Abstract
Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections. It is listed among the top “serious threats” to human health in the USA, due in large part to rising rates of resistance. Many S. aureus infections are recalcitrant to antibiotic therapy due to their ability to form a biofilm, which acts not only as a physical barrier to antibiotics and the immune system, but results in differences in metabolism that further restricts antibiotic efficacy. Development of a modular strategy to synthesize a library of phenolic glycosides allowed for bioactivity testing and identification of anti-biofilm compounds within an extract of the elmleaf blackberry (Rubus ulmifolius). Two ellagic acid (EA) derivatives, EA xyloside and EA rhamnoside, have been identified as components of the Rubus extract. In addition, EA rhamnoside has been identified as an inhibitor of biofilm formation, with activity comparable to the complex extract 220D-F2 (composed of a mixture of EA glycosides), and confirmed by confocal laser scanning microscopy analyses.
Highlights
While bacteria play essential roles in many aspects of human health, as evidenced by the growing body of work on the human microbiome (Kostic et al, 2013; Sommer and Backhed, 2013), bacterial infections can wreak havoc, if the infectious microbes are antibiotic resistant
Formation of biofilms on native host tissues and indwelling medical devices leads to microbial infections that are recalcitrant to antimicrobials, even in the absence of issues related to acquired resistance
A previously published X-ray crystal structure indicates that tetrabutylammonium fluoride (TBAF)mediated deprotection of a per-O-silyl ellagic acid (EA) derivative occurs preferentially at the 3- and 3 -silyl ethers to afford the 3,3 diphenolate in situ, presumably due to inductive effects of the proximal endocyclic lactone oxygen (Kobayashi et al, 2013)
Summary
While bacteria play essential roles in many aspects of human health, as evidenced by the growing body of work on the human microbiome (Kostic et al, 2013; Sommer and Backhed, 2013), bacterial infections can wreak havoc, if the infectious microbes are antibiotic resistant. Within the United States, nearly two million people develop hospital-acquired infections each year, the majority of which are antibiotic resistant and result in nearly 100,000 deaths. Antibiotic resistant infections cost the United States between 21 and 34 million dollars each year, resulting in a financial strain on the health care system [Boucher et al, 2009; Roberts et al, 2009; Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) et al, 2011]. Formation of biofilms on native host tissues and indwelling medical devices leads to microbial infections that are recalcitrant to antimicrobials, even in the absence of issues related to acquired resistance. Biofilms increase cross-species gene transfer, lead to expression of more virulent phenotypes, and result in a much higher cell density (1011 CFU/mL) than their planktonic
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