Modulators of Enterococcus faecalis Cell Envelope Integrity and Antimicrobial Resistance Influence Stable Colonization of the Mammalian Gastrointestinal Tract.

ABSTRACT: The Gram-positive bacterium Enterococcus faecalis is both a colonizer of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and an agent of serious nosocomial infections. Although it is typically required for pathogenesis, GIT colonization by E. faecalis is poorly understood. E. faecalis tolerates high concentrations of GIT antimicrobials, like cholate and lysozyme, leading us to hypothesize that resistance to intestinal antimicrobials is essential for long-term GIT colonization. Analyses of E. faecalis mutants exhibiting defects in antimicrobial resistance revealed that IreK, a determinant of envelope integrity and antimicrobial resistance, is required for long-term GIT colonization. IreK is a member of the PASTA kinase protein family, bacterial transmembrane signaling proteins

SUBMITTER: Banla IL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5736811 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature