Bacteriocin production augments niche competition by enterococci in the mammalian gastrointestinal tract.

ABSTRACT: Enterococcus faecalis is both a common commensal of the human gastrointestinal tract and a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections. Systemic infections with multidrug-resistant enterococci occur subsequent to gastrointestinal colonization. Preventing colonization by multidrug-resistant E. faecalis could therefore be a valuable approach towards limiting infection. However, little is known about the mechanisms E. faecalis uses to colonize and compete for stable gastrointestinal niches. Pheromone-responsive conjugative plasmids encoding bacteriocins are common among enterococcal strains and could modulate niche competition among enterococci or between enterococci and the intestinal microbiota. We developed a model of colonization of the mouse gut with E. faecalis, without disrupting the

SUBMITTER: Kommineni S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4978352 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature