Genes encoding osmoregulatory proline/glycine betaine transporters and the proline catabolic system are present and expressed in diverse clinical Escherichia coli isolates

1994 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 397-402 ◽  
Author(s):  
Doreen E. Culham ◽  
Katherine S. Emmerson ◽  
Bonnie Lasby ◽  
Daniel Mamelak ◽  
Brian A. Steer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Urinary Tract ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Glycine Betaine ◽  
Clinical Isolates ◽  
E Coli ◽  
High Osmolality ◽  
Proline Catabolism ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Physiological Tests

Sixty-three clinical isolates identified as Escherichia coli, 30 from the human urinary tract and 33 derived from other human origins, were screened for proline/glycine betaine transporters similar to those that support proline catabolism and proline- or glycine betaine-based osmoregulation in E. coli K-12. Both molecular (DNA- and protein-based) analyses and physiological tests were performed. All tests were calibrated with E. coli K-12 derivatives from which genetic loci putP (encoding a proline transporter required for proline catabolism), proP, and (or) proU (loci encoding osmoregulatory proline/glycine betaine transporters) had been deleted. All clinical isolates showed both enhanced sensitivity to the toxic proline analogue azetidine-2-carboxylate on media of high osmolality and growth stimulation by glycine betaine in an artificial urine preparation of high osmolality. DNA sequences similar to the putP, proP, and proU loci of E. coli K-12 were detected by DNA amplification and (or) hybridization and protein specifically reactive with antibodies raised against the ProX protein of E. coli K-12 (a ProU constituent) was detected by western blotting in over 95% of the isolates. Two anomalous isolates were reclassified as non-E. coli on the basis of the API 20E series of tests. A protein immunochemically cross-reactive with the ProP protein of E. coli K-12 was also expressed by the clinical isolates. Since all three transporters were ubiquitous, no particular correlation between clinical origin and PutP, ProP, or ProU activity was observed. These data suggest that the transporters encoded in loci putP, proP, and proU perform housekeeping functions essential for the survival of E. coli cells in diverse habitats.Key words: osmoregulation, betaine transport, urinary tract infection, Escherichia coli.

scholarly journals Molecular Epidemiologic Approaches to Urinary Tract Infection Gene Discovery in Uropathogenic Escherichia coli

2000 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 2009-2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lixin Zhang ◽  
Betsy Foxman ◽  
Shannon D. Manning ◽  
Patricia Tallman ◽  
Carl F. Marrs
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Urinary Tract Infection ◽  
Urinary Tract ◽  
Tract Infection ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Bacterial Infections ◽  
Gene Discovery ◽  
Population Characteristics ◽  
E Coli ◽  
K 12

ABSTRACT Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most frequently acquired bacterial infections. The vast majority of UTIs are caused by a large, genetically heterogeneous group of Escherichia coli. This genetic diversity has hampered identification of UTI-related genes. A three-step experimental strategy was used to identify genes potentially involved in E. coli UTI transmission or virulence: epidemiologic pairing of a UTI-specific strain with a fecal control, differential cloning to isolated UTI strain-specific DNA, and epidemiologic screening to identify sequences among isolated DNAs that are associated with UTI. The 37 DNA sequences initially isolated were physically located all over the tester strain genome. Only two hybridized to the total DNA of the sequencedE. coli K-12 strain; eight sequences were present significantly more frequently in UTI isolates than in fecal isolates. Three of the eight sequences matched to genes for multidrug efflux proteins, usher proteins, and pathogenicity island insertion sites, respectively. Using population characteristics to direct gene discovery and evaluation is a productive strategy applicable to any system.

scholarly journals Single Clinical Isolates from Acute Uncomplicated Urinary Tract Infections Are Representative of Dominant In Situ Populations

mBio ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dana Willner ◽  
Serene Low ◽  
Jason A. Steen ◽  
Narelle George ◽  
Graeme R. Nimmo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Urinary Tract ◽  
Urinary Tract Infections ◽  
Clinical Isolates ◽  
Content Type ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Strain Diversity ◽  
Amplicon Pyrosequencing ◽  
Culture Independent ◽  
Tract Infections

ABSTRACTUrinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most commonly acquired bacterial infections in humans, and uropathogenicEscherichia colistrains are responsible for over 80% of all cases. The standard method for identification of uropathogens in clinical laboratories is cultivation, primarily using solid growth media under aerobic conditions, coupled with morphological and biochemical tests of typically a single isolate colony. However, these methods detect only culturable microorganisms, and characterization is phenotypic in nature. Here, we explored the genotypic identity of communities in acute uncomplicated UTIs from 50 individuals by using culture-independent amplicon pyrosequencing and whole-genome and metagenomic shotgun sequencing. Genus-level characterization of the UTI communities was achieved using the 16S rRNA gene (V8 region). Overall UTI community richness was very low in comparison to other human microbiomes. We strain-typedEscherichia-dominated UTIs using amplicon pyrosequencing of the fimbrial adhesin gene,fimH. There were nine highly abundantfimHtypes, and each UTI sample was dominated by a single type. Molecular analysis of the corresponding clinical isolates revealed that in the majority of cases the isolate was representative of the dominant taxon in the community at both the genus and the strain level. Shotgun sequencing was performed on a subset of eightE. coliurine UTI and isolate pairs. The majority of UTI microbial metagenomic sequences mapped to isolate genomes, confirming the results obtained using phylogenetic markers. We conclude that for the majority of acute uncomplicatedE. coli-mediated UTIs, single cultured isolates are diagnostic of the infection.IMPORTANCEIn clinical practice, the diagnosis and treatment of acute uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI) are based on analysis of a single bacterial isolate cultured from urine, and it is assumed that this isolate represents the dominant UTI pathogen. However, these methods detect only culturable bacteria, and the existence of multiple pathogens as well as strain diversity within a single infection is not examined. Here, we explored bacteria present in acute uncomplicated UTIs using culture-independent sequence-based methods.Escherichia coliwas the most common organism identified, and analysis ofE. colidominant UTI samples and their paired clinical isolates revealed that in the majority of infections the cultured isolate was representative of the dominant taxon at both the genus and the strain level. Our data demonstrate that in most cases single cultured isolates are diagnostic of UTI and are consistent with the notion of bottlenecks that limit strain diversity during UTI pathogenesis.

scholarly journals Constitutive soxR Mutations Contribute to Multiple-Antibiotic Resistance in Clinical Escherichia coli Isolates

2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (7) ◽  
pp. 2746-2752 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anastasia Koutsolioutsou ◽  
Samuel Peña-Llopis ◽  
Bruce Demple
Keyword(s):  
Nitric Oxide ◽  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Single Point ◽  
Constitutive Expression ◽  
Clinical Isolates ◽  
Multiple Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
E Coli ◽  
First Time

ABSTRACT The soxRS regulon of Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica is induced by redox-cycling compounds or nitric oxide and provides resistance to superoxide-generating agents, macrophage-generated nitric oxide, antibiotics, and organic solvents. We have previously shown that constitutive expression of soxRS can contribute to quinolone resistance in clinically relevant S. enterica. In this work, we have carried out an analysis of the mechanism of constitutive soxS expression and its role in antibiotic resistance in E. coli clinical isolates. We show that constitutive soxS expression in three out of six strains was caused by single point mutations in the soxR gene. The mutant SoxR proteins contributed to the multiple-antibiotic resistance phenotypes of the clinical strains and were sufficient to confer multiple-antibiotic resistance in a fresh genetic background. In the other three clinical isolates, we observed, for the first time, that elevated soxS expression was not due to mutations in soxR. The mechanism of such increased soxS expression remains unclear. The same E. coli clinical isolates harbored polymorphic soxR and soxS DNA sequences, also seen for the first time.

scholarly journals Regulation of P-Fimbrial Phase Variation Frequencies in Escherichia coli CFT073

2007 ◽  
Vol 75 (7) ◽  
pp. 3325-3334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Holden ◽  
Makrina Totsika ◽  
Lynn Dixon ◽  
Kirsteen Catherwood ◽  
David L. Gally
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Phase Transition ◽  
Regulatory Region ◽  
Phase Variation ◽  
Culture Conditions ◽  
Host Tissue ◽  
Clinical Isolates ◽  
E Coli ◽  
K 12 ◽  
First Time

ABSTRACT Adherence of uropathogenic Escherichia coli to host tissue is required for infection and is mediated by fimbriae, such as pyelonephritis-associated pili (Pap). Expression of P fimbriae is regulated by phase variation, and to date, phase transition frequencies have been measured only for pap regulatory region constructs integrated into the E. coli K-12 chromosome. The aim of this work was to measure P phase transition frequencies in clinical isolates for the first time, including frequencies for the sequenced strain E. coli CFT073. P fimbriation and associated phase transition frequencies were measured for two E. coli clinical isolates and compared with levels for homologous pap constructs in E. coli K-12. Fimbriation and off-to-on transition frequencies were always higher in the clinical isolate. It was concluded that the regulatory inputs controlling papI expression are likely to be different in E. coli CFT073 and E. coli K-12 as (i) phase variation could be stimulated in E. coli K-12 by induction of papI and (ii) the level of expression of a papI::gfp + fusion was higher in E. coli CFT073 than in E. coli K-12. Furthermore, phase transition frequencies for the two E. coli CFT073 pap clusters were shown to be different depending on the culture conditions, indicating that there is a hierarchy of expression depending on signal inputs.

scholarly journals Modulation of Host Innate Immune Response in the Bladder by Uropathogenic Escherichia coli

2007 ◽  
Vol 75 (11) ◽  
pp. 5353-5360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin K. Billips ◽  
Sarah G. Forrestal ◽  
Matthew T. Rycyk ◽  
James R. Johnson ◽  
David J. Klumpp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Immune Response ◽  
Urinary Tract ◽  
Innate Immune Response ◽  
Bacterial Colonization ◽  
Innate Immune ◽  
Upec Strain ◽  
Chemokine Production ◽  
E Coli ◽  
K 12

ABSTRACT Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), the most frequent cause of urinary tract infection (UTI), is associated with an inflammatory response which includes the induction of cytokine/chemokine secretion by urothelial cells and neutrophil recruitment to the bladder. Recent studies indicate, however, that UPEC can evade the early activation of urothelial innate immune response in vitro. In this study, we report that infection with the prototypic UPEC strain NU14 suppresses tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α)-mediated interleukin-8 (CXCL-8) and interleukin-6 (CXCL-6) secretion from urothelial cell cultures compared to infection with a type 1 piliated E. coli K-12 strain. Furthermore, examination of a panel of clinical E. coli isolates revealed that 15 of 17 strains also possessed the ability to suppress cytokine secretion. In a murine model of UTI, NU14 infection resulted in diminished levels of mRNAs encoding keratinocyte-derived chemokine, macrophage inflammatory peptide 2, and CXCL-6 in the bladder relative to infection with an E. coli K-12 strain. Furthermore, reduced stimulation of inflammatory chemokine production during NU14 infection correlated with decreased levels of bladder and urine myeloperoxidase and increased bacterial colonization. These data indicate that a broad phylogenetic range of clinical E. coli isolates, including UPEC, may evade the activation of innate immune response in the urinary tract, thereby providing a pathogenic advantage.

scholarly journals CS5 Pilus Biosynthesis Genes from Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli O115:H40

1999 ◽  
Vol 181 (18) ◽  
pp. 5847-5851 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas G. Duthy ◽  
Lothar H. Staendner ◽  
Paul A. Manning ◽  
Michael W. Heuzenroeder
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Surface Expression ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Enterotoxigenic Escherichia Coli ◽  
Cell Surface Expression ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Pilus Biogenesis ◽  
K 12 ◽  
And Function

ABSTRACT We have sequenced the entire region of DNA required for the biosynthesis of CS5 pili from enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli O115:H40 downstream of the major subunit gene, designatedcsfA (for coli surface factor five A). Five more open reading frames (ORFs) (csfB, csfC,csfE, csfF, and csfD) which are transcribed in the same direction as the major subunit and are flanked by a number of insertion sequence regions have been identified. T7 polymerase-mediated overexpression of the cloned csf ORFs confirmed protein sizes based on the DNA sequences that encode them. The expression of only the csf region in E. coli K-12 resulted in the hemagglutination of human erythrocytes and the cell surface expression of CS5 pili, suggesting that the cluster contains all necessary information for CS5 pilus biogenesis and function.

scholarly journals Representational Difference Analysis between Afa/Dr Diffusely Adhering Escherichia coli and Nonpathogenic E. coli K-12

2002 ◽  
Vol 70 (10) ◽  
pp. 5503-5511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Beatrice Blanc-Potard ◽  
Colin Tinsley ◽  
Isabel Scaletsky ◽  
Chantal Le Bouguenec ◽  
Julie Guignot ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Representational Difference Analysis ◽  
Transport Systems ◽  
Difference Analysis ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Tract Infections ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Specific Sequences

ABSTRACT Diffusely adhering Escherichia coli strains harboring Afa/Dr adhesins (Afa/Dr DAEC) have been associated with diarrhea and urinary tract infections (UTIs). The present work is the first extensive molecular study of a Afa/Dr DAEC strain using the representational difference analysis technique. We have searched for DNA sequences present in strain C1845, recovered from a diarrheagenic child, but absent from a nonpathogenic K-12 strain. Strain C1845 harbors part of a pathogenicity island (PAICFT073) and several iron transport systems found in other E. coli pathovars. We did not find genes encoding factors known to subvert host cell proteins, such as type III secretion system or effector proteins. Several C1845-specific sequences are homologous to putative virulence genes or show no homology with known sequences, and we have analyzed their distribution among Afa/Dr and non-Afa/Dr clinical isolates and among strains from the E. coli Reference Collection. Three C1845-specific sequences (MO30, S109, and S111) have a high prevalence (77 to 80%) among Afa/Dr strains and a low prevalence (12 to 23%) among non-Afa/Dr strains. In addition, our results indicate that strain IH11128, an Afa/Dr DAEC strain recovered from a patient with a UTI, is genetically closely related to strain C1845.

scholarly journals Iha from an Escherichia coli Urinary Tract Infection Outbreak Clonal Group A Strain Is Expressed In Vivo in the Mouse Urinary Tract and Functions as a Catecholate Siderophore Receptor

2006 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. 3427-3436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Léveillé ◽  
Mélissa Caza ◽  
James R. Johnson ◽  
Connie Clabots ◽  
Mourad Sabri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Urinary Tract Infection ◽  
Urinary Tract ◽  
Tract Infection ◽  
Growth Promotion ◽  
Clonal Group ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Group A ◽  
K 12

ABSTRACT Virulence factors of pathogenic Escherichia coli belonging to a recently emerged and disseminated clonal group associated with urinary tract infection (UTI), provisionally designated clonal group A (CGA), have not been experimentally investigated. We used a mouse model of ascending UTI with CGA member strain UCB34 in order to identify genes of CGA that contribute to UTI. iha was identified to be expressed by strain UCB34 in the mouse kidney using selective capture of transcribed sequences. iha from strain UCB34 demonstrated a siderophore receptor phenotype when cloned in a catecholate siderophore receptor-negative E. coli K-12 strain, as shown by growth promotion experiments and uptake of 55Fe complexed to enterobactin or its linear 2, 3-dihydroxybenzoylserine (DHBS) siderophore derivatives. Siderophore-mediated growth promotion by Iha was TonB dependent. Growth and iron uptake were more marked with linear DHBS derivatives than with purified enterobactin. The reported phenotype of adherence to epithelial cells conferred by expressing iha from a multicopy cloning vector in a poorly adherent E. coli K-12 host strain was confirmed to be specific to iha, in comparison with other siderophore receptor genes. iha expression was regulated by the ferric uptake regulator Fur and by iron availability, as shown by real-time reverse transcriptase PCR. In a competitive infection experiment using the mouse UTI model, wild-type strain UCB34 significantly outcompeted an isogenic iha null mutant. Iha thus represents a Fur-regulated catecholate siderophore receptor that, uniquely, exhibits an adherence-enhancing phenotype and is the first described urovirulence factor identified in a CGA strain.

scholarly journals In Vitro Reduction of Interleukin-8 Response to Enterococcus faecalis by Escherichia coli Strains Isolated from the Same Polymicrobial Urines

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 1501
Author(s):  
Gabriella Piatti ◽  
Laura De Ferrari ◽  
Anna Maria Schito ◽  
Anna Maria Riccio ◽  
Susanna Penco ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Urinary Tract ◽  
Enterococcus Faecalis ◽  
Interleukin 8 ◽  
Fluoroquinolone Resistance ◽  
Epithelial Cell Line ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Tract Infections ◽  
K 12

Urinary tract infections are often polymicrobial and are mainly due to uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). We previously demonstrated a link among clinical fluoroquinolone susceptible E. coli reducing in vitro urothelial interleukin-8 (CXCL8) induced by E. coli K-12, polymicrobial cystitis, and pyuria absence. Here, we evaluated whether fifteen clinical fluoroquinolone susceptible UPEC were able to reduce CXCL8 induced by Enterococcus faecalis that had been isolated from the same mixed urines, other than CXCL8 induced by E. coli K-12. We also evaluated the connection between fluoroquinolone susceptibility and pathogenicity by evaluating the immune modulation of isogenic gyrA, a mutant UPEC resistant to ciprofloxacin. Using the 5637 bladder epithelial cell line, we observed that lower CXCL8 induced the most UPEC isolates than K-12 and the corresponding E. faecalis. During coinfections of UPEC/K-12 and UPEC/E. faecalis, we observed lower CXCL8 than during infections caused by K-12 and E. faecalis alone. UPEC strains showed host–pathogen and pathogen–pathogen interaction, which in part explained their persistence in the human urinary tract and coinfections, respectively. Mutant UPEC showed lower modulating activity with respect to the wildtypes, confirming the connection between acquired fluoroquinolone resistance and the decrease of innate microbial properties.

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