LuxS/AI-2 system is involved in antibiotic susceptibility and autolysis in Staphylococcus aureus NCTC 8325.
Current treatment for Staphylococcus aureus infections relies heavily upon the cell wall synthesis inhibitor antibiotics such as penicillin, oxacillin, vancomycin and teicoplanin. Increasing antibiotic resistance requires the development of new approaches to combating infection. Autoinducer-2 (AI-2) exists widely both in Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogens and is suggested as a universal language for intraspecies and interspecies communication. This study demonstrates the association between AI-2 signalling and cell wall synthesis inhibitor antibiotic susceptibility in S. aureus. In addition, a luxS mutant exhibited decreased autolysis and upregulated vancomycin resistance-associated VraRS two-component regulatory system. This finding may provide novel clues for antimicrobial therapy in S. aureus infection.
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China. xueting@ustc.edu.cn
Ting
T
Xue
Liping
L
Zhao
Baolin
B
Sun
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001329:Autolysis; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D013437:Carbon-Sulfur Lyases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D055786:Gene Knockout Techniques; D006714:Homoserine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007783:Lactones / Q000378:metabolism*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D050505:Mutant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D007783:Lactones; D050505:Mutant Proteins; C091088:N-octanoylhomoserine lactone; D006714:Homoserine; D013437:Carbon-Sulfur Lyases; C117753:LuxS protein, Bacteria