Publications by authors named "Denise M S Bazzolli"

Genetic variability in phytopathogens is one of the main problems encountered for effective plant disease control. This fact may be related to the presence of transposable elements (TEs), but little is known about their role in host genomes. Here, we performed the most comprehensive analysis of insertion sequences (ISs) and transposons (Tns) in the genomes of the most important bacterial plant pathogens.

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Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is widely recognized as a causative agent for various infections acquired in healthcare settings as well as in the community. Given the limited availability of effective antimicrobial agents to combat MRSA infections, there is an increasing need to explore alternative therapeutic strategies. This study aimed to assess the antimicrobial, anti-adhesive, anti-biofilm properties, and toxicity of 175 newly synthesized compounds, belonging to seven different classes, against MRSA.

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Aim: This study aimed to compare and characterize the resistance profile and the presence of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) related genes in Escherichia coli isolated from healthy finishing pigs fed with or without antibiotics in their diets.

Methods And Results: A total of 27 ceftiofur-resistant E. coli isolates were obtained from 96 healthy pigs.

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Nosocomial infections caused by multidrug-resistant enterobacteria have become a major challenge in global public health. Previous studies have indicated that use of antibiotics in livestock production chains is linked to the rising threat of antibiotic resistance in humans. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the distribution of genes encoding resistance to tetracycline, β-lactams, and colistin in multidrug-resistant enterobacteria isolated from feces of weaned pigs.

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Article Synopsis
  • Bacteria produce extracellular vesicles (EVs) that facilitate communication among microbes and interactions with hosts, with some EVs containing small RNAs (sRNAs) that are not well-studied.
  • The study focuses on EVs from a pig pathogen linked to porcine pleuropneumonia, showing minor differences in size and composition between EVs from aerobically and anaerobically grown bacteria.
  • Through various methods, the research identified 13 novel sRNAs in the EVs, some associated with virulence, suggesting a potential role in disease processes that requires further investigation.
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Introduction: Bacteriophages infecting human pathogens have been considered potential biocontrol agents, and studying their genetic content is essential to their safe use in the food industry. is a bacteriophage named UFV-AREG1, isolated from cowshed wastewater and previously tested for its ability to inhibit O157:H7.

Methods: 1 was previously isolated using E.

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The RNA chaperone Hfq promotes the association of small RNAs (sRNAs) with cognate mRNAs, controlling the expression of bacterial phenotype. mutants strains are attenuated for virulence in pigs, impaired in the ability to form biofilms, and more susceptible to stress, but knowledge of the extent of sRNA involvement is limited. Here, using strain MIDG2331 (serovar 8), 14 sRNAs were identified by co-immunoprecipitation with Hfq and the expression of eight, identified as -acting sRNAs, were confirmed by Northern blotting.

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In-feed antibiotics are administered to piglets to improve performance and production efficiency. However, the use of growth promoters in the swine industry can select for multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria. Here, we evaluate the resistance profile of enterobacteria isolated from fecal samples of weaned pigs (21-35 days) fed or not with antibiotics (colistin and tylosin) and investigated the piglets gut microbiota in both groups.

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Article Synopsis
  • Microbiomes, especially the rumen microbiome, present opportunities for biotechnological applications, particularly with antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) that can fight infections.
  • In this study, several AMPs from the rumen were effective against the bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa, showing strong antimicrobial activity and the ability to inhibit biofilm formation.
  • The AMPs demonstrated low toxicity to human cells, targeted bacterial membranes, and were successful in an in vivo model, indicating their potential as therapeutic agents for P. aeruginosa infections.
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  • ICEs (integrative and conjugative elements) are mobile genetic elements in bacteria that can be transferred between cells, influencing gene transmission and bacterial traits.
  • In a study of 300 genomes of phytopathogenic bacteria, 78 ICEs were identified, including 31 novel elements, which carry numerous accessory genes that may enhance virulence and survival.
  • The findings suggest that ICEs significantly impact the pathogenicity and gene distribution among these bacteria, highlighting their role in infection processes in plants.
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Here we report two antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), HG2 and HG4 identified from a rumen microbiome metagenomic dataset, with activity against multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, especially methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains, a major hospital and community-acquired pathogen. We employed the classifier model design to analyse, visualise, and interpret AMP activities. This approach allowed in silico discrimination of promising lead AMP candidates for experimental evaluation.

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Mobile genetic elements (MGEs) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) drive important ecological relationships in microbial communities and pathogen-host interaction. In this study, we investigated the resistome-associated mobilome in 345 publicly available genomes, a large family of Gram-negative bacteria including major human and animal pathogens. We generated a comprehensive dataset of the mobilome integrated into genomes, including 10,820 insertion sequences, 2,939 prophages, and 43 integrative and conjugative elements.

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The Núcleo de Estudos em Microbiologia Agrícola (NEMA) is an academic-scientific group created by graduate students in the Post Graduate in Agricultural Microbiology in the Department of Microbiology at Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Brazil. NEMA's purposes include promoting and sharing research and knowledge on microbiology in different fields of application. Here, we will comment on our experience in organizing the Summer School on Microbiology and teaching microbiology to undergraduate students during the program.

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Article Synopsis
  • The RNA chaperone Hfq is crucial for various functions in Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, a porcine pathogen, influencing growth, adherence, stress response, and virulence.
  • Wild-type strains showed varied phenotypes compared to hfq mutants, with some strains exhibiting reduced growth and differing responses to stress and virulence depending on their serovar.
  • The study finds that while Hfq acts as a global regulator, its effects can vary significantly between serovars, emphasizing the need to examine multiple strains to fully understand global regulator contributions to complex traits.
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The larva of the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella is an increasingly popular model for assessing the virulence of bacterial pathogens and the effectiveness of antimicrobial agents. In this review, we discuss details of the components of the G. mellonella larval immune system that underpin its use as an alternative infection model, and provide an updated overview of the state of the art of research with G.

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is the etiologic agent of porcine pleuropneumonia. Currently, there are 18 different serotypes; the serotype 8 is the most widely distributed in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and southeastern Brazil. In this study, genomes of seven serotype 8 clinical isolates were compared to the other genomes of twelve serotypes.

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Kluyveromyces marxianus CCT 7735 offers advantages to ethanol production over Saccharomyces cerevisiae, including thermotolerance and the ability to convert lactose to ethanol. However, its growth is impaired at high ethanol concentrations. Herein we report on the protein and intracellular metabolite profiles of K.

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Evidence of plasmids carrying the tetracycline resistance gene, (B), was found in the previously reported whole genome sequences of 14 United Kingdom, and 4 Brazilian, isolates of Isolation and sequencing of selected plasmids, combined with comparative sequence analysis, indicated that the four Brazilian isolates all harbor plasmids that are nearly identical to pB1001, a plasmid previously found in isolates from Spain. Of the United Kingdom isolates, 13/14 harbor plasmids that are (almost) identical to pTetHS016 from . The remaining United Kingdom isolate, MIDG3362, harbors a 12666 bp plasmid that shares extensive regions of similarity with pOV from (which carries , , and genes), as well as with pTetHS016.

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Porcine pleuropneumonia is an important cause of lowered productivity and economic loss in the pig industry worldwide, associated primarily with Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae infection. Its colonization and persistence within the upper respiratory tract of affected pigs depends upon interactions between a number of genetically controlled virulence factors, such as pore-forming repeats-in-toxin exoproteins, biofilm formation, and antimicrobial resistance. This study investigated correlations between biofilm-forming capacity, antimicrobial resistance, and virulence of A.

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In the present work, we have investigate the cellular immune response of Galleria mellonella larvae against three strains of the gram-negative bacterium Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae: low-virulence (780), high-virulence (1022) and the serotype 8 reference strain (R8). Prohemocytes, plasmatocytes, granulocytes, oenocytoids and spherulocytes were distinguished according to their size and morphology, their molecular markers and dye-staining properties and their role in the immune response. Total hemocyte count, differential hemocyte count, lysosome activity, autophagic response, cell viability and caspase-3 activation were determined in circulating hemocytes of naive and infected larvae.

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A small (3.9kb) plasmid (p518), conferring resistance to florfenicol (MIC >8μg/mL) and chloramphenicol (MIC >8μg/mL) was isolated from an Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae clinical isolate from Southeastern Brazil. To date, this is the smallest florfenicol resistance plasmid isolated from a member of the Pasteurellaceae.

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Here, we present the genome sequence of the Escherichia coli bacteriophage UFV-AREG1. This phage was isolated from cowshed wastewater and showed specificity for enterohemorrhagic E. coli O157:H7 (ATCC 43895), E.

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Bacterial regulatory small RNAs (sRNAs) play important roles in gene regulation and are frequently connected to the expression of virulence factors in diverse bacteria. Only a few sRNAs have been described for Pasteurellaceae pathogens and no in-depth analysis of sRNAs has been described for Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, the causative agent of porcine pleuropneumonia, responsible for considerable losses in the swine industry. To search for sRNAs in A.

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The storage of fresh raw milk at low temperature does not prevent proliferation of psychrotrophic bacteria that can produce heat-resistant proteolytic enzymes contributing to the reduced shelf life of dairy products. This study aimed to identify the dominant psychrotrophic proteolytic enzyme-producing population of raw milk from Brazil. Raw milk samples collected in 3 different cooling tanks in Brazil were stored at optimal (45 h at 4 °C followed by 3 h at 7 °C) and suboptimal (45 h at 7 °C followed by 3 h at 10 °C) conditions to simulate farm storage and transportation allowed by Brazilian laws.

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Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae is the causative agent of swine pleuropneumonia, a highly contagious disease associated with pigs of all ages that results in severe economic losses to the industry. Here, we report for the first time six genome sequences of A. pleuropneumoniae clinical isolates of serotype 8, found worldwide.

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