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Bicarbonate induces high-level resistance to the human antimicrobial peptide LL-37 in Staphylococcus aureus small colony variants

Zhang, P; Wright, JA; Tymon, A; Nair, SP; (2017) Bicarbonate induces high-level resistance to the human antimicrobial peptide LL-37 in Staphylococcus aureus small colony variants. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy , 73 (3) pp. 615-619. 10.1093/jac/dkx433. Green open access

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Abstract

Objectives: Staphylococcus aureus small colony variants (SCVs) cause persistent infections and are resistant to cationic antibiotics. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been suggested as promising alternatives for treating antibiotic-resistant bacteria. We investigated the capacity of the human cationic AMP LL-37 to kill SCVs in the presence of physiological concentrations of bicarbonate, which are reported to alter bacterial membrane permeability and change resistance of bacteria to AMPs. Methods: MBCs of LL-37 for S. aureus SCVs with mutations in different genes in the presence and absence of bicarbonate were determined. Results: In the absence of bicarbonate, SCVs of S. aureus strains LS-1 and 8325-4 had the same level of resistance to LL-37 as the parental strain (8 mg/L). In the presence of bicarbonate, hemB, menD and aroD SCVs of LS-1 had high-level resistance to LL-37 (≥128 mg/L) compared with the parental strain (16 mg/L). However, only the aroD SCV of strain 8324-5 showed high-level resistance. 8325-4 harbours mutations in two genes, tcaR and rsbU, which are involved in antimicrobial sensing and the stress response, respectively. When rsbU was repaired in 8325-4 it displayed high-level resistance to LL-37 in the presence of bicarbonate. This phenotype was lost when tcaR was also repaired, demonstrating that RsbU and TcaR are involved in LL-37 resistance in the presence of bicarbonate. Conclusions: S. aureus SCVs would be resistant to high concentrations of LL-37 in niches where there are physiological concentrations of bicarbonate and therefore this AMP may not be effective in combating SCVs.

Type: Article
Title: Bicarbonate induces high-level resistance to the human antimicrobial peptide LL-37 in Staphylococcus aureus small colony variants
Location: England
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1093/jac/dkx433
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1093/jac/dkx433
Language: English
Additional information: This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus, mutation, bicarbonate therapy, genes, peptides, antimicrobials, ll-37 peptide
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Eastman Dental Institute
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Eastman Dental Institute > Microbial Diseases
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10040246
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