.


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