The metal ion-dependent adhesion site motif of the Enterococcus faecalis EbpA pilin mediates pilus function in catheter-associated urinary tract infection.

ABSTRACT:

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Though the bacterial opportunist Enterococcus faecalis causes a myriad of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), including catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs), little is known about the virulence mechanisms that it employs. However, the endocarditis- and biofilm-associated pilus (Ebp), a member of the sortase-assembled pilus family, was shown to play a role in a mouse model of E. faecalis ascending UTI. The Ebp pilus comprises the major EbpC shaft subunit and the EbpA and EbpB minor subunits. We investigated the biogenesis and function of Ebp pili in an experimental model of CAUTI using a panel of chromosomal pilin deletion mutants. A nonpiliated pilus knockout mutant (EbpABC(-) strain) was severely attenuated compared to its isogenic parent OG1RF in expe

SUBMITTER: Nielsen HV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3419518 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature