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van der Els S, Boekhorst J, Bron PA, Kleerebezem M. The lactococcal ICE-ome encodes a repertoire of exchangeable traits with potential industrial relevance. BMC Genomics 2024; 25:734. [PMID: 39080539 PMCID: PMC11288074 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-024-10646-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2024] [Accepted: 07/22/2024] [Indexed: 08/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Dairy industries apply selected lactococcal strains and mixed cultures to produce diverse fermented products with distinctive flavor and texture properties. Innovation of the starter culture functionality in cheese applications embraces natural biodiversity of the Lactococcus species to identify novel strains with alternative flavor or texture forming capacities and/or increased processing robustness and phage resistance. Mobile genetic elements (MGE), like integrative conjugative elements (ICEs) play an important role in shaping the biodiversity of bacteria. Besides the genes involved in the conjugation of ICEs from donor to recipient strains, these elements also harbor cargo genes that encode a wide range of functions. The definition of such cargo genes can only be achieved by accurate identification of the ICE boundaries (delimiting). Here, we delimited 25 ICEs in lactococcal genome sequences with low contig numbers using insertion-sites flanking single-copy core-genome genes as markers for each of the distinct ICE-integrases we identified previously within the conserved ICE-core genes. For ICEs in strains for which genome information with large numbers of contigs is available, we exemplify that CRISPR-Cas9 driven ICE-curing, followed by resequencing, allows accurate delimitation and cargo definition of ICEs. Finally, we compare and contrast the cargo gene repertoire of the 26 delimited lactococcal ICEs, identifying high plasticity among the cargo of lactococccal ICEs and a range of encoded functions that is of apparent industrial interest, including restriction modification, abortive infection, and stress adaptation genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon van der Els
- Host-Microbe Interactomics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, Wageningen University & Research, De Elst 1, Wageningen, 6708 WD, The Netherlands
- NIZO B.V, Kernhemseweg 2, Ede, 6718 ZB, The Netherlands
- BE-Basic Foundation, Mijnbouwstraat 120, Delft, 2628 RX, The Netherlands
| | - Jos Boekhorst
- Host-Microbe Interactomics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, Wageningen University & Research, De Elst 1, Wageningen, 6708 WD, The Netherlands
| | - Peter A Bron
- NIZO B.V, Kernhemseweg 2, Ede, 6718 ZB, The Netherlands
- BE-Basic Foundation, Mijnbouwstraat 120, Delft, 2628 RX, The Netherlands
| | - Michiel Kleerebezem
- Host-Microbe Interactomics Group, Department of Animal Sciences, Wageningen University & Research, De Elst 1, Wageningen, 6708 WD, The Netherlands.
- BE-Basic Foundation, Mijnbouwstraat 120, Delft, 2628 RX, The Netherlands.
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2
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Ryan MP, Carraro N, Slattery S, Pembroke JT. Integrative Conjugative Elements (ICEs) of the SXT/R391 family drive adaptation and evolution in γ-Proteobacteria. Crit Rev Microbiol 2024; 50:105-126. [PMID: 36634159 DOI: 10.1080/1040841x.2022.2161870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Integrative Conjugative Elements (ICEs) are mosaics containing functional modules allowing maintenance by site-specific integration and excision into and from the host genome and conjugative transfer to a specific host range. Many ICEs encode a range of adaptive functions that aid bacterial survival and evolution in a range of niches. ICEs from the SXT/R391 family are found in γ-Proteobacteria. Over 100 members have undergone epidemiological and molecular characterization allowing insight into their diversity and function. Comparative analysis of SXT/R391 elements from a wide geographic distribution has revealed conservation of key functions, and the accumulation and evolution of adaptive genes. This evolution is associated with gene acquisition in conserved hotspots and variable regions within the SXT/R391 ICEs catalysed via element-encoded recombinases. The elements can carry IS elements and transposons, and a mutagenic DNA polymerase, PolV, which are associated with their evolution. SXT/R391 ICEs isolated from different niches appear to have retained adaptive functions related to that specific niche; phage resistance determinants in ICEs carried by wastewater bacteria, antibiotic resistance determinants in clinical isolates and metal resistance determinants in bacteria recovered from polluted environments/ocean sediments. Many genes found in the element hotspots are undetermined and have few homologs in the nucleotide databases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael P Ryan
- Department of Applied Sciences, Technological University of the Shannon, Limerick, Ireland
| | - Nicolas Carraro
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Shannon Slattery
- Department of Chemical Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, University of Limerick, Ireland
| | - J Tony Pembroke
- Department of Chemical Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, University of Limerick, Ireland
- Bernal Institute, University of Limerick, Ireland
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3
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Zheng Q, Li L, Yin X, Che Y, Zhang T. Is ICE hot? A genomic comparative study reveals integrative and conjugative elements as "hot" vectors for the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes. mSystems 2023; 8:e0017823. [PMID: 38032189 PMCID: PMC10734551 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.00178-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Different from other extensively studied mobile genetic elements (MGEs) whose discoveries were initiated decades ago (1950s-1980s), integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs), a diverse array of more recently identified elements that were formally termed in 2002, have aroused increasing concern for their crucial contribution to the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). However, the comprehensive understanding on ICEs' ARG profile across the bacterial tree of life is still blurred. Through a genomic study by comparison with two key MGEs, we, for the first time, systematically investigated the ARG profile as well as the host range of ICEs and also explored the MGE-specific potential to facilitate ARG propagation across phylogenetic barriers. These findings could serve as a theoretical foundation for risk assessment of ARGs mediated by distinct MGEs and further to optimize therapeutic strategies aimed at restraining antibiotic resistance crises.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Zheng
- Department of Civil Engineering, Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research,The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Liguan Li
- Department of Civil Engineering, Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research,The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Xiaole Yin
- Department of Civil Engineering, Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research,The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - You Che
- Department of Civil Engineering, Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research,The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Tong Zhang
- Department of Civil Engineering, Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research,The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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4
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van Dijk B, Buffard P, Farr AD, Giersdorf F, Meijer J, Dutilh BE, Rainey PB. Identifying and tracking mobile elements in evolving compost communities yields insights into the nanobiome. ISME COMMUNICATIONS 2023; 3:90. [PMID: 37640834 PMCID: PMC10462680 DOI: 10.1038/s43705-023-00294-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2023] [Revised: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
Microbial evolution is driven by rapid changes in gene content mediated by horizontal gene transfer (HGT). While mobile genetic elements (MGEs) are important drivers of gene flux, the nanobiome-the zoo of Darwinian replicators that depend on microbial hosts-remains poorly characterised. New approaches are necessary to increase our understanding beyond MGEs shaping individual populations, towards their impacts on complex microbial communities. A bioinformatic pipeline (xenoseq) was developed to cross-compare metagenomic samples from microbial consortia evolving in parallel, aimed at identifying MGE dissemination, which was applied to compost communities which underwent periodic mixing of MGEs. We show that xenoseq can distinguish movement of MGEs from demographic changes in community composition that otherwise confounds identification, and furthermore demonstrate the discovery of various unexpected entities. Of particular interest was a nanobacterium of the candidate phylum radiation (CPR) which is closely related to a species identified in groundwater ecosystems (Candidatus Saccharibacterium), and appears to have a parasitic lifestyle. We also highlight another prolific mobile element, a 313 kb plasmid hosted by a Cellvibrio lineage. The host was predicted to be capable of nitrogen fixation, and acquisition of the plasmid coincides with increased ammonia production. Taken together, our data show that new experimental strategies combined with bioinformatic analyses of metagenomic data stand to provide insight into the nanobiome as a driver of microbial community evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bram van Dijk
- Department of Microbial Population Biology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany.
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Department of Biology, Science for Life, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands.
| | - Pauline Buffard
- Department of Microbial Population Biology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Andrew D Farr
- Department of Microbial Population Biology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Franz Giersdorf
- Department of Microbial Population Biology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Jeroen Meijer
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Department of Biology, Science for Life, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Bas E Dutilh
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Department of Biology, Science for Life, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
- Institute of Biodiversity, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Cluster of Excellence Balance of the Microverse, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany
| | - Paul B Rainey
- Department of Microbial Population Biology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany.
- Laboratory of Biophysics and Evolution, CBI, ESPCI Paris, Université PSL CNRS, Paris, France.
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5
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Fu J, Liu Y, Wang F, Zong G, Wang Z, Zhong C, Cao G. Glabridin inhibited the spread of polymyxin-resistant Enterobacterium carrying ICE MmoMP63. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1188900. [PMID: 37283918 PMCID: PMC10239875 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1188900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction The role of integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) in antibiotic resistance in Morganella morganii is unknown. This study aimed to determine whether an ICE identified in the M. morganii genome contributed to the polymyxin resistance. Methods Whole-genome sequencing was performed followed by bioinformatics analyses to identify ICEs and antibiotic resistance genes. Conjugation assays were performed to analyze the transferability of a discovered ICE. A drug transporter encoded on the ICE was heterogeneously expressed in Escherichia coli, minimum inhibitory concentrations of antibiotics were determined, and a traditional Chinese medicine library was screened for potential efflux pump inhibitors. Results An antibiotic resistance-conferring ICE, named ICEMmoMP63, was identified. ICEMmoMP63 was verified to be horizontally transferred among Enterobacteriaceae bacteria. G3577_03020 in ICEMmoMP63 was found to mediate multiple antibiotic resistances, especially polymyxin resistance. However, natural compound glabridin was demonstrated to inhibit polymyxin resistance. Discussion Our findings support the need for monitoring dissemination of ICEMmoMP63 in Enterobacteriaceae bacteria. Combined glabridin and polymyxin may have therapeutic potential for treating infections from multi-drug resistant bacteria carrying ICEMmoMP63.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiafang Fu
- First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Biomedical Sciences College & Shandong Medicinal Biotechnology Centre, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
- National Health Commission (NHC) Key Laboratory of Biotechnology Drugs. Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
| | - Yayu Liu
- First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Biomedical Sciences College & Shandong Medicinal Biotechnology Centre, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
- National Health Commission (NHC) Key Laboratory of Biotechnology Drugs. Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
| | | | - Gongli Zong
- First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Biomedical Sciences College & Shandong Medicinal Biotechnology Centre, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
- National Health Commission (NHC) Key Laboratory of Biotechnology Drugs. Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
| | - Zhen Wang
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Shandong Jianzhu University, Jinan, China
| | - Chuanqing Zhong
- School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Shandong Jianzhu University, Jinan, China
| | - Guangxiang Cao
- First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Biomedical Sciences College & Shandong Medicinal Biotechnology Centre, Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
- National Health Commission (NHC) Key Laboratory of Biotechnology Drugs. Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, China
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6
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Genomic analysis reveals the role of integrative and conjugative elements in plant pathogenic bacteria. Mob DNA 2022; 13:19. [PMID: 35962419 PMCID: PMC9373382 DOI: 10.1186/s13100-022-00275-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2021] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Background ICEs are mobile genetic elements found integrated into bacterial chromosomes that can excise and be transferred to a new cell. They play an important role in horizontal gene transmission and carry accessory genes that may provide interesting phenotypes for the bacteria. Here, we seek to research the presence and the role of ICEs in 300 genomes of phytopathogenic bacteria with the greatest scientific and economic impact. Results Seventy-eight ICEs (45 distinct elements) were identified and characterized in chromosomes of Agrobacterium tumefaciens, Dickeya dadantii, and D. solani, Pectobacterium carotovorum and P. atrosepticum, Pseudomonas syringae, Ralstonia solanacearum Species Complex, and Xanthomonas campestris. Intriguingly, the co-occurrence of four ICEs was observed in some P. syringae strains. Moreover, we identified 31 novel elements, carrying 396 accessory genes with potential influence on virulence and fitness, such as genes coding for functions related to T3SS, cell wall degradation and resistance to heavy metals. We also present the analysis of previously reported data on the expression of cargo genes related to the virulence of P. atrosepticum ICEs, which evidences the role of these genes in the infection process of tobacco plants. Conclusions Altogether, this paper has highlighted the potential of ICEs to affect the pathogenicity and lifestyle of these phytopathogens and direct the spread of significant putative virulence genes in phytopathogenic bacteria. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13100-022-00275-1.
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7
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Biology and engineering of integrative and conjugative elements: Construction and analyses of hybrid ICEs reveal element functions that affect species-specific efficiencies. PLoS Genet 2022; 18:e1009998. [PMID: 35584135 PMCID: PMC9154091 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2021] [Revised: 05/31/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) are mobile genetic elements that reside in a bacterial host chromosome and are prominent drivers of bacterial evolution. They are also powerful tools for genetic analyses and engineering. Transfer of an ICE to a new host involves many steps, including excision from the chromosome, DNA processing and replication, transfer across the envelope of the donor and recipient, processing of the DNA, and eventual integration into the chromosome of the new host (now a stable transconjugant). Interactions between an ICE and its host throughout the life cycle likely influence the efficiencies of acquisition by new hosts. Here, we investigated how different functional modules of two ICEs, Tn916 and ICEBs1, affect the transfer efficiencies into different host bacteria. We constructed hybrid elements that utilize the high-efficiency regulatory and excision modules of ICEBs1 and the conjugation genes of Tn916. These elements produced more transconjugants than Tn916, likely due to an increase in the number of cells expressing element genes and a corresponding increase in excision. We also found that several Tn916 and ICEBs1 components can substitute for one another. Using B. subtilis donors and three Enterococcus species as recipients, we found that different hybrid elements were more readily acquired by some species than others, demonstrating species-specific interactions in steps of the ICE life cycle. This work demonstrates that hybrid elements utilizing the efficient regulatory functions of ICEBs1 can be built to enable efficient transfer into and engineering of a variety of other species. Horizontal gene transfer helps drive microbial evolution, enabling bacteria to rapidly acquire new genes and traits. Integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) are mobile genetic elements that reside in a bacterial host chromosome and are prominent drivers of horizontal gene transfer. They are also powerful tools for genetic analyses and engineering. Some ICEs carry genes that confer obvious properties to host bacteria, including antibiotic resistances, symbiosis, and pathogenesis. When activated, an ICE-encoded machine is made that can transfer the element to other cells, where it then integrates into the chromosome of the new host. Specific ICEs transfer more effectively into some bacterial species compared to others, yet little is known about the determinants of the efficiencies and specificity of acquisition by different bacterial species. We made and utilized hybrid ICEs, composed of parts of two different elements, to investigate determinants of transfer efficiencies. Our findings demonstrate that there are species-specific interactions that help determine efficiencies of stable acquisition, and that this explains, in part, the efficiencies of different ICEs. These hybrid elements are also useful in genetic engineering and synthetic biology to move genes and pathways into different bacterial species with greater efficiencies than can be achieved with naturally occurring ICEs.
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8
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Abstract
Naturally occurring plasmids come in different sizes. The smallest are less than a kilobase of DNA, while the largest can be over three orders of magnitude larger. Historically, research has tended to focus on smaller plasmids that are usually easier to isolate, manipulate and sequence, but with improved genome assemblies made possible by long-read sequencing, there is increased appreciation that very large plasmids—known as megaplasmids—are widespread, diverse, complex, and often encode key traits in the biology of their host microorganisms. Why are megaplasmids so big? What other features come with large plasmid size that could affect bacterial ecology and evolution? Are megaplasmids 'just' big plasmids, or do they have distinct characteristics? In this perspective, we reflect on the distribution, diversity, biology, and gene content of megaplasmids, providing an overview to these large, yet often overlooked, mobile genetic elements. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The secret lives of microbial mobile genetic elements’.
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Affiliation(s)
- James P J Hall
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - João Botelho
- Antibiotic Resistance Evolution Group, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany.,Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian Albrechts University, Kiel, Germany
| | - Adrian Cazares
- EMBL's European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Wellcome Genome Campus, Cambridge, UK.,Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Cambridge, UK
| | - David A Baltrus
- School of Plant Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
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Baquero F, Martínez JL, F. Lanza V, Rodríguez-Beltrán J, Galán JC, San Millán A, Cantón R, Coque TM. Evolutionary Pathways and Trajectories in Antibiotic Resistance. Clin Microbiol Rev 2021; 34:e0005019. [PMID: 34190572 PMCID: PMC8404696 DOI: 10.1128/cmr.00050-19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Evolution is the hallmark of life. Descriptions of the evolution of microorganisms have provided a wealth of information, but knowledge regarding "what happened" has precluded a deeper understanding of "how" evolution has proceeded, as in the case of antimicrobial resistance. The difficulty in answering the "how" question lies in the multihierarchical dimensions of evolutionary processes, nested in complex networks, encompassing all units of selection, from genes to communities and ecosystems. At the simplest ontological level (as resistance genes), evolution proceeds by random (mutation and drift) and directional (natural selection) processes; however, sequential pathways of adaptive variation can occasionally be observed, and under fixed circumstances (particular fitness landscapes), evolution is predictable. At the highest level (such as that of plasmids, clones, species, microbiotas), the systems' degrees of freedom increase dramatically, related to the variable dispersal, fragmentation, relatedness, or coalescence of bacterial populations, depending on heterogeneous and changing niches and selective gradients in complex environments. Evolutionary trajectories of antibiotic resistance find their way in these changing landscapes subjected to random variations, becoming highly entropic and therefore unpredictable. However, experimental, phylogenetic, and ecogenetic analyses reveal preferential frequented paths (highways) where antibiotic resistance flows and propagates, allowing some understanding of evolutionary dynamics, modeling and designing interventions. Studies on antibiotic resistance have an applied aspect in improving individual health, One Health, and Global Health, as well as an academic value for understanding evolution. Most importantly, they have a heuristic significance as a model to reduce the negative influence of anthropogenic effects on the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- F. Baquero
- Department of Microbiology, Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Network Center for Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
| | - J. L. Martínez
- National Center for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - V. F. Lanza
- Department of Microbiology, Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Network Center for Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
- Central Bioinformatics Unit, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Madrid, Spain
| | - J. Rodríguez-Beltrán
- Department of Microbiology, Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Network Center for Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
| | - J. C. Galán
- Department of Microbiology, Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Network Center for Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
| | - A. San Millán
- National Center for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - R. Cantón
- Department of Microbiology, Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Network Center for Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
| | - T. M. Coque
- Department of Microbiology, Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, Ramón y Cajal Institute for Health Research (IRYCIS), Network Center for Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
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10
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Chen B, Han J, Dai H, Jia P. Biocide-tolerance and antibiotic-resistance in community environments and risk of direct transfers to humans: Unintended consequences of community-wide surface disinfecting during COVID-19? ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2021; 283:117074. [PMID: 33848900 PMCID: PMC8019131 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2021.117074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2020] [Revised: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 03/30/2021] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
During the current pandemic, chemical disinfectants are ubiquitously and routinely used in community environments, especially on common touch surfaces in public settings, as a means of controlling the virus spread. An underappreciated risk in current regulatory guidelines and scholarly discussions, however, is that the persisting input of chemical disinfectants can exacerbate the growth of biocide-tolerant and antibiotic-resistant bacteria on those surfaces and allow their direct transfers to humans. For COVID-19, the most commonly used disinfecting agents are quaternary ammonium compounds, hydrogen peroxide, sodium hypochlorite, and ethanol, which account for two-thirds of the active ingredients in current EPA-approved disinfectant products for the novel coronavirus. Tolerance to each of these compounds, which can be either intrinsic or acquired, has been observed on various bacterial pathogens. Of those, mutations and horizontal gene transfer, upregulation of efflux pumps, membrane alteration, and biofilm formation are the common mechanisms conferring biocide tolerance in bacteria. Further, the linkage between disinfectant use and antibiotic resistance was suggested in laboratory and real-life settings. Evidence showed that substantial bacterial transfers to hands could effectuate from short contacts with surrounding surfaces and further from fingers to lips. While current literature on disinfectant-induced antimicrobial resistance predominantly focuses on municipal wastes and the natural environments, in reality the community and public settings are most severely impacted by intensive and regular chemical disinfecting during COVID-19 and, due to their proximity to humans, biocide-tolerant and antibiotic-resistant bacteria emerged in these environments may pose risks of direct transfers to humans, particularly in densely populated urban communities. Here we highlight these risk factors by reviewing the most pertinent and up-to-date evidence, and provide several feasible strategies to mitigate these risks in the scenario of a prolonging pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Chen
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, PR China; Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, PR China
| | - Jie Han
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, PR China.
| | - Han Dai
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710049, PR China
| | - Puqi Jia
- Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, PR China
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11
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Phale PS, Mohapatra B, Malhotra H, Shah BA. Eco-physiological portrait of a novel Pseudomonas sp. CSV86: an ideal host/candidate for metabolic engineering and bioremediation. Environ Microbiol 2021; 24:2797-2816. [PMID: 34347343 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2021] [Revised: 07/27/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Pseudomonas sp. CSV86, an Indian soil isolate, degrades wide range of aromatic compounds like naphthalene, benzoate and phenylpropanoids, amongst others. Isolate displays the unique and novel property of preferential utilization of aromatics over glucose and co-metabolizes them with organic acids. Interestingly, as compared to other Pseudomonads, strain CSV86 harbours only high-affinity glucokinase pathway (and absence of low-affinity oxidative route) for glucose metabolism. Such lack of gluconate loop might be responsible for the novel phenotype of preferential utilization of aromatics. The genome analysis and comparative functional mining indicated a large genome (6.79 Mb) with significant enrichment of regulators, transporters as well as presence of various secondary metabolite production clusters, suggesting its eco-physiological and metabolic versatility. Strain harbours various integrative conjugative elements (ICEs) and genomic islands, probably acquired through horizontal gene transfer events, leading to genome mosaicity and plasticity. Naphthalene degradation genes are arranged as regulonic clusters and found to be part of ICECSV86nah . Various eco-physiological properties and absence of major pathogenicity and virulence factors (risk group-1) in CSV86 suggest it to be an ideal candidate for bioremediation. Further, strain can serve as an ideal chassis for metabolic engineering to degrade various xenobiotics preferentially over simple carbon sources for efficient remediation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prashant S Phale
- Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400076, India
| | - Balaram Mohapatra
- Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400076, India
| | - Harshit Malhotra
- Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400076, India
| | - Bhavik A Shah
- Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400076, India
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12
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Cai H, Zhu Y, Hu D, Li Y, Leptihn S, Loh B, Hua X, Yu Y. Co-harboring of Novel bla KPC-2 Plasmid and Integrative and Conjugative Element Carrying Tn 6203 in Multidrug-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:674974. [PMID: 34290680 PMCID: PMC8287167 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.674974] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Many strains of the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa have acquired resistance to multiple antibiotics. Carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa poses a global healthcare problem due to limited therapeutic options for the treatment of infections. Plasmids and integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) are the major vectors of antibiotic-resistance gene transfer. In our study, four carbapenem-resistant strains of P. aeruginosa were isolated from the same patient in a tertiary referral hospital in China, one of these was resistant to gentamicin and tobramycin. In this strain P33, we observed a non-transferable plasmid, pP33-2, carrying a novel blaKPC−2 gene segment (ISKpn27-blaKPC−2-ISKpn6-korC-ORF-klcA-IS26), which we concluded to have been formed by IS26-mediated gene cluster translocation. In addition, by comparing the chromosomes of the P. aeruginosa strains that belong to the same sequence type, we identified an ICE, ICEP33, adjacent to a prophage. The attL site of ICEP33 is identical to the terminal part of the attR site of the prophage. The ICEP33 element contains the transposon Tn6203, which encodes antibiotic and metal resistance genes. The insertion of ICEP33 in the chromosome mediates resistance to multiple antibiotics. Our study contributes to the understanding of the acquisition of antibiotic resistance in P. aeruginosa facilitated by mobile genetic elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heng Cai
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology and Bioinformatics of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, China.,Regional Medical Center for National Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yiwei Zhu
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology and Bioinformatics of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, China.,Regional Medical Center for National Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Dandan Hu
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology and Bioinformatics of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, China.,Regional Medical Center for National Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yue Li
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology and Bioinformatics of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, China.,Regional Medical Center for National Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Sebastian Leptihn
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.,Zhejiang University-University of Edinburgh Institute, Zhejiang University, Haining, China
| | - Belinda Loh
- Zhejiang University-University of Edinburgh Institute, Zhejiang University, Haining, China
| | - Xiaoting Hua
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology and Bioinformatics of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, China.,Regional Medical Center for National Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Yunsong Yu
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.,Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology and Bioinformatics of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, China.,Regional Medical Center for National Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
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13
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Johansson MHK, Bortolaia V, Tansirichaiya S, Aarestrup FM, Roberts AP, Petersen TN. Detection of mobile genetic elements associated with antibiotic resistance in Salmonella enterica using a newly developed web tool: MobileElementFinder. J Antimicrob Chemother 2021; 76:101-109. [PMID: 33009809 PMCID: PMC7729385 DOI: 10.1093/jac/dkaa390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 279] [Impact Index Per Article: 93.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2020] [Accepted: 08/19/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in clinically relevant bacteria is a growing threat to public health globally. In these bacteria, antimicrobial resistance genes are often associated with mobile genetic elements (MGEs), which promote their mobility, enabling them to rapidly spread throughout a bacterial community. Methods The tool MobileElementFinder was developed to enable rapid detection of MGEs and their genetic context in assembled sequence data. MGEs are detected based on sequence similarity to a database of 4452 known elements augmented with annotation of resistance genes, virulence factors and detection of plasmids. Results MobileElementFinder was applied to analyse the mobilome of 1725 sequenced Salmonella enterica isolates of animal origin from Denmark, Germany and the USA. We found that the MGEs were seemingly conserved according to multilocus ST and not restricted to either the host or the country of origin. Moreover, we identified putative translocatable units for specific aminoglycoside, sulphonamide and tetracycline genes. Several putative composite transposons were predicted that could mobilize, among others, AMR, metal resistance and phosphodiesterase genes associated with macrophage survivability. This is, to our knowledge, the first time the phosphodiesterase-like pdeL has been found to be potentially mobilized into S. enterica. Conclusions MobileElementFinder is a powerful tool to study the epidemiology of MGEs in a large number of genome sequences and to determine the potential for genomic plasticity of bacteria. This web service provides a convenient method of detecting MGEs in assembled sequence data. MobileElementFinder can be accessed at https://cge.cbs.dtu.dk/services/MobileElementFinder/.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus H K Johansson
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Valeria Bortolaia
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Supathep Tansirichaiya
- Department of Clinical Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT the Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Frank M Aarestrup
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Adam P Roberts
- Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK
| | - Thomas N Petersen
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
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14
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Jones JM, Grinberg I, Eldar A, Grossman AD. A mobile genetic element increases bacterial host fitness by manipulating development. eLife 2021; 10:65924. [PMID: 33655883 PMCID: PMC8032392 DOI: 10.7554/elife.65924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2020] [Accepted: 03/01/2021] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Horizontal gene transfer is a major force in bacterial evolution. Mobile genetic elements are responsible for much of horizontal gene transfer and also carry beneficial cargo genes. Uncovering strategies used by mobile genetic elements to benefit host cells is crucial for understanding their stability and spread in populations. We describe a benefit that ICEBs1, an integrative and conjugative element of Bacillus subtilis, provides to its host cells. Activation of ICEBs1 conferred a frequency-dependent selective advantage to host cells during two different developmental processes: biofilm formation and sporulation. These benefits were due to inhibition of biofilm-associated gene expression and delayed sporulation by ICEBs1-containing cells, enabling them to exploit their neighbors and grow more prior to development. A single ICEBs1 gene, devI (formerly ydcO), was both necessary and sufficient for inhibition of development. Manipulation of host developmental programs allows ICEBs1 to increase host fitness, thereby increasing propagation of the element. Many bacteria can ‘have sex’ – that is, they can share their genetic information and trade off segments of DNA. While these mobile genetic elements can be parasites that use the resources of their host to make more of themselves, some carry useful genes which, for example, help bacteria to fight off antibiotics. Integrative and conjugative elements (or ICEs) are a type of mobile segments that normally stay inside the genetic information of their bacterial host but can sometimes replicate and be pumped out to another cell. ICEBs1 for instance, is an element found in the common soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis. Scientists know that ICEBs1 can rapidly spread in biofilms – the slimly, crowded communities where bacteria live tightly connected – but it is still unclear whether it helps or hinders its hosts. Using genetic manipulations and tracking the survival of different groups of cells, Jones et al. show that carrying ICEBs1 confers an advantage under many conditions. When B. subtilis forms biofilms, the presence of the devI gene in ICEBs1 helps the cells to delay the production of the costly mucus that keeps bacteria together, allowing the organisms to ‘cheat’ for a little while and benefit from the tight-knit community without contributing to it. As nutrients become scarce in biofilms, the gene also allows the bacteria to grow for longer before they start to form spores – the dormant bacterial form that can weather difficult conditions. Mobile elements can carry genes that make bacteria resistant to antibiotics, harmful to humans, or able to use new food sources; they could even be used to artificially introduce genes of interest in these cells. The work by Jones et al. helps to understand the way these elements influence the fate of their host, providing insight into how they could be harnessed for the benefit of human health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua M Jones
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, United States
| | - Ilana Grinberg
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Avigdor Eldar
- The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Alan D Grossman
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, United States
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15
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Botelho J, Mourão J, Roberts AP, Peixe L. Comprehensive genome data analysis establishes a triple whammy of carbapenemases, ICEs and multiple clinically relevant bacteria. Microb Genom 2020; 6:mgen000424. [PMID: 32841111 PMCID: PMC7660259 DOI: 10.1099/mgen.0.000424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2019] [Accepted: 08/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Carbapenemases inactivate most β-lactam antibiotics, including carbapenems, and have frequently been reported among Enterobacteriaceae, Acinetobacter spp. and Pseudomonas spp. Traditionally, the horizontal gene transfer of carbapenemase-encoding genes (CEGs) has been linked to plasmids. However, given that integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) are possibly the most abundant conjugative elements among prokaryotes, we conducted an in silico analysis to ascertain the likely role of ICEs in the spread of CEGs among all bacterial genomes (n=182 663). We detected 17 520 CEGs, of which 66 were located within putative ICEs among several bacterial species (including clinically relevant bacteria, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli). Most CEGs detected within ICEs belong to the IMP, NDM and SPM metallo-beta-lactamase families, and the serine beta-lactamase KPC and GES families. Different mechanisms were likely responsible for acquisition of these genes. The majority of CEG-bearing ICEs belong to the MPFG, MPFT and MPFF classes and often encode resistance to other antibiotics (e.g. aminoglycosides and fluoroquinolones). This study provides a snapshot of the different CEGs associated with ICEs among available bacterial genomes and sheds light on the underappreciated contribution of ICEs to the spread of carbapenem resistance globally.
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Affiliation(s)
- João Botelho
- UCIBIO/REQUIMTE, Laboratório de Microbiologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Present address: Antibiotic Resistance Evolution Group, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306 Plön, Germany; Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Joana Mourão
- University of Coimbra, Center for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Coimbra, Portugal
- University of Coimbra, Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Coimbra, Portugal
- University of Coimbra, Institute for Interdisciplinary Research, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Adam P. Roberts
- Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK
- Centre for Drugs and Diagnostics, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK
| | - Luísa Peixe
- UCIBIO/REQUIMTE, Laboratório de Microbiologia, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
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16
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Carraro N, Sentchilo V, Polák L, Bertelli C, van der Meer JR. Insights into Mobile Genetic Elements of the Biocide-Degrading Bacterium Pseudomonas nitroreducens HBP-1. Genes (Basel) 2020; 11:genes11080930. [PMID: 32806781 PMCID: PMC7466150 DOI: 10.3390/genes11080930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2020] [Revised: 08/10/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The sewage sludge isolate Pseudomonas nitroreducens HBP-1 was the first bacterium known to completely degrade the fungicide 2-hydroxybiphenyl. PacBio and Illumina whole-genome sequencing revealed three circular DNA replicons: a chromosome and two plasmids. Plasmids were shown to code for putative adaptive functions such as heavy metal resistance, but with unclarified ability for self-transfer. About one-tenth of strain HBP-1's chromosomal genes are likely of recent horizontal influx, being part of genomic islands, prophages and integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs). P. nitroreducens carries two large ICEs with different functional specialization, but with homologous core structures to the well-known ICEclc of Pseudomonas knackmussii B13. The variable regions of ICEPni1 (96 kb) code for, among others, heavy metal resistances and formaldehyde detoxification, whereas those of ICEPni2 (171 kb) encodes complete meta-cleavage pathways for catabolism of 2-hydroxybiphenyl and salicylate, a protocatechuate pathway and peripheral enzymes for 4-hydroxybenzoate, ferulate, vanillin and vanillate transformation. Both ICEs transferred at frequencies of 10-6-10-8 per P. nitroreducens HBP-1 donor into Pseudomonas putida, where they integrated site specifically into tRNAGly-gene targets, as expected. Our study highlights the underlying determinants and mechanisms driving dissemination of adaptive properties allowing bacterial strains to cope with polluted environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Carraro
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Biophore, Quartier UNIL-Sorge, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (V.S.); (L.P.); (J.R.v.d.M.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Vladimir Sentchilo
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Biophore, Quartier UNIL-Sorge, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (V.S.); (L.P.); (J.R.v.d.M.)
| | - Lenka Polák
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Biophore, Quartier UNIL-Sorge, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (V.S.); (L.P.); (J.R.v.d.M.)
| | - Claire Bertelli
- Institute for Microbiology, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Bugnon 48, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland;
| | - Jan Roelof van der Meer
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Biophore, Quartier UNIL-Sorge, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (V.S.); (L.P.); (J.R.v.d.M.)
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17
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Carraro N, Richard X, Sulser S, Delavat F, Mazza C, van der Meer JR. An analog to digital converter controls bistable transfer competence development of a widespread bacterial integrative and conjugative element. eLife 2020; 9:57915. [PMID: 32720896 PMCID: PMC7423338 DOI: 10.7554/elife.57915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Conjugative transfer of the integrative and conjugative element ICEclc in Pseudomonas requires development of a transfer competence state in stationary phase, which arises only in 3–5% of individual cells. The mechanisms controlling this bistable switch between non-active and transfer competent cells have long remained enigmatic. Using a variety of genetic tools and epistasis experiments in P. putida, we uncovered an ‘upstream’ cascade of three consecutive transcription factor-nodes, which controls transfer competence initiation. One of the uncovered transcription factors (named BisR) is representative for a new regulator family. Initiation activates a feedback loop, controlled by a second hitherto unrecognized heteromeric transcription factor named BisDC. Stochastic modelling and experimental data demonstrated the feedback loop to act as a scalable converter of unimodal (population-wide or ‘analog’) input to bistable (subpopulation-specific or ‘digital’) output. The feedback loop further enables prolonged production of BisDC, which ensures expression of the ‘downstream’ functions mediating ICE transfer competence in activated cells. Phylogenetic analyses showed that the ICEclc regulatory constellation with BisR and BisDC is widespread among Gamma- and Beta-proteobacteria, including various pathogenic strains, highlighting its evolutionary conservation and prime importance to control the behaviour of this wide family of conjugative elements. Mobile DNA elements are pieces of genetic material that can jump from one bacterium to another, and even across species. They are often useful to their host, for example carrying genes that allow bacteria to resist antibiotics. One example of bacterial mobile DNA is the ICEclc element. Usually, ICEclc sits passively within the bacterium’s own DNA, but in a small number of cells, it takes over, hijacking its host to multiply and to get transferred to other bacteria. Cells that can pass on the elements cannot divide, and so this ability is ultimately harmful to individual bacteria. Carrying ICEclc can therefore be positive for a bacterium but passing it on is not in the cell’s best interest. On the other hand, mobile DNAs like ICEclc have evolved to be disseminated as efficiently as possible. To shed more light on this tense relationship, Carraro et al. set out to identify the molecular mechanisms ICEclc deploys to control its host. Experiments using mutant bacteria revealed that for ICEclc to successfully take over the cell, a number of proteins needed to be produced in the correct order. In particular, a protein called BisDC triggers a mechanism to make more of itself, creating a self-reinforcing ‘feedback loop’. Mathematical simulations of the feedback loop showed that it could result in two potential outcomes for the cell. In most of the ‘virtual cells’, ICEclc ultimately remained passive; however, in a few, ICEclc managed to take over its hosts. In this case, the feedback loop ensured that there was always enough BisDC to maintain ICEclc’s control over the cell. Further analyses suggested that this feedback mechanism is also common in many other mobile DNA elements, including some that help bacteria to resist drugs. These results are an important contribution to understand how mobile DNAs manipulate their bacterial host in order to propagate and disperse. In the future, this knowledge could help develop new strategies to combat the spread of antibiotic resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Carraro
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Xavier Richard
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.,Department of Mathematics, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Sandra Sulser
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - François Delavat
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.,UMR CNRS 6286 UFIP, University of Nantes, Nantes, France
| | - Christian Mazza
- Department of Mathematics, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
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18
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Botelho J, Schulenburg H. The Role of Integrative and Conjugative Elements in Antibiotic Resistance Evolution. Trends Microbiol 2020; 29:8-18. [PMID: 32536522 DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2020.05.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2020] [Revised: 05/07/2020] [Accepted: 05/14/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Mobile genetic elements (MGEs), such as plasmids and integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs), are main drivers for the spread of antibiotic resistance (AR). Coevolution between bacteria and plasmids shapes the transfer and stability of plasmids across bacteria. Although ICEs outnumber conjugative plasmids, the dynamics of ICE-bacterium coevolution, ICE transfer rates, and fitness costs are as yet largely unexplored. Conjugative plasmids and ICEs are both transferred by type IV secretion systems, but ICEs are typically immune to segregational loss, suggesting that the evolution of ICE-bacterium associations varies from that of plasmid-bacterium associations. Considering the high abundance of ICEs among bacteria, ICE-bacterium dynamics represent a promising challenge for future research that will enhance our understanding of AR spread in human pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- João Botelho
- Antibiotic Resistance Evolution Group, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany; Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts University, Kiel, Germany.
| | - Hinrich Schulenburg
- Antibiotic Resistance Evolution Group, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany; Department of Evolutionary Ecology and Genetics, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts University, Kiel, Germany
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19
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Cury J, Oliveira PH, de la Cruz F, Rocha EPC. Host Range and Genetic Plasticity Explain the Coexistence of Integrative and Extrachromosomal Mobile Genetic Elements. Mol Biol Evol 2020; 35:2230-2239. [PMID: 29905872 PMCID: PMC6107060 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msy123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Self-transmissible mobile genetic elements drive horizontal gene transfer between prokaryotes. Some of these elements integrate in the chromosome, whereas others replicate autonomously as plasmids. Recent works showed the existence of few differences, and occasional interconversion, between the two types of elements. Here, we enquired on why evolutionary processes have maintained the two types of mobile genetic elements by comparing integrative and conjugative elements (ICE) with extrachromosomal ones (conjugative plasmids) of the highly abundant MPFT conjugative type. We observed that plasmids encode more replicases, partition systems, and antibiotic resistance genes, whereas ICEs encode more integrases and metabolism-associated genes. ICEs and plasmids have similar average sizes, but plasmids are much more variable, have more DNA repeats, and exchange genes more frequently. On the other hand, we found that ICEs are more frequently transferred between distant taxa. We propose a model where the different genetic plasticity and amplitude of host range between elements explain the co-occurrence of integrative and extrachromosomal elements in microbial populations. In particular, the conversion from ICE to plasmid allows ICE to be more plastic, while the conversion from plasmid to ICE allows the expansion of the element's host range.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean Cury
- Microbial Evolutionary Genomics, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR3525, Paris, France
| | - Pedro H Oliveira
- Microbial Evolutionary Genomics, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR3525, Paris, France
| | - Fernando de la Cruz
- Departamento de Biologia Molecular e Instituto de Biomedicina y Biotecnologia de Cantabria (IBBTEC), Universidad de Cantabria-CSIC, Santander, Spain
| | - Eduardo P C Rocha
- Microbial Evolutionary Genomics, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France.,CNRS, UMR3525, Paris, France
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20
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Antibiotic resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa - Mechanisms, epidemiology and evolution. Drug Resist Updat 2019; 44:100640. [PMID: 31492517 DOI: 10.1016/j.drup.2019.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 252] [Impact Index Per Article: 50.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2019] [Revised: 07/11/2019] [Accepted: 07/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Antibiotics are powerful drugs used in the treatment of bacterial infections. The inappropriate use of these medicines has driven the dissemination of antibiotic resistance (AR) in most bacteria. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen commonly involved in environmental- and difficult-to-treat hospital-acquired infections. This species is frequently resistant to several antibiotics, being in the "critical" category of the WHO's priority pathogens list for research and development of new antibiotics. In addition to a remarkable intrinsic resistance to several antibiotics, P. aeruginosa can acquire resistance through chromosomal mutations and acquisition of AR genes. P. aeruginosa has one of the largest bacterial genomes and possesses a significant assortment of genes acquired by horizontal gene transfer (HGT), which are frequently localized within integrons and mobile genetic elements (MGEs), such as transposons, insertion sequences, genomic islands, phages, plasmids and integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs). This genomic diversity results in a non-clonal population structure, punctuated by specific clones that are associated with significant morbidity and mortality worldwide, the so-called high-risk clones. Acquisition of MGEs produces a fitness cost in the host, that can be eased over time by compensatory mutations during MGE-host coevolution. Even though plasmids and ICEs are important drivers of AR, the underlying evolutionary traits that promote this dissemination are poorly understood. In this review, we provide a comprehensive description of the main strategies involved in AR in P. aeruginosa and the leading drivers of HGT in this species. The most recently developed genomic tools that allowed a better understanding of the features contributing for the success of P. aeruginosa are discussed.
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21
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Botelho J, Grosso F, Peixe L. WITHDRAWN: Antibiotic resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa – mechanisms, epidemiology and evolution. Drug Resist Updat 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.drup.2019.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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22
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Transient Replication in Specialized Cells Favors Transfer of an Integrative and Conjugative Element. mBio 2019; 10:mBio.01133-19. [PMID: 31186329 PMCID: PMC6561031 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01133-19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacterial evolution is driven to a large extent by horizontal gene transfer (HGT)—the processes that distribute genetic material between species rather than by vertical descent. The different elements and processes mediating HGT have been characterized in great molecular detail. In contrast, very little is known on adaptive features selecting HGT evolvability and fitness optimization. By studying the molecular behavior of an integrated mobile DNA of the class of integrative and conjugative elements in individual Pseudomonas putida donor bacteria, we report here how transient replication of the element after its excision from the chromosome is favorable for its transfer success. Since successful transfer into a new recipient is a measure of the element’s fitness, transient replication may have been selected as an adaptive benefit for more-optimal transfer. Integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) are widespread mobile DNA within bacterial genomes, whose lifestyle is relatively poorly understood. ICEs transmit vertically through donor cell chromosome replication, but in order to transfer, they have to excise from the chromosome. The excision step makes ICEs prone to loss, in case the donor cell divides and the ICE is not replicated. By adapting the system of LacI-cyan fluorescent protein (CFP) binding to lacO operator arrays, we analyze here the process of excision and transfer of the ICE for 3-chlorobenzoate degradation (ICEclc) in individual cells of the bacterium Pseudomonas putida. We provide evidence that ICEclc excises exclusively in a subset of specialized transfer-competent cells. ICEclc copy numbers in transfer-competent cells were higher than in regular nontransferring cells but were reduced in mutants lacking the ICE oriT1 origin of transfer, the ICE DNA relaxase, or the excision recombination sites. Consistently, transfer-competent cells showed a higher proportion without any observable LacI-CFP foci, suggesting ICEclc loss, but this proportion was independent of the ICE relaxase or the ICE origins of transfer. Our results thus indicated that the excised ICE becomes transiently replicated in transfer-competent cells, with up to six observable copies from LacI-CFP fluorescent focus measurements. Most of the observed ICEclc transfer to ICE-free P. putida recipients occurred from donors displaying 3 to 4 ICE copies, which constitute a minority among all transfer-competent cells. This finding suggests, therefore, that replication of the excised ICEclc in donors is beneficial for transfer fitness to recipient cells.
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23
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Li YP, Carraro N, Yang N, Liu B, Xia X, Feng R, Saquib Q, Al-Wathnani HA, van der Meer JR, Rensing C. Genomic Islands Confer Heavy Metal Resistance in Mucilaginibacter kameinonensis and Mucilaginibacter rubeus Isolated from a Gold/Copper Mine. Genes (Basel) 2018; 9:genes9120573. [PMID: 30477188 PMCID: PMC6316836 DOI: 10.3390/genes9120573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2018] [Revised: 11/16/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Heavy metals (HMs) are compounds that can be hazardous and impair growth of living organisms. Bacteria have evolved the capability not only to cope with heavy metals but also to detoxify polluted environments. Three heavy metal-resistant strains of Mucilaginibacer rubeus and one of Mucilaginibacter kameinonensis were isolated from the gold/copper Zijin mining site, Longyan, Fujian, China. These strains were shown to exhibit high resistance to heavy metals with minimal inhibitory concentration reaching up to 3.5 mM Cu(II), 21 mM Zn(II), 1.2 mM Cd(II), and 10.0 mM As(III). Genomes of the four strains were sequenced by Illumina. Sequence analyses revealed the presence of a high abundance of heavy metal resistance (HMR) determinants. One of the strain, M. rubeus P2, carried genes encoding 6 putative PIB-1-ATPase, 5 putative PIB-3-ATPase, 4 putative Zn(II)/Cd(II) PIB-4 type ATPase, and 16 putative resistance-nodulation-division (RND)-type metal transporter systems. Moreover, the four genomes contained a high abundance of genes coding for putative metal binding chaperones. Analysis of the close vicinity of these HMR determinants uncovered the presence of clusters of genes potentially associated with mobile genetic elements. These loci included genes coding for tyrosine recombinases (integrases) and subunits of mating pore (type 4 secretion system), respectively allowing integration/excision and conjugative transfer of numerous genomic islands. Further in silico analyses revealed that their genetic organization and gene products resemble the Bacteroides integrative and conjugative element CTnDOT. These results highlight the pivotal role of genomic islands in the acquisition and dissemination of adaptive traits, allowing for rapid adaption of bacteria and colonization of hostile environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Ping Li
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
| | - Nicolas Carraro
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland.
| | - Nan Yang
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
| | - Bixiu Liu
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
| | - Xian Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China.
| | - Renwei Feng
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
| | - Quaiser Saquib
- Zoology Department, College of Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Hend A Al-Wathnani
- Department of Botany & Microbiology, College of Sciences, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
| | | | - Christopher Rensing
- Institute of Environmental Microbiology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
- Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academic of Sciences, 361021 Xiamen, China.
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24
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Partridge SR, Kwong SM, Firth N, Jensen SO. Mobile Genetic Elements Associated with Antimicrobial Resistance. Clin Microbiol Rev 2018; 31:e00088-17. [PMID: 30068738 PMCID: PMC6148190 DOI: 10.1128/cmr.00088-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1180] [Impact Index Per Article: 196.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Strains of bacteria resistant to antibiotics, particularly those that are multiresistant, are an increasing major health care problem around the world. It is now abundantly clear that both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria are able to meet the evolutionary challenge of combating antimicrobial chemotherapy, often by acquiring preexisting resistance determinants from the bacterial gene pool. This is achieved through the concerted activities of mobile genetic elements able to move within or between DNA molecules, which include insertion sequences, transposons, and gene cassettes/integrons, and those that are able to transfer between bacterial cells, such as plasmids and integrative conjugative elements. Together these elements play a central role in facilitating horizontal genetic exchange and therefore promote the acquisition and spread of resistance genes. This review aims to outline the characteristics of the major types of mobile genetic elements involved in acquisition and spread of antibiotic resistance in both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, focusing on the so-called ESKAPEE group of organisms (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterobacter spp., and Escherichia coli), which have become the most problematic hospital pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sally R Partridge
- Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, The Westmead Institute for Medical Research, The University of Sydney and Westmead Hospital, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Stephen M Kwong
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Neville Firth
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Slade O Jensen
- Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Antibiotic Resistance & Mobile Elements Group, Ingham Institute for Applied Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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25
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Beker M, Rose S, Lykkebo CA, Douthwaite S. Integrative and Conjugative Elements (ICEs) in Pasteurellaceae Species and Their Detection by Multiplex PCR. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:1329. [PMID: 29997583 PMCID: PMC6028734 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.01329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2018] [Accepted: 05/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Strains of the Pasteurellaceae bacteria Pasteurella multocida and Mannheimia haemolytica are major etiological agents of bovine respiratory disease (BRD). Treatment of BRD with antimicrobials is becoming more challenging due to the increasing occurrence of resistance in infecting strains. In Pasteurellaceae strains exhibiting resistance to multiple antimicrobials including aminoglycosides, beta-lactams, macrolides and sulfonamides, the resistance determinants are often chromosomally encoded within integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs). To gain a more comprehensive picture of ICE structures, we sequenced the genomes of six strains of P. multocida and four strains of M. haemolytica; all strains were independent isolates and eight of them were multiple-resistant. ICE sequences varied in size from 49 to 79 kb, and were comprised of an array of conserved genes within a core region and varieties of resistance genes within accessory regions. These latter regions mainly account for the variation in the overall ICE sizes. From the sequence data, we developed a multiplex PCR assay targeting four conserved core genes required for integration and maintenance of ICE structures. Application of this assay on 75 isolates of P. multocida and M. haemolytica reveals how the presence and structures of ICEs are related to their antibiotic resistance phenotypes. The assay is also applicable to other members of the Pasteurellaceae family including Histophilus somni and indicates how clustering and dissemination of the resistance genes came about.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Beker
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Simon Rose
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Claus A Lykkebo
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
| | - Stephen Douthwaite
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark
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26
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Haskett TL, Terpolilli JJ, Ramachandran VK, Verdonk CJ, Poole PS, O’Hara GW, Ramsay JP. Sequential induction of three recombination directionality factors directs assembly of tripartite integrative and conjugative elements. PLoS Genet 2018; 14:e1007292. [PMID: 29565971 PMCID: PMC5882170 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1007292] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2018] [Revised: 04/03/2018] [Accepted: 03/06/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Tripartite integrative and conjugative elements (ICE3) are a novel form of ICE that exist as three separate DNA regions integrated within the genomes of Mesorhizobium spp. Prior to conjugative transfer the three ICE3 regions of M. ciceri WSM1271 ICEMcSym1271 combine and excise to form a single circular element. This assembly requires three coordinated recombination events involving three site-specific recombinases IntS, IntG and IntM. Here, we demonstrate that three excisionases–or recombination directionality factors—RdfS, RdfG and RdfM are required for ICE3 excision. Transcriptome sequencing revealed that expression of ICE3 transfer and conjugation genes was induced by quorum sensing. Quorum sensing activated expression of rdfS, and in turn RdfS stimulated transcription of both rdfG and rdfM. Therefore, RdfS acts as a “master controller” of ICE3 assembly and excision. The dependence of all three excisive reactions on RdfS ensures that ICE3 excision occurs via a stepwise sequence of recombination events that avoids splitting the chromosome into a non-viable configuration. These discoveries expose a surprisingly simple control system guiding molecular assembly of these novel and complex mobile genetic elements and highlight the diverse and critical functions of excisionase proteins in control of horizontal gene transfer. Bacteria evolve and adapt quickly through the horizontal transfer of DNA. A major mechanism facilitating this transfer is conjugation. Conjugative DNA elements that integrate into the chromosome are termed ‘Integrative and Conjugative Elements’ (ICE). We recently discovered a unique form of ICE that undergoes a complex series of recombination events with the host chromosome to split itself into three separate parts. This tripartite ICE must also precisely order its recombination when leaving the current host to avoid splitting the host chromosome and the ICE into non-viable parts. In this work, we show that the tripartite ICEs use chemical cell-cell communication to stimulate recombination and that recombination events are specifically ordered through cascaded transcriptional activation of small DNA-binding proteins called recombination directionality factors. Despite the inherent complexity of tripartite ICEs this work exposes a surprisingly simple system to stimulate their precise and ordered molecular assembly prior to horizontal transfer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy L. Haskett
- Centre for Rhizobium Studies, School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, Perth, WA, Australia
- * E-mail:
| | - Jason J. Terpolilli
- Centre for Rhizobium Studies, School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, Perth, WA, Australia
| | | | - Callum J. Verdonk
- School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences and the Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Phillip S. Poole
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Graham W. O’Hara
- Centre for Rhizobium Studies, School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch University, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Joshua P. Ramsay
- School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences and the Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia
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27
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The Obscure World of Integrative and Mobilizable Elements, Highly Widespread Elements that Pirate Bacterial Conjugative Systems. Genes (Basel) 2017; 8:genes8110337. [PMID: 29165361 PMCID: PMC5704250 DOI: 10.3390/genes8110337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2017] [Revised: 11/15/2017] [Accepted: 11/15/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Conjugation is a key mechanism of bacterial evolution that involves mobile genetic elements. Recent findings indicated that the main actors of conjugative transfer are not the well-known conjugative or mobilizable plasmids but are the integrated elements. This paper reviews current knowledge on “integrative and mobilizable elements” (IMEs) that have recently been shown to be highly diverse and highly widespread but are still rarely described. IMEs encode their own excision and integration and use the conjugation machinery of unrelated co-resident conjugative element for their own transfer. Recent studies revealed a much more complex and much more diverse lifecycle than initially thought. Besides their main transmission as integrated elements, IMEs probably use plasmid-like strategies to ensure their maintenance after excision. Their interaction with conjugative elements reveals not only harmless hitchhikers but also hunters that use conjugative elements as target for their integration or harmful parasites that subvert the conjugative apparatus of incoming elements to invade cells that harbor them. IMEs carry genes conferring various functions, such as resistance to antibiotics, that can enhance the fitness of their hosts and that contribute to their maintenance in bacterial populations. Taken as a whole, IMEs are probably major contributors to bacterial evolution.
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28
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Cury J, Touchon M, Rocha EPC. Integrative and conjugative elements and their hosts: composition, distribution and organization. Nucleic Acids Res 2017; 45:8943-8956. [PMID: 28911112 PMCID: PMC5587801 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkx607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2017] [Accepted: 07/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Conjugation of single-stranded DNA drives horizontal gene transfer between bacteria and was widely studied in conjugative plasmids. The organization and function of integrative and conjugative elements (ICE), even if they are more abundant, was only studied in a few model systems. Comparative genomics of ICE has been precluded by the difficulty in finding and delimiting these elements. Here, we present the results of a method that circumvents these problems by requiring only the identification of the conjugation genes and the species’ pan-genome. We delimited 200 ICEs and this allowed the first large-scale characterization of these elements. We quantified the presence in ICEs of a wide set of functions associated with the biology of mobile genetic elements, including some that are typically associated with plasmids, such as partition and replication. Protein sequence similarity networks and phylogenetic analyses revealed that ICEs are structured in functional modules. Integrases and conjugation systems have different evolutionary histories, even if the gene repertoires of ICEs can be grouped in function of conjugation types. Our characterization of the composition and organization of ICEs paves the way for future functional and evolutionary analyses of their cargo genes, composed of a majority of unknown function genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean Cury
- Microbial Evolutionary Genomics, Institut Pasteur, 28, rue du Dr Roux, Paris 75015, France.,CNRS, UMR3525, 28, rue Dr Roux, Paris 75015, France
| | - Marie Touchon
- Microbial Evolutionary Genomics, Institut Pasteur, 28, rue du Dr Roux, Paris 75015, France.,CNRS, UMR3525, 28, rue Dr Roux, Paris 75015, France
| | - Eduardo P C Rocha
- Microbial Evolutionary Genomics, Institut Pasteur, 28, rue du Dr Roux, Paris 75015, France.,CNRS, UMR3525, 28, rue Dr Roux, Paris 75015, France
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29
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Delavat F, Miyazaki R, Carraro N, Pradervand N, van der Meer JR. The hidden life of integrative and conjugative elements. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2017; 41:512-537. [PMID: 28369623 PMCID: PMC5812530 DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fux008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 125] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2016] [Accepted: 02/20/2017] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) are widespread mobile DNA that transmit both vertically, in a host-integrated state, and horizontally, through excision and transfer to new recipients. Different families of ICEs have been discovered with more or less restricted host ranges, which operate by similar mechanisms but differ in regulatory networks, evolutionary origin and the types of variable genes they contribute to the host. Based on reviewing recent experimental data, we propose a general model of ICE life style that explains the transition between vertical and horizontal transmission as a result of a bistable decision in the ICE-host partnership. In the large majority of cells, the ICE remains silent and integrated, but hidden at low to very low frequencies in the population specialized host cells appear in which the ICE starts its process of horizontal transmission. This bistable process leads to host cell differentiation, ICE excision and transfer, when suitable recipients are present. The ratio of ICE bistability (i.e. ratio of horizontal to vertical transmission) is the outcome of a balance between fitness costs imposed by the ICE horizontal transmission process on the host cell, and selection for ICE distribution (i.e. ICE 'fitness'). From this emerges a picture of ICEs as elements that have adapted to a mostly confined life style within their host, but with a very effective and dynamic transfer from a subpopulation of dedicated cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Delavat
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Ryo Miyazaki
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Ibaraki 305-8566, Japan
| | - Nicolas Carraro
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Nicolas Pradervand
- Department of Fundamental Microbiology, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne Switzerland
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30
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Gillings MR, Paulsen IT, Tetu SG. Genomics and the evolution of antibiotic resistance. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2016; 1388:92-107. [DOI: 10.1111/nyas.13268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2016] [Accepted: 09/06/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Ian T. Paulsen
- Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences; Macquarie University; Sydney Australia
| | - Sasha G. Tetu
- Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences; Macquarie University; Sydney Australia
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31
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Gillings MR. Lateral gene transfer, bacterial genome evolution, and the Anthropocene. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2016; 1389:20-36. [DOI: 10.1111/nyas.13213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2016] [Revised: 07/20/2016] [Accepted: 07/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Michael R. Gillings
- Genes to Geoscience Research Centre, Department of Biological Sciences Macquarie University Sydney New South Wales Australia
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32
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Koonin EV. Horizontal gene transfer: essentiality and evolvability in prokaryotes, and roles in evolutionary transitions. F1000Res 2016; 5. [PMID: 27508073 PMCID: PMC4962295 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.8737.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/18/2016] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The wide spread of gene exchange and loss in the prokaryotic world has prompted the concept of ‘lateral genomics’ to the point of an outright denial of the relevance of phylogenetic trees for evolution. However, the pronounced coherence congruence of the topologies of numerous gene trees, particularly those for (nearly) universal genes, translates into the notion of a statistical tree of life (STOL), which reflects a central trend of vertical evolution. The STOL can be employed as a framework for reconstruction of the evolutionary processes in the prokaryotic world. Quantitatively, however, horizontal gene transfer (HGT) dominates microbial evolution, with the rate of gene gain and loss being comparable to the rate of point mutations and much greater than the duplication rate. Theoretical models of evolution suggest that HGT is essential for the survival of microbial populations that otherwise deteriorate due to the Muller’s ratchet effect. Apparently, at least some bacteria and archaea evolved dedicated vehicles for gene transfer that evolved from selfish elements such as plasmids and viruses. Recent phylogenomic analyses suggest that episodes of massive HGT were pivotal for the emergence of major groups of organisms such as multiple archaeal phyla as well as eukaryotes. Similar analyses appear to indicate that, in addition to donating hundreds of genes to the emerging eukaryotic lineage, mitochondrial endosymbiosis severely curtailed HGT. These results shed new light on the routes of evolutionary transitions, but caution is due given the inherent uncertainty of deep phylogenies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eugene V Koonin
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
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33
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Carraro N, Libante V, Morel C, Charron-Bourgoin F, Leblond P, Guédon G. Plasmid-like replication of a minimal streptococcal integrative and conjugative element. MICROBIOLOGY-SGM 2016; 162:622-632. [PMID: 26825653 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.000219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs) are mobile genetic elements encoding their own excision from a replicon of their bacterial host, transfer by conjugation to a recipient bacterium and reintegration for maintenance. The conjugation, recombination and regulation modules of ICEs of the ICESt3 family are grouped together in a region called the ICE 'core region'. In addition to this core region, elements belonging to this family carry a highly variable region including cargo genes that could be involved in bacterial adaptation or in the maintenance of the element. Although ICEs are a major class of mobile elements through bacterial genomes, the functionality of an element encoding only its excision, transfer, integration and regulation has never been demonstrated experimentally. We engineered MiniICESt3, an artificial ICE derived from ICESt3, devoid of its cargo genes and thus only harbouring the core region. The functionality of this minimal element was assessed. MiniICESt3 was found to be able to excise at a rate of 3.1 %, transfer with a frequency of 1.0 × 10- 5 transconjugants per donor cell and stably maintain by site-specific integration into the 3' end of the fda gene, the same as ICESt3. Furthermore, MiniICESt3 was found in ∼10 copies per chromosome, this multicopy state likely contributing to its stability for >100 generations even in the absence of selection. Therefore, although ICEs were primarily assumed to only replicate along with the chromosome, our results uncovered extrachromosomal rolling-circle replicating plasmid-like forms of MiniICESt3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Carraro
- INRA, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France.,Université de Lorraine, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | - Virginie Libante
- INRA, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France.,Université de Lorraine, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | - Catherine Morel
- Université de Lorraine, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France.,INRA, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | - Florence Charron-Bourgoin
- Université de Lorraine, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France.,INRA, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | - Pierre Leblond
- Université de Lorraine, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France.,INRA, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
| | - Gérard Guédon
- Université de Lorraine, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France.,INRA, DynAMic, UMR1128, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
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