Role of Bacteriophages in the Evolution of Pathogenic Vibrios and Lessons for Phage Therapy

Molina-Quiroz, Roberto C.; Camilli, Andrew; Silva-Valenzuela, Cecilia A.

doi:10.1007/978-3-031-22997-8_8

Cited by 7 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 202 publications

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“…The phages in a mix might also use different host cell surface receptors and strategies to overcome bacterial defense mechanisms against viral nucleic acids, like CRISPR-Cas systems, restriction-modification systems, etc. [ 77 ]. This makes it harder for bacteria to develop multiple resistance mechanisms simultaneously, contributing to the control efficacy of the mix.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

First European Erwinia amylovora Lytic Bacteriophage Cocktails Effective in the Host: Characterization and Prospects for Fire Blight Biocontrol

Biosca,

Delgado Santander,

Morán

et al. 2024

Biology

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Fire blight, caused by the plant-pathogenic bacterium Erwinia amylovora, is a highly contagious and difficult-to-control disease due to its efficient dissemination and survival and the scarcity of effective control methods. Copper and antibiotics are the most used treatments but pose environmental and human health risks. Bacteriophages (phages) constitute an ecological, safe, and sustainable fire blight control alternative. The goal of this study was to search for specific E. amylovora phages from plant material, soil, and water samples in Mediterranean environments. A collection of phages able to specifically infect and lyse E. amylovora strains was generated from former fire blight-affected orchards in Eastern Spain. Following in vitro characterization, assays in immature fruit revealed that preventively applying some of the phages or their combinations delayed the onset of fire blight symptoms and reduced the disease’s severity, suggesting their biocontrol potential in Spain and other countries. The morphological and molecular characterization of the selected E. amylovora phages classified them as members of the class Caudoviricetes (former Myoviridae family) and genus Kolesnikvirus. This study reveals Mediterranean settings as plausible sources of E. amylovora-specific bacteriophages and provides the first effective European phage cocktails in plant material for the development of sustainable fire blight management measures.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

First European Erwinia amylovora Lytic Bacteriophage Cocktails Effective in the Host: Characterization and Prospects for Fire Blight Biocontrol

Biosca,

Delgado Santander,

Morán

et al. 2024

Biology

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“…It is well established that phage-mediated modifications can lead to significant changes in Vibrio phenotypes, impacting the fitness and virulence of the hosts (reviewed in Molina-Quiroz et al . [ 10 ]). Therefore, expanding our knowledge about Vibrio phages present in SML is of great importance not only from an ecological point of view but also for the potential use of these phages for prophylaxis and therapies to prevent or treat coral diseases [ 11 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coral mucus as a reservoir of bacteriophages targeting Vibrio pathogens

Rubio-Portillo,

Robertson,

Antón

2024

The ISME Journal

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The increasing trend in sea surface temperature promotes the spread of Vibrio species, which are known to cause diseases in a wide range of marine organisms. Among these pathogens, Vibrio mediterranei has emerged as a significant threat, leading to bleaching in the coral species Oculina patagonica. Bacteriophages, or phages, are viruses that infect bacteria, thereby regulating microbial communities and playing a crucial role in the coral’s defense against pathogens. However, our understanding of phages that infect V. mediterranei is limited. In this study, we identified two phage species capable of infecting V. mediterranei, utilizing a combination of cultivation and metagenomic approaches. These phages are low-abundance specialists within the coral mucus layer that exhibit rapid proliferation in the presence of their hosts, suggesting a potential role in coral defense. Additionally, one of these phages possesses a conserved domain of a leucine-rich repeat protein, similar to those harbored in the coral genome, that plays a key role in pathogen recognition, hinting at potential coral-phage coevolution. Furthermore, our research suggests that lytic Vibrio infections could trigger prophage induction, which may disseminate genetic elements, including virulence factors, in the coral mucus layer. Overall, our findings underscore the importance of historical coral-phage interactions as a form of coral immunity against invasive Vibrio pathogens.

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“…Phages and bacteria coevolve, with each partner selecting for adaptations in the other that generates genetic diversity for both predator and prey (18,19). Coevolution likely explains the extensive arsenal of resistance and counter-resistance mechanisms among Vc and its phages (17,(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24). Yet it remains unclear how these interactions impact disease severity during natural infection, with and without antibiotic exposure.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phage predation, disease severity and pathogen genetic diversity in cholera patients

Madi,

Cato,

Sayeed

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Nearly a century has passed since d'Herelle and colleagues discovered phages that infectVibrio choleraeand mitigate cholera epidemics. Despite an increasingly detailed picture of the molecular mechanisms of resistance and counter-resistance that shape phage and bacterial interactions, we lack an understanding of how these interactions play out during natural infection, how they are affected by antibiotic exposure, and how they relate to clinical outcomes. To fill these gaps, we conducted a year-long, nation-wide study of diarrheal patients in the cholera-endemic setting of Bangladesh. A total of 2574 stool samples were collected from enrolled patients at hospital admission and screened forV. choleraeand virulent phages (ICP1, 2, or 3). All 282 culture positive samples, and an additional 107 culture negative but PCR positive samples, were analyzed by shotgun metagenomic sequencing. From these metagenomes, we estimated the relative abundances ofV. cholerae, phages, and members of the gut microbiome, while accounting for antibiotic exposure determined by quantitative mass spectrometry. Consistent with d'Herelle's thesis, we observed higher phage toV. choleraeratios in patients with mild dehydration, demonstrating in the modern era that phages are indicative of disease severity. Antibiotics were associated with lessV. choleraeand with mild disease; ciprofloxacin in particular was associated with several known antibiotic resistance genes. Phage resistance genes in theV. choleraeintegrative conjugative element (ICE) were associated with lower phage toV. choleraeratios. In the absence of detectable ICEs, phages shaped genetic diversity, selecting for nonsynonymous point mutations in theV. choleraegenome. Together, our results point to both antibiotics and phages as inverse correlates of disease severity, while also selecting for resistance genes or mutations within cholera patients.

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Role of Bacteriophages in the Evolution of Pathogenic Vibrios and Lessons for Phage Therapy

Cited by 7 publications

References 202 publications

First European Erwinia amylovora Lytic Bacteriophage Cocktails Effective in the Host: Characterization and Prospects for Fire Blight Biocontrol

First European Erwinia amylovora Lytic Bacteriophage Cocktails Effective in the Host: Characterization and Prospects for Fire Blight Biocontrol

Coral mucus as a reservoir of bacteriophages targeting Vibrio pathogens

Phage predation, disease severity and pathogen genetic diversity in cholera patients

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