Exploring the Enzymatic and Antibacterial Activities of Novel Mycobacteriophage Lysin B Enzymes

A novel synergistic enzyme-antibiotic therapy with immobilization of mycobacteriophage Lysin B enzyme onto Rif@UiO-66 nanocomposite for enhanced inhaled anti-TB therapy; Nanoenzybiotics approach

The emergence of antibiotic-resistant and phage-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) necessitates improving new therapeutic plans. The objective of the current work was to ensure the effectiveness of rifampicin and the mycobacteriophage LysB D29 (LysB)enzyme in the treatment of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) infection, where new and safe metal-organic framework (MOF) nanoparticles were used in combination. UiO-66 nanoparticles were synthesized under mild conditions in which the antimycobacterial agent (rifampicin) was loaded (Rif@UiO-66) and LysB D29 enzyme immobilized onto Rif@UiO-66, which were further characterized. Subsequently, the antibacterial activity of different ratios of Rif@UiO-66 and LysB/Rif@uio-66 against the nonpathogenic tuberculosis model Mycobacterium smegmatis (M. smegmatis) was evaluated by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) tests. Impressively, the MIC of LysB/Rif@uio-66 was 16-fold lower than that of pure rifampicin. In vitro and in vivo toxicity studies proved that LysB/Rif@UiO-66 is a highly biocompatible therapy for pulmonary infection. A biodistribution assay showed that LysB/Rif@UiO-66 showed a 5.31-fold higher drug concentration in the lungs than free rifampicin. A synergistic interaction between UiO-66, rifampicin and the mycobacteriophage lysB D29 enzyme was shown in the computational method (docking). Therefore, all results indicated that the LysB/Rif@UiO-66 nanocomposite exhibited promising innovative enzyme-antibiotic therapy for tuberculosis treatment.

Metagenomic analysis of hot spring soil for mining a novel thermostable enzybiotic

The misuse and overuse of antibiotics have contributed to a rapid emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens. This global health threat underlines the urgent need for innovative and novel antimicrobials. Endolysins derived from bacteriophages or prophages constitute promising new antimicrobials (so-called enzybiotics), exhibiting the ability to break down bacterial peptidoglycan (PG). In the present work, metagenomic analysis of soil samples, collected from thermal springs, allowed the identification of a prophage-derived endolysin that belongs to the N-acetylmuramoyl-L-alanine amidase type 2 (NALAA-2) family and possesses a LysM (lysin motif) region as a cell wall binding domain (CWBD). The enzyme (Ami1) was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli, and its bactericidal and lytic activity was characterized. The results indicate that Ami1 exhibits strong bactericidal and antimicrobial activity against a broad range of bacterial pathogens, as well as against isolated peptidoglycan (PG). Among the examined bacterial pathogens, Ami1 showed highest bactericidal activity against Staphylococcus aureus sand Staphylococcus epidermidis cells. Thermostability analysis revealed a melting temperature of 64.2 ± 0.6 °C. Overall, these findings support the potential that Ami1, as a broad spectrum antimicrobial agent, could be further assessed as enzybiotic for the effective treatment of bacterial infections. KEY POINTS: • Metagenomic analysis allowed the identification of a novel prophage endolysin • The endolysin belongs to type 2 amidase family with lysin motif region • The endolysin displays high thermostability and broad bactericidal spectrum.

Mycobacteriophage D29 Lysin B exhibits promising anti-mycobacterial activity against drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis

IMPORTANCE

To combat the rapidly emerging drug-resistant M. tuberculosis, it is now essential to look for alternative therapeutics. Mycobacteriophages can be considered as efficient therapeutics due to their natural ability to infect and kill mycobacteria including M. tuberculosis. Here, we have exploited the mycolyl-arabinogalactan esterase property of LysB encoded from mycobacteriophage D29. This study is novel in terms of targeting a multi-drug-resistant pathogenic strain of M. tuberculosis with LysB and also examining the combination of anti-TB drugs and LysB. All the experiments include external administration of LysB. Therefore, the remarkable lytic activity of LysB overcomes the difficulty to enter the complex cell envelope of mycobacteria. Targeting the intracellularly located M. tuberculosis by LysB and non-toxicity to macrophages take the process of the development of LysB as a drug one step ahead, and also, the interaction studies with rifampicin and isoniazid will help to form a new treatment regimen against tuberculosis.

Use of Bacteriophages to Target Intracellular Pathogens

Bacteriophages (phages) have shown great potential as natural antimicrobials against extracellular pathogens (eg, Escherichia coli or Klebsiella pneumoniae), but little is known about how they interact with intracellular targets (eg, Shigella spp., Salmonella spp., Mycobacterium spp.) in the mammalian host. Recent research has demonstrated that phages can enter human cells. However, for the design of successful clinical applications, further investigation is required to define their subcellular behavior and to understand the complex biological processes that underlie the interaction with their bacterial targets. In this review, we summarize the molecular evidence of phage internalization in eucaryotic cells, with specific focus on proof of phage activity against their bacterial targets within the eucaryotic host, and the current proposed strategies to overcome poor penetrance issues that may impact therapeutic use against the most clinically relevant intracellular pathogens.

Phages and phage-borne enzymes as new antibacterial agents

BACKGROUND

Persistent and resistant infections caused by bacteria are increasing in numbers and pose a treatment challenge to the medical community and public health. However, solutions with new agents that will enable effective treatment are lacking or delayed by complex development and authorizations. Bacteriophages are known as a possible solution for invasive infections for decades but were seldom used in the Western world.

OBJECTIVES

To provide an overview of the current status and emerging use of bacteriophage therapy and phage-based products, as well as touch on the socioeconomic and regulatory issues surrounding their development.

SOURCES

Peer-reviewed articles and authors' first-hand experience.

CONTENT

Although phage therapy is making a comeback since its early discovery, there are many hurdles to its current use. The lack of appropriate standardized bacterial susceptibility testing; lack of a simple business model and authorization for the need of many phages to treat a single species infection; and the lack of knowledge on predictable outcome measures are just a few examples. In this review, we explore the possible routes for phage use, either based on local specialty centres or by industry; the current status of phage therapy, which is mainly based on single-centre or single-bacterial cohorts, and emerging clinical trials; local country-level frameworks for phage utilization even without full authorization; and the use of phage-derived products as alternatives to antibiotics. We also explore what may be the current indications based on the possible availability of phages.

IMPLICATIONS

Although phages are emerging as a potential treatment for non-resolving and life-threatening infections, the models for their use and production still need to be defined by the medical community, regulatory bodies, and industry. Bacteriophages may have a great potential for infection treatment but many aspects still need to be defined before their routine use in the clinic.

Phenotypic Characterization and Comparative Genomic Analyses of Mycobacteriophage WIVsmall as A New Member Assigned to F1 Subcluster

In this study, we conducted the morphological observation, biological and genomic characterization, evolutionary analysis, comparative genomics description, and proteome identification of a recently isolated mycobacteriophage, WIVsmall. Morphologically, WIVsmall is classified as a member of the Siphoviridae family, characterized by a flexible tail, measuring approximately 212 nm in length. The double-stranded phage genome DNA of WIVsmall spans 53,359 base pairs, and exhibits a G + C content of 61.01%. The genome of WIVsmall comprises 103 protein-coding genes, while no tRNA genes were detected. The genome annotation unveiled the presence of functional gene clusters responsible for mycobacteriophage assembly and maturation, replication, cell lysis, and functional protein synthesis. Based on the analysis of the phylogenetic tree, the genome of WIVsmall was classified as belonging to subgroup F1. A comparative genomics analysis indicated that the WIVsmall genome exhibited the highest similarity to the phage SG4, with a percentage of 64%. The single-step growth curve analysis of WIVsmall revealed a latent period of 120 min, and an outbreak period of 200 min.

Real-time monitoring of the pH microenvironment at the interface of multispecies biofilm and dental composites

Bacterial-mediated local pH change plays an important role in altering the integrity of resin dental composite materials in a dynamic environment such as the oral cavity. To address this, we developed a 300-μm-diameter, flexible, solid-state potentiometric pH microsensor capable of detecting and quantifying the local pH microenvironment at the interface of multispecies biofilm and dental resin in real time over 10 days. We used fluorinated poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) as the back contact in our newly developed pH sensor, along with a PVC-based ion-selective membrane and PTFE-AF coating. The high temporal resolution pH data demonstrated pH changes from 7 to 6 and 7 to 5.8 for the first 2 days and then fluctuated between 6.5 to 6 and 6 to 5.5 for the remaining 8 days with the resin composite or glass slide substrate respectively. We could observe the fluctuations in pH mediated by lactic acid production within the biofilm and the re-establishment of pH back to 7. However, acid production started to overwhelm buffering capacity with the continuous feed of sucrose cycles and reduced the local pH nearer to 5.5. No such changes or fluctuations were observed above the biofilm, as the pH remained at 7.0 ± 0.2 for 10 days. The localized real-time monitoring of the pH within the biofilm showed that the pH shift underneath the biofilm could lead to damage to the underlying material and their interface but cannot be sensed external to the biofilm.

Applications of bacteriophages against intracellular bacteria

Infectious diseases pose a significant threat to both human and animal populations. Intracellular bacteria are a group of pathogens that invade and survive within the interior of eukaryotic cells, which in turn protect them from antibacterial drugs and the host immune system. Limited penetration of antibacterials into host cells results in insufficient bacterial clearance and treatment failure. Bacteriophages have, over the decades, been proved to play an important role in combating bacterial infections (phage therapy), making them an important alternative to classical antibiotic strategies today. Phages have been found to be effective at killing various species of extracellular bacteria, but little is still known about how phages control intracellular infections. With advances in phage genomics and mechanisms of delivery and cell uptake, the development of phage-based antibacterial strategies to address the treatment of intracellular bacteria has general potential. In this review, we present the current state of knowledge regarding the application of bacteriophages against intracellular bacteria. We cover phage deployment against the most common intracellular pathogens with special attention to therapeutic and preventive strategies.

Exploration of synergistic action of cell wall-degrading enzymes against Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Background The major global health threat tuberculosis is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Mtb has a complex cell envelope - a partially covalently linked composite of polysaccharides, peptidoglycan and lipids, including a mycolic acid layer - which conveys pathogenicity but also protects against antibiotics. Given previous successes in treating gram-positive and -negative infections with cell wall degrading enzymes, we investigated such approach for Mtb. Objectives (i) Development of an Mtb microtiter growth inhibition assay that allows undisturbed cell envelope formation, to overcome the invalidation of results by typical clumped Mtb-growth in surfactant-free assays. (ii) Exploring anti-Mtb potency of cell wall layer-degrading enzymes. (iii) Investigation of the concerted action of several such enzymes. Methods We inserted a bacterial luciferase-operon in an auxotrophic Mtb strain to develop a microtiter assay that allows proper evaluation of cell wall degrading anti-Mtb enzymes. We assessed growth-inhibition by enzymes (recombinant mycobacteriophage mycolic acid esterase (LysB), fungal α-amylase and human and chicken egg white lysozymes) and combinations thereof, in presence or absence of biopharmaceutically acceptable surfactant. Results Our biosafety level-2 assay identified both LysB and lysozymes as potent Mtb-inhibitors, but only in presence of surfactant. Moreover, most potent disruption of the mycolic acid hydrophobic barrier was obtained by the highly synergistic combination of LysB, α-amylase and polysorbate 80. Conclusions Synergistically acting cell wall degrading enzymes are potently inhibiting Mtb - which sets the scene for the design of specifically tailored antimycobacterial (fusion) enzymes. Airway delivery of protein therapeutics has already been established and should be studied in animal models for active TB.

Targeting biofilms using phages and their enzymes

The complex biofilm architecture composed of extracellular polymeric structures (EPS) provides a protective shield to physiologically diverse bacterial cells immersed in its structure. The evolutionary interplay between bacteria and their viruses (phages) forced the latter ones to develop specific strategies to overcome the biofilm defensive barriers and kill sessile cells. Phages are equipped with a wide panel of enzyme-degrading EPS macromolecules which together are powerful weapons to combat biofilms. Antibiofilm performance can be achieved by combining phages or phage-borne enzymes with other antimicrobials such as antibiotics. Nevertheless, a variety of enzymes encoded in phage genomes still need to be explored. To advance in biofilm control strategies we must deepen the understanding of the biofilm biology itself, as well as discover and better exploit the unlimited antibacterial potential of phages.