Lucia Gonzales-Siles

The different ecological niches of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli.

Summary Enterotoxigenic E scherichia coli (ETEC) is a water and food‐borne pathogen that infects the small intestine of the human gut and causes diarrhoea. Enterotoxigenic E. coli adheres to the epithelium by means of colonization factors and secretes two enterotoxins, the heat labile toxin and/or the heat stable toxin that both deregulate ion channels and cause secretory diarrhoea. Enterotoxigenic E. coli as all E. coli, is a versatile organism able to survive and grow in different environments. During transmission and infection, ETEC is exposed to various environmental cues that have an impact on survivability and virulence. The ability to cope with exposure to different stressful habitats is probably shaping the pool of virulent ETEC strains that cause both endemic and epidemic infections. This review will focus on the ecology of ETEC in its different habitats and interactions with other organisms as well as abiotic factors.

The different ecological niches of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC)

Summary Enterotoxigenic E scherichia coli (ETEC) is a water and food‐borne pathogen that infects the small intestine of the human gut and causes diarrhoea. Enterotoxigenic E. coli adheres to the epithelium by means of colonization factors and secretes two enterotoxins, the heat labile toxin and/or the heat stable toxin that both deregulate ion channels and cause secretory diarrhoea. Enterotoxigenic E. coli as all E. coli, is a versatile organism able to survive and grow in different environments. During transmission and infection, ETEC is exposed to various environmental cues that have an impact on survivability and virulence. The ability to cope with exposure to different stressful habitats is probably shaping the pool of virulent ETEC strains that cause both endemic and epidemic infections. This review will focus on the ecology of ETEC in its different habitats and interactions with other organisms as well as abiotic factors.

Typing and Characterization of Bacteria Using Bottom-up Tandem Mass Spectrometry Proteomics

Methods for rapid and reliable microbial identification are essential in modern healthcare. The ability to detect and correctly identify pathogenic species and their resistance phenotype is necessary for accurate diagnosis and efficient treatment of infectious diseases. Bottom-up tandem mass spectrometry (MS) proteomics enables rapid characterization of large parts of the expressed genes of microorganisms. However, the generated data are highly fragmented, making downstream analyses complex. Here we present TCUP, a new computational method for typing and characterizing bacteria using proteomics data from bottom-up tandem MS. TCUP compares the generated protein sequence data to reference databases and automatically finds peptides suitable for characterization of taxonomic composition and identification of expressed antimicrobial resistance genes. TCUP was evaluated using several clinically relevant bacterial species (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Moraxella catarrhalis, and Haemophilus influenzae), using both simulated data generated by in silico peptide digestion and experimental proteomics data generated by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). The results showed that TCUP performs correct peptide classifications at rates between 90.3 and 98.5% at the species level. The method was also able to estimate the relative abundances of individual species in mixed cultures. Furthermore, TCUP could identify expressed β-lactamases in an extended spectrum β-lactamase-producing (ESBL) E. coli strain, even when the strain was cultivated in the absence of antibiotics. Finally, TCUP is computationally efficient, easy to integrate in existing bioinformatics workflows, and freely available under an open source license for both Windows and Linux environments.

Draft Genome Sequence of Streptococcus gordonii Type Strain CCUG 33482T

ABSTRACT Streptococcus gordonii type strain CCUG 33482T is a member of the Streptococcus mitis group, isolated from a case of subacute bacterial endocarditis. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of S. gordonii CCUG 33482T, composed of 41 contigs of a total size of 2.15 Mb with 2,061 annotated coding sequences.

Draft Genome Sequences of Six Strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae from Serotypes 5, 6A, 6B, 18C, 19A, and 23F

ABSTRACT Streptococcus pneumoniae is a pathogenic bacterium found most commonly in the respiratory tract of humans and is a common cause of pneumonia and bacterial meningitis. Here, we report the draft genome sequences of six S. pneumoniae strains: CCUG 1350, CCUG 7206, CCUG 11780, CCUG 33774, CCUG 35180, and CCUG 35272.

Draft Genome Sequence of Moraxella catarrhalis Type Strain CCUG 353T.

ABSTRACT Moraxella catarrhalis is a Gram-negative commensal and pathogenic bacterium found in the human respiratory tract. It is associated with otitis media and respiratory tract infections. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of M. catarrhalis type strain CCUG 353T, composed of 18 contigs and a total size of 1.89 Mb.