scholarly journals Evolution of Cost-Free Resistance under Fluctuating Drug Selection in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

mSphere ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita H. Melnyk ◽  
Nicholas McCloskey ◽  
Aaron J. Hinz ◽  
Jeremy Dettman ◽  
Rees Kassen
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Antibiotic Treatment ◽  
Experimental Evolution ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Compensatory Evolution ◽  
High Fitness ◽  
Treatment Conditions ◽  
Resistant Strains

ABSTRACT Antibiotic resistance is a global problem that greatly impacts human health. How resistance persists, even in the absence of antibiotic treatment, is thus a public health problem of utmost importance. In this study, we explored the antibiotic treatment conditions under which cost-free resistance arises, using experimental evolution of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa and the quinolone antibiotic ciprofloxacin. We found that intermittent antibiotic treatment led to the evolution of cost-free resistance and demonstrate that compensatory evolution is the mechanism responsible for cost-free resistance. Our results suggest that discontinuous administration of antibiotic may be contributing to the high levels of antibiotic resistance currently found worldwide. Antibiotic resistance evolves rapidly in response to drug selection, but it can also persist at appreciable levels even after the removal of the antibiotic. This suggests that many resistant strains can both be resistant and have high fitness in the absence of antibiotics. To explore the conditions under which high-fitness, resistant strains evolve and the genetic changes responsible, we used a combination of experimental evolution and whole-genome sequencing to track the acquisition of ciprofloxacin resistance in the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa under conditions of constant and fluctuating antibiotic delivery patterns. We found that high-fitness, resistant strains evolved readily under fluctuating but not constant antibiotic conditions and that their evolution was underlain by a trade-off between resistance and fitness. Whole-genome sequencing of evolved isolates revealed that resistance was gained through mutations in known resistance genes and that second-site mutations generally compensated for costs associated with resistance in the fluctuating treatment, leading to the evolution of cost-free resistance. Our results suggest that current therapies involving intermittent administration of antibiotics are contributing to the maintenance of antibiotic resistance at high levels in clinical settings. IMPORTANCE Antibiotic resistance is a global problem that greatly impacts human health. How resistance persists, even in the absence of antibiotic treatment, is thus a public health problem of utmost importance. In this study, we explored the antibiotic treatment conditions under which cost-free resistance arises, using experimental evolution of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa and the quinolone antibiotic ciprofloxacin. We found that intermittent antibiotic treatment led to the evolution of cost-free resistance and demonstrate that compensatory evolution is the mechanism responsible for cost-free resistance. Our results suggest that discontinuous administration of antibiotic may be contributing to the high levels of antibiotic resistance currently found worldwide.

scholarly journals Fis Contributes to Resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to Ciprofloxacin by Regulating Pyocin Synthesis

2020 ◽  
Vol 202 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuqing Long ◽  
Weixin Fu ◽  
Su Wang ◽  
Xuan Deng ◽  
Yongxin Jin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Bacterial Resistance ◽  
Global Gene Expression ◽  
Chronic Infections ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Regulatory Pathways ◽  
Opportunistic Pathogenic

ABSTRACT Factor for inversion stimulation (Fis) is a versatile DNA binding protein that plays an important role in coordinating bacterial global gene expression in response to growth phases and environmental stresses. Previously, we demonstrated that Fis regulates the type III secretion system (T3SS) in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In this study, we explored the role of Fis in the antibiotic resistance of P. aeruginosa and found that mutation of the fis gene increases the bacterial susceptibility to ciprofloxacin. We further demonstrated that genes related to pyocin biosynthesis are upregulated in the fis mutant. The pyocins are produced in response to genotoxic agents, including ciprofloxacin, and the release of pyocins results in lysis of the producer cell. Thus, pyocin biosynthesis genes sensitize P. aeruginosa to ciprofloxacin. We found that PrtN, the positive regulator of the pyocin biosynthesis genes, is upregulated in the fis mutant. Genetic experiments and electrophoretic mobility shift assays revealed that Fis directly binds to the promoter region of prtN and represses its expression. Therefore, our results revealed novel Fis-mediated regulation on pyocin production and bacterial resistance to ciprofloxacin in P. aeruginosa. IMPORTANCE Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an important opportunistic pathogenic bacterium that causes various acute and chronic infections in human, especially in patients with compromised immunity, cystic fibrosis (CF), and/or severe burn wounds. About 60% of cystic fibrosis patients have a chronic respiratory infection caused by P. aeruginosa. The bacterium is intrinsically highly resistant to antibiotics, which greatly increases difficulties in clinical treatment. Therefore, it is critical to understand the mechanisms and the regulatory pathways that are involved in antibiotic resistance. In this study, we elucidated a novel regulatory pathway that controls the bacterial resistance to fluoroquinolone antibiotics, which enhances our understanding of how P. aeruginosa responds to ciprofloxacin.

scholarly journals Fitness Cost and Compensatory Evolution in Levofloxacin-Resistant Mycobacterium aurum

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Pi ◽  
Qingyun Liu ◽  
Howard E. Takiff ◽  
Qian Gao
Keyword(s):  
Fitness Cost ◽  
Fluoroquinolone Resistance ◽  
Growth Cycles ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Compensatory Evolution ◽  
Growth Defects ◽  
Mutant Strains ◽  
Resistant Strains ◽  
Compensatory Mutations ◽  
Mycobacterium Aurum

ABSTRACT We isolated spontaneous levofloxacin-resistant strains of Mycobacterium aurum to study the fitness cost and compensatory evolution of fluoroquinolone resistance in mycobacteria. Five of six mutant strains with substantial growth defects showed restored fitness after being serially passaged for 18 growth cycles, along with increased cellular ATP level. Whole-genome sequencing identified putative compensatory mutations in the glgC gene that restored the fitness of the resistant strains, presumably by altering the bacterial energy metabolism.

scholarly journals Evolution of Ecological Diversity in Biofilms of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by Altered Cyclic Diguanylate Signaling

2016 ◽  
Vol 198 (19) ◽  
pp. 2608-2618 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth M. Flynn ◽  
Gabrielle Dowell ◽  
Thomas M. Johnson ◽  
Benjamin J. Koestler ◽  
Christopher M. Waters ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Experimental Evolution ◽  
Ecological Diversity ◽  
Chronic Infections ◽  
Daily Cycle ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Dna Mismatch ◽  
Community Function ◽  
Evolutionary Forces ◽  
Intracellular Signal

ABSTRACTThe ecological and evolutionary forces that promote and maintain diversity in biofilms are not well understood. To quantify these forces, threePseudomonas aeruginosapopulations were experimentally evolved from strain PA14 in a daily cycle of attachment, assembly, and dispersal for 600 generations. Each biofilm population evolved diverse colony morphologies and mutator genotypes defective in DNA mismatch repair. This diversity enhanced population fitness and biofilm output, owing partly to rare, early colonizing mutants that enhanced attachment of others. Evolved mutants exhibited various levels of the intracellular signal cyclic-di-GMP, which associated with their timing of adherence. Manipulating cyclic-di-GMP levels within individual mutants revealed a network of interactions in the population that depended on various attachment strategies related to this signal. Diversification in biofilms may therefore arise and be reinforced by initial colonists that enable community assembly.IMPORTANCEHow biofilm diversity assembles, evolves, and contributes to community function is largely unknown. This presents a major challenge for understanding evolution during chronic infections and during the growth of all surface-associated microbes. We used experimental evolution to probe these dynamics and found that diversity, partly related to altered cyclic-di-GMP levels, arose and persisted due to the emergence of ecological interdependencies related to attachment patterns. Clonal isolates failed to capture population attributes, which points to the need to account for diversity in infections. More broadly, this study offers an experimental framework for linking phenotypic variation to distinct ecological strategies in biofilms and for studying eco-evolutionary interactions.

scholarly journals The evolution of antibiotic resistance in a structured host population

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (143) ◽  
pp. 20180040 ◽  
Author(s):  
François Blanquart ◽  
Sonja Lehtinen ◽  
Marc Lipsitch ◽  
Christophe Fraser
Keyword(s):  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Bacterial Population ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Host Population ◽  
Major Public Health Problem ◽  
Duration Of Treatment ◽  
Transmission Rates ◽  
Risk Of Death ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Resistant Strains

The evolution of antibiotic resistance in opportunistic pathogens such as Streptococcus pneumoniae , Escherichia coli or Staphylococcus aureus is a major public health problem, as infection with resistant strains leads to prolonged hospital stay and increased risk of death. Here, we develop a new model of the evolution of antibiotic resistance in a commensal bacterial population adapting to a heterogeneous host population composed of untreated and treated hosts, and structured in different host classes with different antibiotic use. Examples of host classes include age groups and geographic locations. Explicitly modelling the antibiotic treatment reveals that the emergence of a resistant strain is favoured by more frequent but shorter antibiotic courses, and by higher transmission rates. In addition, in a structured host population, localized transmission in host classes promotes both local adaptation of the bacterial population and the global maintenance of coexistence between sensitive and resistant strains. When transmission rates are heterogeneous across host classes, resistant strains evolve more readily in core groups of transmission. These findings have implications for the better management of antibiotic resistance: reducing the rate at which individuals receive antibiotics is more effective to reduce resistance than reducing the duration of treatment. Reducing the rate of treatment in a targeted class of the host population allows greater reduction in resistance, but determining which class to target is difficult in practice.

scholarly journals Multidrug Adaptive Resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Swarming Cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon R. Coleman ◽  
Travis Blimkie ◽  
Reza Falsafi ◽  
Robert E. W. Hancock
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Efflux Pump ◽  
Iron Acquisition ◽  
Polymyxin B ◽  
Rna Seq ◽  
Multidrug Efflux ◽  
Multidrug Efflux Pump ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Adaptive Resistance

ABSTRACT Swarming surface motility is a complex adaptation leading to multidrug antibiotic resistance and virulence factor production in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Here, we expanded previous studies to demonstrate that under swarming conditions, P. aeruginosa PA14 is more resistant to multiple antibiotics, including aminoglycosides, β-lactams, chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, tetracycline, trimethoprim, and macrolides, than swimming cells, but is not more resistant to polymyxin B. We investigated the mechanism(s) of swarming-mediated antibiotic resistance by examining the transcriptomes of swarming cells and swarming cells treated with tobramycin by transcriptomics (RNA-Seq) and reverse transcriptase quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR). RNA-Seq of swarming cells (versus swimming) revealed 1,581 dysregulated genes, including 104 transcriptional regulators, two-component systems, and sigma factors, numerous upregulated virulence and iron acquisition factors, and downregulated ribosomal genes. Strain PA14 mutants in resistome genes that were dysregulated under swarming conditions were tested for their ability to swarm in the presence of tobramycin. In total, 41 mutants in genes dysregulated under swarming conditions were shown to be more resistant to tobramycin under swarming conditions, indicating that swarming-mediated tobramycin resistance was multideterminant. Focusing on two genes downregulated under swarming conditions, both prtN and wbpW mutants were more resistant to tobramycin, while the prtN mutant was additionally resistant to trimethoprim under swarming conditions; complementation of these mutants restored susceptibility. RNA-Seq of swarming cells treated with subinhibitory concentrations of tobramycin revealed the upregulation of the multidrug efflux pump MexXY and downregulation of virulence factors.

scholarly journals TpiA is a Key Metabolic Enzyme That Affects Virulence and Resistance to Aminoglycoside Antibiotics through CrcZ in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

mBio ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yushan Xia ◽  
Dan Wang ◽  
Xiaolei Pan ◽  
Bin Xia ◽  
Yuding Weng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Carbon Metabolism ◽  
Essential Role ◽  
Bacterial Resistance ◽  
Triosephosphate Isomerase ◽  
Aminoglycoside Antibiotics ◽  
Metabolic Enzyme ◽  
Dihydroxyacetone Phosphate ◽  
Content Type

ABSTRACT Carbon metabolism plays an essential role in bacterial pathogenesis and susceptibility to antibiotics. In Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Crc, Hfq, and a small RNA, CrcZ, are central regulators of carbon metabolism. By screening mutants of genes involved in carbon metabolism, we found that mutation of the tpiA gene reduces the expression of the type III secretion system (T3SS) and bacterial resistance to aminoglycoside antibiotics. TpiA is a triosephosphate isomerase that reversibly converts glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate to dihydroxyacetone phosphate, a key step connecting glucose metabolism with glycerol and phospholipid metabolisms. We found that mutation of the tpiA gene enhances the bacterial carbon metabolism, respiration, and oxidative phosphorylation, which increases the membrane potential and promotes the uptake of aminoglycoside antibiotics. Further studies revealed that the level of CrcZ is increased in the tpiA mutant due to enhanced stability. Mutation of the crcZ gene in the tpiA mutant background restored the expression of the T3SS genes and the bacterial resistance to aminoglycoside antibiotics. Overall, this study reveals an essential role of TpiA in the metabolism, virulence, and antibiotic resistance in P. aeruginosa. IMPORTANCE The increase in bacterial resistance against antibiotics imposes a severe threat to public health. It is urgent to identify new drug targets and develop novel antimicrobials. Metabolic homeostasis of bacteria plays an essential role in their virulence and resistance to antibiotics. Recent studies demonstrated that antibiotic efficacies can be improved by modulating the bacterial metabolism. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an important opportunistic human pathogen that causes various infections. The bacterium is intrinsically resistant to antibiotics. In this study, we provide clear evidence that TpiA (triosephosphate isomerase) plays an essential role in the metabolism of P. aeruginosa and influences bacterial virulence and antibiotic resistance. The significance of this work is in identifying a key enzyme in the metabolic network, which will provide clues as to the development of novel treatment strategies against infections caused by P. aeruginosa.

scholarly journals PQS Produced by the Pseudomonas aeruginosa Stress Response Repels Swarms Away from Bacteriophage and Antibiotics

2019 ◽  
Vol 201 (23) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Louis Bru ◽  
Brandon Rawson ◽  
Calvin Trinh ◽  
Katrine Whiteson ◽  
Nina Molin Høyland-Kroghsbo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Stress Response ◽  
Antibiotic Treatment ◽  
Bacterial Pathogen ◽  
Warning Signal ◽  
Opportunistic Pathogen ◽  
Evolutionary Strategy ◽  
Swarming Motility ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Bacteriophage Infection

ABSTRACT We investigate the effect of bacteriophage infection and antibiotic treatment on the coordination of swarming, a collective form of flagellum- and pilus-mediated motility in bacteria. We show that phage infection of the opportunistic bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa abolishes swarming motility in the infected subpopulation and induces the release of the Pseudomonas quinolone signaling molecule PQS, which repulses uninfected subpopulations from approaching the infected area. These mechanisms have the overall effect of limiting the infection to a subpopulation, which promotes the survival of the overall population. Antibiotic treatment of P. aeruginosa elicits the same response, abolishing swarming motility and repulsing approaching swarms away from the antibiotic-treated area through a PQS-dependent mechanism. Swarms are entirely repelled from the zone of antibiotic-treated P. aeruginosa, consistent with a form of antibiotic evasion, and are not repelled by antibiotics alone. PQS has multiple functions, including serving as a quorum-sensing molecule, activating an oxidative stress response, and regulating the release of virulence and host-modifying factors. We show that PQS serves additionally as a stress warning signal that causes the greater population to physically avoid cell stress. The stress response at the collective level observed here in P. aeruginosa is consistent with a mechanism that promotes the survival of bacterial populations. IMPORTANCE We uncover a phage- and antibiotic-induced stress response in the clinically important opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Phage-infected P. aeruginosa subpopulations are isolated from uninfected subpopulations by the production of a stress-induced signal. Activation of the stress response by antibiotics causes P. aeruginosa to physically be repelled from the area containing antibiotics altogether, consistent with a mechanism of antibiotic evasion. The stress response observed here could increase P. aeruginosa resilience against antibiotic treatment and phage therapy in health care settings, as well as provide a simple evolutionary strategy to avoid areas containing stress.

scholarly journals Potentiation of Tobramycin by Silver Nanoparticles against Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilms

2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc B. Habash ◽  
Mara C. Goodyear ◽  
Amber J. Park ◽  
Matthew D. Surette ◽  
Emily C. Vis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Silver Nanoparticles ◽  
Bacterial Infections ◽  
Pathogenic Bacteria ◽  
Antimicrobial Agents ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Acute Infection ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Chronic Infections ◽  
Content Type

ABSTRACT Increasing antibiotic resistance among pathogenic bacterial species is a serious public health problem and has prompted research examining the antibacterial effects of alternative compounds and novel treatment strategies. Compounding this problem is the ability of many pathogenic bacteria to form biofilms during chronic infections. Importantly, these communities are often recalcitrant to antibiotic treatments that show effectiveness against acute infection. The antimicrobial properties of silver have been known for decades, but recently silver and silver-containing compounds have seen renewed interest as antimicrobial agents for treating bacterial infections. The goal of this study was to assess the ability of citrate-capped silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) of various sizes, alone and in combination with the aminoglycoside antibiotic tobramycin, to inhibit established Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms. Our results demonstrate that smaller 10-nm and 20-nm AgNPs were more effective at synergistically potentiating the activity of tobramycin. Visualization of biofilms treated with combinations of 10-nm AgNPs and tobramycin reveals that the synergistic bactericidal effect may be caused by disrupting cellular membranes. Minimum biofilm eradication concentration (MBEC) assays using clinical P. aeruginosa isolates shows that small AgNPs are more effective than larger AgNPs at inhibiting biofilms, but that the synergy effect is likely a strain-dependent phenomenon. These data suggest that small AgNPs synergistically potentiate the activity of tobramycin against P. aeruginosa in vitro and may reveal a potential role for AgNP/antibiotic combinations in treating patients with chronic infections in a strain-specific manner.

scholarly journals Clinically Relevant Plasma Concentrations of Colistin in Combination with Imipenem Enhance Pharmacodynamic Activity against Multidrug-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa at Multiple Inocula

2011 ◽  
Vol 55 (11) ◽  
pp. 5134-5142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Phillip J. Bergen ◽  
Alan Forrest ◽  
Jürgen B. Bulitta ◽  
Brian T. Tsuji ◽  
Hanna E. Sidjabat ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Antibiotic Therapy ◽  
Systematic Study ◽  
Plasma Concentrations ◽  
Multidrug Resistant ◽  
Bacterial Killing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Resistant Strains ◽  
Time Kill

ABSTRACTThe use of combination antibiotic therapy may be beneficial against rapidly emerging resistance inPseudomonas aeruginosa. The aim of this study was to systematically investigatein vitrobacterial killing and resistance emergence with colistin alone and in combination with imipenem against multidrug-resistant (MDR)P. aeruginosa. Time-kill studies were conducted over 48 h using 5 clinical isolates and ATCC 27853 at two inocula (∼106and ∼108CFU/ml); MDR, non-MDR, and colistin-heteroresistant and -resistant strains were included. Nine colistin-imipenem combinations were investigated. Microbiological response was examined by log changes at 6, 24, and 48 h. Colistin combined with imipenem at clinically relevant concentrations increased the levels of killing of MDR and colistin-heteroresistant isolates at both inocula. Substantial improvements in activity with combinations were observed across 48 h with all colistin concentrations at the low inoculum and with colistin at 4× and 16× MIC (or 4 and 32 mg/liter) at the high inoculum. Combinations were additive or synergistic against imipenem-resistant isolates (MICs, 16 and 32 mg/liter) at the 106-CFU inoculum in 9, 11, and 12 of 18 cases (i.e., 9 combinations across 2 isolates) at 6, 24, and 48 h, respectively, and against the same isolates at the 108-CFU inoculum in 11, 7, and 8 cases, respectively. Against a colistin-resistant strain (MIC, 128 mg/liter), combinations were additive or synergistic in 9 and 8 of 9 cases at 24 h at the 106- and 108-CFU inocula, respectively, and in 5 and 7 cases at 48 h. This systematic study provides important information for optimization of colistin-imipenem combinations targeting both colistin-susceptible and colistin-resistant subpopulations.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document