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Updated: May 6, 2026
Long Term Chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa Airway Infection in Mice
Published on: March 17, 2014
Development of acute Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii lung mono-challenge models in mice using
Irene Jurado-Martín1,2, Chaoying Ma1,2, Nouran Rezk1,2
1School of Biomedical and Biomolecular Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
Abstract:
Antimicrobial-resistant pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii can cause potentially fatal infections in susceptible individuals, with respiratory tract infections among the most common clinical presentations. The development of novel treatments or prophylactic interventions to combat these infections is urgently needed and requires robust, reliable animal models for their preclinical evaluation. In particular, the bacterial burden needs to be accurately determined before and after administration of the potential therapy under evaluation to quantify the effectiveness of the treatment. We provide two reliable, non-invasive murine acute lung challenge models with either P. aeruginosa or A. baumannii using an oropharyngeal aspiration technique, which has been widely overlooked in studies testing vaccines or treatments for these pathogens. Here, we show that this non-surgical technique to deliver suspensions into mouse lungs does not significantly impact animal welfare (based on welfare monitoring and weight) and allows uniform bilateral distribution of the bacterial dose, resulting in even bioburden in both lungs. The optimal timepoint for humane killing and organ harvest was 24 h after challenge for both pathogens, and at least 4×106 and 107 c.f.u. per mouse were needed to obtain a reproducible P. aeruginosa or A. baumannii bioburden, respectively. These mouse challenge models offer a valuable tool to assess therapeutic interventions against P. aeruginosa or A. baumannii infections.
Insights
Developing new treatments for drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii infections requires reliable animal models. This study presents a non-invasive lung challenge model in mice for evaluating novel antimicrobial therapies.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Infectious Diseases
- Animal Models
Background:
- Antimicrobial-resistant pathogens like Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii cause severe infections, particularly respiratory tract infections.
- Effective preclinical evaluation of new treatments necessitates robust and reliable animal models to accurately quantify bacterial burden.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish and validate non-invasive acute lung challenge models in mice for Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii.
- To assess the utility of oropharyngeal aspiration for delivering bacterial inocula and its impact on animal welfare.
Main Methods:
- Developed two murine acute lung infection models using oropharyngeal aspiration for P. aeruginosa and A. baumannii.
- Monitored animal welfare and weight, and determined optimal bacterial challenge doses (4x10^6 c.f.u. for P. aeruginosa, 10^7 c.f.u. for A. baumannii) and timepoints (24 hours post-challenge) for reproducible bioburden.
Main Results:
- The oropharyngeal aspiration technique resulted in uniform bilateral distribution of bacteria and reproducible lung bioburden.
- The non-surgical method did not significantly impact animal welfare or weight.
- Established optimal bacterial doses and a 24-hour post-challenge timepoint for consistent results.
Conclusions:
- Validated non-invasive murine models for P. aeruginosa and A. baumannii lung infections using oropharyngeal aspiration.
- These models provide a valuable platform for preclinical assessment of novel therapeutic interventions against these critical pathogens.
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