Abstract
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common outpatient infections, with a lifetime incidence of around 60% in women. We analysed urine samples from 223 patients with community-acquired UTIs and report the presence of the cleavage product released during the synthesis of colibactin, a bacterial genotoxin, in 55 of the samples examined. Uropathogenic Escherichia coli strains isolated from these patients, as well as the archetypal E. coli strain UTI89, were found to produce colibactin. In a murine model of UTI, the machinery producing colibactin was expressed during the early hours of the infection, when intracellular bacterial communities form. We observed extensive DNA damage both in umbrella and bladder progenitor cells. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report of colibactin production in UTIs in humans and its genotoxicity in bladder cells.
Highlights
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most common bacterial infections, affecting approximately 150 million individuals each year [1]
Our current study shows that colibactin producing bacteria induce DNA damage in bladder cells, including in urothelial regenerative cells and that colibactin is produced by pks+ uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) clinical strains isolated from human UTIs
We collected urine samples from 223 adult patients with community-acquired pyelonephritis, cystitis or asymptomatic bacteriuria caused by E. coli at the University Hospital of Toulouse, France
Summary
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most common bacterial infections, affecting approximately 150 million individuals each year [1]. UTIs occur most frequently in women, with more than 60% of females diagnosed with a UTI during their lifetime [2]. Colibactin is produced during urinary tract infections
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