Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Zhong Chen, Kun Song, Yongpeng Shang, Yanpeng Xiong, Zhihui Lyu, Junwen Chen, Jinxin Zheng, Peiyu Li, Yang Wu, Chenjian Gu, Youhua Xie, Qiwen Deng, Zhijian Yu, Jian Zhang, Di Qu
Summary: This study identified novel candidate molecules targeting histidine kinase YycG against Enterococcus faecalis through high-throughput virtual screening. Among the selected molecules, compound-16 and compound-62 were verified as potential YycG inhibitors. Compound-16 inhibited planktonic cells of E. faecalis, while compound-62 primarily inhibited biofilm formation.
JOURNAL OF MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Jinglin Yue, Mingxi Hua, Nan Chen, Jiarui Li, Xinzhe Liu, Ang Duan, Huizhu Wang, Pengcheng Du, Chengbo Rong, Duo Yang, Chen Chen
Summary: In this study, we investigated the genomic differences between colonizing and infecting Enterococcus faecalis. We found that the fsr quorum-sensing system played a crucial role in promoting invasive blood infections. Additionally, fsr was associated with enhanced biofilm formation and serum resistance ability in E. faecalis.
APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Jie Tang, Dan Yao, Huizhen Zhou, Mingcheng Wang, Maurycy Daroch
Summary: This study investigated the structure and architecture of two-component systems (TCSs) in 17 thermophilic cyanobacteria and revealed their complex and diverse nature. The results showed a unique composition of TCS genes in these cyanobacteria, which were possibly associated with various functions. Horizontal gene transfer and gene duplication events might have played a role in the evolutionary history of TCS genes in certain genera. These findings highlight the potential of thermophilic cyanobacteria genomes for adapting to environmental fluctuations.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Eiji Ishii, Yoko Eguchi
Summary: Two-component signal transduction systems are widely conserved in bacteria, serving as candidates for novel drug targets due to their involvement in controlling pathogen physiology. The diverse mechanisms of signal perception and response by HKs have been recently clarified, shedding light on their molecular mechanisms.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Benjamin X. Wang, Kyle C. Cady, Gerardo C. Oyarce, Katharina Ribbeck, Michael T. Laub
Summary: Pseudomonas aeruginosa harbors over 60 two-component signaling systems that play a role in pathogenesis, with individual genes controlling multiple virulence traits. Deletion strains lacking histidine kinases were used to confirm functions and uncover new roles in controlling virulence-associated traits, providing insight into the functions of these signaling proteins and offering a resource for future studies.
APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ivan Gushchin, Vladimir A. Aleksenko, Philipp Orekhov, Ivan M. Goncharov, Vera V. Nazarenko, Oleg Semenov, Alina Remeeva, Valentin Gordeliy
Summary: The study reviews the mechanisms by which bacteria under anaerobic conditions utilize nitrates and nitrites as electron acceptors, explores the function and structural information of nitrate- and nitrite-sensing histidine kinases (NSHKs), and identifies a large diversity of NSHK sequences mostly from different bacterial groups.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Islam A. A. Ali, Jukka P. Matinlinna, Celine M. Levesque, Prasanna Neelakantan
Summary: This study comprehensively investigated the inhibitory effect of trans-cinnamaldehyde (TC) on Enterococcus faecalis biofilm formation, proteolytic and hemolytic activities. The results showed that sub-inhibitory concentrations of TC could reduce biofilm formation, exopolysaccharides, proteolytic and hemolytic activities in E. faecalis. Mechanistic studies revealed significant downregulation of virulence regulators in E. faecalis. This highlights the potential of TC to inhibit E. faecalis biofilm formation and virulence.
Article
Microbiology
Yahui Feng, Shaodong Bian, Zhiping Pang, Yiyang Wen, Richard Calderone, Dongmei Li, Dongmei Shi
Summary: This study revealed the crucial roles of the S_Tkc and GAF domains of Candida albicans CHK1 in hyphal invasion and mucosal tissue damage. These domains are likely responsible for initiating cell growth and hyphal formation during the lag phase, maintaining the infectivity of C. albicans in vivo.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Bruk Mensa, Nicholas F. Polizzi, Kathleen S. Molnar, Andrew M. Natale, Thomas Lemmin, William F. DeGrado
Summary: In this study, the interaction between the sensor domain and cytoplasmic kinase domain of the E. coli two-component histidine kinase PhoQ was investigated, revealing a three-domain model to explain signal transduction mechanisms. The data suggests that signals transmit via interdomain allostery rather than propagation of a single concerted conformational change, explaining the diversity of signaling structural transitions observed in individual HK domains.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Mohammed Y. Refai, Ahmed M. Elazzazy, Said E. Desouky, Mohammed Abu-Elghait, Eman A. Fayed, Sulaiman M. Alajel, Abdullah A. Alajlan, Mona O. Albureikan, Jiro Nakayama
Summary: Quorum sensing inhibitors (QSI) are anti-virulence agents that disarm pathogens of their virulence rather than killing them. Ambuic acid and Synerazol, two epoxide compounds, have been found to efficiently block the quorum sensing systems in Gram-positive bacteria.
Article
Microbiology
Lingyuan Kong, Mingyang Su, Jiayan Sang, Shanshan Huang, Min Wang, Yongfei Cai, Mingquan Xie, Jun Wu, Shida Wang, Simon J. Foster, Jiaqin Zhang, Aidong Han
Summary: In Streptococcus mutans, the histidine kinase Walk's long C-terminal tail is crucial for its interaction with the response regulator WaIR, and plays a key role in signal transduction, transcriptional regulation, and biofilm formation.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hualiang Pi, Andy Weiss, Clare L. Laut, Caroline M. Grunenwald, Hannah K. Lin, Xinjie Yi, Devin L. Stauff, Eric P. Skaar
Summary: HitRS is a two-component system that responds to cell envelope damage in the human pathogen Bacillus anthracis. KrrA, an RNA-binding protein, regulates HitRS function by modulating the stability of the hitRS mRNA. KrrA also binds to over 70 RNAs and affects the expression of over 150 genes involved in multiple processes.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Eswar Rao Tatta, Ranjith Kumavath
Summary: This study investigated the synergistic effect of the combination of indole terpenoid Rhodethrin and chloramphenicol against Enterococcus faecalis. The results showed that the combination had a synergistic effect in inhibiting biofilm formation, but had limited effect on biofilm interruption. In vitro studies indicated a high binding affinity between biofilm-associated proteins and the drugs used. These findings suggest that the combination of Rhodethrin and chloramphenicol has the potential to be used as a combinatorial antibiotic for treating vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis infections.
MICROBIAL PATHOGENESIS
(2022)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Frederick Verbeke, Nathan Debunne, Yorick Janssens, Bart De Spiegeleer, Evelien Wynendaele
Summary: By utilizing solid phase extraction and UHPLC-MS/MS method, RNPP quorum sensing peptides were successfully detected in wild-type murine feces samples, aiding in the understanding of bacterial communication mechanisms.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Eswar Rao Tatta, Sayan Paul, Ranjith Kumavath
Summary: In this study, the effects of the novel molecule rhodethrin in combination with chloramphenicol on Enterococcus faecalis were evaluated using RNA-Seq, and differentially expressed genes were identified. Transcriptome analysis showed that the combination of rhodethrin and chloramphenicol significantly suppressed biofilm formation, quorum sensing, and resistance in Enterococcus faecalis.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Marvin V. Dilworth, Mathilde S. Piel, Kim E. Bettaney, Pikyee Ma, Ji Luo, David Sharples, David R. Poyner, Stephane R. Gross, Karine Moncoq, Peter J. F. Henderson, Bruno Miroux, Roslyn M. Bill
Article
Microbiology
Karl A. Hassan, Qi Liu, Liam D. H. Elbourne, Irshad Ahmad, David Sharpies, Varsha Naidu, Chak Lam Chan, Liping Li, Steven P. D. Harborne, Alaska Pokhrel, Vincent L. G. Postis, Adrian Goldman, Peter J. F. Henderson, Ian T. Paulsen
RESEARCH IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2018)
Article
Biophysics
Aalishaa A. Azam, Jean M. Kinder, G. Nasir Khan, Ade Alase, Pikyee Ma, Yang Liu, James R. Ault, Peter J. F. Henderson, Babur Z. Chowdhry, Bruce D. Alexander, Stephen E. Harding, Mary K. Phillips-Jones
EUROPEAN BIOPHYSICS JOURNAL WITH BIOPHYSICS LETTERS
(2018)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Karl A. Hassan, Varsha Naidu, Jacob R. Edgerton, Karla A. Mettrick, Qi Liu, Leila Fahmy, Liping Li, Scott M. Jackson, Irshad Ahmad, David Sharples, Peter J. F. Henderson, Ian T. Paulsen
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2019)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Sean Littlewood, Helena Tattersall, Charlotte S. Hughes, Rohanah Hussain, Pikyee Ma, Stephen E. Harding, Jiro Nakayama, Mary K. Phillips-Jones
Article
Chemistry, Physical
E. -L. Jeong, S. J. Broad, R. G. Moody, M. K. Phillips-Jones
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY
(2020)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Malgorzata Magoch, Przemyslaw Nogly, Przemyslaw Grudnik, Pikyee Ma, Bozena Boczkus, Ana Rute Neves, Margarida Archer, Grzegorz Dubin
Article
Polymer Science
Taewoo Chun, Thomas MacCalman, Vlad Dinu, Sara Ottino, Mary K. Phillips-Jones, Stephen E. Harding
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Peter J. F. Henderson, Claire Maher, Liam D. H. Elbourne, Bart A. Eijkelkamp, Ian T. Paulsen, Karl A. Hassan
Summary: Bacterial multidrug efflux pumps play a crucial role in protecting bacteria from antimicrobials, but they also have other physiological functions. Studying the true physiological roles of these efflux pumps can help design more effective drugs and improve the efficiency of microbial drug production and commercial development.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Pikyee Ma, Mary K. Phillips-Jones
Summary: There is an urgent need for new antibacterial agents to combat bacterial infections, with a focus on two-component signal transduction systems (TCSs). Despite technical challenges, recent advancements have been made in producing active SHKs, understanding signal sensing, and transduction mechanisms.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Hannah M. Southam, Michael P. Williamson, Jonathan A. Chapman, Rhiannon L. Lyon, Clare R. Trevitt, Peter J. F. Henderson, Robert K. Poole
Summary: CORMs are molecules used to release carbon monoxide, showing antibacterial activity while being benign to mammalian cells. CORM-2 exhibits potent antibacterial activity, possibly linked to ruthenium toxicity, and exogenous amino acids and thiols can protect bacteria from the effects of CORM-2.
Review
Microbiology
Karl A. Hassan, Claire Maher, Liam D. H. Elbourne, Peter J. F. Henderson, Ian T. Paulsen
Summary: The release of genome sequences for thousands of bacterial species since the late 1990s has led to the discovery of numerous uncharacterised genes encoding putative membrane proteins. Using transcriptomics and detailed biochemical analysis, researchers have identified a novel family of multidrug efflux pumps and confirmed their functions. This general functional genomics approach holds promise for future research in identifying more transport proteins of scientific, clinical, and commercial interest.
CURRENT OPINION IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Humanities, Multidisciplinary
Mary K. Phillips-Jones, Stephen E. Harding
Meeting Abstract
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Diogo Melo, Maria Kokkinidou, Yun-yun Gao, David Sharples, Peter J. F. Henderson, Amen R. Pearson
ACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA A-FOUNDATION AND ADVANCES
(2018)