{"title":"Antibiotic susceptibility and genome analysis of Enterococcus species isolated from inpatients in one hospital with no apparent outbreak of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus in Japan","authors":"Ayumi Fujii, Miki Kawada-Matsuo, Mi Nguyen-Tra Le, Kanako Masuda, Kayoko Tadera, Yujin Suzuki, Saki Nishihama, Junzo Hisatsune, Yo Sugawara, Seiya Kashiyama, Hideki Shiba, Tomonao Aikawa, Hiroki Ohge, Motoyuki Sugai, Hitoshi Komatsuzawa","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13155","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1348-0421.13155","url":null,"abstract":"<p>To prevent nosocomial infection, it is important to screen for potential vancomycin-resistant <i>Enterococcus</i> (VRE) among patients. In this study, we analyzed enterococcal isolates from inpatients in one hospital without any apparent outbreak of VRE. Enterococcal isolates were collected from inpatients at Hiroshima University Hospital from April 1 to June 30, 2021 using selective medium for Enterococci. Multilocus sequence typing, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and whole-genome sequencing were performed. A total of 164 isolates, including <i>Enterococcus faecium</i> (41 isolates), <i>Enterococcus faecalis</i> (80 isolates), <i>Enterococcus raffinosus</i> (11 isolates), <i>Enterococcus casseliflavus</i> (nine isolates), <i>Enterococcus avium</i> (12 isolates), <i>Enterococcus lactis</i> (eight isolates), <i>Enterococcus gallinarum</i> (two isolates), and <i>Enterococcus malodoratus</i> (one isolate), were analyzed. We found one <i>vanA</i>-positive <i>E. faecium</i>, which was already informed when the patient was transferred to the hospital, nine <i>vanC</i>-positive <i>E. casseliflavus</i>, and two <i>vanC</i>-positive <i>E. gallinarum. E. faecium</i> isolates showed resistance to ampicillin (95.1%), imipenem (95.1%), and levofloxacin (87.8%), and <i>E. faecalis</i> isolates showed resistance to minocycline (49.4%). Ampicillin- and levofloxacin-resistant <i>E. faecium</i> had multiple mutations in penicillin-binding protein 5 (PBP5) (39/39 isolates) and ParC/GyrA (21/36 isolates), respectively. <i>E. raffinosus</i> showed resistance to ampicillin (81.8%), imipenem (45.5%), and levofloxacin (45.5%), and <i>E. lactis</i> showed resistance to ampicillin (37.5%) and imipenem (50.0%). The linezolid resistance genes <i>optrA</i> and <i>cfr</i>(B) were found only in one isolate of <i>E. faecalis</i> and <i>E. raffinosus</i>, respectively. This study, showing the status of enterococci infection in hospitalized patients, is one of the important information when considering nosocomial infection control of VRE.</p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-06-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141317675","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Involvement of SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins in immunopathogenesis","authors":"Hayato Ito, Tomokazu Tamura, Lei Wang, Kento Mori, Masumi Tsuda, Rigel Suzuki, Saori Suzuki, Kumiko Yoshimatsu, Shinya Tanaka, Takasuke Fukuhara","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13157","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1348-0421.13157","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the largest single-stranded RNA virus known to date. Its genome contains multiple accessory protein genes that act against host immune responses but are not required for progeny virus production. The functions of the accessory proteins in the viral life cycle have been examined, but their involvement in viral pathogenicity remains unclear. Here, we investigated the roles of the accessory proteins in viral immunopathogenicity. To this end, recombinant SARS-CoV-2 possessing nonsense mutations in the seven accessory protein open reading frames (ORFs) (ORF3a, ORF3b, ORF6, ORF7a, ORF8, ORF9b, and ORF10) was de novo generated using an early pandemic SARS-CoV-2 strain as a backbone. We confirmed that the resultant virus (termed ORF3–10 KO) did not express accessory proteins in infected cells and retained the desired mutations in the viral genome. In cell culture, the ORF3–10 KO virus exhibited similar virus growth kinetics as the parental virus. In hamsters, ORF3–10 KO virus infection resulted in mild weight loss and reduced viral replication in the oral cavity and lung tissue. ORF3–10 KO virus infection led to mild inflammation, indicating that an inability to evade innate immune sensing because of a lack of accessory proteins impairs virus growth in vivo and results in quick elimination from the body. Overall, we showed that SARS-CoV-2 accessory proteins are involved in immunopathogenicity.</p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141261842","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Biofilm-derived membrane vesicles exhibit potent immunomodulatory activity in Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1","authors":"Minato Takahara, Satoru Hirayama, Hiroyuki Futamata, Ryoma Nakao, Yosuke Tashiro","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13156","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1348-0421.13156","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Pathogenic bacteria form biofilms on epithelial cells, and most bacterial biofilms show increased production of membrane vesicles (MVs), also known as outer membrane vesicles in Gram-negative bacteria. Numerous studies have investigated the MVs released under planktonic conditions; however, the impact of MVs released from biofilms on immune responses remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics and immunomodulatory activity of MVs obtained from both planktonic and biofilm cultures of <i>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</i> PAO1. The innate immune responses of macrophages to planktonic-derived MVs (p-MVs) and biofilm-derived MVs (b-MVs) were investigated by measuring the mRNA expression of proinflammatory cytokines. Our results showed that b-MVs induced a higher expression of inflammatory cytokines, including <i>Il1b</i>, <i>Il6</i>, and <i>Il12p40</i>, than p-MVs. The mRNA expression levels of Toll-like receptor 4 (<i>Tlr4</i>) differed between the two types of MVs, but not <i>Tlr2</i>. Polymyxin B significantly neutralized b-MV-mediated cytokine induction, suggesting that lipopolysaccharide of native b-MVs is the origin of the immune response. In addition, heat-treated or homogenized b-MVs induced the mRNA expression of cytokines, including <i>Tnfa</i>, <i>Il1b</i>, <i>Il6</i>, and <i>Il12p40</i>. Heat treatment of MVs led to increased expression of <i>Tlr2</i> but not <i>Tlr4</i>, suggesting that TLR2 ligands play a role in detecting the pathogen-associated molecular patterns in lysed MVs. Taken together, our data indicate that potent immunomodulatory MVs are produced in <i>P. aeruginosa</i> biofilms and that this behavior could be a strategy for the bacteria to infect host cells. Furthermore, our findings would contribute to developing novel vaccines using MVs.</p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-05-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1348-0421.13156","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141155582","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zhan Yang, Juan Ni, Xuewei Sun, Qian Cui, Xinrui Zhang, Mingyan Zhang, Xiaojing Zhu, Zihan Wu, Chengliang Tang, Jingfeng Zhu, Huijuan Mao, Kang Liu, Chunhui Wang, Changying Xing, Jin Zhu
{"title":"The prevention effect of Limosilactobacillus reuteri on acute kidney injury by regulating gut microbiota","authors":"Zhan Yang, Juan Ni, Xuewei Sun, Qian Cui, Xinrui Zhang, Mingyan Zhang, Xiaojing Zhu, Zihan Wu, Chengliang Tang, Jingfeng Zhu, Huijuan Mao, Kang Liu, Chunhui Wang, Changying Xing, Jin Zhu","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13130","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1348-0421.13130","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Acute kidney injury (AKI) has considerably high morbidity and mortality but we do not have proper treatment for it. There is an urgent need to develop new prevention or treatment methods. Gut microbiota has a close connection with renal diseases and has become the new therapy target for AKI. In this study, we found the oral administration of the probiotic <i>Limosilactobacillus reuteri</i> had a prevention effect on the AKI induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). It reduced serum concentration of creatinine and urea nitrogen and protected the renal cells from necrosis and apoptosis. Meanwhile, <i>L. reuteri</i> improved the gut barrier function, which is destroyed in AKI, and modulated the gut microbiota and relevant metabolites. Compared with the LPS group, <i>L. reuteri</i> increased the proportion of Proteobacteria and reduced the proportion of Firmicutes, changing the overall structure of the gut microbiota. It also influenced the fecal metabolites and changed the metabolite pathways, such as tyrosine metabolism, pentose and glucuronate interconversions, galactose metabolism, purine metabolism, and insulin resistance. These results showed that <i>L. reuteri</i> is a potential therapy for AKI as it helps in sustaining the gut barrier integrity and modulating gut microbiota and related metabolites.</p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-05-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140922774","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Issue Information – Cover","authors":"","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13129","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1348-0421.13129","url":null,"abstract":"<p><b>Cover photograph</b>: Proposed model: Mutations in N-glycosylation sites at N331 and N343 residues of RBD 705 protein inhibit S-ACE2 binding, IL-6 expression and cytotoxicity. <i>Microbiol Immunol: 68:165-178</i>. Article link here\u0000 \u0000 <figure>\u0000 <div><picture>\u0000 <source></source></picture><p></p>\u0000 </div>\u0000 </figure></p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1348-0421.13129","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140844802","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tsuyoshi Miki, Takeshi Haneda, Nobuhiko Okada, Masahiro Ito
{"title":"Possible link between colonization of the gastrointestinal tract by Citrobacter rodentium in C57BL/6 mice and microbiota composition","authors":"Tsuyoshi Miki, Takeshi Haneda, Nobuhiko Okada, Masahiro Ito","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13128","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1348-0421.13128","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Colonization resistance, conferred by the host's microbiota through both direct and indirect protective actions, serves to protect the host from enteric infections. Here, we identified the specific members of the gut microbiota that impact gastrointestinal colonization by <i>Citrobacter rodentium</i>, a murine pathogen causing colonic crypt hyperplasia. The gut colonization levels of <i>C. rodentium</i> in C57BL/6 mice varied among breeding facilities, probably due to differences in microbiota composition. A comprehensive analysis of the microbiota revealed that specific members of the microbiota may influence gut colonization by <i>C. rodentium</i>, thus providing a potential link between the two.</p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140679198","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Proposal of Helicobacter higonensis sp. nov. isolated from a human clinical specimen, and emended description of Helicobacter valdiviensis Collado, 2014","authors":"Junko Tomida, Tohru Miyoshi-Akiyama, Ryo Kutsuna, Hiroyasu Tsutsuki, Tomohiro Sawa, Margo Cnockaert, Peter Vandamme, Yoshiaki Kawamura","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13127","DOIUrl":"10.1111/1348-0421.13127","url":null,"abstract":"<p>We have previously isolated a gram-negative microaerophilic strain, PAGU2000<sup>T</sup> from a patient presenting with a fever in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. The present study aimed to comprehensively analyze the taxonomy of the isolated strain using a polyphasic approach. The 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated that the strain was a member of enterohepatic <i>Helicobacter</i>. The strain PAGU2000<sup>T</sup> shared a 97.5% 16S rRNA gene nucleotide identity with <i>Helicobacter valdiviensis</i>, and this taxonomic position was confirmed by phylogenetic analysis of the GyrA amino acid sequences. The proposed strain PAGU2000<sup>T</sup> has a 1.482 Mbp chromosome with a DNA G + C content of 31.3 mol% and encodes 1520 predicted coding sequences. The average nucleotide identity between the strain PAGU2000<sup>T</sup> and type strain of <i>H. valdiviensis</i> was 70.3%, which was lower than the recommended threshold of 95% for species delineation. The strain PAGU2000<sup>T</sup> was a motile, non-spore-forming, and spiral-shaped bacterium, exhibiting catalase and oxidase activities but not urease and nitrate reduction. This study demonstrates that the isolate represents a novel species within enterohepatic <i>Helicobacter</i>, for which the name <i>Helicobacter higonensis</i> is proposed (type strain: PAGU2000<sup>T</sup> = GTC 16811<sup>T</sup> = LMG 33095<sup>T</sup>). In this study, we describe the phenotypic and morphological features of this strain and propose an emended description of some biochemical traits of <i>H. valdiviensis</i>.</p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140579812","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Issue Information – Cover","authors":"","doi":"10.1111/1348-0421.13125","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/1348-0421.13125","url":null,"abstract":"<p><b>Cover photograph</b>: The modulatory function of circ_0008410 was examined in RASFs. The amplification of divergent primers and 518 convergent primer in cDNA and gDNA of RASFs. <i>Microbiol Immunol: 68:100-110</i>. Article link here\u0000 \u0000 <figure>\u0000 <div><picture>\u0000 <source></source></picture><p></p>\u0000 </div>\u0000 </figure></p>","PeriodicalId":18679,"journal":{"name":"Microbiology and Immunology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1348-0421.13125","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140104459","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}