title: Inhibiting N-acyl-homoserine lactone synthesis and quenching Pseudomonas quinolone quorum sensing to attenuate virulence.
abstract: Bacteria sense their own population size, tune the expression of responding genes, and behave accordingly to environmental stimuli by secreting signaling molecules. This phenomenon is termed as quorum sensing (QS). By exogenously manipulating the signal transduction bacterial population behaviors could be controlled, which may be done through quorum quenching (QQ). QS related regulatory networks have been proven their involvement in regulating many virulence determinants in pathogenic bacteria in the course of infections. Interfering with QS signaling system could be a novel strategy against bacterial infections and therefore requires more understanding of their fundamental mechanisms. Here we review the development of studies specifically on the inhibition of production of N-acyl-homoserine lactone (AHL), a common proteobacterial QS signal. The opportunistic pathogen, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, equips the alkylquinolone (AQ)-mediated QS which also plays crucial roles in its pathogenicity. The studies in QQ targeting on AQ are also discussed.
authors.affiliation: Division of Genetics and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Kok-Gan
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: Division of Molecular Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee Dundee, UK.
authors.forename: Yi-Chia
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Centre for Bacterial Cell Biology, Medical School, Newcastle University Newcastle upon Tyne, UK ; Interdisciplinary Computing and Complex BioSystems Research Group, School of Computing Science, Newcastle University Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
authors.forename: Chien-Yi
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Chang
keywords: N-acyl-homoserine lactone; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Pseudomonas quinolone signal; alkylquinolone; quorum quenching; quorum sensing