Ucl fimbriae regulation and glycan receptor specificity contribute to gut colonisation by extra-intestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli.

ABSTRACT: Extra-intestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC) belong to a critical priority group of antibiotic resistant pathogens. ExPEC establish gut reservoirs that seed infection of the urinary tract and bloodstream, but the mechanisms of gut colonisation remain to be properly understood. Ucl fimbriae are attachment organelles that facilitate ExPEC adherence. Here, we investigated cellular receptors for Ucl fimbriae and Ucl expression to define molecular mechanisms of Ucl-mediated ExPEC colonisation of the gut. We demonstrate differential expression of Ucl fimbriae in ExPEC sequence types associated with disseminated infection. Genome editing of strains from two common sequence types, F11 (ST127) and UTI89 (ST95), identified a single nucleotide polymorphism in the ucl promoter that changes fim

SUBMITTER: Hancock SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9236248 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature