Spoilage of refrigerated (4 °C) Litopenaeus vannamei: cooperation between Shewanella species and contribution of cyclo‐(L‐Pro‐L‐Leu)‐dependent quorum sensing

The spoilage potential of Shewanella putrefaciens and S. baltica isolated from spoiled refrigerated Litopenaeus vannamei was evaluated by in vitro assays for trimethylamine oxide reduction, extracellular hydrolytic enzymes and biofilm formation, and in vivo inoculation into surface‐sterilised shrimp followed by microbial, biochemical and sensory analyses during storage for 5 days at 4 °C. S. baltica displayed higher spoilage potential than S. putrefaciens both in vitro and in vivo. Shrimp co‐inoculated with them had one‐day shorter shelf life than those mono‐inoculated, based on the results of bacterial density, volatile base nitrogen, trimethylamine, volatile organic compounds and sensory analysis, which strongly suggests cooperation of Shewanella species in shrimp spoilage. Exogenous cyclo‐(L‐Pro‐L‐Leu) boosted bacterial growth, extracellular protease and collagenase activities, and biofilm formation of S. putrefaciens and S. baltica at least before they entered the stationary phase, indicating that cyclo‐(L‐Pro‐L‐Leu)‐dependent quorum sensing, a recently suggested communication mechanism between them, contributes to the cooperation.     

Novel antibacterial modalities against methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus derived from plants

Abstract

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a notorious bacterial pathogen that induces high mortality and morbidity. Due to the emergence of multiple resistance, antibiotic treatments are rapidly becoming ineffective for the related infections. Natural products, especially those derived from plants, have been proven to be effective agents with unique antibacterial properties through different mechanisms. This review interprets the resistance mechanisms of MRSA with the aim to conquer public health threat. Further, recent researches about plant antimicrobials that showed remarkable antibacterial activity against MRSA are recorded, including the crude plant extracts and purified plant-derived bioactive compounds. Novel anti-MRSA modalities of plant antimicrobials such as alteration in efflux pump, inhibition of pyruvate kinase, and disturbance of quorum sensing in MRSA are also summarized which may be promising alternatives to antibacterial drug development in future.     

一类具有群体感应机理的传染病模型渐近分析

考虑病菌的群体感应机理,建立了一类具有一般作用率反应病菌与免疫系统竞争的传染病数学模型. 分析了模型平衡点的存在性及渐近稳定性. 特别地,利用中心流形定理研究退化平衡点的稳定性. 最后,数值模拟验证所得理论结果,为传染病的控制和预防提供了理论基础和数值依据.     

食源性混合菌生物被膜的形成和相互作用机制

在食品加工中,食源性病原菌生物被膜的存在会引发大量食品污染等安全问题。目前,国内外学者深入研究了单一菌生物被膜,然而对混合菌生物被膜的研究较少。本文在现有的研究基础上,归纳总结了食源性混合菌生物被膜的形成规律及混合菌生物膜中菌种间的相互作用,初步探讨了群体感应在混合菌生物膜中的作用,以期为食品领域应对和破解食源性混合菌生物被膜污染问题提供思路。     

基于门限签名方案的BQS系统的服务器协议

利用冗余复制技术,BQS(Byzantine quorum system)系统在异步信道上提供了能容忍f台服务器拜占庭失效的存储服务.COCA系统和CODEX系统设计了一种结合门限签名方案和BQS系统的服务器协议,完成了TSS-BQS(threshold signature schemes-BQS)系统.与普通BQS系统相比,具有更易于支持Proactive Recovery,简化客户端密钥管理和客户端通信的优点.基于相同的系统模型和信道假设,提出了一种新的服务器协议,满足TSS-BQS系统的安全要求;而且与已有协议相比,该协议只需更少的通信轮数,在读/写并发情况下执行效果更优.     

Identification of New N‐Acylhomoserine Lactone Signalling Compounds of Dinoroseobacter shibae DFL‐12T by Overexpression of luxI Genes

Bacteria of the Roseobacter clade are widespread in the ocean and occur in many different habitats. In the genome of Dinoroseobacter shibae DFL‐12, luxI homologous genes that encode synthases responsible for the formation of N‐acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) have been described. These compounds are known autoinducers that regulate several biological traits—namely, flagella formation and cell differentiation—in D. shibae through quorum sensing. The AHLs produced by D. shibae mainly consisted of N‐octadecadienoylhomoserine lactone (C18:2‐AHL) and N‐octadecenoylhomoserine lactone (C18:1‐HSL). In the wild type these AHLs are synthesized only in low abundance. The luxI genes were therefore expressed in Escherichia coli; this resulted in the formation of AHLs mostly different from those found in the D. shibae wild type. A luxI₁‐deficient mutant of D. shibae was then reprovided with an overexpressed luxI₁ gene. This strain produced large amounts of C18:2‐AHL and C18:1‐AHL, allowing full characterization of these compounds by mass spectrometric techniques and derivatization. Synthesis of the proposed structures confirmed that the major compound is (2E,11Z)‐N‐octadeca‐2,11‐dienoylhomoserine lactone ( 6 , C18:2‐HSL), accompanied by (Z)‐N‐octadec‐11‐enoylhomoserine lactone ( 5 , C18:1‐HSL). AHL 6 has not been reported before from other organisms and contains an unusual 2E double bond.     

The Organization of the Quorum Sensing luxI/R Family Genes in Burkholderia

Members of the Burkholderia genus of Proteobacteria are capable of living freely in the environment and can also colonize human, animal and plant hosts. Certain members are considered to be clinically important from both medical and veterinary perspectives and furthermore may be important modulators of the rhizosphere. Quorum sensing via N-acyl homoserine lactone signals (AHL QS) is present in almost all Burkholderia species and is thought to play important roles in lifestyle changes such as colonization and niche invasion. Here we present a census of AHL QS genes retrieved from public databases and indicate that the local arrangement (topology) of QS genes, their location within chromosomes and their gene neighborhoods show characteristic patterns that differ between the known Burkholderia clades. In sequence phylogenies, AHL QS genes seem to cluster according to the local gene topology rather than according to the species, which suggests that the basic topology types were present prior to the appearance of current Burkholderia species. The data are available at http://net.icgeb.org/burkholderia/.     

Small Molecule Inhibitors of AI-2 Signaling in Bacteria: State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives for Anti-Quorum Sensing Agents

Bacteria respond to different small molecules that are produced by other neighboring bacteria. These molecules, called autoinducers, are classified as intraspecies (i.e., molecules produced and perceived by the same bacterial species) or interspecies (molecules that are produced and sensed between different bacterial species). AI-2 has been proposed as an interspecies autoinducer and has been shown to regulate different bacterial physiology as well as affect virulence factor production and biofilm formation in some bacteria, including bacteria of clinical relevance. Several groups have embarked on the development of small molecules that could be used to perturb AI-2 signaling in bacteria, with the ultimate goal that these molecules could be used to inhibit bacterial virulence and biofilm formation. Additionally, these molecules have the potential to be used in synthetic biology applications whereby these small molecules are used as inputs to switch on and off AI-2 receptors. In this review, we highlight the state-of-the-art in the development of small molecules that perturb AI-2 signaling in bacteria and offer our perspective on the future development and applications of these classes of molecules.     

A Genetic Circuit System Based on Quorum Sensing Signaling for Directed Evolution of Quorum‐Quenching Enzymes

Quorum sensing is a cell–cell communication mechanism that is involved in the regulation of biological functions such as luminescence, virulence, and biofilm formation. Quorum‐quenching enzymes, which interrupt quorum‐sensing signaling through degradation of quorum‐sensing molecules, have emerged as a new approach to controlling and preventing bacterial virulence and pathogenesis. In an effort to develop quorum‐quenching enzymes with improved catalytic activities, a genetic circuit system based on acylhomoserine‐lactone (AHL)‐mediated quorum‐sensing signaling was constructed. The genetic circuit system was composed of lux‐R, lux‐I promoter, β‐lactamase, and β‐lactamase inhibitor, and designed to confer antibiotic resistance on host cells expressing an AHL‐degrading enzyme, thereby enabling rapid screening of quorum‐quenching enzymes. To demonstrate the utility of the genetic circuit system, we attempted the directed evolution of the AHL hydrolase from Bacillus sp. The genetic circuit system was shown to be effective in screening of quorum‐quenching enzymes with high catalytic efficiency. From these results it is expected that the genetic circuit system can be widely used for the isolation and directed evolution of quorum‐quenching enzymes with greater potential.     

草莓酸对莓实假单胞菌群体感应的抑制作用

目的:利用报告菌株紫色杆菌探究草莓酸的群体感应抑制性及其对莓实假单胞菌的群体感应作用。方法:利用细菌凋亡率、气相色谱-质谱分析、生物膜的抑制效果、胞外聚合物生成量以及观察细菌的群集和泳动等参数,来研究草莓酸对莓实假单胞菌群体感应的抑制效果。结果:草莓酸的最小抑菌浓度(MIC)为0.5 mg/mL,亚抑菌浓度下草莓酸虽然降低了菌株CV026产生紫色素的能力,但对细胞凋亡没有任何影响。通过气相色谱-质谱定量检测发现莓实假单胞菌所产的群体感应信号分子是C8-HSL和C10-HSL,草莓酸对信号分子的分泌产生抑制效果。在亚抑菌浓度下草莓酸对莓实假单胞菌的生物被膜形成量为21.06%,细菌的群集和泳动的抑制率分别降低34.06%和75.02%,且呈现质量浓度依赖性。结论:草莓酸具有较好的群体感应抑制性,可以作为水产保鲜中的群体感应抑制剂。