Kayviruses are polyvalent broad host range staphylococcal phages with a potential to combat staphylococcal infections. However, the implementation of rational phage therapy in medicine requires a thorough understanding of the interactions between bacteriophages and pathogens at omics level. To evaluate the effect of a phage used in therapy on its host bacterium, we performed differential transcriptomic analysis by RNA-Seq from bacteriophage K of genus Kayvirus infecting two Staphylococcus aureus strains, prophage-less strain SH1000 and quadruple lysogenic strain Newman. The temporal transcriptional profile of phage K was comparable in both strains except for a few loci encoding hypothetical proteins. Stranded sequencing revealed transcription of phage noncoding RNAs that may play a role in the regulation of phage and host gene expression. The transcriptional response of S. aureus to phage K infection resembles a general stress response with differential expression of genes involved in a DNA damage response. The host transcriptional changes involved upregulation of nucleotide, amino acid and energy synthesis and transporter genes and downregulation of host transcription factors. The interaction of phage K with variable genetic elements of the host showed slight upregulation of gene expression of prophage integrases and antirepressors. The virulence genes involved in adhesion and immune evasion were only marginally affected, making phage K suitable for therapy. IMPORTANCE Bacterium Staphylococcus aureus is a common human and veterinary pathogen that causes mild to life-threatening infections. As strains of S. aureus are becoming increasingly resistant to multiple antibiotics, the need to search for new therapeutics is urgent. A promising alternative to antibiotic treatment of staphylococcal infections is a phage therapy using lytic phages from the genus Kayvirus. Here, we present a comprehensive view on the phage-bacterium interactions on transcriptomic level that improves the knowledge of molecular mechanisms underlying the Kayvirus lytic action. The results will ensure safer usage of the phage therapeutics and may also serve as a basis for the development of new antibacterial strategies.

• Klíčová slova
• Kayvirus, RNA-Seq, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus phages, bacteriophage therapy, noncoding RNA, phage-host interactions, prophages, transcriptome, viral transcription,
• MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• profágy genetika   MeSH
• stafylokokové bakteriofágy genetika   MeSH
• stafylokokové infekce * mikrobiologie   terapie   MeSH
• Staphylococcus aureus * MeSH
• transkriptom MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH

Antibiotic resistance is increasing among Staphylococcus saprophyticus strains isolated from urinary tract infection. This necessitates alternative therapies. For this, a lytic phage (vB_SsapS-104) against S. saprophyticus, which formed round and clear plaques on bacterial culture plates, was isolated from hospital wastewater and characterized. Microscopy analysis showed that it had a small head (about 50 nm), tail (about 80 nm), and a collar (about 22 nm in length and 19 nm in width) indicating to be a phage within Siphoviridae family. Phage vB_SsapS-104 showed a large latency period of about 40 min, rapid adsorption rate that was significantly enhanced by MgCl2 and CaCl2, and high stability to a wide range of temperatures and pH values. Restriction analyses demonstrated that phage consists of a double-stranded DNA with an approximate genome size of 40 Kb. BLAST results did not show high similarity (megablast) with other previously identified phages. But, in Blastn, similarity with Staphylococcus phages was observed. Phage vB_SsapS-104 represented high anti-bacterial activity against S. saprophyticus isolates in vitro as it was able to lyse 8 of the 9 clinical isolates (%88.8) obtained from a hospital in Gorgan, Iran. It was a S. saprophyticus-specific phage because no lytic activity was observed on some other pathogenic bacteria tested. Therefore, phage vB_SsapS-104 can be considered as a specific virulent phage against of S. saprophyitcus isolated from urinary tract infection. This study provided the partial genomic characterization of S. saprophyticus phage and its application against urinary tract infection associated with S. saprophyticus. This phage also can be considered as a good candidate for a therapeutic alternative in the future.

• Klíčová slova
• Lytic bacteriophage, Siphoviridae, Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Urinary tract infection,
• MeSH
• antibakteriální látky farmakologie   MeSH
• DNA virů MeSH
• fágová terapie MeSH
• genom virový MeSH
• hostitelská specificita MeSH
• infekce močového ústrojí mikrobiologie   MeSH
• koncentrace vodíkových iontů MeSH
• latence viru MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• odpadní voda virologie   MeSH
• sekvenční analýza DNA MeSH
• Siphoviridae genetika   izolace a purifikace   ultrastruktura   MeSH
• stafylokokové bakteriofágy genetika   MeSH
• stafylokokové infekce mikrobiologie   MeSH
• Staphylococcus saprophyticus účinky léků   virologie   MeSH
• teplota MeSH
• transmisní elektronová mikroskopie MeSH
• virulence MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Írán MeSH
• Názvy látek
• antibakteriální látky MeSH
• DNA virů MeSH
• odpadní voda MeSH

Lytic bacteriophages are valuable therapeutic agents against bacterial infections. There is continual effort to obtain new phages to increase the effectivity of phage preparations against emerging phage-resistant strains. Here we described the genomic diversity of spontaneous host-range mutants of kayvirus 812. Five mutant phages were isolated as rare plaques on phage-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains. The host range of phage 812-derived mutants was 42% higher than the wild type, determined on a set of 186 methicillin-resistant S. aureus strains representing the globally circulating human and livestock-associated clones. Comparative genomics revealed that single-nucleotide polymorphisms from the parental phage 812 population were fixed in next-step mutants, mostly in genes for tail and baseplate components, and the acquired point mutations led to diverse receptor binding proteins in the phage mutants. Numerous genome changes associated with rearrangements between direct repeat motifs or intron loss were found. Alterations occurred in host-takeover and terminal genomic regions or the endolysin gene of mutants that exhibited the highest lytic activity, which implied various mechanisms of overcoming bacterial resistance. The genomic data revealed that Kayvirus spontaneous mutants are free from undesirable genes and their lytic properties proved their suitability for rapidly updating phage therapeutics.

• MeSH
• bakteriální léková rezistence MeSH
• bakteriofágy genetika   MeSH
• délka genomu MeSH
• genom virový MeSH
• genomika MeSH
• jednonukleotidový polymorfismus MeSH
• methicilin farmakologie   MeSH
• mutace * MeSH
• Staphylococcus aureus růst a vývoj   virologie   MeSH
• zastoupení bazí MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Názvy látek
• methicilin MeSH

Staphylococcus aureus may be a highly virulent human pathogen, especially when it is able to form a biofilm, and it is resistant to antibiotic. Infections caused by these bacteria significantly affect morbidity and mortality, primarily in hospitalized patients. Treatment becomes more expensive, more toxic, and prolonged. This is the reason why research on alternative therapies should be one of the main priorities of medicine and biotechnology. A promising alternative treatment approach is bacteriophage therapy. The effect of the anti-staphylococcal bacteriophage preparation Stafal® on biofilm reduction was assessed on nine S. aureus strains using both sonication with subsequent quantification of surviving cells on the catheter surface and evaluation of biofilm reduction in microtiter plates. It was demonstrated that the bacteriophages destroy planktonic cells very effectively. However, to destroy cells embedded in the biofilm effectively requires a concentration at least ten times higher than that provided by the commercial preparation. The catheter disc method (CDM) allowed easier comparison of the effect on planktonic cells and cells in a biofilm than the microtiter plate (MTP) method.

• MeSH
• antiinfekční látky * MeSH
• bakteriologické techniky MeSH
• biofilmy * MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• methicilin rezistentní Staphylococcus aureus růst a vývoj   izolace a purifikace   virologie   MeSH
• mikrobiální viabilita MeSH
• počet mikrobiálních kolonií MeSH
• stafylokokové bakteriofágy fyziologie   MeSH
• stafylokokové infekce mikrobiologie   MeSH
• Staphylococcus aureus růst a vývoj   izolace a purifikace   virologie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• Názvy látek
• antiinfekční látky * MeSH

Staphylococcus aureus is a major causative agent of infections associated with hospital environments, where antibiotic-resistant strains have emerged as a significant threat. Phage therapy could offer a safe and effective alternative to antibiotics. Phage preparations should comply with quality and safety requirements; therefore, it is important to develop efficient production control technologies. This study was conducted to develop and evaluate a rapid and reliable method for identifying staphylococcal bacteriophages, based on detecting their specific proteins using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) profiling that is among the suggested methods for meeting the regulations of pharmaceutical authorities. Five different phage purification techniques were tested in combination with two MALDI-TOF MS matrices. Phages, either purified by CsCl density gradient centrifugation or as resuspended phage pellets, yielded mass spectra with the highest information value if ferulic acid was used as the MALDI matrix. Phage tail and capsid proteins yielded the strongest signals whereas the culture conditions had no effect on mass spectral quality. Thirty-seven phages from Myoviridae, Siphoviridae or Podoviridae families were analysed, including 23 siphophages belonging to the International Typing Set for human strains of S. aureus, as well as phages in preparations produced by Microgen, Bohemia Pharmaceuticals and MB Pharma. The data obtained demonstrate that MALDI-TOF MS can be used to effectively distinguish between Staphylococcus-specific bacteriophages.

• Klíčová slova
• Kayvirus, MALDI-MS, Staphylococcus, Viral proteins, bacteriophages, phage therapy,
• MeSH
• biologické přípravky izolace a purifikace   MeSH
• chemická frakcionace metody   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• replikace viru MeSH
• shluková analýza MeSH
• spektrometrie hmotnostní - ionizace laserem za účasti matrice * metody   MeSH
• stafylokokové bakteriofágy klasifikace   metabolismus   MeSH
• Staphylococcus aureus virologie   MeSH
• virové proteiny analýza   chemie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Názvy látek
• biologické přípravky MeSH
• viron MeSH Prohlížeč
• virové proteiny MeSH

The spontaneous host-range mutants 812F1 and K1/420 are derived from polyvalent phage 812 that is almost identical to phage K, belonging to family Myoviridae and genus Kayvirus. Phage K1/420 is used for the phage therapy of staphylococcal infections. Endolysin of these mutants designated LysF1, consisting of an N-terminal cysteine-histidine-dependent aminohydrolase/peptidase (CHAP) domain and C-terminal SH3b cell wall-binding domain, has deleted middle amidase domain compared to wild-type endolysin. In this work, LysF1 and both its domains were prepared as recombinant proteins and their function was analyzed. LysF1 had an antimicrobial effect on 31 Staphylococcus species of the 43 tested. SH3b domain influenced antimicrobial activity of LysF1, since the lytic activity of the truncated variant containing the CHAP domain alone was decreased. The results of a co-sedimentation assay of SH3b domain showed that it was able to bind to three types of purified staphylococcal peptidoglycan 11.2, 11.3, and 11.8 that differ in their peptide bridge, but also to the peptidoglycan type 11.5 of Streptococcus uberis, and this capability was verified in vivo using the fusion protein with GFP and fluorescence microscopy. Using several different approaches, including NMR, we have not confirmed the previously proposed interaction of the SH3b domain with the pentaglycine bridge in the bacterial cell wall. The new naturally raised deletion mutant endolysin LysF1 is smaller than LysK, has a broad lytic spectrum, and therefore is an appropriate enzyme for practical use. The binding spectrum of SH3b domain covering all known staphylococcal peptidoglycan types is a promising feature for creating new chimeolysins by combining it with more effective catalytic domains.

• Klíčová slova
• Endolysin, Endopeptidases, Enzybiotics, Src homology domains, Staphylococcal infections, Staphylococcus bacteriophage,
• MeSH
• endopeptidasy genetika   izolace a purifikace   metabolismus   MeSH
• hostitelská specificita * MeSH
• mutantní proteiny genetika   izolace a purifikace   metabolismus   MeSH
• Myoviridae enzymologie   genetika   fyziologie   MeSH
• peptidoglykan metabolismus   MeSH
• proteinové domény MeSH
• sekvenční delece * MeSH
• Staphylococcus virologie   MeSH
• vazba proteinů MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• Názvy látek
• endolysin MeSH Prohlížeč
• endopeptidasy MeSH
• mutantní proteiny MeSH
• peptidoglykan MeSH

We describe bacteriophage therapy in the case of a healthcare worker whose gastrointestinal tract was colonized by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) with subsequent urinary tract infection caused by the same pathogen. Oral treatment with anti-MRSA phages resulted in eradication of the carrier status.

• MeSH
• bakteriofágy * MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• přenašečství prevence a kontrola   MeSH
• přenos infekce ze zdravotnického pracovníka na pacienta prevence a kontrola   MeSH
• rezistence na methicilin * MeSH
• stafylokokové infekce prevence a kontrola   terapie   virologie   MeSH
• Staphylococcus aureus účinky léků   virologie   MeSH
• zdravotní sestry MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• kazuistiky MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH