Emergence of Small Colony Variants Is an Adaptive Strategy Used by Pseudomonas aeruginosa to Mitigate the Effects of Redox Imbalance

From Dormancy to Eradication: Strategies for Controlling Bacterial Persisters in Food Settings

Bacterial persistence, a dormant state that enables microorganisms to survive harsh conditions, is a significant concern in food-industry settings, where traditional antimicrobial treatments often fail to eliminate these resilient cells. This article goes beyond conventional review by compiling critical information aimed at providing practical solutions to combat bacterial persisters in food production environments. This review explores the primary mechanisms behind persister cell formation, including toxin-antitoxin systems, the alarmone guanosine tetraphosphate (ppGpp), stochastic processes (in which persistence occurs as a random event), and the SOS response. Given the serious implications for food safety and quality, the authors also report a range of physical, chemical, and biological methods for targeting and eradicating persister cells. The strategies discussed, whether applied individually or in combination, offer varying levels of availability and applicability within the industry and can serve as a guide for implementing microbial contamination control plans. While significant progress has been achieved, further research is crucial to fully understand the complex mechanisms underlying bacterial persistence in food and to develop effective and targeted strategies for its eradication in food-industry settings. Overall, the translation of these insights into practical applications aims to support the food industry in overcoming this persistent challenge, ensuring safer, more sustainable food production.

Harnessing hypoxia: bacterial adaptation and chronic infection in cystic fibrosis

The exquisite ability of bacteria to adapt to their environment is essential for their capacity to colonize hostile niches. In the cystic fibrosis (CF) lung, hypoxia is among several environmental stresses that opportunistic pathogens must overcome to persist and chronically colonize. Although the role of hypoxia in the host has been widely reviewed, the impact of hypoxia on bacterial pathogens has not yet been studied extensively. This review considers the bacterial oxygen-sensing mechanisms in three species that effectively colonize the lungs of people with CF, namely Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Burkholderia cepacia complex, and Mycobacterium abscessus and draws parallels between their three proposed oxygen-sensing two-component systems: BfiSR, FixLJ, and DosRS, respectively. Moreover, each species expresses regulons that respond to hypoxia: Anr, Lxa, and DosR, and encode multiple proteins that share similar homologies and function. Many adaptations that these pathogens undergo during chronic infection, including antibiotic resistance, protease expression, or changes in motility, have parallels in the responses of the respective species to hypoxia. It is likely that exposure to hypoxia in their environmental habitats predispose these pathogens to colonization of hypoxic niches, arming them with mechanisms than enable their evasion of the immune system and establish chronic infections. Overcoming hypoxia presents a new target for therapeutic options against chronic lung infections.

Tobramycin-resistant small colony variant mutant of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium shows collateral sensitivity to nitrofurantoin

The increasing antibiotic resistance poses a significant global health challenge, threatening our ability to combat infectious diseases. The phenomenon of collateral sensitivity, whereby resistance to one antibiotic is accompanied by increased sensitivity to another, offers potential avenues for novel therapeutic interventions against infections unresponsive to classical treatments. In this study, we elucidate the emergence of tobramycin (TOB)-resistant small colony variants (SCVs) due to mutations in the hemL gene, which render S. Typhimurium more susceptible to nitrofurantoin (NIT). Mechanistic studies demonstrate that the collateral sensitivity in TOB-resistant S. Typhimurium SCVs primarily stems from disruptions in haem biosynthesis. This leads to dysfunction in the electron transport chain (ETC) and redox imbalance, ultimately inducing lethal accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Additionally, the upregulation of nfsA/B expressions facilitates the conversion of NIT prodrug into its active form, promoting ROS-mediated bacterial killing and contributing to this collateral sensitivity pattern. Importantly, alternative NIT therapy demonstrates a significant reduction of bacterial load by more than 2.24-log10 cfu/g in the murine thigh infection and colitis models. Our findings corroborate the collateral sensitivity of S. Typhimurium to nitrofurans as a consequence of evolving resistance to aminoglycosides. This provides a promising approach for treating infections due to aminoglycoside-resistant strains.

Vitamin D and vitamin K1 as novel inhibitors of biofilm in Gram-negative bacteria

BACKGROUND

The persistent surge in antimicrobial resistance represents a global disaster. The initial attachment and maturation of microbial biofilms are intimately related to antimicrobial resistance, which in turn exacerbates the challenge of eradicating bacterial infections. Consequently, there is a pressing need for novel therapies to be employed either independently or as adjuvants to diminish bacterial virulence and pathogenicity. In this context, we propose a novel approach focusing on vitamin D and vitamin K1 as potential antibiofilm agents that target Gram-negative bacteria which are hazardous to human health.

RESULTS

Out of 130 Gram-negative bacterial isolates, 117 were confirmed to be A. baumannii (21 isolates, 17.9%), K. pneumoniae (40 isolates, 34.2%) and P. aeruginosa (56 isolates, 47.9%). The majority of the isolates were obtained from blood and wound specimens (27.4% each). Most of the isolates exhibited high resistance rates to β-lactams (60.7-100%), ciprofloxacin (62.5-100%), amikacin (53.6-76.2%) and gentamicin (65-71.4%). Approximately 93.2% of the isolates were biofilm producers, with 6.8% categorized as weak, 42.7% as moderate, and 50.4% as strong biofilm producers. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of vitamin D and vitamin K1 were 625-1250 µg mL-1 and 2500-5000 µg mL-1, respectively, against A. baumannii (A5, A20 and A21), K. pneumoniae (K25, K27 and K28), and P. aeruginosa (P8, P16, P24 and P27) clinical isolates and standard strains A. baumannii (ATCC 19606 and ATCC 17978), K. pneumoniae (ATCC 51503) and P. aeruginosa PAO1 and PAO14. Both vitamins significantly decreased bacterial attachment and significantly eradicated mature biofilms developed by the selected standard and clinical Gram-negative isolates. The anti-biofilm effects of both supplements were confirmed by a notable decrease in the relative expression of the biofilm-encoding genes cusD, bssS and pelA in A. baumannii A5, K. pneumoniae K28 and P. aeruginosa P16, respectively.

CONCLUSION

This study highlights the anti-biofilm activity of vitamins D and K1 against the tested Gram-negative strains, which emphasizes the potential of these vitamins for use as adjuvant therapies to increase the efficacy of treatment for infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains and biofilm-forming phenotypes. However, further validation through in vivo studies is needed to confirm these promising results.

Bigger problems from smaller colonies: emergence of antibiotic-tolerant small colony variants of Mycobacterium avium complex in MAC-pulmonary disease patients

BACKGROUND

Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) is a group of slow-growing mycobacteria that includes Mycobacterium avium and Mycobacterium intracellulare. MAC pulmonary disease (MAC-PD) poses a threat to immunocompromised individuals and those with structural pulmonary diseases worldwide. The standard treatment regimen for MAC-PD includes a macrolide in combination with rifampicin and ethambutol. However, the treatment failure and disease recurrence rates after successful treatment remain high.

RESULTS

In the present study, we investigated the unique characteristics of small colony variants (SCVs) isolated from patients with MAC-PD. Furthermore, revertant (RVT) phenotype, emerged from the SCVs after prolonged incubation on 7H10 agar. We observed that SCVs exhibited slower growth rates than wild-type (WT) strains but had higher minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) against multiple antibiotics. However, some antibiotics showed low MICs for the WT, SCVs, and RVT phenotypes. Additionally, the genotypes were identical among SCVs, WT, and RVT. Based on the MIC data, we conducted time-kill kinetic experiments using various antibiotic combinations. The response to antibiotics varied among the phenotypes, with RVT being the most susceptible, WT showing intermediate susceptibility, and SCVs displaying the lowest susceptibility.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, the emergence of the SCVs phenotype represents a survival strategy adopted by MAC to adapt to hostile environments and persist during infection within the host. Additionally, combining the current drugs in the treatment regimen with additional drugs that promote the conversion of SCVs to RVT may offer a promising strategy to improve the clinical outcomes of patients with refractory MAC-PD.

Persistent ciprofloxacin exposure induced the transformation of Klebsiella pneumoniae small colony variant into mucous phenotype

Introduction

Small colony variant (SCV) is a bacterial phenotype closely related to persistent and recurrent infections. SCVs are mutations that occur within bacterial populations, resulting in a change in bacterial morphology and the formation of small colonies. This morphological change may enhance bacterial resistance to antibiotics and contribute to persistent and recurrent infections.

Methods

We isolated Klebsiella pneumoniae (KPN) and its SCV from a child with recurrent respiratory tract infections. KPN and SCV were treated with subinhibitory concentrations of antibiotics. growth curves, serum resistance experiments, macrophage phagocytosis experiments and whole genome sequencing were used to characterize KPN and SCV.

Results

After treating KPN and SCV with subinhibitory concentrations of antibiotics, we found that ciprofloxacin induced the SCV transition to the mucoid phenotype. We found that the growth of mucoid Klebsiella pneumoniae was significantly slower than maternal strain and SCV though growth curves. Serum resistance experiments showed that mucoid strains had significantly higher serum resistance compared to maternal strain and SCV. Macrophage phagocytosis experiments revealed that SCV had significantly higher intracellular survival rates compared to maternal strain and mucoid strains. Differential gene analysis of three strains revealed that the mucoid strain contained DNA polymerase V subunit UmuC gene on the plasmid, while the SCV strain had an additional IcmK family IV secretion protein on its plasmid.

Discussion

Our study showed the SCV of KPN changed to a mucoid colony when exposed to subinhibitory concentrations of ciprofloxacin. The higher resistance of serum of mucoid colonies was possibly related to the UmuC gene, while the increased intracellular survival of SCV may be related to the IcmK family type IV secretion proteins.