| 1. |
- Rydén, Patrik, 1969-, et al.
(författare)
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Outbreaks of tularemia in a boreal forest region depends on mosquito prevalence
- 2012
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Ingår i: Journal of Infectious Diseases. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0022-1899 .- 1537-6613. ; 205:2, s. 297-304
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background. We aimed to evaluate the potential association of mosquito prevalence in a boreal forest area with transmission of the bacterial disease tularemia to humans, and model the annual variation of disease using local weather data.Methods. A prediction model for mosquito abundance was built using weather and mosquito catch data. Then a negative binomial regression model based on the predicted mosquito abundance and local weather data was built to predict annual numbers of humans contracting tularemia in Dalarna County, Sweden.Results. Three hundred seventy humans were diagnosed with tularemia between 1981 and 2007, 94% of them during 7 summer outbreaks. Disease transmission was concentrated along rivers in the area. The predicted mosquito abundance was correlated (0.41, P < .05) with the annual number of human cases. The predicted mosquito peaks consistently preceded the median onset time of human tularemia (temporal correlation, 0.76; P < .05). Our final predictive model included 5 environmental variables and identified 6 of the 7 outbreaks.Conclusions. This work suggests that a high prevalence of mosquitoes in late summer is a prerequisite for outbreaks of tularemia in a tularemia-endemic boreal forest area of Sweden and that environmental variables can be used as risk indicators.
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| 2. |
- Johansson, Anders, 1966-, et al.
(författare)
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Francisella tularensis : Tularemia
- 2012
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Ingår i: BSL3 and BSL4 agents. - Weinheim, Germany : Wiley-VCH Verlagsgesellschaft. - 9783527317158 - 9783527645114 ; , s. 71-84
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Francisella tularensis is the causative agent of tularemia. This emerging zoonosis shows several clinical manifestations complicating its diagnosis. The chapter focus on the characteristics of this bacterium, the several forms of the disease, its diagnosis and molecular epidemiology.
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| 3. |
- Johansson, Anders, 1966-, et al.
(författare)
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Francisella tularensis : Tularemia
- 2012
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Ingår i: BSL3 and BSL4 agents. - Weinheim, Germany : Wiley-VCH Verlagsgesellschaft. - 9783527317158 - 9783527645114 ; , s. 309-311
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This practical guide gives some starting points to manage biological safety issues with Francisella tularensis.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Kelk, Peyman, et al.
(författare)
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Cellular and molecular response of human macrophages exposed to Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans leukotoxin.
- 2011
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Ingår i: Cell death & disease. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 2041-4889. ; 2, s. e126-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aggregatibacter (Actinobacillus) actinomycetemcomitans is a facultative anaerobic gram-negative bacterium associated with severe forms of periodontitis. A leukotoxin, which belongs to the repeats-in-toxin family, is believed to be one of its virulence factors and to have an important role in the bacterium's pathogenicity. This toxin selectively kills human leukocytes by inducing apoptosis and lysis. Here, we report that leukotoxin-induced cell death of macrophages proceeded through a process that differs from the classical characteristics of apoptosis and necrosis. A. actinomycetemcomitans leukotoxin-induced several cellular and molecular mechanisms in human macrophages that led to a specific and excessive pro-inflammatory response with particular secretion of both interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-18. In addition, this pro-inflammatory cell death was inhibited by oxidized ATP, which indicates involvement of the purinergic receptor P2X(7) in this process. This novel virulence mechanism of the leukotoxin may have an important role in the pathogenic potential of this bacterium and can be a target for future therapeutic agents.
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| 6. |
- Rzhepishevska, Olena, et al.
(författare)
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The antibacterial activity of Ga3+ is influenced by Llgand complexation as well as the bacterial carbon source
- 2011
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Ingår i: Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. - Washington, D. C. : American Society for Microbiology. - 0066-4804 .- 1098-6596. ; 55:12, s. 5568-5580
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Gallium ions have previously been shown to exhibit antibacterial and antibiofilm properties. In this study we report differential bactericidal activity of two gallium complexes; gallium desferrioxamine B (Ga-DFOB) and gallium citrate (Ga-cit). Modeling of gallium speciation in growth medium showed that DFOB and citrate both can prevent precipitation of Ga(OH)(3), but some precipitation can occur above pH 7 with citrate. Despite this, Ga-cit inhibitory concentrations (IC(90)) were lower than those of Ga-DFOB for clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and several reference strains of other bacterial species. Treatment with Ga compounds mitigated damage inflicted on murine J774 macrophage-like cells infected with P. aeruginosa PAO1. Again, Ga-cit showed more potent mitigation than did Ga-DFOB. Ga was also taken up more efficiently by P. aeruginosa in the form of Ga-cit than in the form of Ga-DFOB. Neither Ga-cit nor Ga-DFOB was toxic to several human cell lines tested and no pro-inflammatory activity was detected in human lung epithelial cells after exposure in vitro. Metabolomic analysis was used to delineate the effects of Ga-cit on the bacterial cell. Exposure to Ga resulted in lower concentrations of glutamate, a key metabolite for P. aeruginosa, and of many amino acids, indicating that Ga affects various biosynthesis pathways. Altered protein expression profile in presence of Ga-cit suggested that some compensatory mechanisms were activated in the bacterium. Furthermore, the antibacterial effect of Ga was shown to vary depending on the carbon source, which has importance in the context of medical applications of gallium.
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| 7. |
- Sun, Kun, et al.
(författare)
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Screening for inhibition of Vibrio cholerae VipA-VipB interaction identifies small-molecule compounds active against type VI secretion
- 2014
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Ingår i: Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. - 0066-4804 .- 1098-6596. ; 58:7, s. 4123-4130
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The type VI secretion system (T6SS) is the most prevalent bacterial secretion system and an important virulence mechanism utilized by Gram-negative bacteria, either to target eukaryotic cells or to combat other microbes. The components show much variability, but some appear essential for the function, and two homologues, denoted VipA and VipB in Vibrio cholerae, have been identified in all T6SSs described so far. Secretion is dependent on binding of an alpha-helical region of VipA to VipB, and in the absence of this binding, both components are degraded within minutes and secretion is ceased. The aim of the study was to investigate if this interaction could be blocked, and we hypothesized that such inhibition would lead to abrogation of T6S. A library of 9,600 small-molecule compounds was screened for their ability to block the binding of VipA-VipB in a bacterial two-hybrid system (B2H). After excluding compounds that showed cytotoxicity toward eukaryotic cells, that inhibited growth of Vibrio, or that inhibited an unrelated B2H interaction, 34 compounds were further investigated for effects on the T6SS-dependent secretion of hemolysin-coregulated protein (Hcp) or of phospholipase A(1) activity. Two compounds, KS100 and KS200, showed intermediate or strong effects in both assays. Analogues were obtained, and compounds with potent inhibitory effects in the assays and desirable physicochemical properties as predicted by in silico analysis were identified. Since the compounds specifically target a virulence mechanism without affecting bacterial replication, they have the potential to mitigate the virulence with minimal risk for development of resistance.
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| 8. |
- Broman, T, et al.
(författare)
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Molecular Detection of Persistent Francisella tularensis Subspecies holarctica in Natural Waters
- 2011
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Ingår i: International Journal of Microbiology. - : Hindawi Publishing Corporation. - 1687-918X .- 1687-9198. ; 2011, s. Article ID 851946-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Tularemia, caused by the bacterium Francisella tularensis, where F. tularensis subspecies holarctica has long been the cause of endemic disease in parts of northern Sweden. Despite this, our understanding of the natural life-cycle of the organism is still limited. During three years, we collected surface water samples (n = 341) and sediment samples (n = 245) in two areas in Sweden with endemic tularemia. Real-time PCR screening demonstrated the presence of F. tularenis lpnA sequences in 108 (32%) and 48 (20%) of the samples, respectively. The 16S rRNA sequences from those samples all grouped to the species F. tularensis. Analysis of the FtM19InDel region of lpnA-positive samples from selected sampling points confirmed the presence of F. tularensis subspecies holarctica-specific sequences. These sequences were detected in water sampled during both outbreak and nonoutbreak years. Our results indicate that diverse F. tularensis-like organisms, including F. tularensis subsp. holarctica, persist in natural waters and sediments in the investigated areas with endemic tularemia.
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| 9. |
- Bröms, Jeanette E., et al.
(författare)
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A functional VipA-VipB interaction is required for the type VI secretion system activity of Vibrio cholerae O1 strain A1552
- 2013
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Ingår i: BMC Microbiology. - London, England : BioMed Central. - 1471-2180. ; 13, s. 96-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Many Gram-negative bacteria rely on a type VI secretion system (T6SS) to infect eukaryotic cells or to compete against other microbes. Common to these systems is the presence of two conserved proteins, in Vibrio cholerae denoted VipA and VipB, which have been shown to interact in many clinically relevant pathogens. In this study, mutagenesis of a defined region within the VipA protein was used to identify residues important for VipB binding in V. cholerae O1 strain A1552. Results: A dramatically diminished interaction was shown to correlate with a decrease in VipB stability and a loss of hemolysin co-regulated protein (Hcp) secretion and rendered the bacterium unable to compete with Escherichia coli in a competition assay. Conclusions: This confirms the biological relevance of the VipA-VipB interaction, which is essential for the T6SS activity of many important human pathogens.
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| 10. |
- Bröms, Jeanette E, et al.
(författare)
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Dissection of the Functions of the IglC Protein of Francisella tularensis
- 2010
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Ingår i: The challenge of highly pathogenic microorganisms. - Dordrecht : Springer. - 9789048190539 - 9789048190546 ; , s. 67-75
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Francisella tularensis harbors genes with similarity to genes encoding components of a type VI secretion system (T6SS). These include iglA and iglB, the homologues of which are conserved in T6SSs. They are part of the igl operon, also encompassing the iglC and iglD genes. We have used a yeast two-hybrid system to study the interaction of the Igl proteins of E tularensis LVS. Previously, we identified a region of IglA necessary for efficient binding to IglB as well as for IglAB protein stability and intra-macrophage growth with an essential role for a conserved alpha-helical region. Thus, IglA-IglB complex formation is clearly crucial for Francisella pathogenicity and the same interaction is conserved in other human pathogens. Herein, the interaction of IglC with other members of the operon was investigated. It showed no binding to the other members in the yeast two-hybrid assay and we found also that two cysteine residues, C191 and C192, predicted to be putative prenylation sites, played no role for the important contribution of IglC to the intracellular replication of E tularensis although C191 was important for the stability of the protein.
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