Dataset Information

Interspecies DNA acquisition by a naturally competent Acinetobacter baumannii strain.

ABSTRACT: The human pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii possesses high genetic plasticity and frequently acquires antimicrobial resistance genes. Here we investigated the role of natural transformation in these processes. Genomic DNA from different sources, including from carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains, was mixed with A. baumannii A118 cells. Selected transformants were analysed by whole-genome sequencing. In addition, bioinformatics analyses and in silico gene flow prediction were also performed to support the experimental results. Transformant strains included some that became resistant to carbapenems or changed their antimicrobial susceptibility profile. Foreign DNA acquisition was confirmed by whole-genome analysis. The acquired DNA most frequently identified corresponded to mobile genetic elements, antimicrobial resistance genes and operons involved in metabolism. Bioinformatics analyses and in silico gene flow prediction showed continued exchange of genetic material between A. baumannii and K. pneumoniae when they share the same habitat. Natural transformation plays an important role in the plasticity of A. baumannii and concomitantly in the emergence of multidrug-resistant strains.

SUBMITTER: Traglia GM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6456398 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Interspecies DNA acquisition by a naturally competent Acinetobacter baumannii strain.

Traglia German M GM Place Kori K Dotto Cristian C Fernandez Jennifer S JS Montaña Sabrina S Bahiense Camila Dos Santos CDS Soler-Bistue Alfonso A Iriarte Andres A Perez Federico F Tolmasky Marcelo E ME Bonomo Robert A RA Melano Roberto G RG Ramírez María Soledad MS

International journal of antimicrobial agents 20190103 4

The human pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii possesses high genetic plasticity and frequently acquires antimicrobial resistance genes. Here we investigated the role of natural transformation in these processes. Genomic DNA from different sources, including from carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae strains, was mixed with A. baumannii A118 cells. Selected transformants were analysed by whole-genome sequencing. In addition, bioinformatics analyses and in silico gene flow prediction were also p ...[more]

PMID: 30611868

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Project description:The diffusion of antibiotic resistance determinants in different environments, e.g., soil and water, has become a public concern for global health and food safety and many efforts are currently devoted to clarify this complex ecological and evolutionary issue. Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) has an important role in the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). However, among the different HGT mechanisms, the capacity of environmental bacteria to acquire naked exogenous DNA by natural competence is still poorly investigated. This study aimed to characterize the ability of the environmental Escherichia coli strain ED1, isolated from the crustacean Daphnia sp., to acquire exogenous DNA by natural competence. Transformation experiments were carried out varying different parameters, i.e., cell growth phase, amount of exogenous DNA and exposition to artificial lake water (ALW) and treated wastewater to mimic environmental-like conditions that may be encountered in the agri-food system. Results were compared with those showed by the laboratory E. coli strain DH5?. Our experimental data, supported by genomic sequencing, showed that, when exposed to pure water, ED1 strain was able to acquire exogenous DNA with frequencies (10-8-10-9) statistically higher than the ones observed for DH5? strain (10-10). Interestingly, higher values were retrieved for ED1 than DH5? strains exposed to ALW (10-7 vs. 10-9, respectively) or treated wastewater (10-8 vs. 10-10, respectively). We tested, therefore, ED1 strain ability to colonize the rhizosphere of lettuce, a model plant representative of raw-consumed vegetables of high economic importance in the ready-to-eat food industry. Results showed that ED1 strain was able to efficiently colonize lettuce rhizosphere, revealing a stable colonization for 14 days-long period. In conclusion, ED1 strain ability to acquire exogenous DNA in environmental-like conditions by natural competence, combined with its ability to efficiently and stably colonize plant rhizosphere, poses the attention to food and human safety showing a possible route of diffusion of antibiotic resistance in the agri-food system, sustaining the "One Health" warnings related to the antibiotic spread.

Dataset Information

Interspecies DNA acquisition by a naturally competent Acinetobacter baumannii strain.

Publications

Interspecies DNA acquisition by a naturally competent Acinetobacter baumannii strain.

Similar Datasets

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