Therapeutics and Prevention
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionAminoglycoside Heteroresistance in Acinetobacter baumannii AB5075Acinetobacter baumannii has become an important pathogen in hospitals worldwide, where the incidence of these infections has been increasing. A. baumannii infections have become exceedingly difficult to treat due to a rapid increase in the frequency of multidrug- and pan-resistant isolates. This has...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionMechanism of High-Level Daptomycin Resistance in Corynebacterium striatumAntimicrobial resistance threatens the efficacy of antimicrobial treatment options, including last-line-of-defense drugs. Understanding how this resistance develops can help direct antimicrobial stewardship efforts and is critical to designing the next generation of antimicrobial therapies. Here we determine how Corynebacterium striatum, a skin commensal and...
Meeting Highlights | Therapeutics and PreventionFirst International Precision Vaccines Conference: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Next-Generation VaccinesVaccines represent a remarkable success in the history of medicine since they have prevented and, in some instances, eradicated a range of infectious diseases. However, for many existing vaccines, immunogenicity is limited, requiring multiple booster doses, and we are still unable to target many pathogens due to intrinsic features of the microorganism, such as genetic/antigenic variability between strains, and our limited understanding...
Minireview | Therapeutics and PreventionThe Mucosal Vaccine Adjuvant LT(R192G/L211A) or dmLTPerhaps the best-studied mucosal adjuvants are the bacterially derived ADP-ribosylating enterotoxins. This adjuvant family includes heat-labile enterotoxin of Escherichia coli (LT), cholera toxin (CT), and mutants or subunits of LT and CT.
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionRifampin- or Capreomycin-Induced Remodeling of the Mycobacterium smegmatis Mycolic Acid Layer Is Mitigated in Synergistic Combinations with Cationic Antimicrobial PeptidesWe have used a combined NMR metabolomics/biophysical approach to better understand differences in the mechanisms of two closely related antimicrobial peptides, as well as the response of the model organism Mycobacterium smegmatis to challenge with first- or second-line antibiotics used against mycobacterial pathogens. We show that, in addition to membrane damage, the...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionTranscriptome Assembly and Profiling of Candida auris Reveals Novel Insights into Biofilm-Mediated ResistanceFungal infections represent an important cause of human morbidity and mortality, particularly if the fungi adhere to and grow on both biological and inanimate surfaces as communities of cells (biofilms). Recently, a previously unrecognized yeast, Candida auris, has emerged globally that has led to widespread concern due to the difficulty in treating it with existing...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionAnti-HIV-1 Activity of Lactic Acid in Human Cervicovaginal FluidThe Lactobacillus-dominated vaginal microbiota is associated with a reduced risk of acquiring and transmitting HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Lactic acid is a major organic acid metabolite produced by lactobacilli that acidifies the vagina and has been reported to have inhibitory activity in vitro against bacterial, protozoan, and viral STIs, including HIV infections. However, the anti-HIV...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionDivergent Small Tim Homologues Are Associated with TbTim17 and Critical for the Biogenesis of TbTim17 Protein Complexes in Trypanosoma bruceiTrypanosoma brucei is the causative agent of African sleeping sickness. The parasite’s mitochondrion represents a useful source for potential chemotherapeutic targets. Similarly to yeast and humans, mitochondrial functions depend on the import of proteins that are encoded in the nucleus and made in the cytosol. Even though the machinery involved in this mitochondrial...
Resource Report | Therapeutics and PreventionDevelopment, Interlaboratory Evaluations, and Application of a Simple, High-Throughput Shigella Serum Bactericidal AssayShigella is an important cause of diarrhea worldwide, and efforts are ongoing to produce a safe and effective Shigella vaccine. Although a clear immune correlate of protection has not been established, antibodies with bactericidal capacity may provide one means of protecting against shigellosis. Thus, it is important to measure the functional capacity of antibodies, as opposed to only binding activity. This article...
Research Article | Therapeutics and PreventionSublingual Adjuvant Delivery by a Live Attenuated Vibrio cholerae-Based Antigen Presentation PlatformDiarrheal disease is the most common infectious disease of children in the developing world. Our goal is to develop a diarrheal antigen presentation platform based on whole Vibrio cholerae cells that does not depend on protein purification. We have previously shown the feasibility of genetically fusing antigens to the...