Abstract
In the present work, we applied a shotgun proteomics approach for the fast and easy characterization of 20 different foodborne strains of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), one of the most recognized foodborne pathogenic bacteria. A total of 644 non-redundant proteins were identified and analyzed via an easy and rapid protein sample preparation procedure. The results allowed the differentiation of several proteome datasets from the different strains (common, accessory, and unique datasets), which were used to determine relevant functional pathways and differentiate the strains into different Euclidean hierarchical clusters. Moreover, a predicted protein-protein interaction network of the foodborne S. aureus strains was created. The whole confidence network contains 77 nodes and 769 interactions. Most of the identified proteins were surface-associated proteins that were related to pathways and networks of energy, lipid metabolism and virulence. Twenty-seven virulence factors were identified, and most of them corresponded to autolysins, N-acetylmuramoyl-L-alanine amidases, phenol-soluble modulins, extracellular fibrinogen-binding proteins and virulence factor EsxA. Potential species-specific peptide biomarkers were screened. Twenty-one species-specific peptide biomarkers, belonging to eight different proteins (nickel-ABC transporter, N-acetylmuramoyl-L-alanine amidase, autolysin, clumping factor A, gram-positive signal peptide YSIRK, cysteine protease/staphopain, transcriptional regulator MarR, and transcriptional regulator Sar-A), were proposed to identify S. aureus. These results constitute the first major dataset of peptides and proteins of foodborne S. aureus strains. This repository may be useful for further studies, for the development of new therapeutic treatments for S. aureus food intoxications and for microbial source-tracking in foodstuffs.
Highlights
Staphylococcus aureus is a ubiquitous gram-positive pathogenic microorganism that can trigger a wide spectrum of human diseases, from benign skin and soft tissue infections to lifethreatening diseases including bacteremia, endocarditis and pneumonia (Lowry, 1998)
We present for the first time the characterization of 20 different foodborne strains of S. aureus using a shotgun proteomics approach
In the first stage (Discovery Phase), a shotgun proteomics approach was used to generate a reference protein dataset for the 20 different foodborne strains of S. aureus (Böhme et al, 2012)
Summary
Staphylococcus aureus is a ubiquitous gram-positive pathogenic microorganism that can trigger a wide spectrum of human diseases, from benign skin and soft tissue infections to lifethreatening diseases including bacteremia, endocarditis and pneumonia (Lowry, 1998). Staphylococcus aureus is considered one of the major foodborne pathogens that can elicit serious food intoxications, mainly resulting from the contamination of food by S. aureusproduced enterotoxins (Hennekinne et al, 2012). These heatstable toxins of 25–30 kDa present similar amino acid sequences and common functional properties (Krakauer and Stiles, 2003; Lindsay and Griffiths, 2013). Staphylococcal pathogenicity is driven by a wide variety of virulence factors, such as autolysins, coagulases, lipases and fibrinogen-binding proteins (Zecconi and Scali, 2013). The disease typically resolves within 24–48 h; severe symptoms that require hospitalization can occur when infants, the elderly or debilitated people are affected
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
