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Biomedical subjects

S Kjelleberg

Publications and source records attributed to S Kjelleberg.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Intestinal colonization potential of turbot (Scophthalmus maximus)- and dab (Limanda limanda)-associated bacteria with inhibitory effects against Vibrio anguillarum.

Of more than 400 bacteria isolated from turbot (Scophthalmus maximus), 89 have previously been shown to inhibit the in vitro growth of the fish pathogen Vibrio anguillarum. The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential of seven of these strains, as well as of intestinal isolates (four strains) from a closely related fish, dab (Limanda limanda), for colonizing farmed turbot as a means of protecting the host from infection by V. anguillarum. In addition, the inhibitory effect of these strains on the pathogen was further studied. Colonization potential was measured by the capacity of the strains to adhere to and grow in turbot intestinal mucus. These parameters were also used to investigate the potential of V. anguillarum to amplify in the turbot intestinal tract. Because of the observed rapid growth of V. anguillarum in intestinal mucus, it can be proposed that the intestinal tract is a site for V. anguillarum multiplication. Strains isolated from the intestine showed greater capacity for adhesion to and growth in fish intestinal mucus than did the pathogen and the skin mucus isolates. All of the isolates released metabolites into the culture medium that had inhibitory effects against V. anguillarum. The results are discussed with emphasis on administering bacteria of host origin to farmed turbot in order to control V. anguillarum-induced disease.

Animals↗

Inhibition of Settlement by Larvae of Balanus amphitrite and Ciona intestinalis by a Surface-Colonizing Marine Bacterium.

In an attempt to isolate bacteria with inhibitory effects against settlement by larvae of sessile invertebrates, 40 marine bacterial isolates were screened for effects against laboratory-reared barnacle larvae (Balanus amphitrite) and ascidian larvae (Ciona intestinalis). Five isolates displayed non-pH-dependent inhibitory effects against the larvae. The initial characterization of a toxic component released from an isolate, designated D2 (CCUG 26757), and its effect on laboratory-reared barnacle and ascidian larvae were studied. D2 is a facultative, anaerobic, gram-negative bacterium isolated from the surface of C. intestinalis from waters off the Swedish west coast at a depth of 10 m. Results suggest that the toxic component is released by D2 during the stationary phase. Aged biofilms were more toxic to the larvae than unaged films. The biologically active compound was in the supernatant of D2 and was heat stable and <500 Da in molecular mass. No evidence of protein or peptide moieties was found. On the basis of two phase and chromatography separations, the component is polar and neutral and contains or binds to carbohydrate moieties. Metaperiodate treatment increased toxicity; undiluted supernatant from a 24-h growth culture of D2 killed barnacle and ascidian larvae within a few hours of exposure, whereas after metaperiodate treatment, the larvae were killed in approximately 30 min.

Journal Article↗

Ribosomes exist in large excess over the apparent demand for protein synthesis during carbon starvation in marine Vibrio sp. strain CCUG 15956.

Carbon starvation induces the development of a starvation- and stress-resistant cell state in marine Vibrio sp. strain S14 (CCUG 15956). The starved cells remain highly responsive to nutrients during prolonged starvation and exhibit instantaneous severalfold increases in the rates of protein synthesis and RNA synthesis when substrate is added. In order to elucidate the physiological basis for the survival of cells that are starved for a long time, as well as the capacity of these cells for rapid and efficient recovery, we analyzed the ribosome content of carbon-starved Vibrio sp. strain S14 cells. By using direct chemical measurements of the amounts of ribosomal particles in carbon-starved cultures, we demonstrated that ribosomes were lost relatively slowly (half life, 79 h) and that they existed in large excess over the apparent demand for protein synthesis. After 24 h of starvation the total rate of protein synthesis was 2.3% of the rate during growth, and after 3 days this rate was 0.7% of the rate during growth; the relative amounts of ribosomal particles at these times were 81 and 52%, respectively. The ribosome population consisted of 90% 70S monoribosomes, and no polyribosomes were detected in the starved cells. The 70S monoribosomes were responsible for the bulk of the protein synthesis during carbon starvation; some activity was also detected in the polyribosome size region on sucrose density gradients. We suggest that nongrowing carbon-starved Vibrio sp. strain S14 cells possess an excess protein synthesis capacity, which may be essential for their ability to immediately initiate an upshift program when substrate is added.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Isolation and characterization of turbot (Scophtalmus maximus)-associated bacteria with inhibitory effects against Vibrio anguillarum.

More than 400 isolates from the intestine and the external surface of farmed Scophtalmus maximus as well as from fish food and hatchery water were screened for inhibitory effects against the fish pathogen Vibrio anguillarum HI 11345 and seven other fish pathogens. The bacteria with inhibitory effects were then characterized with regard to their sites of colonization, especially the intestinal regions and sites within each region. Of the total number of bacterial isolates from the intestine, 28% were inhibitory against V. anguillarum HI 11345. A marine biochemical assay was used to order the inhibitory strains into different phena. Most inhibitory bacteria were found in the rinse and mucus fractions of the gastrointestinal tract. No correlations among the different phena, site of colonization, and inhibitory effect could be found; however, a biochemical diversity was noted in the strains with an inhibitory effect. Of the isolates with an inhibitory effect against V. anguillarum HI 11345, 60% had an inhibitory effect on five other fish-pathogenic serotypes of V. anguillarum. Inhibitory effects of the isolates were also shown against Aeromonas salmonicida and Aeromonas hydrophila.

Animals↗

Formation of nonculturable Vibrio vulnificus cells and its relationship to the starvation state.

Entry into the viable but nonculturable state by the human bacterial pathogen Vibrio vulnificus in artificial seawater microcosms was studied. In contrast to the long-term culturability exhibited by cells incubated under these starvation conditions at room temperature, cells exposed to a temperature downshift to 5 degrees C exhibited an immediate decrease in culturability. Cells incubated at low temperature exhibited a morphological change from rods to cocci but demonstrated no reductive division. Of 10 factors studied which might affect the nonculturable response in V. vulnificus, only the physiological age of the cells was found to significantly affect the rate at which cells became nonculturable. The nonculturable response appears to be related to the starvation response, as prestarvation at room temperature for 24 h was found to eliminate the nonculturable response of cells subsequently incubated at 5 degrees C. This observation suggests that the synthesis of starvation proteins may repress the viable but nonculturable program displayed during low-temperature incubation. The possible ecological significance of these findings is discussed.

Colony Count, Microbial↗

Resuscitation of Vibrio vulnificus from the viable but nonculturable state.

Stationary-phase-grown cells of the estuarine bacterium Vibrio vulnificus became nonculturable in nutrient-limited artificial seawater microcosms after 27 days at 5 degrees C. When the nonculturable cells were subjected to temperature upshift by being placed at room temperature, the original bacterial numbers were detectable by plate counts after 3 days, with a corresponding increase in the direct viable counts from 3% to over 80% of the total cell count. No increase in the total cell count was observed during resuscitation, indicating that the plate count increases were not due to growth of a few culturable cells. Chloramphenicol and ampicillin totally inhibited resuscitation of the nonculturable cells when added to samples that had been at room temperature for up to 24 h. After 72 h of resuscitation, the inhibitors had an easily detectable but reduced effect on the resuscitated cells, indicating that protein and peptidoglycan synthesis were still ongoing. Major changes in the morphology of the cells were discovered. Nonculturable cells of V. vulnificus were small cocci (approximately 1.0 micron in diameter). Upon resuscitation, the cells became large rods with a size of mid-log-phase cells (3.0 microns in length). Four days after the cells had become fully resuscitated, the cell size had decreased to approximately 1.5 micron in length and 0.7 micron in width. The cells were able to go through at least two cycles of nonculturability and subsequent resuscitation without changes in the total cell count. This is the first report of resuscitation, without the addition of nutrient, of nonculturable cells, and it is suggested that temperature may be the determining factor in the resuscitation from this survival, or adaptation, state of certain species in estuarine environments.

Ampicillin↗

Starvation-induced modulations in binding protein-dependent glucose transport by the marine Vibrio sp. S14.

The uptake kinetics of D-glucose were examined in the marine Vibrio sp. S14 during a period of 168 h of complete energy and nutrient starvation. Two glucose transport systems were distinguished in Vibrio sp. S14: a low affinity system (Km = 4.6 +/- 0.9 microM) at the onset of starvation, and a high affinity system (Km = 0.55 +/- 0.15 microM) after 168 h of starvation. Both systems had a narrow substrate specificity, and both were osmotic shock-sensitive.

Biological Transport↗

Exoprotease Activity of Two Marine Bacteria during Starvation.

Exoprotease activity during 120 h of total energy and nutrient starvation was examined in two marine bacteria, Vibrio sp. strain S14 and Pseudomonas sp. strain S9. The activity was determined by spectrophotometric measurement of the rate of release of soluble color from an insoluble azure dye derivative of hide powder (hide powder azure). Starved cells of both strains (5 h for S14, and 4 or 24 h for S9) showed greater extracellular proteolytic activity than at the onset of starvation. The exoprotease activity of cells starved for longer periods of time then decreased, but was found to be present at significant levels throughout the starvation period studied (120 h). The accumulation of exoprotease activity in the bulk phase during starvation indicated that both strains constitutively excreted extracellular proteases. As deduced from experiments with chloramphenicol, de novo protein synthesis during starvation was required for the production and/or release of the exoproteases into the surrounding environment. The degradation of hide powder azure allowed an immediate increase in respiration rate, also by long-term-starved cells. This suggests that metabolic systems are primed to respond to the availability of substrates, allowing the cells to recover rapidly. The regulation of exoprotease activity was also studied and found to be different in the two strains. Casamino Acids repressed exoprotease activity in Pseudomonas sp. strain S9, whereas a mechanism similar to catabolite repression was found for Vibrio sp. strain S14 in that glucose repressed activity and cyclic AMP reversed this effect. The exoproteases appeared to be metalloproteinases because the addition of EDTA to cell-free starvation supernatants from both strains significantly inhibited the activity of the proteases.

Journal Article↗

Chemotactic Responses of Marine Vibrio sp. Strain S14 (CCUG 15956) to Low-Molecular-Weight Substances under Starvation and Recovery Conditions.

The chemotactic responses by starved cells of marine Vibrio sp. strain S14 differed from those elicited by cells that were not nutrient limited. The rate of chemotaxis at different concentrations of several attractants varied for starved and growing cells. Vibrio sp. strain S14 showed positive chemotaxis to leucine, valine, arginine, and glucose at the onset of energy and nutrient deprivation. A continued, though decreased, positive response was demonstrated fro leucine, arginine, and glucose at 10 h of starvation. Cells starved for 3 h displayed a stronger response to glucose than those starved for shorter or longer times. However, cells starved for 5 and 10 h responded more strongly to a lower concentration of glucose than did cells starved for 0 and 3 h. Starvation for 24 h elicited no measurable chemotaxis to leucine, arginine, or glucose. The motility decreased by over 95% in the cell population after 24 h of starvation, which resulted in a low sensitivity in the chemotaxis assay. A switch in the response to valine was observed by 3 h of starvation. The addition of nutrients of 22-h-starved cells elicited a temporary positive chemotactic response to leucine by 2 and 4 h of nutrient recovery, while cells at 1 and 6 h of recovery showed no response. At 2 h of recovery, the greatest response was recorded to 10 M leucine, whereas at 4 h it was to 10 M leucine. Ten to fifty percent of the 22-h-starved cell population regained their motility after 4 h of nutrient-aided recovery. It is possible that two types of chemosensory systems exist in marine bacteria. Starved and growing cells responded to different concentrations of the attractant, and growing cells displayed a saturated chemotactic system with leucine as the attractant, unlike the response during starvation.

Journal Article↗

Starvation-specific formation of a peripheral exopolysaccharide by a marine Pseudomonas sp., strain S9.

The marine bacterium Pseudomonas sp. strain S9 produces exopolysaccharides (EPS) during both growth and total energy source and nutrient starvation. Transmission electron microscopy of immunogold-labeled cells demonstrated that the EPS is closely associated with the cell surface during growth (integral EPS), while both the integral form and a loosely associated extracellular (peripheral) form were observed during starvation. Formation and release of the latter rendered the starvation medium viscous. In addition, after 3 h of starvation in static conditions, less than 5% of the cells were motile, compared with 100% at the onset of starvation and approximately 80% subsequent to release of the peripheral EPS at 27 h of starvation. Inhibition of protein synthesis with chloramphenicol added before 3 h of starvation caused no increase in viscosity. However, addition of chloramphenicol at 3 h did not prevent the subsequent increase in viscosity displayed by S9 cells. The amount of integral EPS increased for both nontreated and chloramphenicol-treated S9 cells during the first hour of starvation, with a subsequent equal decrease. The chloramphenicol-treated cells, as well as cells of a transposon-generated mutant strain deficient in peripheral EPS formation, remained adhesive to a hydrophobic inanimate surface during the initial 5 h of starvation, whereas nontreated wild-type cells had progressively decreased adhesion capacity. During the initial 5 h of starvation, most of the nontreated cells but only a small fraction of the chloramphenicol-treated and mutant cells detached from the hydrophobic substratum.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Bacterial Proteins↗

Escherichia coli F-18 makes a streptomycin-treated mouse large intestine colonization factor when grown in nutrient broth containing glucose.

Escherichia coli F-18 FimA-, a type 1 fimbria-less derivative of a normal human fecal isolate, E. coli F-18, has previously been shown to be as good a colonizer of streptomycin-treated mouse large intestine as its parent, suggesting that type 1 fimbriae are not necessary in this process. In this study it was found that when E. coli F-18 FimA- was grown standing overnight at 37 degrees C in nutrient broth, it remained uniformly suspended; however, when grown in nutrient broth containing 1% (wt/wt) D-glucose, it settled to the bottom of culture tubes. Settling was associated with the formation of clumps (microcolonies) of more than 10 cells each. The effect of glucose could be partially reversed by growing E. coli F-18 FimA- in nutrient broth containing 1% D-glucose supplemented with cyclic AMP (greater than or equal to 1 mM). A reduced-settling mutant of E. coli F-18 FimA-, E. coli F-18 FimA- Set-, selected after Tn5 mutagenesis, was found to be a poor colonizer of streptomycin-treated mouse large intestine when fed to mice simultaneously with the parent strain. These results suggest that glucose-induced settling is, at least in part, regulated in a way related to catabolite repression and that the ability of E. coli F-18 FimA- to form microcolonies plays an important role in its ability to colonize streptomycin-treated mouse large intestine.

Animals↗

Responses to multiple-nutrient starvation in marine Vibrio sp. strain CCUG 15956.

The response of marine Vibrio sp. strain S14 (CCUG 15956) to long-term (48-h) multiple-nutrient starvation (i.e., starvation for glucose, amino acids, ammonium, and phosphate simultaneously) can be described as a three-phase process. The first phase, defined as the stringent control phase, encompasses an accumulation of guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp) and decreases in RNA and protein synthesis during the first 40 min. In the second phase, there is a temporary increase in the rates of RNA and protein synthesis between 1 and 3 h paralleling a decrease in the ppGpp pool. The third phase includes gradual decline in macromolecular synthesis after 3 h. Using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of pulse-labeled proteins, a total of 66 proteins were identified as starvation inducible (Sti), temporally expressed throughout the three phases of starvation. The inhibition of protein synthesis during the first phase of starvation partly disrupted the subsequent temporally ordered synthesis of starvation proteins and prevented the expression of some late starvation proteins. It was also found that the early temporal class of starvation proteins, which included the majority of the Sti proteins, was the most essential for long-term survival. Vibrio sp. strain S14 cultures prestarved (1 h) for glucose, amino acids, ammonium, or phosphate as well as cultures exposed (1 h) to CdCl2 exhibited enhanced survival during the subsequent multiple-nutrient starvation in the presence of chloramphenicol or rifampin, while heat or the addition of cyclic AMP or nalidixic acid prior to starvation had no effect. It was demonstrated that amino acid starvation and CdCl2 exposure, which induced the stringent response, were the most effective in conferring enhanced survival. A few Sti proteins were common to all starvation conditions. In addition, the total number of proteins induced by multiple-nutrient starvation significantly exceeded the sum of those induced by starvation for each of the individual nutrients.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Protein-mediated adhesion of Lactobacillus fermentum strain 737 to mouse stomach squamous epithelium.

The mechanism of adhesion of Lactobacillus fermentum strain 737 to mouse stomach squamous epithelium was investigated. Adhesion inhibition tests involving chelators, monosaccharides, periodate and concanavalin A and the use of bacteria grown in the presence of tunicamycin failed to clarify the adhesive mechanism. Washed bacterial cells had reduced adhesive capacity, except in the presence of spent broth culture supernatant fraction or cell washings. Spent culture supernatant fractions of erythrosine-supplemented broth did not enhance adhesion of washed cells. The adhesion-promoting factor(s) in the spent broth culture supernatant fractions and cell washings bound to both bacterial and epithelial cell surfaces, but did not promote adhesion of two other Lactobacillus strains which were not of mouse origin, thereby indicating host specificity for the adhesion-promoting activity. Chemical characteristics of the adhesion-promoting factor were determined by pretreatment of the dialysis retentate of spent broth culture supernatant fractions with proteolytic enzymes, concanavalin A-Sepharose or periodate before the adhesion assay. The adhesin was non-dialysable, pronase-sensitive, heat sensitive at 100 degrees C, had no affinity for concanavalin A-Sepharose and contained no carbohydrate groups active in the adhesion process. The protein profiles of dialysis retentates of spent broth culture supernatant fractions after bacterial growth in the absence and presence of erythrosine were determined by 2-dimensional SDS-PAGE. Gel filtration by HPLC was used for purification of an adhesion-promoting fraction. The host-specific adhesion of L. fermentum strain 737 was mediated by a protein, with an Mr of 12-13000, that was not detectable in cells grown in the presence of erythrosine. A model for the mode of binding of the adhesin to host epithelia and bacterial surfaces is proposed.

Adhesins, Bacterial↗

Inhibition by antibiotics of the bacterial response to long-term starvation of Salmonella typhimurium and the colon microbiota of mice.

The number of viable cells of two strains of Salmonella typhimurium and the number of viable cells and the cell size of the colon microbiota of mice were examined during non-growing conditions after exposure to antibiotics with known modes of action. Salmonella typhimurium starved for 1, 2, 4, 5, 12 and 20 d in a phosphate buffer saline solution and subsequently exposed for 2 and 6 h showed the following characteristics. The protein synthesis inhibitors gentamicin and tetracycline, the RNA synthesis inhibitor rifampicin and the membrane potential inhibitor polymyxin all impaired survival of starved cells. The reduction in the number of viable cells caused by the addition of gentamicin, rifampicin and polymyxin was generally more pronounced with extended exposure to energy and nutrient deprivation. Both 2- and 6-h exposure of tetracycline, however, had diminishing inhibitory effects after 20 d compared with 5 d of starvation. Control experiments to verify non-growing conditions in the starvation regime showed that DNA and cell wall synthesis inhibitors had no inhibitory effect after 24-h starvation. The rough mutant strain displayed a lower sensitivity to a hydrophobic rather than a hydrophilic inhibitor as compared to the smooth wild-type strain. The cell size reduction but not viability was partly prevented by protein synthesis inhibitors as seen for both in vivo and in vitro colon microbiota studies.

Animals↗

Synthesis of membrane and periplasmic proteins during starvation of a marine Vibrio sp.

Changes in membrane and periplasmic protein profiles induced by starvation conditions in the marine Vibrio sp. S14 were examined by one-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Analysis by densitometry resolved at least six periplasmic proteins, nine outer membrane proteins, and four cytoplasmic membrane proteins induced at various times during 120 h of nutrient and energy starvation. Eight of these were also synthesized by heat- and/or ethanol-shocked cells. Pulse-labelling indicated that the starvation-induced proteins were not products of degradation, and that their synthesis was differently modulated during starvation. The most pronounced changes occurred during the initial hours of nutrient and energy deprivation. The correlation between the initial changes in protein composition and utilization of the intracellular energy reserve poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate is discussed. The rate of proteolysis during the initial hours of starvation was approximately 16 times greater than that during exponential growth.

Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins↗

Frequency of antibiotic and heavy metal resistance, pigmentation, and plasmids in bacteria of the marine air-water interface.

A field investigation of marine coastal waters revealed that the frequency of pigmented bacteria and the occurrence of bacterial antibiotic resistance were higher at the air-water interface than in the bulk water. The differences in the frequency of pigmented colonies at the surface and in the bulk-water samples could not be explained by the degree of cell surface hydrophobicity or by bacterial adhesion to air-water interfaces. Pigmented strains exhibited a higher degree of multiple drug resistance than did nonpigmented strains. However, the frequency of multiple drug resistance in nonpigmented strains was also substantial. An average of 91% of all strains were resistant to more than one antibiotic, and 21% of the bacteria isolated were resistant to five of the eight antibiotics tested. High numbers of plasmid-carrying strains were found among selected surface isolates, but the presence of detectable plasmids could not be correlated with either pigmentation or multiple drug resistance. Furthermore, selected surface isolates were significantly more resistant to mercury than were bulk-water bacteria. The higher frequency of pigmented, antibiotic-resistant, and mercury resistant strains at the air-water interface than in the bulk water are discussed in terms of various forms of selective pressure and genetic exchange at the surface.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

The production and release of an extracellular polysaccharide during starvation of a marine Pseudomonas sp. and the effect thereof on adhesion.

A marine Pseudomonas sp. S9 produced and released an extracellular polysaccharide during complete energy and nutrient starvation in static conditions. The presence of the polysaccharide on the cell surface, demonstrable by immune transmission electron microscopy, correlated with changes in the degree of adhesion to hydrophobic surfaces. Polysaccharide coated cells showed a lower degree of adhesion than did cells devoid of the polymer. After 10 h of starvation, no ruthenium red stained antibody stabilized polysaccharides could be observed on the cell surface. The polysaccharide was not produced during growth since lysates of mid-log phase cells did not precipitate the antiserum. The relative proportions of sugars in the polysaccharide were 28% glucose, 35% N-acetyl-glucosamine and 37% N-acetylgalactosamine. The released polysaccharide did not significantly alter the physical parameters of surface tension and viscosity of the starvation regime. Cells starved in agitated conditions did not produce any extracellular polysaccharides and exhibited a different adhesion pattern to hydrophobic surfaces.

Bacterial Adhesion↗