Cytotoxic necrotizing factor type 1 (CNF1), a toxin produced by many strains of uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), constitutively activates small GTPases of the Rho family by deamidating a single amino acid within these target proteins. Such activated GTPases not only stimulate actin polymerization within affected cells but also, as we previously reported, decrease membrane fluidity on mous...

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), the predominant cause of uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI), utilizes an array of outer membrane iron receptors to facilitate siderophore and heme import from within the iron-limited urinary tract. While these systems are required for UPEC in vivo fitness and are assumed to be functionally redundant, the relative contributions of specific receptor...

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is a causative agent in the vast majority of urinary tract infections (UTIs), including cystitis and pyelonephritis, and infectious complications, which may result in acute renal failure in healthy individuals as well as in renal transplant patients. UPEC expresses a multitude of virulence factors to break the inertia of the mucosal barrier. In response to ...

Intracellular quiescent reservoirs of uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), which can seed the bladder mucosa during the acute phase of a urinary tract infection (UTI), are protected from antibiotic treatments and are extremely difficult to eliminate. These reservoirs are a potential source for recurrent UTIs that affect millions annually. Here, using murine infection models and the bladder ce...

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the leading causative agent of urinary tract infections (UTI) in the developed world. Among the major virulence factors of UPEC, surface expressed adhesins mediate attachment and tissue tropism. UPEC strains typically possess a range of adhesins, with type 1 fimbriae and P fimbriae of the chaperone-usher class the best characterised. We previously identi...

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) strain 536 (O6:K15:H31) is one of the model organisms of extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC). To analyze this strain's genetic basis of urovirulence, we sequenced the entire genome and compared the data with the genome sequence of UPEC strain CFT073 (O6:K2:H1) and to the available genomes of nonpathogenic E. coli strain MG1655 (K-12) and enterohemorr...

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the leading cause of community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTIs), with over 100 million UTIs occurring annually throughout the world. Increasing antimicrobial resistance among UPEC limits ambulatory care options, delays effective treatment, and may increase overall morbidity and mortality from complications such as urosepsis. The polysaccharide ca...

Numerous antibiotics have proven to be effective at ameliorating the clinical symptoms of urinary tract infections (UTIs), but recurrent and chronic infections continue to plague many individuals. Most UTIs are caused by strains of uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), which can form both extra- and intracellular biofilm-like communities within the bladder. UPEC also persist inside host urothe...

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) constitute the majority of nosocomial urinary tract infections (UTIs) and pose significant clinical challenges. These infections are polymicrobial in nature and are often associated with multidrug-resistant pathogens, including uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). Urinary catheterization elicits major histological and immunological alterat...