Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer

In worldwide conditions of increasingly antibiotic-resistant hospital infections, it is important to research alternative therapies. Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus bacteria naturally prey on Gram-negative pathogens, including antibiotic-resistant strains and so B. bacteriovorus have been proposed as “li...

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Main Authors: Baker, Michelle, Negus, David, Raghunathan, Dhaarini, Radford, Paul, Moore, Christopher, Clark, Gemma, Diggle, Mathew, Tyson, Jess, Twycross, Jamie, Sockett, R. Elizabeth
Format: Article
Published: Nature Publishing Group 2017
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Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/45031/
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author Baker, Michelle
Negus, David
Raghunathan, Dhaarini
Radford, Paul
Moore, Christopher
Clark, Gemma
Diggle, Mathew
Tyson, Jess
Twycross, Jamie
Sockett, R. Elizabeth
author_facet Baker, Michelle
Negus, David
Raghunathan, Dhaarini
Radford, Paul
Moore, Christopher
Clark, Gemma
Diggle, Mathew
Tyson, Jess
Twycross, Jamie
Sockett, R. Elizabeth
author_sort Baker, Michelle
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description In worldwide conditions of increasingly antibiotic-resistant hospital infections, it is important to research alternative therapies. Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus bacteria naturally prey on Gram-negative pathogens, including antibiotic-resistant strains and so B. bacteriovorus have been proposed as “living antibiotics” to combat antimicrobially-resistant pathogens. Predator-prey interactions are complex and can be altered by environmental components. To be effective B. bacteriovorus predation needs to work in human body fluids such as serum where predation dynamics may differ to that studied in laboratory media. Here we combine mathematical modelling and lab experimentation to investigate the predation of an important carbapenem-resistant human pathogen, Klebsiella pneumoniae, by B. bacteriovorus in human serum versus buffer. We show experimentally that B. bacteriovorus is able to reduce prey numbers in each environment, on different timescales. Our mathematical model captures the underlying dynamics of the experimentation, including an initial predation-delay at the predator-preyserum interface. Our research shows differences between predation in buffer and serum and highlights both the potential and limitations of B. bacteriovorus acting therapeutically against K. pneumoniae in serum, informing future research into the medicinal behaviours and dosing of this living antibacterial.
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spelling nottingham-450312020-05-04T19:01:33Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/45031/ Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer Baker, Michelle Negus, David Raghunathan, Dhaarini Radford, Paul Moore, Christopher Clark, Gemma Diggle, Mathew Tyson, Jess Twycross, Jamie Sockett, R. Elizabeth In worldwide conditions of increasingly antibiotic-resistant hospital infections, it is important to research alternative therapies. Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus bacteria naturally prey on Gram-negative pathogens, including antibiotic-resistant strains and so B. bacteriovorus have been proposed as “living antibiotics” to combat antimicrobially-resistant pathogens. Predator-prey interactions are complex and can be altered by environmental components. To be effective B. bacteriovorus predation needs to work in human body fluids such as serum where predation dynamics may differ to that studied in laboratory media. Here we combine mathematical modelling and lab experimentation to investigate the predation of an important carbapenem-resistant human pathogen, Klebsiella pneumoniae, by B. bacteriovorus in human serum versus buffer. We show experimentally that B. bacteriovorus is able to reduce prey numbers in each environment, on different timescales. Our mathematical model captures the underlying dynamics of the experimentation, including an initial predation-delay at the predator-preyserum interface. Our research shows differences between predation in buffer and serum and highlights both the potential and limitations of B. bacteriovorus acting therapeutically against K. pneumoniae in serum, informing future research into the medicinal behaviours and dosing of this living antibacterial. Nature Publishing Group 2017-08-21 Article PeerReviewed Baker, Michelle, Negus, David, Raghunathan, Dhaarini, Radford, Paul, Moore, Christopher, Clark, Gemma, Diggle, Mathew, Tyson, Jess, Twycross, Jamie and Sockett, R. Elizabeth (2017) Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer. Scientific Reports, 7 (8329). pp. 1-18. ISSN 2045-2322 Bdellovibrio Pathogen Serum Klebsiella modelling http://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-08060-4 doi:10.1038/s41598-017-08060-4 doi:10.1038/s41598-017-08060-4
spellingShingle Bdellovibrio
Pathogen
Serum
Klebsiella
modelling
Baker, Michelle
Negus, David
Raghunathan, Dhaarini
Radford, Paul
Moore, Christopher
Clark, Gemma
Diggle, Mathew
Tyson, Jess
Twycross, Jamie
Sockett, R. Elizabeth
Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer
title Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer
title_full Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer
title_fullStr Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer
title_full_unstemmed Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer
title_short Measuring and modelling the response of Klebsiella pneumoniae KPC prey to Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer
title_sort measuring and modelling the response of klebsiella pneumoniae kpc prey to bdellovibrio bacteriovorus predation, in human serum and defined buffer
topic Bdellovibrio
Pathogen
Serum
Klebsiella
modelling
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/45031/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/45031/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/45031/