Abstract
BackgroundTo obtain insights into Escherichia coli O157:H7 (O157) survival mechanisms in the bovine rumen, we defined the growth characteristics and proteome of O157 cultured in rumen fluid (RF; pH 6.0-7.2 and low volatile fatty acid content) obtained from rumen-fistulated cattle fed low protein content “maintenance diet” under diverse in vitro conditions.ResultsBottom-up proteomics (LC-MS/MS) of whole cell-lysates of O157 cultured under anaerobic conditions in filter-sterilized RF (fRF; devoid of normal ruminal microbiota) and nutrient-depleted and filtered RF (dRF) resulted in an anaerobic O157 fRF-and dRF-proteome comprising 35 proteins functionally associated with cell structure, motility, transport, metabolism and regulation, but interestingly, not with O157 virulence. Shotgun proteomics-based analysis using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation used to further study differential protein expression in unfiltered RF (uRF; RF containing normal rumen microbial flora) complemented these results.ConclusionsOur results indicate that in the rumen, the first anatomical compartment encountered by this human pathogen within the cattle gastrointestinal tract (GIT), O157 initiates a program of specific gene expression that enables it to adapt to the in vivo environment, and successfully transit to its colonization sites in the bovine GIT. Further experiments in vitro using uRF from animals fed different diets and with additional O157 strains, and in vivo using rumen-fistulated cattle will provide a comprehensive understanding of the adaptive mechanisms involved, and help direct evolution of novel modalities for blocking O157 infection of cattle.
Highlights
To obtain insights into Escherichia coli O157:H7 (O157) survival mechanisms in the bovine rumen, we defined the growth characteristics and proteome of O157 cultured in rumen fluid (RF; pH 6.0-7.2 and low volatile fatty acid content) obtained from rumen-fistulated cattle fed low protein content “maintenance diet” under diverse in vitro conditions
Bacteria harvested from the log-phase cultures at an OD600 0.5-0.6, washed and re-suspended in sterile 0.9% saline, were used to inoculate various rumen fluid (RF) or LB aliquots as described under ‘Culture conditions and processing for proteomics’
Results pH and volatile fatty acids (VFA) content The pH and VFA concentrations were comparable amongst all rumen fluid samples, indicating consistency in maintenance diet being fed and the ruminal chemistry between the two animals enrolled in the study (Tables 1 and 2)
Summary
To obtain insights into Escherichia coli O157:H7 (O157) survival mechanisms in the bovine rumen, we defined the growth characteristics and proteome of O157 cultured in rumen fluid (RF; pH 6.0-7.2 and low volatile fatty acid content) obtained from rumen-fistulated cattle fed low protein content “maintenance diet” under diverse in vitro conditions. Escherichia coli O157 (O157) have been implicated in several human outbreaks since their being established as foodborne pathogens in 1982; an estimated 63,153 illnesses, 2,138 hospitalizations and 20 deaths occur annually in the United States [1,2,3,4]. Cattle are the primary reservoirs for O157, with their rectoanal junction (RAJ) serving as the colonization site at which these human foodborne pathogens persist [4,5]. The first bovine gastrointestinal tract (GIT) compartment that O157 encounters is the rumen, where bacterial factors that may enable O157 adaptation to the rumen
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