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American Civil War plant medicines inhibit growth, biofilm formation, and quorum sensing by multidrug-resistant bacteria.

ABSTRACT: A shortage of conventional medicine during the American Civil War (1861-1865) spurred Confederate physicians to use preparations of native plants as medicines. In 1863, botanist Francis Porcher compiled a book of medicinal plants native to the southern United States, including plants used in Native American traditional medicine. In this study, we consulted Porcher's book and collected samples from three species that were indicated for the formulation of antiseptics: Liriodendron tulipifera, Aralia spinosa, and Quercus alba. Extracts of these species were tested for the ability to inhibit growth in three species of multidrug-resistant pathogenic bacteria associated with wound infections: Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Acinetobacter baumannii. Extracts were also tested for biofilm and quorum sensing inhibition against S. aureus. Q. alba extracts inhibited growth in all three species of bacteria (IC₅₀ 64, 32, and 32?µg/mL, respectively), and inhibited biofilm formation (IC₅₀ 1?µg/mL) in S. aureus. L. tulipifera extracts inhibited biofilm formation (IC₅₀ 32?µg/mL) in S. aureus. A. spinosa extracts inhibited biofilm formation (IC₅₀ 2?µg/mL) and quorum sensing (IC₅₀ 8?µg/mL) in S. aureus. These results support that this selection of plants exhibited some antiseptic properties in the prevention and management of wound infections during the conflict.

SUBMITTER: Dettweiler M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6531439 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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American Civil War plant medicines inhibit growth, biofilm formation, and quorum sensing by multidrug-resistant bacteria.

Dettweiler Micah M Lyles James T JT Nelson Kate K Dale Brandon B Reddinger Ryan M RM Zurawski Daniel V DV Quave Cassandra L CL

Scientific reports 20190522 1

A shortage of conventional medicine during the American Civil War (1861-1865) spurred Confederate physicians to use preparations of native plants as medicines. In 1863, botanist Francis Porcher compiled a book of medicinal plants native to the southern United States, including plants used in Native American traditional medicine. In this study, we consulted Porcher's book and collected samples from three species that were indicated for the formulation of antiseptics: Liriodendron tulipifera, Aral ...[more]

PMID: 31118466

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Project description:BACKGROUND: In a previous study, we demonstrated that Vibrio scophthalmi, the most abundant Vibrio species among the marine aerobic or facultatively anaerobic bacteria inhabiting the intestinal tract of healthy cultured turbot (Scophthalmus maximus), contains at least two quorum-sensing circuits involving two types of signal molecules (a 3-hydroxy-dodecanoyl-homoserine lactone and the universal autoinducer 2 encoded by luxS). The purpose of this study was to investigate the functions regulated by these quorum sensing circuits in this vibrio by constructing mutants for the genes involved in these circuits. RESULTS: The presence of a homologue to the Vibrio harveyi luxR gene encoding a main transcriptional regulator, whose expression is modulated by quorum-sensing signal molecules in other vibrios, was detected and sequenced. The V. scophthalmi LuxR protein displayed a maximum amino acid identity of 82% with SmcR, the LuxR homologue found in Vibrio vulnificus. luxR and luxS null mutants were constructed and their phenotype analysed. Both mutants displayed reduced biofilm formation in vitro as well as differences in membrane protein expression by mass-spectrometry analysis. Additionally, a recombinant strain of V. scophthalmi carrying the lactonase AiiA from Bacillus cereus, which causes hydrolysis of acyl homoserine lactones, was included in the study. CONCLUSIONS: V. scophthalmi shares two quorum sensing circuits, including the main transcriptional regulator luxR, with some pathogenic vibrios such as V. harveyi and V. anguillarum. However, contrary to these pathogenic vibrios no virulence factors (such as protease production) were found to be quorum sensing regulated in this bacterium. Noteworthy, biofilm formation was altered in luxS and luxR mutants. In these mutants a different expression profile of membrane proteins were observed with respect to the wild type strain suggesting that quorum sensing could play a role in the regulation of the adhesion mechanisms of this bacterium.

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American Civil War plant medicines inhibit growth, biofilm formation, and quorum sensing by multidrug-resistant bacteria.

Publications

American Civil War plant medicines inhibit growth, biofilm formation, and quorum sensing by multidrug-resistant bacteria.

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