Host-inherent variability influences the transcriptional response of Staphylococcus aureus during in vivo infection

Robert Thänert, Oliver Goldmann, Andreas Beineke and Eva Medina ()
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Robert Thänert: Infection Immunology Research Group, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research
Oliver Goldmann: Infection Immunology Research Group, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research
Andreas Beineke: Institute for Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover
Eva Medina: Infection Immunology Research Group, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract The rise of antibiotic resistance calls for alternative strategies to treat bacterial infections. One attractive strategy is to directly target bacterial virulence factors with anti-virulence drugs. The expression of virulence traits by pathogens is, however, not constitutive but rather induced by the level of stress encountered within the host. Here we use dual RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) to show that intrinsic variability in the level of host resistance greatly affects the pathogen's transcriptome in vivo. Through analysis of the transcriptional profiles of host and pathogen during Staphylococcus aureus infection of two mouse strains, shown to be susceptible (A/J) or resistant (C57BL/6) to the pathogen, we demonstrate that the expression of virulence factors is dependent on the encountered host resistance. We furthermore provide evidence that this dependence strongly influences the efficacy of anti-virulence strategies, highlighting a potential limitation for the implementation of these strategies.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14268

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