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Specificity grouping of the accessory gene regulator quorum-sensing system of Staphylococcus epidermidis is linked to infection

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Abstract

Staphylococcus epidermidis represents the most frequent pathogen involved in nosocomial infections and infections of indwelling medical devices. The strain-to-strain variation of the gene encoding the quorum-sensing pheromone of S. epidermidis as well as the correlation between specificity groups and origin from infection were determined. The pro-pheromone gene was highly conserved and showed infrequent, non-synonymous, single-nucleotide polymorphisms that led to conservative amino acid exchanges only. Importantly, one specificity group was significantly more frequent among strains isolated from infection. The finding that quorum-sensing specificity groups are linked to infection demonstrates the relevance of quorum-sensing for virulence in this critical human pathogen and contributes to the scientific basis needed for the development of quorum-sensing-targeting drugs.

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Acknowledgements

All strains were kindly provided by N. El Solh, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Human Bacterial Pathogenesis, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, The National Institutes of Health, 903 S. 4th Street, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA

    A. B. Carmody & Michael Otto

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  1. A. B. Carmody
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  2. Michael Otto
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Correspondence to Michael Otto.

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Carmody, A.B., Otto, M. Specificity grouping of the accessory gene regulator quorum-sensing system of Staphylococcus epidermidis is linked to infection. Arch Microbiol 181, 250–253 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-003-0644-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-003-0644-2

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