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Targeted treatment of injured nestmates with antimicrobial compounds in an ant society.

ABSTRACT: Infected wounds pose a major mortality risk in animals. Injuries are common in the ant Megaponera analis, which raids pugnacious prey. Here we show that M. analis can determine when wounds are infected and treat them accordingly. By applying a variety of antimicrobial compounds and proteins secreted from the metapleural gland to infected wounds, workers reduce the mortality of infected individuals by 90%. Chemical analyses showed that wound infection is associated with specific changes in the cuticular hydrocarbon profile, thereby likely allowing nestmates to diagnose the infection state of injured individuals and apply the appropriate antimicrobial treatment. This study demonstrates that M. analis ant societies use antimicrobial compounds produced in the metapleural glands to treat infected wounds and reduce nestmate mortality.

SUBMITTER: Frank ET

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10756881 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Targeted treatment of injured nestmates with antimicrobial compounds in an ant society.

Frank Erik T ET Kesner Lucie L Liberti Joanito J Helleu Quentin Q LeBoeuf Adria C AC Dascalu Andrei A Sponsler Douglas B DB Azuma Fumika F Economo Evan P EP Waridel Patrice P Engel Philipp P Schmitt Thomas T Keller Laurent L

Nature communications 20231229 1

Infected wounds pose a major mortality risk in animals. Injuries are common in the ant Megaponera analis, which raids pugnacious prey. Here we show that M. analis can determine when wounds are infected and treat them accordingly. By applying a variety of antimicrobial compounds and proteins secreted from the metapleural gland to infected wounds, workers reduce the mortality of infected individuals by 90%. Chemical analyses showed that wound infection is associated with specific changes in the cu ...[more]

PMID: 38158416

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Project description:Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become a topic of great concern in recent years, with much effort being committed to developing alternative treatments for resistant bacterial pathogens. Drug combinational therapies have been a major area of research for several years, with modern iterations using combining well-established antibiotics and other antimicrobials with the aim of discovering complementary mechanisms. Previously, we characterised four GRAS antimicrobials that can withstand thermal polymer extrusion processes for novel medical device-based and therapeutic applications. In the present study, four antimicrobial bioactive-silver nitrate, nisin, chitosan and zinc oxide-were assessed for their potential combined use as an alternative synergistic treatment for AMR bacteria via a broth microdilution assay based on a checkerboard format. The bioactives were tested in arrangements of two-, three- and four-drug combinations, and their interactions were determined and expressed in terms of a synergy score. Results have revealed interesting interactions based on treatments against recognised test bacterial strains that cause human and animal infections, namely E. coli, S. aureus and S. epidermidis. Silver nitrate was seen to greatly enhance the efficacy of its paired treatment. Combinations with nisin, which is a lantibiotic, exhibited the most interesting results, as nisin has no effect against Gram-negative bacteria when used alone; however, it demonstrated antimicrobial effects when combined with silver nitrate or chitosan. This study constitutes the first study to both report on practical three- and four-drug combinational assays and utilise these methods for the assessment of established and emerging antimicrobials. The novel methods and results presented in this study show the potential to explore previously unknown drug combination compatibility measures in an ease-of-use- and high-throughput-based format, which can greatly help future research that aims to identify appropriate alternative treatments for AMR, including the screening of potential new bioactives biorefined from various sources.

Project description:Drug delivery requires precision in timing, location, and dosage to achieve therapeutic benefits. Challenges in addressing all three of these critical criteria result in poor temporal dexterity, widespread accumulation and off-target effects, and high doses with the potential for toxicity. To address these challenges, we have developed the BiomatErial Accumulating Carriers for On-demand Nanotherapy (BEACON) platform that utilizes an implantable biomaterial to serve as a target for systemically delivered nanoparticles (NPs). With the BEACON system, administered NPs are conjugated with a ligand that has high affinity for a receptor in the implanted biomaterial. To test BEACON, an in vivo spinal cord injury (SCI) model was used as it provides an injury model where the three identified criteria can be tested as it is a dynamic and complicated injury model with no currently approved therapies. Through our work, we have demonstrated temporal dexterity in NP administration by injecting 6 days post-SCI, decreased off-target accumulation with a significant drop in liver accumulation, and retention of our NPs in the target biomaterial. The BEACON system can be applied broadly, beyond the nervous system, to improve systemically delivered NP accumulation at an implanted biomaterial target. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Targeted drug delivery approaches have the potential to improve therapeutic regimens for patients on a case-by-case basis. Improved localization of a therapeutic to site of interest can result in increased efficacy and limit the need for repeat dosing. Unfortunately, targeted strategies can fall short when receptors on cells or tissues are too widespread or change over the course of disease or injury progression. The BEACON system developed herein eliminates the need to target a cell or tissue receptor by targeting an implantable biomaterial with location-controllable accumulation and sustained presentation over time. The targeting paradigm presented by BEACON is widely applicable throughout tissue engineering and regenerative medicine without the need to retool for each new application.

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Targeted treatment of injured nestmates with antimicrobial compounds in an ant society.

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Targeted treatment of injured nestmates with antimicrobial compounds in an ant society.

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