Journal article
Identification of Virulence Genes Associated with Pathogenicity of Translocating Escherichia coli with Special Reference to the Type 6 Secretion System
Microorganisms , Vol.12(9), pp.1-14
2024
PMCID: PMC11433802
PMID: 39338525
Appears in Thompson Institute Research Collection
Abstract
Recent genomic characterisation of translocating Escherichia coli HMLN-1 isolated from mesenteric lymph nodes (MLNs) and blood of a patient with a fatal case of pancreatitis revealed the presence of a type 6 secretion system (T6SS) that was not present in non-translocating E. coli strains. This strain was also genomically similar to adherent-invasive E. coli (AIEC) LF82 pathotype. We aimed to identify the role of T6SS-1 in the pathogenesis of this strain and other pathogenic E. coli. The HMLN-1 strain was initially tested for the presence of six virulence genes (VGs) associated with AIEC strains and an iron sequestering system. Additionally, HMLN-1’s interaction with a co-culture of Caco-2:HT29-MTX cells and its intra-macrophagic survival was evaluated. We subsequently screened a collection of 319 pathogenic E. coli strains isolated from patients with urinary tract infection (UTI), diarrhoea, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and septicaemia for the presence of T6SS-1 and its expression related to adhesion, invasion and translocation via the above co-culture of the intestinal cell lines. The results showed that HMLN-1 harboured four of the AIEC-associated VGs (dsbA, htrA, ompC and afaC). Screening of the pathogenic E. coli collection detected the presence of the T6SS-1 genes in septicaemic and UTI E. coli strains at a significantly higher level than diarrhoea and IBD strains (p < 0.0001). The high expression of T6SS-1 in E. coli HMLN-1 upon adhesion and invasion, as well as its high prevalence among extra-intestinal E. coli strains, suggests a role for T6SS-1 in the pathogenesis of translocating E. coli.
Details
- Title
- Identification of Virulence Genes Associated with Pathogenicity of Translocating Escherichia coli with Special Reference to the Type 6 Secretion System
- Authors
- Behnoush Asgari (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for BioinnovationJarred R. Burke (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for BioinnovationBonnie L. Quigley (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for BioinnovationGeorgia Bradford (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for BioinnovationEva Hatje (Author) - Queensland University of TechnologyAnna Kuballa (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for BioinnovationMohammad Katouli (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for Bioinnovation
- Publication details
- Microorganisms , Vol.12(9), pp.1-14
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Date published
- 2024
- DOI
- 10.3390/microorganisms12091851
- ISSN
- 2076-2607
- PMID
- 39338525; PMC11433802
- Copyright note
- © 2024 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
- Data Availability
- Data available upon request.
- Grant note
- This research was funded by the Research Training Program (RTP) scholarship provided to Behnoush Asgari by the University of the Sunshine Coast.
- Organisation Unit
- School of Health - Biomedicine; School of Science and Engineering - Legacy; School of Health and Sport Sciences - Legacy; Thompson Institute; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991062898402621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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