Caenorhabditis elegans Semi-Automated Liquid Screen Reveals a Specialized Role for the Chemotaxis Gene cheB2 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa Virulence

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic human pathogen that causes infections in a variety of animal and plant hosts. Caenorhabditis elegans is a simple model with which one can identify bacterial virulence genes. Previous studies with C. elegans have shown that depending on the growth medium, P. aeruginosa provokes different pathologies: slow or fast killing, lethal paralysis and red death. In this study, we developed a high-throughput semi-automated liquid-based assay such that an entire genome can readily be scanned for virulence genes in a short time period. We screened a 2,200-member STM mutant library generated in a cystic fibrosis airway P. aeruginosa isolate, TBCF10839. Twelve mutants were isolated each showing at least 70% attenuation in C. elegans killing. The selected mutants had insertions in regulatory genes, such as a histidine kinase sensor of two-component systems and a member of the AraC family, or in genes involved in adherence or chemotaxis. One mutant had an insertion in a cheB gene homologue, encoding a methylesterase involved in chemotaxis (CheB2). The cheB2 mutant was tested in a murine lung infection model and found to have a highly attenuated virulence. The cheB2 gene is part of the chemotactic gene cluster II, which was shown to be required for an optimal mobility in vitro. In P. aeruginosa, the main player in chemotaxis and mobility is the chemotactic gene cluster I, including cheB1. We show that, in contrast to the cheB2 mutant, a cheB1 mutant is not attenuated for virulence in C. elegans whereas in vitro motility and chemotaxis are severely impaired. We conclude that the virulence defect of the cheB2 mutant is not linked with a global motility defect but that instead the cheB2 gene is involved in a specific chemotactic response, which takes place during infection and is required for P. aeruginosa pathogenicity

Factors associated with worse lung function in cystic fibrosis patients with persistent staphylococcus aureus

Background Staphylococcus aureus is an important pathogen in cystic fibrosis (CF). However, it is not clear which factors are associated with worse lung function in patients with persistent S. aureus airway cultures. Our main hypothesis was that patients with high S. aureus density in their respiratory specimens would more likely experience worsening of their lung disease than patients with low bacterial loads. Methods Therefore, we conducted an observational prospective longitudinal multi-center study and assessed the association between lung function and S. aureus bacterial density in respiratory samples, co-infection with other CF-pathogens, nasal S. aureus carriage, clinical status, antibiotic therapy, IL-6- and IgG-levels against S. aureus virulence factors. Results 195 patients from 17 centers were followed; each patient had an average of 7 visits. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and generalized linear mixed models. Our main hypothesis was only supported for patients providing throat specimens indicating that patients with higher density experienced a steeper lung function decline (p<0.001). Patients with exacerbations (n = 60), S. aureus small-colony variants (SCVs, n = 84) and co-infection with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia (n = 44) had worse lung function (p = 0.0068; p = 0.0011; p = 0.0103). Patients with SCVs were older (p = 0.0066) and more often treated with trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (p = 0.0078). IL-6 levels positively correlated with decreased lung function (p<0.001), S. aureus density in sputa (p = 0.0016), SCVs (p = 0.0209), exacerbations (p = 0.0041) and co-infections with S. maltophilia (p = 0.0195) or A. fumigatus (p = 0.0496). Conclusions In CF-patients with chronic S. aureus cultures, independent risk factors for worse lung function are high bacterial density in throat cultures, exacerbations, elevated IL-6 levels, presence of S. aureus SCVs and co-infection with S. maltophilia

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

Evidence for selection maintaining MHC diversity in a rodent species despite strong density fluctuations

Schuster AC, Herde A, Mazzoni CJ, Eccard JA, Sommer S. Evidence for selection maintaining MHC diversity in a rodent species despite strong density fluctuations. Immunogenetics. 2016;68(6-7):429-437

Fitness, risk taking, and spatial behavior covary with boldness in experimental vole populations

Eccard JA, Herde A, Schuster AC, et al. Fitness, risk taking, and spatial behavior covary with boldness in experimental vole populations. Ecology and Evolution . 2022;12(2): e8521.Individuals of a population may vary along a pace-of-life syndrome from highly fecund, short-lived, bold, dispersive "fast" types at one end of the spectrum to less fecund, long-lived, shy, plastic "slow" types at the other end. Risk-taking behavior might mediate the underlying life history trade-off, but empirical evidence supporting this hypothesis is still ambiguous. Using experimentally created populations of common voles (Microtus arvalis)-a species with distinct seasonal life history trajectories-we aimed to test whether individual differences in boldness behavior covary with risk taking, space use, and fitness. We quantified risk taking, space use (via automated tracking), survival, and reproductive success (via genetic parentage analysis) in 8 to 14 experimental, mixed-sex populations of 113 common voles of known boldness type in large grassland enclosures over a significant part of their adult life span and two reproductive events. Populations were assorted to contain extreme boldness types (bold or shy) of both sexes. Bolder individuals took more risks than shyer ones, which did not affect survival. Bolder males but not females produced more offspring than shy conspecifics. Daily home range and core area sizes, based on 95% and 50% Kernel density estimates (20 +/- 10 per individual, n = 54 individuals), were highly repeatable over time. Individual space use unfolded differently for sex-boldness type combinations over the course of the experiment. While day ranges decreased for shy females, they increased for bold females and all males. Space use trajectories may, hence, indicate differences in coping styles when confronted with a novel social and physical environment. Thus, interindividual differences in boldness predict risk taking under near-natural conditions and have consequences for fitness in males, which have a higher reproductive potential than females. Given extreme inter- and intra-annual fluctuations in population density in the study species and its short life span, density-dependent fluctuating selection operating differently on the sexes might maintain (co)variation in boldness, risk taking, and pace-of-life

The adipocytokines leptin, adiponectin, Nampt and NMN have no direct effects on beta-cell survival in INS-1E cells.

<p>INS-1E cells were kept under serum-free conditions 24 h before and during the 48 h experiment. (<b>A,B</b>) INS-1E cells were exposed to cytokines (<b>A</b>: IL-1β, IFN-γ or TNFα) or adipocytokines (<b>B</b>: adiponectin, leptin, Nampt, NMN) at the indicated concentrations for 48 h and cell viability was measured by WST-1 assay. Data are shown as means ±SEM of 3 independent experiments performed in triplicates. Statistical analyses were performed by one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni’s Multiple Comparison Test as posthoc test. <b>C,D</b>: INS-1E cells were exposed to adipocytokines (adiponectin 167 ng/ml, leptin 200 ng/ml, Nampt 2.5 ng/ml, NMN 100 µM) or a cytokine combination (10 ng/ml IL-1β+10 ng/ml IFN-γ) for 48 h. Cytotoxicity (<b>C</b>) was analyzed by measuring the release of adenylate kinase into the supernatant and (<b>D</b>) apoptosis was measured by FITC-annexinV (An) and propidium iodide (PI) staining and subsequent flow cytometric analysis of An-positive and double An/PI positive cells. Results were expressed relative to cells exposed to serum free medium (con) and as means ±SEM of three independent experiments performed in triplicates. <b>E,F</b>: INS-1E cells were exposed to a cytokine combination (IL/IF; 10 ng/ml IL-1β+10 ng/ml IFN-γ) (<b>E</b>) or 0.25 mM palmitate (pal) (<b>F</b>) for 48 h in the absence or presence of the adipocytokines (167 ng/ml adiponectin, 200 ng/ml leptin, 2.5 ng/ml Nampt) and induction of apoptosis was measured by An/PI staining and flow cytometric analysis. Data are shown as means ±SEM of triplicates of three independent experiments. Statistical analyses were performed by student´s t-test. G: INS-1E cells were exposed to the adipocytokines adiponectin (167 ng/ml), leptin (200 ng/ml) or Nampt (2.5 ng/ml) or a combination of camptothecin (2 µM) and etoposide (85 µM; CE, <b>upper and lower panel</b>) or a cytokine combination (10 ng/ml IL-1β+10 ng/ml IFN-γ, <b>middle and lower panel</b>). Western blot analyses were performed for full length and cleaved caspase-3 (<b>upper panel</b>), phospho-NF-κB p65 (Ser536) and NF-κB p65 (<b>middle panel</b>) and phospho-p53 (Ser15) (<b>lower panel</b>). GAPDH or beta-actin were used as loading control. All panels show one typical blot out of three independent experiments. *p<0.05 compared to untreated control.</p

Nampt and NMN have no direct effects on beta-cell survival in human islets.

<p>(<b>A,B</b>) Human pancreatic islets were cultured in suspension with the mixture of 22.2 mM glucose/0.5 mM palmitate or 2 ng/ml IL-1β/1000 IU IFN-γ in the absence (con) or presence of NMN (100 µM) or Nampt (2.5 ng/ml) for 72 h. Apoptosis was analysed in paraffin embedded islet sections by the TUNEL assay (red nuclei, white arrows) and counter-stained in green for insulin (<b>B</b>). Results are means ±SEM of the %TUNEL-positive beta-cells (the average number of beta-cells counted were 1456±277 for each treatment group in each experiment) of three different experiments from three different organ donors. <b>B:</b> shows representative staining pictures. *p<0.05 compared to vehicle treated control.</p

Nampt and NMN increase NAD level and ameliorate NAD depletion.

<p>Human islets (A) and INS-1E cells (B) were stimulated with NMN [100 µM] or Nampt [2.5 ng/ml] for a short time (2 or 3 h) or a long time exposure (48 h). NAD level were normalised to the total protein amount in each sample. FK866 [10 nM], a specific Nampt inhibitor, was used as a positive control in INS-1E cells. * p<0.05 compared to con (serum free medium);+p<0.05 compared to FK866 treated cells.</p