Project description:A strategy for the high-throughput screening of a peptide nucleic acid (PNA) encoded peptide library to allow the identification of MRSA and MSSA selective peptides including AMPs. This novel screening approach allows simultaneous screening of cell selective peptides with different uptake mechanisms including lytic peptides and non-lytic CPPs. MRSA and MSSA were incubated with Library-18 (50 uM; corresponding to 39 nM of each library member) under short incubation times (30 min) to ensure collection of both live and apoptotic cells, which allowed selection of lytic peptides as well as non-lytic CPPs. Incubation was followed by washing and lysis and the intracellular and membrane associated library members were extracted and purified by filter centrifugation (between 3,000 and 10,000 Da). The extracted PNA tags were hybridized onto custom designed microarrays. Each microarray consisted of 4 sub-arrays of 44,000 features each with 33 replicates of each oligonucleotide complementary to each member of the library as well as 1232 non-coding negative controls. Microarray scanning and data analysis (BlueFuse, BlueGenome) was used to extract the intensity of the FAM label, thereby giving the relative amount of PNA hybridized to each spot and the identity of the peptide.
Project description:Previous studies have documented the diversity of genetic background of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains associated with healthcare (HA-MRSA), community (CA-MRSA) and livestock (LA-MRSA). The accessory and core-variable genome content of those strains remain largely unknown. To compare the composition of accessory and core-variable genome of Belgian MRSA strains according to host, population setting and genetic background, representative strains of HA- (n=21), CA- (n = 13) and ST398 LA-MRSA (n = 18) were characterized by a DNA-microarray (StaphVar Array) composed of oligonucleotide probes targeting ~400 resistance, adhesion and virulence associated genes.ST398 strains displayed very homogenous hybridization profiles (>94% gene content homology) irrespective of their host origin. This “ST398-specific” genomic profile was not distantly demarked from those of certain human-associated lineages but lacked several virulence- and colonization-associated genes harbored by strains of human origin, such as genes encoding proteases, haemolysins or adhesins. No enterotoxin gene was found among ST398 strains. In conclusion, our findings are consistent with a non-human origin of this ST398 lineage but suggest that it might have the potential to adapt further to the human host.
Project description:Purpose: Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has revolutionized systems-based analysis of gene regulon. The goal of this study is to investigate the genes regulated by Rsp in MRSA BD02-25 Methods: mRNA profiles of wild-type (WT) and Rsp knockout (â³Rsp) MRSA at mid-logarithmic growth phase (4h) were generated by deep sequencing, respectively in duplicate samples, using the Hiseq2000 (Illumina, CA) sequencer. The sequence reads that passed quality filters were aligned to S. aureus COL (RefSeq accession number NC_002951.2) using the Burrows-Wheeler Alignment tool (BWA) followed by ANOVA (ANOVA). Only the consistent data between the two WT or mutant samples were reserved for further analysis. qRTâPCR validation was performed using SYBR Green assays. Results: Using an optimized data analysis workflow, RNA-seq analyses revealed that 328 genes were up-regulated and 176 genes were down-regulated in â³rsp compared with wild type. In order to explain the major relevant changes in â³rsp compare to wild-type, the differential expressed genes obtained in RNA-seq with three biological replicates were used to construct a regulation network. 108 up-regulated genes and 33 down-regulated genes in RNA-seq data had gathered in the protein-protein interaction network. 15 modules of biological processes were responsible, including ribosome, metabolism, biofilm formation, cell wall degradation, cytolysis, two-component system and so on. Biological processes related to biofilm formation, such as cell wall degradation and metabolism were up regulated, indicating that the defense systems were activated. However, the genes that responsible for the two-component system and cytolysis were down regulated, suggesting a possible pathway how Rsp controls the virulence. Conclusions: Our data provide new information to the virulence regulatory network in S. aureus. mRNA profiles of wild-type (WT) and Rsp knockout (â³Rsp) MRSA were generated by deep sequencing, in duplicate, using the Hiseq2000 (Illumina, CA) sequencer.
Project description:The differential gene expressions of rat mucosa colonized with single or multi-species of MRSA or PA were studied using RNA-sequencing of total transcriptome. In multi-species in-vitro biofilms PA partially inhibited SA growth. However, no significant inhibition of MRSA was detected during in-vivo colonization of multi-species in rat bullae. A total of 1797 genes were significantly (p < 0.05) differentially expressed in MRSA or PA or MRSA+PA colonized rat middle ear mucosa with respect to the control. The poly-microbial colonization of MRSA and PA induced the differential expression of a significant number of genes that are involved in immune response, inflammation, signaling, development, and defense; these were not expressed with single species colonization by either MRSA or PA. Genes involved in defense, immune response, inflammatory response, and developmental process were exclusively up-regulated, and genes that are involved in nervous system signaling, development and transmission, regulation of cell growth and development, anatomical and system development, and cell differentiation were down-regulated after multi-species inoculation.
Project description:The success of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) as pathogens is due to a combination of antibiotic resistance with high virulence. However, evolution of the exceptional virulence potential of CA-MRSA is not understood. Our previous study indicated that differential gene expression contributes substantially to this process. Thus, we here investigated the role of the pivotal virulence gene regulatory system agr in the most prevalent CA-MRSA strain USA300. Using a mouse subcutaneous infection model, we show that agr is essential for the development of CA-MRSA skin infections, the most frequent manifestation of disease caused by CA-MRSA. Furthermore, genome-wide analysis of gene expression revealed significant differences in agr-dependent virulence gene regulation between CA-MRSA, HA-MRSA, and laboratory strains. Our findings demonstrate that agr functionality is critical for CA-MRSA disease and indicate that an adaptation of the agr regulon to optimize expression of a broad set of virulence determinants may have contributed to the evolution of exceptionally pronounced virulence of CA-MRSA strains. Keywords: wild type vs mutant
Project description:Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a major threat to human health. Rather than depend on creating new antibiotics (to which bacteria will eventually become resistant), we are employing antibiotic adjuvants that potentiate existing antibiotics. Based on our previous work, loratadine, the FDA-approvide antihistamine, effectively potentiates cell-wall active antibiotics in multiple strains of MRSA. Furthermore, loratadine and oxacillin helped disrupt preformed biofilms and stop them from initially forming in vitro. To gain biological insight into how this potentiation and biofilm inhibition occurs, we used RNA-seq on treated MRSA 43300 cultures to examine antibiotic adjuvant affects transcritome-wide.
Project description:Influenza-induced respiratory failure is substantially worsened by secondary bacterial infections such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The bidirectional interaction between the influenza-injured lung microenvironment and MRSA is poorly understood. By conditioning MRSA ex vivo in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid collected from mice at various timepoints of influenza infection, we found that influenza-injured lung microenvironment induces MRSA to increase cytotoxin expression while decreasing metabolic pathways. This overall increase in MRSA virulence was dependent upon SaeRS, a bacterial two-component system. Once expressed by MRSA, these influenza-induced toxins (such as Hla and LukAB) interact with host heparan sulfate (HS) fragments shed into the airspace. Highly-sulfated HS fragments augmented Hla- and LukAB-toxicity in vitro and in vivo. Our findings indicate that post-influenza MRSA pneumonia is shaped by bidirectional host-pathogen interactions: host injury triggers changes in bacterial expression of toxins, the activity of which are then shaped by host-derived HS fragments.
Project description:Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is an emerging threat to human health throughout the world. Rodent MRSA pneumonia models mainly focus on the early innate immune responses to MRSA infection. However, the molecular pattern and mechanisms of recovery from MRSA lung infection are largely unknown. In this study, a nonlethal mouse MRSA pneumonia model was employed to investigate events during lung recovery from MRSA infection. We compared lung bacterial clearance, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) characterization, lung histology, and gene expression profiling between Day 1 and Day 3 post-MRSA infection. Compared to Day 1 post-infection, bacterial colony counts and both BALF total cell number and protein concentration significantly decreased at Day 3 post-infection. Lung cDNA microarray analysis identified 47 significantly up-regulated and 35 down-regulated genes (p<0.01, 1.5-fold change [up and down]). Changes in eight genes were confirmed by real-time PCR. The pattern of gene expression suggests lung recovery is characterized by enhanced cell division, vascularization, and wound healing and by adjustment in host adaptive immune responses. Collectively, this data helps elucidate the molecular mechanisms of lung recovery after MRSA infection.