Project description:Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are garnering attention as possible alternatives to antibiotics. Here, we describe the antimicrobial properties of epinecidin-1 against multi-drug resistant clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa (R)) and P. aeruginosa from ATCC (P. aeruginosa (19660)) in vivo. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of epinecidin-1 against P. aeruginosa (R) and P. aeruginosa (19660) were determined, and compared with those of imipenem. Epinecidin-1 was found to be highly effective at combating peritonitis infection caused by P. aeruginosa (R) or P. aeruginosa (19660) in mouse models, without inducing adverse behavioral effects, or liver or kidney toxicity. Taken together, our results indicate that epinecidin-1 enhances the survival rate of mice infected with the bacterial pathogen P. aeruginosa through both antimicrobial and immunomodulatory effects. RNA from mice treated with epinecidin-1 were individually compared to RNA from PBS control mice.
Project description:The balance between tolerogenic and inflammatory responses determines immune homeostasis in the gut. Dysbiosis and a defective host defense against invading intestinal bacteria can shift this balance via bacterial-derived metabolites and trigger chronic inflammation. We show that the short chain fatty acid butyrate modulates monocyte to macrophage differentiation by promoting antimicrobial effector functions. The presence of butyrate modulates antimicrobial activity via a shift in macrophage metabolism and reduction in mTOR activity. This mechanism is furthermore dependent on the inhibitory function of butyrate on histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) driving transcription of a set of antimicrobial peptides including calprotectin. The increased antimicrobial activity against several bacterial species is not associated with increased production of conventional cytokines. Butyrate imprints antimicrobial activity of intestinal macrophages in vivo. Our data suggest that commensal bacteria derived butyrate stabilize gut homeostasis by promoting antimicrobial host defense pathways in monocytes that differentiate into intestinal macrophages.
Project description:Campylobacter jejuni is a widespread pathogen responsible for most of the food-borne gastrointestinal diseases in Europe. For pathogen control in the food industry, the use of natural antimicrobial molecules is a promising strategy to avoid antibiotic treatments. Isothiocyanates are natural antimicrobial compounds which also display anti-cancer activity. Several studies described the chemoprotective effect of isothiocyanates on eukaryotic cells, but the antimicrobial mechanism is still poorly understood. We investigated the early cellular response of C. jejuni to benzylisothiocyanate (BITC) by both transcriptomic and physiological (respirometry, ATP content measurements and isolations of aggregated proteins).
Project description:Gene expression is balanced by transcription and mRNA degradation. Shortening of polyadenosine (poly(A)) tails (deadenylation) is the initial step in the decay of most mRNAs. However, the mechanism by which deadenylation controls mRNA expression is not fully understood. This experiment aimed to determine changes in transcriptional activity in livers of control and Cnot1 tamoxifen-inducible liver-specific knockout mice. Control and Cnot1 tamoxifen-inducible liver-specific knockout mice placed on tamoxifen-containing food at 6 weeks of age for 2 weeks. Lysates from livers were subjected to ChIP assay with Histone H3 (tri methyl K4) (H3K4me3) antibody (ab8580; abcam) using SimpleChIP Enzyatic Chromatin IP Kit (#9003; Cell Signaling Technology). Libraries for DNA sequence were prepared from DNA isolated by ChIP assays with a KAPA Hyper Prep Kit (Illumina). 109 base-pair pair-end read DNA-seq was performed with Hiseq PE Rapid Cluster Kit v2-HS and Hiseq Rapid SBS Kit v2-HS (200 Cycle) on Illumina Hiseq2500.
Project description:Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are garnering attention as possible alternatives to antibiotics. Here, we describe the antimicrobial properties of epinecidin-1 against multi-drug resistant clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa (R)) and P. aeruginosa from ATCC (P. aeruginosa (19660)) in vivo. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of epinecidin-1 against P. aeruginosa (R) and P. aeruginosa (19660) were determined, and compared with those of imipenem. Epinecidin-1 was found to be highly effective at combating peritonitis infection caused by P. aeruginosa (R) or P. aeruginosa (19660) in mouse models, without inducing adverse behavioral effects, or liver or kidney toxicity. Taken together, our results indicate that epinecidin-1 enhances the survival rate of mice infected with the bacterial pathogen P. aeruginosa through both antimicrobial and immunomodulatory effects.
Project description:Purpose: To identify IgE inhibitory bioactive compound from A.Lappa for targeted therapy on peanut specific IgE production and hypersensitivity reactions, and to investigate its underlying mechanisms. The goals of this study were to compare the transcriptome map (RNA-seq) and quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) before and after PMBC in patients with food allergy, and to evaluate the most critical genes and signaling pathways which inhibit IgE production by arctigenin.