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Identification of a lytic Pseudomonas aeruginosa phage depolymerase and its anti-biofilm effect and bactericidal

Liyuan Mi1, Yannan Liu2,3, Can Wang2

  • 1Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Chinese Ministry of Education; Key Laboratory of Glycoscience & Glycotechnology of Shandong Province; School of Medicine and Pharmacy; Laboratory for Marine Drugs and Bioproducts of Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Ocean University of China, 5 Yushan Road, Qingdao, 266003, China.

Virus Genes
|April 3, 2019
PubMed

Insights

A novel phage protein effectively degrades Pseudomonas aeruginosa exopolysaccharides and disrupts biofilms. This finding offers a promising new strategy against multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections pose a significant threat, particularly to cystic fibrosis patients.
  • The rise of multidrug-resistant strains necessitates urgent development of alternative antimicrobial strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate a depolymerase-like protein derived from a Pseudomonas aeruginosa phage as a potential antimicrobial agent.
  • To evaluate the protein's efficacy in degrading bacterial exopolysaccharides and disrupting biofilms.

Main Methods:

  • Isolation of a lytic Pseudomonas aeruginosa phage from hospital sewage.
  • Genomic analysis to identify and predict a depolymerase-like protein with two catalytic regions.
  • Recombinant protein expression and in vitro assays to assess exopolysaccharide degradation and serum-mediated bactericidal activity.
  • Evaluation of the protein's effect on bacterial biofilm disruption.

Main Results:

  • The identified depolymerase-like protein possesses Pectate lyase_3 and Glycosyl hydrolase_28 superfamily catalytic regions.
  • Recombinant protein successfully degraded Pseudomonas aeruginosa exopolysaccharides in vitro.
  • The protein enhanced serum-mediated bactericidal activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
  • The depolymerase-like protein demonstrated the ability to disrupt bacterial biofilms.

Conclusions:

  • The phage-derived depolymerase-like protein exhibits significant potential as a novel antimicrobial agent targeting Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
  • This protein represents a promising therapeutic candidate for combating multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections.
Keywords:
BacteriophageBiofilmDepolymeraseExopolysaccharidePseudomonas aeruginosa

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