Article
Engineering, Environmental
Ting-Ting Zhu, Li-Jiao Tian, Sheng-Song Yu, Han-Qing Yu
Summary: The study discovered the significance of the Cd(II) efflux system in the biotransformation of Cd ions and selenite through engineered Escherichia coli strains. Suppressing the Cd(II) efflux system led to increased accumulation of Cd ions and higher production of CdSxSe1_x quantum dots (QDs), which exhibited similar viability to wild type cells and had potential applications in bio-imaging.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Xiangpeng Zeng, Yu Cao, Lanning Wang, Min Wang, Qiang Wang, Qingxiang Yang
Summary: This study reveals that multidrug resistant (MDR) bacterial strains have a higher viability and different gene expression patterns compared to susceptible strains under hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI) stress. The MDR strain showed higher bacteriostatic rates and lower levels of reactive oxygen species compared to the susceptible strain. Moreover, the MDR strain also exhibited higher expression levels of antibiotic resistance genes and other related genes.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2023)
Review
Microbiology
Shiela Chetri
Summary: Efflux pumps serve as an advanced defense system against antimicrobials, reducing drug concentration inside bacteria and expelling substances. This review provides a comprehensive overview of various efflux pump families and explores their potential applications. The review also discusses the diverse biological functions of efflux pumps, including their role in biofilm formation, quorum sensing, survival, virulence, and their potential relevance to antimicrobial resistance and antibiotic residue detection through associated genes/proteins. Furthermore, the use of plant-derived efflux pump inhibitors is extensively discussed.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Sarah E. Woodward, Stefanie L. Vogt, Jorge Pena-Diaz, Ryan A. Melnyk, Mihai Cirstea, Antonio Serapio-Palacios, Laurel M. P. Neufeld, Kelsey E. Huus, Madeline A. Wang, Cara H. Haney, B. Brett Finlay
Summary: The gastrointestinal environment plays a critical role in shaping enteric infections by creating bottleneck events that restrict the diversity of bacterial populations. This study demonstrates that gastric acid and escape to the systemic circulation act as major bottlenecks during colonization of Citrobacter rodentium. Manipulating these events can significantly increase bacterial colonization in the intestine.
Article
Microbiology
Mohammad Al-Balawi, Fatthy Mohamed Morsy
Summary: The study found no viable culturable Escherichia coli in the meconium of healthy neonates, with E. coli colonization occurring postnatally rather than prenatally. E. coli colonization in neonates delivered vaginally occurred on the second day, possibly due to inoculation from the vaginal canal during delivery. The results suggest that the antimicrobial action in the prenatal colon's meconium may protect babies' gut from infection during delivery.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Seiji Yamasaki, Tomohiro Yoneda, Sota Ikawa, Mitsuko Hayashi-Nishino, Kunihiko Nishino
Summary: Fatty acid salts have bactericidal and bacteriostatic effects, but bacteria can adapt to their environment and overcome these effects. Bacterial efflux systems play a role in resistance to fatty acid salts. In this study, it was found that acrAB and tolC E. coli deletion strains were susceptible to fatty acid salts, while plasmids carrying acrAB, acrEF, mdtABC, or emrAB conferred resistance to the Delta acrAB mutant, indicating the complementary roles of these multidrug efflux pumps. Our data highlight the importance of bacterial efflux systems in E. coli resistance to fatty acid salts.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Farah Al-Marzooq, Akela Ghazawi, Lana Daoud, Saeed Tariq
Summary: The combination of PA beta N and azithromycin (AZT) has a synergistic effect on multidrug-resistant E. coli, with PA beta N enhancing the activity of AZT by disrupting the bacterial outer membrane. This study provides a new approach for the combination therapy of PA beta N with other antibiotics against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Johannes Camp, Sabine Schuster, Martina Vavra, Tobias Schweigger, John W. A. Rossen, Sandra Reuter, Winfried Kern
Summary: Research has identified a subset of multidrug-resistant E. coli strains with an enhanced efflux phenotype (EEP), characterized by overexpression of the AcrAB-TolC efflux pump and distinct genomic variations. These EEP strains are less likely to belong to the ST131 clonal group.
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS AND CHEMOTHERAPY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Allea Cauilan, Cristian Ruiz
Summary: This study investigates the potential of sodium malonate as an efflux pump inhibitor to increase antibiotic efficacy against multidrug-resistant bacteria. The results showed that sodium malonate can inhibit the efflux of antibiotics and increase their effectiveness.
Article
Microbiology
Upashna Chettri, Macmillan Nongkhlaw, Santa R. Joshi
Summary: Riverine ecosystems polluted by pharmaceutical and metal industries may incubate bacteria with both heavy metal and antibiotic resistance. This study focuses on investigating the molecular evidence of heavy metal and antibiotic resistance genes. Pseudomonas and Serratia isolates showed significant heavy metal tolerance and multi-antibiotic resistance capability. The presence of metal tolerance genes and antibiotic resistance genes suggests horizontal gene transfer and the potential for resistant gene exchange in the Teesta River.
CURRENT MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Eszter Csibra, Guy-Bart Stan
Summary: A validated method and accompanying R package, FPCountR, is presented for the precise quantification of fluorescent protein reporters per bacterial cell without protein purification. The authors describe an assay protocol for the calibration of fluorescence readings, as well as methods for determining protein concentration and activity. They also investigate how cells can interfere with protein counting via fluorescence quenching and provide a correction for this effect.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Biology
Peter B. Otoupal, Kristen A. Eller, Keesha E. Erickson, Jocelyn Campos, Thomas R. Aunins, Anushree Chatterjee
Summary: Otoupal et al. systematically investigated the effects of fitness neutral gene perturbations and antibiotic synergy in Escherichia coli. These neutral fitness interactions worked as co-therapies in a Salmonella enterica infection and informed the design of re-sensitization therapies in multi-drug resistant E. coli and Klebisiella pneumoniae clinical isolates.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Napoleon D'Cunha, Mohammad Moniruzzaman, Keith Haynes, Giuliano Malloci, Connor J. Cooper, Enrico Margiotta, Attilio V. Vargiu, Muhammad R. Uddin, Inga Leus, Feng Cao, Jerry M. Parks, Valentin V. Rybenkov, Paolo Ruggerone, Helen Zgurskaya, John K. Walker
Summary: Antibiotic resistance is an increasingly urgent threat to human health, and multidrug efflux pumps are potential targets for combating this issue. The compound NSC-33353 has been identified as a potent inhibitor of efflux pumps, enhancing antibacterial activity in wild-type cells. Structural modifications of NSC-33353 have led to the development of compounds with improved inhibitory and substrate properties, offering insights into the duality of efflux substrate/inhibitor features and facilitating the development of new efflux pump inhibitors.
ACS INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ekaterina Nefedova, Nikolay N. N. Shkil, Nikolay A. A. Shkil, Diana Garibo, Roberto Luna Vazquez-Gomez, Alexey Pestryakov, Nina Bogdanchikova
Summary: The current work is a continuation of our studies on the application of metallic silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to combat antibiotic resistance globally. Fieldwork involving 200 breeding cows with serous mastitis revealed that treatment with Dienomast (TM), an antibiotic-containing drug, reduced E. coli sensitivity to 31 antibiotics by 27.3%, while treatment with AgNPs increased it by 21.2%. This study contributes to efforts in restoring antibiotic efficacy and preserving the availability of antibiotics in the global market.
Article
Microbiology
Josefina Duran-Bedolla, Ulises Garza-Ramos, Jesus Silva-Sanchez, Luis Lozano, Fernando Reyna-Flores, Alejandro Sanchez-Perez, Humberto Barrios-Camacho, Bacterial Resistance Consortium Bacterial Resistance Consortium
Summary: This study examines the genetic characterization of ESBL-producing E. coli isolates in Mexican hospitals, which are resistant to both cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones. The study found 23 ESBL-producing E. coli isolates positive for the qepA gene, which confers resistance to fluoroquinolones. These isolates exhibited specific sequence types and phylogenetic groups, and the qepA gene was identified in a novel genetic context flanked by IS26 sequences.
BRAZILIAN JOURNAL OF MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jinane Tabcheh, Julia Vergalli, Anne Davin-Regli, Noha Ghanem, Jean-Marie Pages, Charbel Al-Bayssari, Jean Michel Brunel
Summary: Antibiotic resistance is increasing morbidity and mortality for non-curable infectious diseases. Novel strategies, such as effective antibiotic combinations and antibiotics with non-antibiotic activity-enhancing compounds, have emerged to combat multidrug-resistant microorganisms.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Tamas Pivarcsik, Vivien Posa, Hilda Kovacs, Nora May, Gabriella Spengler, Szonja P. Posa, Szilard Toth, Zeinab Nezafat Yazdi, Csilla Ozvegy-Laczka, Imre Ugrai, Istvan Szatmari, Gergely Szakacs, Eva A. Enyedy
Summary: This article investigates a novel 5-nitro-8-hydroxyquinoline-proline hybrid and its Rh(eta(5)-C5Me5) and Ru(eta(6)-p-cymene) complexes, which have excellent solubility in water and show inhibitory effects on sensitive and multidrug-resistant cells.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Shirley A. R. Sancha, Nikoletta Szemeredi, Gabriella Spengler, Maria-Jose U. Ferreira
Summary: In order to overcome multidrug resistance in cancer chemotherapy, lycorine, a major Amaryllidaceae alkaloid isolated from Pancratium maritimum, was derivatized to obtain 31 new compounds. These compounds showed significant activity in the study of anticancer drug resistance.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Tatsiana Petrasheuskaya, Ferenc Kovacs, Nora Igaz, Andrea Ronavari, Balint Hajdu, Laura Bereczki, Nora May, Gabriella Spengler, Bela Gyurcsik, Monika Kiricsi, Eva Frank, Eva A. Enyedy
Summary: A series of novel estradiol-based salicylaldehyde (thio)semicarbazones and their Cu(II) complexes were synthesized and characterized. The Cu(II)-estradiol-semicarbazone complex structure was determined by X-ray crystallography. The Cu(II) complexes of estradiol-TSC and its N,N-dimethyl derivative showed high cytotoxicity against cancer cells and significant activity against Staphylococcus aureus bacteria strain. Estradiol-TSCs exhibited efficient antioxidant activity, which was decreased by complexation with Cu(II) ions. The exchange of estrone moiety to estradiol did not significantly affect the physicochemical and biological properties.
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Mrunal Patil, Krykun Serhii, Frederic Garzino, Quentin Gobert, Suzanne Giorgio, Jean-Manuel Raimundo, Jean-Michel Bolla, Michel Camplo
Summary: Antibiotic resistance has led to the need for new treatments against multidrug-resistant microorganisms. 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) has been proposed as an alternative due to its intrinsic antibacterial property, but its high toxicity at high doses raises concerns. This study synthesized 5-FU derivatives and assessed their efficacy against pathogenic bacteria, finding that compounds with tri-hexylphosphonium substitution on both nitrogen groups of 5-FU had significant activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Compound 6c, with an asymmetric linker group, had the highest antibacterial efficacy.
ARCHIV DER PHARMAZIE
(2023)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Gabrielle Froberg, Florian P. Maurer, Erja Chryssanthou, Louise Fernstrom, Hanaa Benmansour, Samira Boarbi, Anne Torunn Mengshoel, Peter Michael Keller, Miguel Viveiros, Diana Machado, Margaret M. Fitzgibbon, Simone Mok, Jim Werngren, Daniela Maria Cirillo, Fernando Alcaide, Hanne-Leena Hyyrylainen, Alexandra Aubry, Sonke Andres, Darshaalini Nadarajan, Erik Svensson, John Turnidge, Christian G. Giske, Gunnar Kahlmeter, Emmanuelle Cambau, Jakko van Ingen, Thomas Schon
Summary: The study evaluated the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) distributions of non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) to establish antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) breakpoints. MIC distributions for drugs against Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) and Mycobacterium abscessus (MAB) were collected from 12 laboratories. Epidemiological cut-off values (ECOFFs) and tentative ECOFFs (TECOFFs) were determined, highlighting the need for further method refinement in establishing clinical breakpoints for NTM.
CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTION
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Elek Ferencz, Gabriella Spengler, Istvan Zupko, Martin Vollar, Zoltan Peter Zomborszki, Norbert Kusz, Judit Hohmann, Balazs Kovacs, Dezso Csupor, Eszter Laczko-Zold, Boglarka Csupor-Loffler
Summary: Common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) is an invasive plant in Europe used in folk medicine. The chemical composition of its above-ground parts is well-studied, but less is known about the metabolites of the roots. In this study, several compounds were isolated from the root extracts, including a new compound called thiophene E (6). Thiophene E exhibited cytotoxic and antiproliferative effects on A-431 epidermoid skin cancer cells. Another compound, taraxerol-3-O-acetate, showed slight antiproliferative effect on gynecological cancer cell lines. These findings highlight the need for further studies on the safety of ragweed root.
ZEITSCHRIFT FUR NATURFORSCHUNG SECTION C-A JOURNAL OF BIOSCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Nadia Ribeiro, Ipek Bulut, Baris Sergi, Vivien Posa, Gabriella Spengler, Giuseppe Sciortino, Vania Andre, Liliana P. Ferreira, Tarita Biver, Valeria Ugone, Eugenio Garribba, Joao Costa-Pessoa, Eva A. Enyedy, Ceyda Acilan, Isabel Correia
Summary: This study reports the synthesis and characterization of a group of benzoylhydrazones and their Cu(II) complexes. The complexes exhibited moderate-to-strong interaction with bovine serum albumin and showed higher antiproliferative activity compared to the corresponding free ligand and cisplatin. Compound 8 demonstrated the most promising properties with low IC50 values, high induction of oxidative stress and DNA damage, resulting in high rates of apoptosis.
FRONTIERS IN CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Balint Racz, Annamaria Kincses, Krisztian Laczi, Gabor Rakhely, Enrique Dominguez-alvarez, Gabriella Spengler
Summary: Recently, the anticancer activity of symmetrical selenoesters was investigated in sensitive and resistant human colon adenocarcinoma cells. The compounds showed synergistic interaction with doxorubicin and exhibited ABCB1 inhibitory and apoptosis-inducing effects. Transcriptome analysis revealed that symmetrical selenoesters may influence the redox state of cells and interfere with metastasis formation.
Review
Microbiology
Zeinab Ebrahimzadeh Mousavi, Kevin Hunt, Leonard Koolman, Francis Butler, Seamus Fanning
Summary: The powdered formula market is expanding rapidly, raising the need to maintain high hygiene standards for safety. Cronobacter species pose a risk to public health, especially vulnerable infants consuming contaminated formula. Assessing the risk is difficult due to factory heterogeneity, and there is a potential risk of bacterial growth during rehydration. New detection methods are emerging to track Cronobacter species, and this review explores their persistence, pathogenicity, detection, and regulatory framework for safe powdered infant formula.
Article
Plant Sciences
Bara Krizkovska, Lan Hoang, Daniela Brdova, Kristyna Klementova, Nikoletta Szemeredi, Anna Louckova, Olga Kronusova, Gabriella Spengler, Petr Kastanek, Jana Hajslova, Jitka Viktorova, Jan Lipov
Summary: Salvia officinalis L., Sambucus nigra L., Matricaria chamomilla L., Agrimonia eupatoria L., Fragaria vesca L., and Malva sylvestris L. are plants that have been used in European folk medicine for treating skin wounds and infections. This study investigated their potential as adjuvants for the treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The results showed that Malva sylvestris had the highest antimicrobial activity, while Fragaria vesca and Sambucus nigra demonstrated potential as efflux pump inhibitors. Overall, these plants have potential for improving antibiotic treatment.
JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Tristan Russell, Guerrino Macori, Lauren Russell, Grace Mulcahy, Donal Sammin, Seamus Fanning, Gerald Barry
Summary: The meat processing industry has been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The unique conditions in meat processing plants (MPPs) have the potential to increase SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Research has found that SARS-CoV-2 can persist on beef, pork, and salmon for at least 22 days at -20? and at least 12 days at +4?. However, no SARS-CoV-2 was detected in the food samples purchased from Irish supermarkets during the pandemic. These findings highlight the importance of implementing multiple measures to reduce the risk of airborne infections in MPPs.
JOURNAL OF FOOD SAFETY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Janos P. Meszaros, Hilda Kovacs, Gabriella Spengler, Ferenc Kovacs, Eva Frank, Eva A. Enyedy
Summary: A salicylhydroxamic acid-estradiol hybrid molecule (E2HA) was synthesized, which forms high-stability complexes with essential metal ions (iron, copper) and exhibits moderate anticancer activity in human cancer cell lines.
JOURNAL OF INORGANIC BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Tasneem Sultan Abu Ghazal, Katalin Veres, Livia Vidacs, Nikoletta Szemeredi, Gabriella Spengler, Robert Berkecz, Judit Hohmann
Summary: The chloroform extract of Origanum majorana showed strong antibacterial and antifungal activities. Six compounds were isolated and identified, including furanonaphthoquinones, diterpenes, and flavonoids. Majoranaquinone (1) exhibited potent antibacterial effect and biofilm formation inhibition on various strains, especially in Escherichia coli.
Article
Microbiology
Zeinab Ebrahimzadeh Mousavi, Leonard Koolman, Guerrino Macori, Seamus Fanning, Francis Butler
Summary: This study characterized Cronobacter sakazakii strains through whole-genome sequencing and identified important features, such as virulence genes and multiple antibiotic resistance. Furthermore, the study compared the strains globally, contributing to a better understanding of Cronobacter outbreaks and the development of prevention and control strategies.