scholarly journals Quorum-Sensing Regulation of Antimicrobial Resistance in Bacteria

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 425 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xihong Zhao ◽  
Zixuan Yu ◽  
Tian Ding

Quorum sensing is a cell-to-cell communication system that exists widely in the microbiome and is related to cell density. The high-density colony population can generate a sufficient number of small molecule signals, activate a variety of downstream cellular processes including virulence and drug resistance mechanisms, tolerate antibiotics, and harm the host. This article gives a general introduction to the current research status of microbial quorum-sensing systems, focuses on the role of quorum-sensing systems in regulating microbial resistance mechanisms, such as drug efflux pump and microbial biofilm formation regulation, and discusses a new strategy for the treatment of drug-resistant bacteria proposed by using quorum quenching to prevent microbial resistance.

Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 321
Author(s):  
Shekh Sabir ◽  
Tsz Tin Yu ◽  
Rajesh Kuppusamy ◽  
Basmah Almohaywi ◽  
George Iskander ◽  
...  

The quorum sensing (QS) system in multi-drug-resistant bacteria such as P. aeruginosa is primarily responsible for the development of antibiotic resistance and is considered an attractive target for antimicrobial drug discovery. In this study, we synthesised a series of novel selenourea and thiourea-containing dihydropyrrol-2-one (DHP) analogues as LasR antagonists. The selenium DHP derivatives displayed significantly better quorum-sensing inhibition (QSI) activities than the corresponding sulphur analogues. The most potent analogue 3e efficiently inhibited the las QS system by 81% at 125 µM and 53% at 31 µM. Additionally, all the compounds were screened for their minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against the Gram-positive bacterium S. aureus, and interestingly, only the selenium analogues showed antibacterial activity, with 3c and 3e being the most potent with a MIC of 15.6 µM.


Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 435
Author(s):  
Sada Raza ◽  
Kinga Matuła ◽  
Sylwia Karoń ◽  
Jan Paczesny

Antimicrobial resistance is a significant threat to human health worldwide, forcing scientists to explore non-traditional antibacterial agents to support rapid interventions and combat the emergence and spread of drug resistant bacteria. Many new antibiotic-free approaches are being developed while the old ones are being revised, resulting in creating unique solutions that arise at the interface of physics, nanotechnology, and microbiology. Specifically, physical factors (e.g., pressure, temperature, UV light) are increasingly used for industrial sterilization. Nanoparticles (unmodified or in combination with toxic compounds) are also applied to circumvent in vivo drug resistance mechanisms in bacteria. Recently, bacteriophage-based treatments are also gaining momentum due to their high bactericidal activity and specificity. Although the number of novel approaches for tackling the antimicrobial resistance crisis is snowballing, it is still unclear if any proposed solutions would provide a long-term remedy. This review aims to provide a detailed overview of how bacteria acquire resistance against these non-antibiotic factors. We also discuss innate bacterial defense systems and how bacteriophages have evolved to tackle them.


2021 ◽  
Vol 70 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Balaram Khamari ◽  
Prakash Kumar ◽  
Bulagonda Eswarappa Pradeep

Introduction. Nitrofurantoin is one of the preferred antibiotics in the treatment of uropathogenic multidrug-resistant (MDR) infections. However, resistance to nitrofurantoin in extensively drug-resistant (XDR) bacteria has severely limited the treatment options. Gap statement. Information related to co-resistance or collateral sensitivity (CS) with reference to nitrofurantoin resistant bacteria is limited. Aim. To study the potential of nitrofurantoin resistance as an indicator of the XDR phenotype in Enterobacteriaceae . Methods. One hundred (45 nitrofurantoin-resistant, 21 intermediately resistant and 34 nitrofurantoin-susceptible) Enterobacteriaceae were analysed in this study. Antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) against nitrofurantoin and 17 other antimicrobial agents across eight different classes was performed by using the Vitek 2.0 system. The isolates were screened for the prevalence of acquired antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and efflux pump genes by PCR. Results. In total, 51 % of nitrofurantoin-resistant and 28 % of intermediately nitrofurantoin resistant isolates exhibited XDR characteristics, while only 3 % of nitrofurantoin-sensitive isolates were XDR (P=0.0001). Significant co-resistance was observed between nitrofurantoin and other tested antibiotics (β-lactam, cephalosporin, carbapenem, aminoglycoside and tetracycline). Further, the prevalence of AMR and efflux pump genes was higher in the nitrofurantoin-resistant strains compared to the susceptible isolates. A strong association was observed between nitrofurantoin resistance and the presence of bla PER-1, bla NDM-1, bla OXA-48, ant(2) and oqxA-oqxB genes. Tigecycline (84 %) and colistin (95 %) were the only antibiotics to which the majority of the isolates were susceptible. Conclusion. Nitrofurantoin resistance could be an indicator of the XDR phenotype among Enterobacteriaceae , harbouring multiple AMR and efflux pump genes. Tigecycline and colistin are the only antibiotics that could be used in the treatment of such XDR infections. A deeper understanding of the co-resistance mechanisms in XDR pathogens and prescription of AST-based appropriate combination therapy may help mitigate this problem.


Antibiotics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 483
Author(s):  
Tomohiro Morohoshi ◽  
Yaoki Kamimura ◽  
Nobutaka Someya

N-Acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) are used as quorum-sensing signals in Gram-negative bacteria. Many genes encoding AHL-degrading enzymes have been cloned and characterized in various microorganisms. Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) are present on the skin of animals and are considered low-virulent species. The AHL-lactonase gene homologue, ahlS, was present in the genomes of the CNS strains Staphylococcus carnosus, Staphylococcus haemolyticus, Staphylococcus saprophyticus, and Staphylococcus sciuri. We cloned the candidate ahlS homologue from six CNS strains into the pBBR1MCS5 vector. AhlS from the CNS strains showed a higher degrading activity against AHLs with short acyl chains compared to those with long acyl chains. AhlS from S. sciuri was expressed and purified as a maltose-binding protein (MBP) fusion. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that regulates several virulence factors such as elastase and pyocyanin by quorum-sensing systems. When MBP-AhlS was added to the culture of P. aeruginosa PAO1, pyocyanin production and elastase activity were substantially reduced compared to those in untreated PAO1. These results demonstrate that the AHL-degrading activity of AhlS from the CNS strains can inhibit quorum sensing in P. aeruginosa PAO1.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 1569-1577

The quorum sensing (QS) mechanism has become a viable research strategy for the discovery of plant-derived anti-virulent agents to control drug-resistant bacteria. The increasing incidences of drug-resistant bacteria and the effort to curb it necessitate this study. We investigated the QS inhibitory potential of Centaurea praecox extracts on Chromobacterium violaceum (CV), antibacterial activity, and determination of chemical composition using GC-MS. C. praecox was subjected to sequential extraction using hexane (HEX), dichloromethane (DCM), ethyl acetate (EA), ethanol (ET), and aqueous (AQ) solvents. The extracts were subsequently evaluated for antibacterial activity using disc diffusion and QS violacein inhibition using spectrophotometry. The antibacterial effects of the extracts were moderate on gram-positive bacteria at 4 mg/mL in the order: HEX >EA >DCM >ET =AQ. However, the DCM extract demonstrated the most effective violacein inhibition of ≥80% at 0.3 mg/mL. QS violacein inhibitions were generally found to be concentration-dependent in the order: DCM >EA >HEX >ET =AQ with efficacies of ≥ 90% inhibition at ≥ 0.6 mg/mL. GC-MS analysis on the most potent DCM extract revealed N-vinylmethanimine, N-ethyl formamide, and propanamide among components identified. We concluded that C. praecox DCM extract contains bioactive chemicals as QS inhibitors and potential anti-virulent agents capable of combating the pathogenicity of drug-resistant bacteria in vivo.


2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (7) ◽  
pp. 1923-1935 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xu Chen ◽  
Yanan Liu ◽  
Ange Lin ◽  
Na Huang ◽  
Liquan Long ◽  
...  

Efflux pump system-mediated bacterial multidrug resistance is one of the main causes of antibiotic failure.


Antibiotics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 896
Author(s):  
Nikoletta Szemerédi ◽  
Annamária Kincses ◽  
Katerina Rehorova ◽  
Lan Hoang ◽  
Noemi Salardón-Jiménez ◽  
...  

The emergence of drug-resistant pathogens leads to a gradual decline in the efficacy of many antibacterial agents, which poses a serious problem for proper therapy. Multidrug resistance (MDR) mechanisms allow resistant bacteria to have limited uptake of drugs, modification of their target molecules, drug inactivation, or release of the drug into the extracellular space by efflux pumps (EPs). In previous studies, selenoesters have proved to be promising derivatives with a noteworthy antimicrobial activity. On the basis of these results, two series of novel selenoesters were synthesized to achieve more potent antibacterial activity on Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Fifteen selenoesters (eight ketone-selenoesters and seven cyano-selenoesters) were investigated with regards to their efflux pump-inhibiting, anti-quorum-sensing (QS), and anti-biofilm effects in vitro. According to the results of the antibacterial activity, the ketone-selenoesters proved to be more potent antibacterial compounds than the cyano-selenoesters. With regard to efflux pump inhibition, one cyano-selenoester on methicillin-resistant S. aureus and one ketone-selenoester on Salmonella Typhimurium were potent inhibitors. The biofilm inhibitory capacity and the ability of the derivatives to disrupt mature biofilms were noteworthy in all the experimental systems applied. Regarding QS inhibition, four ketone-selenoesters and three cyano-selenoesters exerted a noteworthy effect on Vibrio campbellii strains.


2012 ◽  
Vol 78 (8) ◽  
pp. 2768-2774 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashley N. Brown ◽  
Kathryn Smith ◽  
Tova A. Samuels ◽  
Jiangrui Lu ◽  
Sherine O. Obare ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTWe show here that silver nanoparticles (AgNP) were intrinsically antibacterial, whereas gold nanoparticles (AuNP) were antimicrobial only when ampicillin was bound to their surfaces. Both AuNP and AgNP functionalized with ampicillin were effective broad-spectrum bactericides against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. Most importantly, when AuNP and AgNP were functionalized with ampicillin they became potent bactericidal agents with unique properties that subverted antibiotic resistance mechanisms of multiple-drug-resistant bacteria.


2007 ◽  
Vol 79 (12) ◽  
pp. 2143-2153 ◽  
Author(s):  
John B. Bremner

Bacteria use a number of resistance mechanisms to counter the antibacterial challenge, and one of these is the expression of transmembrane protein-based efflux pumps which can pump out antibacterials from within the cells, thus lowering the antibacterial concentration to nonlethal levels. For example, in S. aureus, the NorA pump can pump out the antibacterial alkaloid berberine and ciprofloxacin. One general strategy to reduce the health threat of resistant bacteria is to block a major bacterial resistance mechanism at the same time as interfering with another bacterial pathway or target site. New developments of this approach in the context of dual-action prodrugs and dual-action (or hybrid) drugs in which one action is targeted at blocking the NorA efflux pump and the second action at an alternative bacterial target site (or sites) for the antibacterial action are discussed. The compounds are based on a combination of 2-aryl-5-nitro-1H-indole derivatives (as the NorA efflux pump blocking component) and derivatives of berberine. General design principles, syntheses, antibacterial testing, and preliminary work on modes of action studies are discussed.


RSC Advances ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (17) ◽  
pp. 12899-12909 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lowrence Rene Christena ◽  
Vimalanathan Mangalagowri ◽  
Prabhakaran Pradheeba ◽  
Khan Behlol Ayaz Ahmed ◽  
Bastin Infanta Sandhiya Shalini ◽  
...  

Casein capped copper nanoparticles at sub inhibitory concentrations function as an efflux pump inhibitor and restores susceptibility to antibiotics in drug resistant bacteria.


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