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Inactivation of staphylococcal virulence factors using a light-activated antimicrobial agent

Tubby, S; Wilson, M; Nair, SP; (2009) Inactivation of staphylococcal virulence factors using a light-activated antimicrobial agent. BMC Microbiology , 9 , Article 211. 10.1186/1471-2180-9-211. Green open access

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Abstract

Background: One of the limitations of antibiotic therapy is that even after successful killing of the infecting microorganism, virulence factors may still be present and cause significant damage to the host. Light-activated antimicrobials show potential for the treatment of topical infections; therefore if these agents can also inactivate microbial virulence factors, this would represent an advantage over conventional antibiotic therapy. Staphylococcus aureus produces a wide range of virulence factors that contribute to its success as a pathogen by facilitating colonisation and destruction of host tissues.Results: In this study, the ability of the light-activated antimicrobial agent methylene blue in combination with laser light of 665 nm to inactivate staphylococcal virulence factors was assessed. A number of proteinaceous virulence factors were exposed to laser light in the presence of methylene blue and their biological activities re-determined. The activities of V8 protease, alpha-haemolysin and sphingomyelinase were shown to be inhibited in a dose-dependent manner by exposure to laser light in the presence of methylene blue.Conclusion: These results suggest that photodynamic therapy could reduce the harmful impact of preformed virulence factors on the host.

Type: Article
Title: Inactivation of staphylococcal virulence factors using a light-activated antimicrobial agent
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1186/1471-2180-9-211
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2180-9-211
Language: English
Additional information: © 2009 Tubby et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Keywords: ALPHA-TOXIN, AUREUS STRAINS, BETA-TOXIN, SPHINGOMYELINASE, HEMOLYSIN, MODEL, DETERMINANTS, INFECTIONS
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/1352763
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