A Novel Lipid-Based MALDI-TOF Assay for the Rapid Detection of Colistin-Resistant Enterobacter Species

Smith RD, McElheny CL, Izac JR, Gardner FM, Chandler CE, Goodlett DR, Doi Y, Johnson JK, Ernst RK. Microb Sectrum 2022 Feb 2.

Enterobacter species are classified as high-priority pathogens due to high prevalence of multidrug resistance from persistent antibiotic use. For Enterobacter infections caused by multidrug-resistant isolates, colistin (polymyxin E), a last-resort antibiotic, is a potential treatment option. Treatment with colistin has been shown to lead to emergence of polymyxin resistance. The primary mechanism for colistin resistance is modification of terminal phosphate moieties of lipid A, leading to decreased membrane electronegativity and reducing colistin binding affinity. Detection of these modifications, including the addition of phosphoethanolamine and 4-amino-4-deoxy-l-arabinose (Ara4N), can be used for prediction of colistin resistance using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). The objective of this study was to identify lipid A markers for colistin resistance in Enterobacter species and Klebsiella aerogenes (formerly Enterobacter aerogenes). … Continue readingA Novel Lipid-Based MALDI-TOF Assay for the Rapid Detection of Colistin-Resistant Enterobacter Species

Rapid identification of mcr-1-positive Escherichia coli from patient urine using a novel lipid-based MALDI-TOF-MS assay

Smith RD, Izac JR, Ha M, et al. Access Microbio. 2021 Dec 17

Mobilized colistin resistance (mcr) genes confer resistance to colistin, a last-resort antibiotic for multidrug-resistant Gram-negative infections. In this case report, we describe a novel lipid-based matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) diagnostic used to rapidly identify an mcr-1-positive Escherichia coli directly from a patient with a urinary tract infection without the need for ex vivo growth. … Continue readingRapid identification of mcr-1-positive Escherichia coli from patient urine using a novel lipid-based MALDI-TOF-MS assay

Colistin heteroresistance is largely undetected among carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales in the United States

Band V, Satola S, Smith R, et al. mBio 2021 Jan 26

Heteroresistance is a form of antibiotic resistance where a bacterial strain is comprised of a minor resistant subpopulation and a majority susceptible subpopulation. We showed previously that colistin heteroresistance can mediate the failure of colistin therapy in an in vivo infection model, even for isolates designated susceptible by clinical diagnostics. We sought to characterize the extent of colistin heteroresistance among the highly drug-resistant carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE). We screened 408 isolates for colistin heteroresistance. These isolates were collected between 2012 and 2015 in eight U.S. states as part of active surveillance for CRE. Colistin heteroresistance was detected in 10.1% (41/408) of isolates, and it was more common than conventional homogenous resistance (7.1%, 29/408). Most (93.2%, 38/41) of these heteroresistant isolates were classified as colistin susceptible by standard clinical diagnostic testing. The frequency of colistin heteroresistance was greatest in 2015, the last year of the study. This was especially true among Enterobacter isolates, of which specific species had the highest rates of heteroresistance. Among Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates, which were the majority of isolates tested, there was a closely related cluster of colistin-heteroresistant ST-258 isolates found mostly in Georgia. However, cladistic analysis revealed that, overall, there was significant diversity in the genetic backgrounds of heteroresistant K. pneumoniae isolates. These findings suggest that due to being largely undetected in the clinic, colistin heteroresistance among CRE is underappreciated in the United States. … Continue readingColistin heteroresistance is largely undetected among carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales in the United States

Rapid microbial identification and colistin resistance detection via MALDI-TOF MS using a novel on-target extraction of membrane lipids

Sorensen M, Chandler CE, Gardner F, et al. Scientific Reports 2020 Dec.

Rapid infection diagnosis is critical to improving patient treatment and outcome. Recent studies have shown microbial lipids to be sensitive and selective biomarkers for identifying bacterial and fungal species and antimicrobial resistance. Practical procedures for microbial lipid biomarker analysis will therefore improve patient outcomes and antimicrobial stewardship. However, current lipid extraction methods require significant hands-on time and are thus not suited for direct adoption as a clinical assay for microbial identification. Here, we have developed a method for lipid extraction directly on the surface of stainless-steel matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) plates, termed fast lipid analysis technique or FLAT, which facilitates the identification of bacterial and fungal species using a sub-60-minute workflow. Additionally, our method detects lipid A modifications in Gram-negative bacteria that are associated with antimicrobial resistance, including to colistin.
Continue readingRapid microbial identification and colistin resistance detection via MALDI-TOF MS using a novel on-target extraction of membrane lipids

A Prospective Study of Acinetobacter baumannii Complex Isolates and Colistin Susceptibility Monitoring by Mass Spectrometry of Microbial Membrane Glycolipids

Leung LM, McElheny CL, Gardner FM, et al. J Clin Microbiol. 2019 Feb.

Acinetobacter baumannii is a prevalent nosocomial pathogen with a high incidence of multidrug resistance. Treatment of infections due to this organism with colistin, a last-resort antibiotic of the polymyxin class, can result in the emergence of colistin-resistant strains. Colistin resistance primarily occurs via modifications of the terminal phosphate moieties of lipopolysaccharide-derived lipid A, which reduces overall membrane electronegativity. These modifications are readily identified by mass spectrometry (MS). In this study, we prospectively collected Acinetobacter baumannii complex clinical isolates from a hospital system in Pennsylvania over a 3-year period. All isolates were evaluated for colistin resistance using standard MIC testing by both agar dilution and broth microdilution, as well as genospecies identification and lipid A profiling using MS analyses. Overall, an excellent correlation between colistin susceptibility and resistance, determined by MIC testing, and the presence of a lipid A modification, determined by MS, was observed with a sensitivity of 92.9% and a specificity of 94.0%. Additionally, glycolipid profiling was able to differentiate A. baumannii complex organisms based on their membrane lipids. With the growth of MS use in clinical laboratories, a reliable MS-based glycolipid phenotyping method that identifies colistin resistance in A. baumannii complex clinical isolates, as well as other Gram-negative organisms, represents an alternative or complementary approach to existing diagnostics. … Continue readingA Prospective Study of Acinetobacter baumannii Complex Isolates and Colistin Susceptibility Monitoring by Mass Spectrometry of Microbial Membrane Glycolipids

Rapid Microbial Identification and Antibiotic Resistance Detection by Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Membrane Lipids

Liang T, Leung LM, Opene B, et al. Analytical Chemistry 2019 Jan.

Infectious diseases have a substantial global health impact. Clinicians need rapid and accurate diagnoses of infections to direct patient treatment and improve antibiotic stewardship. Current technologies employed in routine diagnostics are based on bacterial culture followed by morphological trait differentiation and biochemical testing, which can be time-consuming and labor-intensive. With advances in mass spectrometry (MS) for clinical diagnostics, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved two microbial identification platforms based on matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) MS analysis of microbial proteins. We recently reported a novel and complementary approach by comparing MALDI-TOF mass spectra of microbial membrane lipid fingerprints to identify ESKAPE pathogens. However, this lipid-based approach used a sample preparation method that required more than a working day from sample collection to identification. Here, we report a new method that extracts lipids efficiently and rapidly from microbial membranes using an aqueous sodium acetate (SA) buffer that can be used to identify clinically relevant Gram-positive and -negative pathogens and fungal species in less than an hour. The SA method also has the ability to differentiate antibiotic-susceptible and antibiotic-resistant strains, directly identify microbes from biological specimens, and detect multiple pathogens in a mixed sample. These results should have positive implications for the manner in which bacteria and fungi are identified in general hospital settings and intensive care units.
Continue readingRapid Microbial Identification and Antibiotic Resistance Detection by Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Membrane Lipids

Structural modification of LPS in colistin-resistant, KPC-producing Klebsiella pnemoniae

Leung LM, Cooper VS, Rasko DA, et al. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2017 Nov.

Colistin resistance in Klebsiella pneumoniae typically involves inactivation or mutations of chromosomal genes mgrB, pmrAB or phoPQ, but data regarding consequent modifications of LPS are limited.

Objectives
To examine the sequences of chromosomal loci implicated in colistin resistance and the respective LPS-derived lipid A profiles using 11 pairs of colistin-susceptible and -resistant KPC-producing K. pneumoniae clinical strains.

Methods
The strains were subjected to high-throughput sequencing with Illumina HiSeq. The mgrB gene was amplified by PCR and sequenced. Lipid profiles were determined using MALDI-TOF MS.

Results
All patients were treated with colistimethate prior to the isolation of colistin-resistant strains (MIC >2 mg/L). Seven of 11 colistin-resistant strains had deletion or insertional inactivation of mgrB. Three strains, including one with an mgrB deletion, had non-synonymous pmrB mutations associated with colistin resistance. When analysed by MALDI-TOF MS, all colistin-resistant strains generated mass spectra containing ions at m/z 1955 and 1971, consistent with addition of 4-amino-4-deoxy-l-arabinose (Ara4N) to lipid A, whereas only one of the susceptible strains displayed this lipid A phenotype.

Conclusions
The pathway to colistin resistance in K. pneumoniae primarily involves lipid A modification with Ara4N in clinical settings. … Continue readingStructural modification of LPS in colistin-resistant, KPC-producing Klebsiella pnemoniae

Structural Modification of Lipopolysaccharide Conferred by mcr-1 in Gram-Negative ESKAPE Pathogens

Liu YY, Chandler CE, Leung LM, et al. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2017 May 24

mcr-1 was initially reported as the first plasmid-mediated colistin resistance gene in clinical isolates of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae in China and has subsequently been identified worldwide in various species of the family Enterobacteriaceae. mcr-1 encodes a phosphoethanolamine transferase, and its expression has been shown to generate phosphoethanolamine-modified bis-phosphorylated hexa-acylated lipid A in E. coli Here, we investigated the effects of mcr-1 on colistin susceptibility and on lipopolysaccharide structures in laboratory and clinical strains of the Gram-negative ESKAPE (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, K. pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter species) pathogens, which are often treated clinically by colistin. The effects of mcr-1 on colistin resistance were determined using MIC assays of laboratory and clinical strains of E. coli, K. pneumoniae, A. baumannii, and P. aeruginosa Lipid A structural changes resulting from MCR-1 were analyzed by mass spectrometry. The introduction of mcr-1 led to colistin resistance in E. coli, K. pneumoniae, and A. baumannii but only moderately reduced susceptibility in P. aeruginosa. Phosphoethanolamine modification of lipid A was observed consistently for all four species. These findings highlight the risk of colistin resistance as a consequence of mcr-1 expression among ESKAPE pathogens, especially in K. pneumoniae and A. baumannii. Furthermore, the observation that lipid A structures were modified despite only modest increases in colistin MICs in some instances suggests more sophisticated surveillance methods may need to be developed to track the dissemination of mcr-1 or plasmid-mediated phosphoethanolamine transferases in general. … Continue readingStructural Modification of Lipopolysaccharide Conferred by mcr-1 in Gram-Negative ESKAPE Pathogens

Unique structural modifications are present in the lipopolysaccharide from colistin-resistant strains of Acinetobacter baumannii

Pelletier MR, Casella LG, Jones JW, et al. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2013 Oct

Acinetobacter baumannii is a nosocomial opportunistic pathogen that can cause severe infections, including hospital-acquired pneumonia, wound infections, and sepsis. Multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains are prevalent, further complicating patient treatment. Due to the increase in MDR strains, the cationic antimicrobial peptide colistin has been used to treat A. baumannii infections. Colistin-resistant strains of A. baumannii with alterations to the lipid A component of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) have been reported; specifically, the lipid A structure was shown to be hepta-acylated with a phosphoethanolamine (pEtN) modification present on one of the terminal phosphate residues. Using a tandem mass spectrometry platform, we provide definitive evidence that the lipid A isolated from colistin-resistant A. baumannii MAC204 LPS contains a novel structure corresponding to a diphosphoryl hepta-acylated lipid A structure with both pEtN and galactosamine (GalN) modifications. To correlate our structural studies with clinically relevant samples, we characterized colistin-susceptible and -resistant isolates obtained from patients. These results demonstrated that the clinical colistin-resistant isolate had the same pEtN and GalN modifications as those seen in the laboratory-adapted A. baumannii strain MAC204. In summary, this work has shown complete structure characterization including the accurate assignment of acylation, phosphorylation, and glycosylation of lipid A from A. baumannii, which are important for resistance to colistin. … Continue readingUnique structural modifications are present in the lipopolysaccharide from colistin-resistant strains of Acinetobacter baumannii

LPS remodeling is an evolved survival strategy for bacteria

Li Y, Powell DA, Shaffer SA, Rasko DA, et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2012 May 29

Maintenance of membrane function is essential and regulated at the genomic, transcriptional, and translational levels. Bacterial pathogens have a variety of mechanisms to adapt their membrane in response to transmission between environment, vector, and human host. Using a well-characterized model of lipid A diversification (Francisella), we demonstrate temperature-regulated membrane remodeling directed by multiple alleles of the lipid A-modifying N-acyltransferase enzyme, LpxD. Structural analysis of the lipid A at environmental and host temperatures revealed that the LpxD1 enzyme added a 3-OH C18 acyl group at 37 °C (host), whereas the LpxD2 enzyme added a 3-OH C16 acyl group at 18 °C (environment). Mutational analysis of either of the individual Francisella lpxD genes altered outer membrane (OM) permeability, antimicrobial peptide, and antibiotic susceptibility, whereas only the lpxD1-null mutant was attenuated in mice and subsequently exhibited protection against a lethal WT challenge. Additionally, growth-temperature analysis revealed transcriptional control of the lpxD genes and posttranslational control of the LpxD1 and LpxD2 enzymatic activities. These results suggest a direct mechanism for LPS/lipid A-level modifications resulting in alterations of membrane fluidity, as well as integrity and may represent a general paradigm for bacterial membrane adaptation and virulence-state adaptation. … Continue readingLPS remodeling is an evolved survival strategy for bacteria