Mücke Pierre-Alexander, Maaß Sandra, Kohler Thomas P, Hammerschmidt Sven, Becher Dörte
Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, Center for Functional Genomics of Microbes, University of Greifswald, Felix-Hausdorff-Str. 8, 17489 Greifswald, Germany.
Department of Molecular Genetics and Infection Biology, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, Center for Functional Genomics of Microbes, University of Greifswald, Felix-Hausdorff-Str. 8, 17489 Greifswald, Germany.
Microorganisms. 2020 Mar 14;8(3):413. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms8030413.
Secreted antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are an important part of the human innate immune system and prevent local and systemic infections by inhibiting bacterial growth in a concentration-dependent manner. In the respiratory tract, the cationic peptide LL-37 is one of the most abundant AMPs and capable of building pore complexes in usually negatively charged bacterial membranes, leading to the destruction of bacteria. However, the adaptation mechanisms of several pathogens to LL-37 are already described and are known to weaken the antimicrobial effect of the AMP, for instance, by repulsion, export or degradation of the peptide. This study examines proteome-wide changes in D39, the leading cause of bacterial pneumonia, in response to physiological concentrations of LL-37 by high-resolution mass spectrometry. Our data indicate that pneumococci may use some of the known adaptation mechanisms to reduce the effect of LL-37 on their physiology, too. Additionally, several proteins seem to be involved in resistance to AMPs which have not been related to this process before, such as the teichoic acid flippase TacF (SPD_1128). Understanding colonization- and infection-relevant adaptations of the pneumococcus to AMPs, especially LL-37, could finally uncover new drug targets to weaken the burden of this widespread pathogen.
分泌型抗菌肽(AMPs)是人类先天免疫系统的重要组成部分,通过以浓度依赖的方式抑制细菌生长来预防局部和全身感染。在呼吸道中,阳离子肽LL-37是最丰富的AMPs之一,能够在通常带负电荷的细菌膜中形成孔复合物,导致细菌被破坏。然而,几种病原体对LL-37的适应机制已经被描述,并且已知会削弱AMPs的抗菌作用,例如通过肽的排斥、输出或降解。本研究通过高分辨率质谱法检测了细菌性肺炎的主要致病菌D39在生理浓度的LL-37作用下全蛋白质组的变化。我们的数据表明,肺炎球菌也可能利用一些已知的适应机制来降低LL-37对其生理功能的影响。此外,一些蛋白质似乎参与了对AMPs的抗性,而这些蛋白质以前与这个过程无关,例如磷壁酸翻转酶TacF(SPD_1128)。了解肺炎球菌对AMPs,特别是LL-37的与定植和感染相关的适应性,最终可能会发现新的药物靶点,以减轻这种广泛存在的病原体的负担。