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The cellulose synthase BcsA plays a role in interactions of Salmonella typhimurium with Acanthamoeba castellanii genotype T4

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Abstract

Pathogenic bacteria share their natural habitat with many other organisms such as animals, plants, insects, parasites and amoeba. Interactions between these organisms influence not only the life style of the host organisms, but also modulate bacterial physiology. Adaptation can include biofilm formation, capsule formation, and production of virulence factors. Although biofilm formation is a dominant mode of bacterial life in environmental settings, its role in host-pathogen interactions is not extensively studied. In this work, we investigated the role of molecular pathways involved in rdar biofilm formation in the interaction of Salmonella typhimurium with the Acanthamoeba castellanii genotype T4. Genes coding for the rdar biofilm activator CsgD, the cellulose synthase BcsA, and curli fimbriae subunits CsgBA were deleted from the genome of S. typhimurium. Assessment of interactions of wild-type and mutant strains of S. typhimurium with A. castellanii revealed that deletion of the cellulose synthase BcsA promoted association and uptake by A. castellanii, whereas the interactions with csgD and csgBA mutants were not changed. Our findings suggest that cellulose synthase BcsA inhibits the capabilities of S. typhimurium to associate with and invade into A. castellanii.

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Funding

The work was funded by the University of Health Sciences, Lahore.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan

    Muhammad Arslan Gill, Muhammad Wasim Rafique & Irfan Ahmad

  2. Department of Microbiology, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan

    Talha Manan & Sidrah Slaeem

  3. Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden

    Ute Römling

  4. Department of Medical Laboratory Technology, University of Haripur, Hattar Road, Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 22620, Pakistan

    Abdul Matin

  5. Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Majmaah University, Al Majmaah, 11952, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

    Abdul Matin

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  1. Muhammad Arslan Gill
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  2. Muhammad Wasim Rafique
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  7. Irfan Ahmad
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Correspondence to Irfan Ahmad.

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Gill, M.A., Rafique, M.W., Manan, T. et al. The cellulose synthase BcsA plays a role in interactions of Salmonella typhimurium with Acanthamoeba castellanii genotype T4. Parasitol Res 117, 2283–2289 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-018-5917-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-018-5917-4

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