HtrA is a major virulence factor of Streptococcus pneumoniae (the pneumococcus). Deletion of the gene for HtrA from strain D39 of the pneumococcus completely abolished its virulence in mouse models of pneumonia and bacteremia, while the virulence of a second strain (TIGR4) was dramatically reduced. HtrA-negative mutants induced much less inflammation in the lungs during pneumonia than the wild ...

Background: Enterococcus faecalis is a normal flora of the oral cavity, commonly detected in saliva and persistence in endodontic infections. These bacteria have diverse survival and virulence factors. Hemolysin is one of the factor and still had unclear role as a virulence factor of the Enterococcus faecalis to survive in the root canal. Purpose: The purpose of this research was to analyze the...

The SaeRS two-component system is a master activator of virulence factor transcription in Staphylococcus aureus, but the cellular factors that control its activity are unknown. Fatty acid (FA) kinase is a two-component enzyme system required for extracellular FA uptake and SaeRS activity. Here, we demonstrate the existence of an intracellular nonesterified FA pool in S. aureus that is elevated ...

Streptococcus sanguinis is the most common cause of infective endocarditis (IE). Since the molecular basis of virulence of this oral commensal bacterium remains unclear, we searched the genome of S. sanguinis for previously unidentified virulence factors. We identified a cell surface ecto-5'-nucleotidase (Nt5e), as a candidate virulence factor. By colorimetric phosphate assay, we showed that S....

Previously, we conducted a mutant screen of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato strain DC3000 to identify genes that contribute to virulence on Arabidopsis thaliana plants. Here we describe the characterization of one mutant strain, DB4H2, which contains a single Tn5 insertion in PSPTO3576, an open reading frame that is predicted to encode a protein belonging to the TetR family of transcriptional r...

A virulence factor denotes a bacterial product or strategy that contributes to virulence or pathogenicity. Streptococci produce a variety of protein toxins and enzymes that are capable of killing host cells and breaking down cell constituents, presumably to provide nutrients for the bacteria or to promote their spread. Some of these secreted products are hemolysins, streptokinases, hyaluronidas...

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are a diverse group of microorganisms that can be found in natural habitats and used wide range industries, especially the food sector. They regarded "Generally Recognized as Safe" commonly starter culture, probiotics, biopreservative. However, some LAB genera excluded from "Qualified Presumption Safety" (QPS) list due to possibility they have virulence antibiotic res...

helicobacter pylori (h. pylori) infection has been reported in more than half of the world human population. it is associated with gastric inflammation and noticeable infiltration of the immune cells to the stomach mucosa by several cytokines secretion. il-1β, il-18 have been shown to contribute to h. pylori induced gastritis, but the details of inflammation and association of virulence factors...