Kanarek Katarzyna, Keppel Kinga, Cohen Hadar, Fridman Chaya Mushka, Gerlic Motti, Salomon Dor
Department of Clinical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel.
mSphere. 2025 Apr 29;10(4):e0002525. doi: 10.1128/msphere.00025-25. Epub 2025 Apr 2.
Several species of aquatic bacteria belonging to the genus are emerging pathogens of humans and marine animals. -associated infections have been shown to correlate with the increase in the oceans' surface water temperatures. A slow yet steady increase in isolates from clinical settings in Israel over the past decade led us to investigate their pathogenic potential in Israel's coastal waters. We sequenced the genomes of 23 isolates from the Mediterranean and Red Seas. Analysis of these genomes revealed the presence of diverse toxin secretion systems and toxins, as well as mobile genetic elements known to facilitate the dissemination of fitness-enhancing determinants. Moreover, we showed that at least 10 of these isolates induce cell death in bone marrow-derived macrophages and that at least 12 isolates intoxicate a rival strain in interbacterial competition. Lastly, we determined the susceptibility profiles of these isolates to common antibiotics used to treat infections and found widespread resistance to azithromycin. Taken together, our results reveal pathogenic potential within the population of Israel's coastal waters and underline the need for continued environmental monitoring of emerging pathogens.
The ocean's surface water temperatures have increased in the past decades due to climate change. This increase correlates with the spread of , a genus of aquatic bacteria, many of which are pathogens of humans and marine animals. Since -associated illnesses are rising in Israel, we set out to investigate the population in Israel's coastal environments and monitor their pathogenic potential. We found diverse repertoires of predicted toxins, the ability to kill mammalian immune cells, and traits that enhance bacterial fitness, such as antibacterial toxicity and resistance to antibiotics commonly used to treat infections. These findings indicate that pathogenic traits are circulating within the environmental population in Israel's coastal waters and suggest that continued monitoring is essential to identify emerging pathogenic strains.
几种属于该属的水生细菌正成为人类和海洋动物的新兴病原体。已表明与该属相关的感染与海洋表层水温的升高有关。过去十年中，以色列临床环境中该属分离株缓慢但稳步增加，这促使我们研究它们在以色列近海水域的致病潜力。我们对来自地中海和红海的23株该属分离株的基因组进行了测序。对这些基因组的分析揭示了多种毒素分泌系统和毒素的存在，以及已知有助于传播适应性增强决定因素的移动遗传元件。此外，我们表明这些分离株中至少有10株可诱导骨髓来源的巨噬细胞死亡，并且至少有12株在细菌间竞争中使竞争菌株中毒。最后，我们确定了这些分离株对用于治疗该属感染的常用抗生素的敏感性谱，发现它们对阿奇霉素普遍耐药。综上所述，我们的结果揭示了以色列近海水域该属菌群的致病潜力，并强调了对新兴病原体持续进行环境监测的必要性。
由于气候变化，过去几十年海洋表层水温有所上升。这种上升与水生细菌属的传播有关，其中许多是人类和海洋动物的病原体。由于以色列与该属相关的疾病正在增加，我们着手调查以色列沿海环境中的该属菌群，并监测它们的致病潜力。我们发现了预测毒素的多样组成、杀死哺乳动物免疫细胞的能力以及增强细菌适应性的特性，如抗菌毒性和对用于治疗该属感染的常用抗生素的耐药性。这些发现表明致病特性在以色列近海水域的环境该属菌群中传播，并表明持续监测对于识别新兴致病菌株至关重要。
