Piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity
Abstract Antibiotic-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus pose a significant threat in healthcare, demanding urgent therapeutic solutions. Combining bacteriophages with conventional antibiotics, an innovative approach termed phage-antibiotic synergy, presents a promising treatment avenue. Howev...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-85064-x |
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| author | Radka Obořilová Eliška Kučerová Tibor Botka Hana Vaisocherová-Lísalová Petr Skládal Zdeněk Farka |
| author_facet | Radka Obořilová Eliška Kučerová Tibor Botka Hana Vaisocherová-Lísalová Petr Skládal Zdeněk Farka |
| author_sort | Radka Obořilová |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Antibiotic-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus pose a significant threat in healthcare, demanding urgent therapeutic solutions. Combining bacteriophages with conventional antibiotics, an innovative approach termed phage-antibiotic synergy, presents a promising treatment avenue. However, to enable new treatment strategies, there is a pressing need for methods to assess their efficacy reliably and rapidly. Here, we introduce a novel approach for real-time monitoring of pathogen lysis dynamics employing the piezoelectric quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) with dissipation (QCM-D) technique. The sensor, a QCM chip modified with the bacterium S. aureus RN4220 ΔtarM, was utilized to monitor the activity of the enzyme lysostaphin and the phage P68 as model lytic agents. Unlike conventional QCM solely measuring resonance frequency changes, our study demonstrates that dissipation monitoring enables differentiation of bacterial growth and lysis caused by cell-attached lytic agents. Compared to reference turbidimetry measurements, our results reveal distinct alterations in the growth curve of the bacteria adhered to the sensor, characterized by a delayed lag phase. Furthermore, the dissipation signal analysis facilitated the precise real-time monitoring of phage-mediated lysis. Finally, the QCM-D biosensor was employed to evaluate the synergistic effect of subinhibitory concentrations of the antibiotic amoxicillin with the bacteriophage P68, enabling monitoring of the lysis of P68-resistant wild-type strain S. aureus RN4220. Our findings suggest that this synergy also impedes the formation of bacterial aggregates, the precursors of biofilm formation. Overall, this method brings new insights into phage-antibiotic synergy, underpinning it as a promising strategy against antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains with broad implications for treatment and prevention. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ff3c505ce21b4cf1a31d5d9ff58906ff |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-ff3c505ce21b4cf1a31d5d9ff58906ff2025-02-02T12:19:48ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-01-0115111310.1038/s41598-024-85064-xPiezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activityRadka Obořilová0Eliška Kučerová1Tibor Botka2Hana Vaisocherová-Lísalová3Petr Skládal4Zdeněk Farka5Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Masaryk UniversityDepartment of Experimental Biology, Section of Genetics and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk UniversityDepartment of Experimental Biology, Section of Genetics and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk UniversityFZU – Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of SciencesDepartment of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Masaryk UniversityDepartment of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Masaryk UniversityAbstract Antibiotic-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus pose a significant threat in healthcare, demanding urgent therapeutic solutions. Combining bacteriophages with conventional antibiotics, an innovative approach termed phage-antibiotic synergy, presents a promising treatment avenue. However, to enable new treatment strategies, there is a pressing need for methods to assess their efficacy reliably and rapidly. Here, we introduce a novel approach for real-time monitoring of pathogen lysis dynamics employing the piezoelectric quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) with dissipation (QCM-D) technique. The sensor, a QCM chip modified with the bacterium S. aureus RN4220 ΔtarM, was utilized to monitor the activity of the enzyme lysostaphin and the phage P68 as model lytic agents. Unlike conventional QCM solely measuring resonance frequency changes, our study demonstrates that dissipation monitoring enables differentiation of bacterial growth and lysis caused by cell-attached lytic agents. Compared to reference turbidimetry measurements, our results reveal distinct alterations in the growth curve of the bacteria adhered to the sensor, characterized by a delayed lag phase. Furthermore, the dissipation signal analysis facilitated the precise real-time monitoring of phage-mediated lysis. Finally, the QCM-D biosensor was employed to evaluate the synergistic effect of subinhibitory concentrations of the antibiotic amoxicillin with the bacteriophage P68, enabling monitoring of the lysis of P68-resistant wild-type strain S. aureus RN4220. Our findings suggest that this synergy also impedes the formation of bacterial aggregates, the precursors of biofilm formation. Overall, this method brings new insights into phage-antibiotic synergy, underpinning it as a promising strategy against antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains with broad implications for treatment and prevention.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-85064-xPiezoelectric biosensorAntimicrobial treatmentPhage therapyPhage-antibiotic synergyMultidrug-resistant bacteriaStaphylococcus aureus |
| spellingShingle | Radka Obořilová Eliška Kučerová Tibor Botka Hana Vaisocherová-Lísalová Petr Skládal Zdeněk Farka Piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity Scientific Reports Piezoelectric biosensor Antimicrobial treatment Phage therapy Phage-antibiotic synergy Multidrug-resistant bacteria Staphylococcus aureus |
| title | Piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity |
| title_full | Piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity |
| title_fullStr | Piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity |
| title_short | Piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity |
| title_sort | piezoelectric biosensor with dissipation monitoring enables the analysis of bacterial lytic agent activity |
| topic | Piezoelectric biosensor Antimicrobial treatment Phage therapy Phage-antibiotic synergy Multidrug-resistant bacteria Staphylococcus aureus |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-85064-x |
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