Briard Benoit, Heddergott Christoph, Latgé Jean-Paul
Aspergillus Unit, Pasteur Institute, Paris, France.
Aspergillus Unit, Pasteur Institute, Paris, France
mBio. 2016 Mar 15;7(2):e00219. doi: 10.1128/mBio.00219-16.
Chronic lung infections with opportunistic bacterial and fungal pathogens are a major cause of morbidity and mortality especially in patients with cystic fibrosis. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the most frequently colonizing bacterium in these patients, and it is often found in association with the filamentous fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. P. aeruginosa is known to inhibit the growth of A. fumigatus in situations of direct contact, suggesting the existence of interspecies communication that may influence disease outcome. Our study shows that the lung pathogens P. aeruginosa and A. fumigatus can interact at a distance via volatile-mediated communication and expands our understanding of interspecific signaling in microbial communities.
Microbiota studies have shown that pathogens cannot be studied individually anymore and that the establishment and progression of a specific disease are due not to a single microbial species but are the result of the activity of many species living together. To date, the interaction between members of the human microbiota has been analyzed in situations of direct contact or liquid-mediated contact between organisms. This study showed unexpectedly that human opportunistic pathogens can interact at a distance after sensing volatiles emitted by another microbial species. This finding will open a new research avenue for the understanding of microbial communities.
机会性细菌和真菌病原体引起的慢性肺部感染是发病和死亡的主要原因，尤其是在囊性纤维化患者中。铜绿假单胞菌是这些患者中最常定植的细菌，并且经常与丝状真菌烟曲霉共同存在。已知在直接接触的情况下铜绿假单胞菌会抑制烟曲霉的生长，这表明可能存在影响疾病结局的种间交流。我们的研究表明，肺部病原体铜绿假单胞菌和烟曲霉可以通过挥发性介导的交流在一定距离外相互作用，这扩展了我们对微生物群落中种间信号传导的理解。
微生物群研究表明，病原体不能再单独进行研究，特定疾病的发生和发展不是由单一微生物物种引起的，而是多种共同生活的物种活动的结果。迄今为止，人类微生物群成员之间的相互作用已在生物体之间直接接触或液体介导接触的情况下进行了分析。这项研究意外地表明，人类机会性病原体在感知到另一种微生物物种释放的挥发物后可以在一定距离外相互作用。这一发现将为理解微生物群落开辟一条新的研究途径。
