A chronic Acinetobacter baumannii pneumonia model to study long-term virulence factors, antibiotic treatments, and polymicrobial infections.

ABSTRACT: Acinetobacter baumannii causes prolonged infections that disproportionately affect immunocompromised populations. Our understanding of A. baumannii respiratory pathogenesis relies on an acute murine infection model with limited clinical relevance that employs an unnaturally high number of bacteria and requires assessment of bacterial load at 24-36 h post-infection. Here, we demonstrate that low intranasal inoculums in tlr4 mutant mice allows for infections lasting at least 3 weeks. Using this "chronic infection model" we determine the adhesin InvL is a virulence factor required during later stages of infection, despite being dispensable in the early phase. We also demonstrate that the chronic model enables distinction between antibiotics that, although initially reduce bacterial burden, ei

SUBMITTER: Jackson-Litteken CD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12356904 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature