Fems Microbiology Letters最新文献

{"title":"Comparison of crystal violet staining, microscopy with image analysis, and quantitative PCR to examine biofilm dynamics.","authors":"So-Yeon Jeong, Ji Won Lee, Eun Ji Kim, Chi Won Lee, Tae Gwan Kim","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnae115","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnae115","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Crystal-violet staining, microscopy with image analysis, and quantitative PCR (qPCR) were compared to examine biofilm dynamics. Biofilms of 30 polycultures comprising 15 bacterial species were monitored for 14 days. Collectively, qPCR (representing population) revealed a different growth pattern compared to staining (biomass) and microscopy (colonization): biomass and colonization gradually increased over time, whereas population increased rapidly for the first seven days and leveled off. Temporal forms were categorized into two growth patterns: continuous increase (CI) and non-continuous increase. Staining and microscopy showed similar odds of detecting the CI pattern (27 and 23 polycultures, respectively) across polycultures, greater than that of qPCR (14 polycultures) (P < 0.05). All three methods revealed the identical patterns for 13 polycultures. Staining with microscopy, staining with qPCR, and microscopy with qPCR found the same patterns in 22, 15, and 19 polycultures, respectively. Additionally, staining was quantitatively agreed with microscopy (P < 0.05; R2 > 0.50), whereas neither staining nor microscopy strongly agreed with qPCR (P < 0.05; R2 ≤ 0.22). Collectively, staining was more compatible with microscopy than qPCR in characterizing biofilm dynamics and quantifying biofilms owing to the difference between population growth and biofilm expansion. The concurrent use of qPCR with biomass estimations allows for accurate and comprehensive biofilm quantification.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142893391","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"About two French cases of disseminated Cryptococcus neoformans infection associated with COVID-19.","authors":"Wendy Pulby, Jérémy Lafolie, Chloé Belot, Loïc Dopeux, Sébastien Loiseau, Maxime Moniot, Philippe Poirier, Céline Nourrisson","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf012","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>SARS-CoV-2 infection is an acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with immune dysfunction, causing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease. The use of immunosuppressive drugs in its treatment increases the risk of opportunistic infections. In particular, opportunistic fungal infections have been described in initially non-immunocompromised patients with severe COVID-19 disease. Among them, rare cases of cryptococcosis have been described. Here we present the first two French cases of non-HIV non-transplant patients who developed disseminated Cryptococcus neoformans fungal infection in the setting of severe COVID-19 disease. Blood cultures appear to be an interesting diagnostic tool for post-COVID-19 cryptococcosis, which is an often fatal complication.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143022544","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Reach of the Instagram profile @microbioworld in popularizing mycology and microbiology.","authors":"Jefferson Brendon Almeida Dos Reis, Sofia Coradini Schirmer","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf019","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf019","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Online social networks have revolutionized scientific communication, making platforms like Instagram indispensable for sharing complex topics, including mycology. This study evaluated three key factors in assessing the impact of social media on scientific dissemination: follower profiles, reach, and engagement levels. We used the professional Instagram account @microbioworld as a case study. Account performance data were collected over a 90-day period (12 August-9 November 2024). Post performance was evaluated using data from selected posts published between 11 January and 11 November 2024. By the end of our sampling period, the account reached a total of 45 959 followers, with the majority aged 25-34 years (44.8%). It reached 108 631 unique accounts, with 22.4% being followers and 77.6% non-followers, generating 236 860 impressions and 15 750 interactions. Likes accounted for 83.3% of engagement. Posts featuring microorganism cultures achieved the highest engagement and reach. Sentiment analysis, using Bing and AFINN lexicons, revealed that over 89% of sentiments expressed in comments were positive. These findings demonstrate how Instagram can disseminate microbial content, foster positive perceptions of microorganisms, and emphasize their ecological importance, encouraging audience involvement with mycology and microbiology.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143122539","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"MicroMundo@Oeiras: citizen science promoting antibiotic stewardship, discovery of new antimicrobials, and monitoring of soil resistance.","authors":"Bruna Henriques, Bruna Brito, Catarina Barreiros, Guilherme Galvão, João Coito, Sofia Lourinho, Teresa Mil-Homens, Verónica Maciel, Afonso Queijinho, Beatriz Cardoso, Leonor Maria, Mariyana Vatova, Rodrigo Bastos, Sara Carrera Prata, Lígia O Martins, Renata Ramalho, Ana Silva, Elisabete Brigadeiro, Maria J Leão, Pedro Matos Pereira, Paulo Durão","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf061","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf061","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The alarming rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an emerging public health challenge to our society. Although resistance is an inevitable evolutionary process, finding new antimicrobials, mapping AMR, and raising community awareness leading to better hygiene attitudes and more responsible antibiotic consumption, when treatment is really required, is a cost-effective route to slow down the pace of resistance propagation. In MicroMundo@Oeiras, a citizen science project implemented at the ITQB NOVA research institute, we have successfully expanded to the Oeiras Municipality in the Lisbon metropolitan area (Portugal) the service-learning MicroMundo project based on the Tiny Earth/Small World Initiative, aimed to explore soil microbial biodiversity in search for novel antibiotics and simultaneously educating a fraction of the community at the university, and junior and high school level about AMR. Moreover, we have successfully extended the MicroMundo protocols to characterize the frequency of resistant soil bacteria to the antibiotics' amoxicillin, tetracycline, and ciprofloxacin. Our preliminary results using this coupled analysis suggest that AMR soil bacteria are likely to be more prevalent than antibiotic-producing bacteria, creating a stimulating experimental outcome for the enrolled citizen scientists, and broadening the scope of possible scientific questions. We have also created a public database, where all AMR frequency found in the isolated soil bacteria will be regularly updated, creating a novel AMR data source with information from unconventional monitoring sites.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144283108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Purification of active staphylococcal alpha-toxin produced in Bacillus subtilis.","authors":"Hoa T T Vo, Dat D Truong, Danh V Bui, Hoang T Le, Luyen T Vu, Dinh T M Tran, Thi M D Nguyen, Hoang D Nguyen","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf073","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf073","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Gram-positive bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, a multidrug-resistant pathogen, poses a significant threat to human and animal health. Its virulence is largely attributed to the production of alpha-toxin (Hla), a potent cytotoxic protein that forms pores in cell membranes, leading to lysis. This is the first study to report the successful expression and purification of wild-type Hla (HlaWT) using Bacillus subtilis-a safe, genetically stable, and endotoxin-free host system. A vector was constructed harboring the hla gene fused to Strep-tag II at the C-terminus under the control of a strong isopropyl-beta-d-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG)-inducible Pgrac212 promoter in a pHT expression vector for B. subtilis. Following IPTG induction, extracellular Hla was analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and confirmed by Western blotting using anti-Hla polyclonal antibodies. The Hla protein was purified in a single step using a Strep-Tactin column and showed a high response to the antibodies, as confirmed by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Hemolytic measurements using rabbit red blood cells demonstrated that Hla exhibits potent hemolytic activity. These findings demonstrate the potential of B. subtilis as an effective host for producing biologically active extracellular toxins and provide a scalable, safe platform for HlaWT production in pathogenesis research, diagnostics, immunology, drug screening, and toxoid vaccine development.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144648941","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Golden oats - Natural fortification of oat milk with riboflavin through fermentation.","authors":"Emmelie Joe Freudenberg Rasmussen, Jesper Holck, Peter Ruhdal Jensen, Christian Solem","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf091","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf091","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Plant-based beverages are often fortified with different vitamins, especially B-vitamins, as the raw materials used for their production have a low content of these. Recently, we reported a simple and natural approach for obtaining vitamin B2 (riboflavin) secreting derivatives of the lactic acid bacterium (LAB) Lactococcus lactis, based on the observation that riboflavin can alleviate heat-induced oxidative stress. Here, we explore the potential of these strains for enriching plant-based beverages based on soy and oats, with riboflavin. Three riboflavin producing L. lactis strains were selected for the study: ER10, ALE13, and LDH13, where the latter is a lactate dehydrogenase-deficient derivative of ALE13. We found that ER10 produced more than 50 % more riboflavin in soy milk than ALE13 under static conditions (i.e. with no active aeration). Aerated culturing, in general, increased riboflavin production, especially for LDH13. The protein in oat milk is mostly insoluble and thus unavailable for the L. lactis strains used. To address this, oat milk was treated with food grade proteases, Alcalase® and Flavourzyme®, generating soluble peptides. When LDH13 was grown in the enzymatically treated oat milk with aeration, this resulted in a 600 % increase in riboflavin content (∼6 mg/L), demonstrating that the bioavailability of amino acids limits riboflavin production in oat milk. Here, we found that arginine played a special role in riboflavin production. By supplementing enzymatically treated oat milk with arginine, the riboflavin content could be further increased to 8 mg/L.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12416276/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144948230","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Antibiofilm activity of Clitoria ternatea flowers anthocyanin fraction against biofilm-forming oral bacteria.","authors":"Allimalar Sathiaseelan, Keang Peng Song, Hock Siew Tan, Wee Sim Choo","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf035","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf035","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study investigated the antibiofilm effects of Clitoria ternatea flowers anthocyanin fraction (AF) on Streptococcus mutans, Actinomyces viscosus, and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans. AF was obtained using column chromatography, and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was employed for its characterization and identification. The crystal violet assay and scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed significant inhibition of early biofilm formation and destruction of preformed biofilms after AF treatment (0.94-15 mg ml-1). Antiadhesion assay on acrylic teeth demonstrated that AF effectively hampered sucrose dependent and independent attachment. Importantly, growth curve and pH drop assays showed that AF inhibited pH reduction for all bacteria tested without hindering bacterial growth. Furthermore, the tetrazolium-based cytotoxicity assay indicated no toxicity towards normal human gingival fibroblasts at 0.78-12.5 mg ml-1. These findings suggest C. ternatea anthocyanins are promising antibiofilm agents for oral biofilm control, acting during both initial formation and on mature biofilms.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11974385/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143699540","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Advancing knowledge on the biogeography of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to support Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land.","authors":"Justin D Stewart, Adriana Corrales, Cátia Canteiro, Clara Qin, Manju M Gupta, Burenjargal Otgonsuren, Clara P Peña-Venegas, Michael E Van Nuland, Petr Kohout, Tomáš Větrovský, Vasilis Kokkoris, Bethan F Manley","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf055","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf055","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are fundamental to planetary health, enhancing plant nutrient uptake, stabilizing soils, and supporting biodiversity. Due to their prevalence and ecological importance, AM fungi are critical to achieving the environmental targets within the United Nations (UN) Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) framework, including SDG 15: Life on Land. Despite these fungi engaging in the most widespread and ancient plant-microbe symbiosis, many fundamental aspects of the biogeography of AM fungi remain poorly resolved. This limits our ability to understand and document these fungal species' contributions to preserving terrestrial life on Earth. Using the largest global dataset of AM fungal eDNA sequences, we highlight that > 70% of ecoregions have no available data generated from soil using AM fungal specific metabarcoding. Drawing attention to these severe data gaps can optimize future sampling efforts in key habitats. Filling these gaps and developing a more complete picture on the biogeographic distributions of AM fungal species will help to clarify their contributions to environmental targets.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":"372 ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12204646/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144332718","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The NitroSpeed Taniborbactam NP test as a rapid test for detection of β-lactamase-mediated susceptibility to taniborbactam.","authors":"Otávio Hallal Ferreira Raro, Soraya Herrera-Espejo, Maxime Bouvier, Auriane Kerbol, Laurent Poirel, Patrice Nordmann","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf044","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf044","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Taniborbactam (TAN) is an investigational β-lactamase inhibitor in clinical development combined with cefepime for the treatment of bacterial infections caused by broad-spectrum β-lactamase-expressing bacteria. Its spectrum of inhibition encompasses all classes of β-lactamases, including clinically important metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) NDM-1 and VIM-2. However, TAN lacks a significant inhibition of imipenemase-type β-lactamases. Rare TAN-resistant New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase (NDM) or Verona integron-encoded metallo-β-lactamase (VIM) variants (namely NDM-9, NDM-30, and VIM-83) have been identified. The NitroSpeed Taniborbactam NP test was developed to rapidly assess the β-lactamase inhibitory activity of TAN against various β-lactamases, particularly serving as an efficient tool for identifying compounds with potential activity against different types of MBLs. The test is based on the hydrolysis of (i) nitrocefin (to determine the presence or absence of β-lactamase), (ii) ertapenem (to confirm the presence or the absence of carbapenemase), and (iii) TAN (to assess whether the carbapenemase is inhibited by TAN). The test was validated using a collection of 134 genetically characterized clinical isolates (103 Enterobacterales and 31 Pseudomonas aeruginosa). The NitroSpeed Taniborbactam NP test is simple, easy to perform, and provides results within ≤15 min. When evaluated against a broad set of β-lactamases, the test demonstrated 100% sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":"372 ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12065395/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144005179","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"An engineered peptide derived from the innate immune effector high-mobility group box 1 disrupts and prevents dual-genera biofilms formed by common respiratory tract pathogens.","authors":"Jaime D Rhodes, Tyler J Kelly, Steven D Goodman, Lauren O Bakaletz","doi":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf029","DOIUrl":"10.1093/femsle/fnaf029","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Bacterial biofilms mediate chronic and recurrent bacterial infections that are extremely difficult to treat by currently available standards of care. In nature, these encased bacterial communities are typically comprised of more than one genus or species. Specifically, in the airway, nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHI) predominates and is commonly isolated with one or more of the following co-pathogens with which it forms unique relationships: methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Burkholderia cenocepacia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Moraxella catarrhalis. We recently showed that dual-genera biofilms comprised of NTHI plus a co-pathogen are disrupted when the biofilm matrix is destabilized by a pathogen-directed strategy that uses a humanized monoclonal antibody directed against the protective domains of bacterial DNABII proteins found at vertices of crossed strands of eDNA within the biofilm matrix. We also recently showed that a peptide synthesized from the host innate immune effector High Mobility Group Box 1 (HMGB1), called mB Box-97syn, competitively inhibits binding of the bacterial DNABII proteins to eDNA, which thereby also destabilizes single-species biofilms to release biofilm-resident bacteria into a transient yet highly vulnerable state that is more effectively cleared by the host innate immune system and/or antibiotics. Here, we expanded upon these studies to assess the ability of host-augmenting mB Box-97syn to both disrupt two-genera biofilms formed by NTHI plus a common co-pathogen, and prevent their formation. Disruption of established two-genera biofilms ranged from 57% to 88%, whereas prevention of two-genera biofilm formation ranged from 65% to 80% (P = .002 to P < .0001). The sobering recalcitrance of chronic and recurrent respiratory tract infections, combined with growing global concern of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), demands development of more effective management and prevention options. Ideally, novel treatment strategies would both target the pathogens and augment the host's natural abilities to eradicate them. Herein, we provide additional data to support continued development of the latter concept via demonstration of mB Box-97syn's efficacy against polymicrobial biofilms.</p>","PeriodicalId":12214,"journal":{"name":"Fems Microbiology Letters","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11895510/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143556212","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}