Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a notorious bacterial pathogen causing chronic pulmonary infections in people with cystic fibrosis (CF) due to its high tolerance to antibiotics and ability to form recalcitrant biofilms. A newer approach to attenuate the virulence of P. aeruginosa in CF could be the local reinforcement of a resilient community of competing bacteria in the lung. Lactobacilli can mediate antagonistic effects against P. aeruginosa by production of organic acids, but it is not entirely clear if they can exert this beneficial effect locally at the site of infection. While the nutritional environment of the airways in CF promotes P. aeruginosa, it does not support robust growth of lactic acid bacteria, thus attenuating their probiotic potential. To overcome this obstacle, we hypothesized that prebiotic fructooligosaccharides (FOS) could selectively stimulate Lactiplantibacillus plantarum during culture in synthetic cystic fibrosis sputum medium (SCFM2). Indeed, FOS supported the growth of L. plantarum and led to increased acid production. Co-cultivation of L. plantarum and P. aeruginosa reduced biofilm formation and FOS enabled L. plantarum to grow to higher densities in dual-species biofilms. However, this came at the cost of an increased production of the cytotoxic metabolite pyocyanin by P. aeruginosa. To examine whether L. plantarum would influence the pathogenicity of P. aeruginosa, we developed a dual-bacterial species infection model using a CF - relevant airway cell line exposed to the nutritional environment of SCFM2. L. plantarum, grown in SCFM2 or SCFM-FOS, did not inhibit the adhesion of P. aeruginosa. In contrast, the presence of live as well as heat-inactivated L. plantarum, or sterile L. plantarum supernatants drastically enhanced the cell damage during coinfection with P. aeruginosa. This effect was not exclusively dependent on differences in the proliferation of P. aeruginosa or addition of SCFM2 to the cell culture medium. Our data indicate that a potential benefit of bacteriotherapy is determined by the nutritional environment of the diseased body site and that the use of L. plantarum in the context of chronic pulmonary infections must be carefully evaluated.

Biejia-Ruangan enhances the efficacy of entecavir in reversing liver cirrhosis in patients with chronic HBV infection: A seven-year open-label follow-up cohort study.

Bronchiectasis and treatable traits: the journey from concept to clinical practice.

Antimicrobial and therapeutic effect of gold Nanoparticle-Aptamer conjugated antimicrobial peptide RW-BP100 in Brucella canis infected mice and RAW 264.7cells.

Engineered monoclonal antibody tobevibart enhances HBsAg capture by Fc receptor-positive cells and activates HBV-specific T cells.

Function and mechanism of dopamine receptor D2 (DRD2) in neuroinflammation and behavioral disorders in C57BL/6J mice infected with Toxoplasma gondii TgCtWh6 strain.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic bacterium that is readily cleared by mucus clearance in healthy individuals but becomes infectious in patients with mucus obstructive lung diseases, which are characterized by the formation of bacterial colonies or biofilms. The motility of P. aeruginosa is critical for biofilm formation, but it remains poorly understood how the bacterium transports within native mucus. Existing studies on mucus-bacteria interactions and P. aeruginosa transport within mucus largely rely on reconstituted mucus or purified mucins, which have properties dramatically different from native mucus. Here, we report the transport of P. aeruginosa strain PA14, a human clinical isolate responsible for chronic lung infections, in normal and diseased native human airway mucus. We use well-differentiated human bronchial epithelial cells cultured at the air-liquid-interface to secrete and harvest native human airway mucus with concentrations matching health and disease states. Furthermore, we develop a droplet-in-oil system for quantifying the transport of individual bacterium within bulk mucus. Remarkably, highly viscoelastic normal mucus promotes directional bacterial motility at a speed comparable to that in a low-viscosity physiological buffer. By contrast, concentrated, pathological mucus with elasticity dominating viscosity traps bacteria, reducing their motility more than 10-fold. Engineering mucus simulants with decoupled viscosity and elasticity reveals that the elasticity of complex fluids induces a qualitative change of bacterial motility from circular to directional motion. Our discovery not only provides insights into the biophysical mechanisms of bacterial infection in the lung but also reveals the previously unrecognized importance of elasticity in directional bacterial transport within complex fluids.

Adding pieces to the puzzle: IL-33 contribution to fibrogenesis in chronic lung allograft dysfunction.

Memory-driven modeling of herpes simplex virus type-1 and type-2 dynamics with neural network optimization.

Self-pumping Janus nanofiber membrane with pH monitoring capability, integrated with a drug-loaded fast-dissolving layer for enhanced chronic wound healing.

Effectiveness of suprascapular nerve block associated with physiotherapy compared with physiotherapy isolated for treatment of adhesive capsulitis: a randomized controlled trial.

Avian chronic hemoparasite infections occur commonly in wild birds, causing adverse effects on host fitness and breeding success. However, the potential impact of such infections on the incubation behavior has been scarcely experimentally studied. We reduced the infection of hemoparasites in wild-breeding female pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca) through medication with primaquine to test the possible effects on incubation patterns compared with non-medicated control females. As predicted, medicated females significantly reduced their parasite infection compared to control females. This had a direct significant effect on the female behavior, as medicated females were able to have longer incubation sessions, while control females reduced the time devoted to each incubation session. In addition, females from both treatment groups spent less time incubating as incubation progressed, with control females showing a greater reduction. In contrast, the average length of recess sessions did not vary across treatment groups. Moreover, incubation sessions were more frequently interrupted when clutches were smaller. However, these changes had no apparent effects on immediate fitness. To our knowledge, this is the first study showing changes in individual incubation patterns in response to parasites in a wild-bird population, adding to previous studies showing that blood parasites have detrimental effects on bird reproductive success.

Application of a novel branched-DNA assay to quantify killer immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) mRNA expression identifies tissue compartmentalization in naïve and SIV-infected rhesus macaques.

Metabolite-driven reprogramming of bacterial persisters: Mechanisms and therapeutic opportunities for overcoming antibiotic tolerance.

β-Glucans and their roles in immune and metabolic regulation: A review.

LC-MS profiling of Terminalia chebula seed reveals mechanistic insights supporting activity against multidrug-resistant diabetic foot ulcer isolate.

In wild birds, a frequent and significant aspect of co-evolution is simultaneous infections of a single avian host with multiple parasites from different haemosporidian genera, or from the same genus. To date, the majority of haemosporidian phylogenetic studies have been focused on Passerines. Other bird groups, such as nocturnal species, particularly owls, even though they play an important role in ecosystems, have been largely neglected. In our study, the use of a combination of different methodologies, including Illumina sequencing and a nested PCR protocol along with blood smear examination, provided valuable insights into detecting multiple infections. Out of 101 screened long-eared owl (Asio otus), screened in Vojvodina, Serbia, the overall prevalence was 69.3%, among which 26.73% individuals carried co-infections. With a prevalence of 41.58%, the most prevalent genus was Haemoproteus. However, no correlation was found between the presence of single or multiple infections and the body condition of long-eared owls, indicating that chronic haemosporidian infections may be harmless to the hosts during the non-breeding period. Furthermore, no significant differences in prevalence between adult and young birds were found. Additionally, long-eared owls represent a new host for 5 of 10 parasite lineages identified in this study, previously documented elsewhere. For this reason, continued research during the nesting period, when vectors are active, is crucial to better understand the full haemosporidian diversity in this top predator.

Optimized aptamer-based impedimetric assay for sensitive and selective determination of moxifloxacin.

Epidemiology and clinical characteristics of rat hepatitis E virus infection in humans.

Antibiofilm and antioxidant biocompatible materials as thin films based on a PVB matrix loaded with quercetin.