Characterisation of phage vB_Ec_DUEC01: A lytic Kagunavirus for multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli

IF 3.5 3区医学 Q3 IMMUNOLOGY

Microbial pathogenesis Pub Date : 2025-10-21 DOI:10.1016/j.micpath.2025.108124

Mahmoud E. Khalifa , Soad M. Omar

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Multi-drug resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli has become one of the significant global health concerns, and this demands the development of alternative strategies for antimicrobials. The present study describes the isolation and characterisation of bacteriophage vB_Ec_DUEC01- a virulent member of the class Caudoviricetes-which could serve as a potential biocontrol agent against MDR E. coli. Electron microscopy showed an icosahedral capsid and a long, non-contractile tail. The one-step growth curve resulted in a latent period of 20 min with a high burst size of 97 PFU per infected cell. Moreover, the phage showed reasonable stability over a pH range of 3.0–12.0 and at moderate temperatures of 20 °C–40 °C. Whole-genome sequencing revealed a genome of 43,949 bp encoding 77 open-reading frames (ORFs), encoding structural, packaging, DNA replication and metabolism, and lysis proteins. No lysogeny-related, antibiotic resistance, or virulence factor genes were found. Phylogenetic analysis placed the phage in the Kagunavirus genus, with closely related therapeutically relevant phages. Results suggest that vB_Ec_DUEC01 is effective, genetically safe, and stable; therefore, it is a preliminary good candidate for application as a biocontrol agent against MDR E. coli. Further, host-range and in vivo efficacy studies are necessary to develop this application in antimicrobial therapy.

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噬菌体vB_Ec_DUEC01：一种耐多药大肠杆菌裂解卡冈纳病毒的鉴定

耐多药大肠杆菌（MDR）已成为全球重大卫生问题之一，这要求开发替代抗微生物药物策略。本研究描述了噬菌体vB_Ec_DUEC01的分离和特性，这是尾状菌纲的一种剧毒成员，可能作为耐多药大肠杆菌的潜在生物防治剂。电子显微镜显示一个二十面体衣壳和一个长而不收缩的尾巴。一步生长曲线导致潜伏期为20分钟，每个感染细胞的爆发大小高达97 PFU。此外，噬菌体在pH 3.0-12.0范围内和20°C - 40°C的中等温度下表现出合理的稳定性。全基因组测序显示，该基因组全长43,949 bp，编码77个开放阅读框架（orf），编码结构、包装、DNA复制和代谢以及裂解蛋白。未发现溶原相关、抗生素耐药或毒力因子基因。系统发育分析表明该噬菌体属于卡古纳病毒属，具有密切相关的治疗相关噬菌体。结果表明，vB_Ec_DUEC01有效、基因安全、稳定；因此，它作为耐多药大肠杆菌的生物防治剂具有初步的应用前景。此外，宿主范围和体内疗效研究是开发其在抗菌治疗中的应用所必需的。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Microbial pathogenesis 医学-免疫学

CiteScore

7.40

自引率

2.60%

发文量

472

审稿时长

56 days

期刊介绍： Microbial Pathogenesis publishes original contributions and reviews about the molecular and cellular mechanisms of infectious diseases. It covers microbiology, host-pathogen interaction and immunology related to infectious agents, including bacteria, fungi, viruses and protozoa. It also accepts papers in the field of clinical microbiology, with the exception of case reports. Research Areas Include: -Pathogenesis -Virulence factors -Host susceptibility or resistance -Immune mechanisms -Identification, cloning and sequencing of relevant genes -Genetic studies -Viruses, prokaryotic organisms and protozoa -Microbiota -Systems biology related to infectious diseases -Targets for vaccine design (pre-clinical studies)