Project description:Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VREfm) is a leading cause of healthcare-associated infections globally and demands new approaches for treatment. Here we show that genetic and pharmacological inactivation of a highly conserved NlpC/P60 peptidoglycan hydrolase, secreted antigen A (SagA), enhanced vancomycin susceptibility of VREfm ex vivo and in vivo. Notably, genetic deletion of sagA impaired VREfm peptidoglycan remodeling, growth and increased the activity of vancomycin. We then identified first-in-class covalent NlpC/P60 peptidoglycan hydrolase inhibitors and demonstrated that pharmacological inactivation of SagA activity also impaired peptidoglycan remodeling and increased the efficacy of vancomycin in several VREfm clinical isolates. Our study reveals peptidoglycan hydrolases are druggable targets whose inactivation improves the efficacy of vancomycin against VREfm.
Project description:We profiled the DNA methylation of saliva cell types, to develop a tool for epidemiologic studies. Saliva was collected from 22 children, 21 participants with samples usable for DNA methylation, and sorted into immune and epithelial cells, using size exclusion filtration and magnetic bead sorting. DNA methylation was measured using the Illumina MethylationEPIC BeadChip. Saliva immune and epithelial cells have distinct DNA methylation profiles, which can influence whole saliva epidemiologic measures.
