Researchers identify a mechanism that explains the recurrence of many lung infections
A study published in the journal Virulence states that the class II ribonucleotide reductase enzyme (RNR) plays a key role in the frequent lung reinfection processes that affect patients with cystic fibrosis, among other cases. The study is led by the experts Eduard Torrents, tenure-track 2 lecturer at the Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics of the Faculty of Biology of the UB and researcher at IBEC, and Maria de la Mar Cendra, also member of IBEC.
A study published in the journal Virulence states that the class II ribonucleotide reductase enzyme (RNR) plays a key role in the frequent lung reinfection processes that affect patients with cystic fibrosis, among other cases. The study is led by the experts Eduard Torrents, tenure-track 2 lecturer at the Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics of the Faculty of Biology of the UB and researcher at IBEC, and Maria de la Mar Cendra, also member of IBEC.
Conclusions suggest that the strains of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa that are isolated from patients show more persistence than those from the laboratory. This bacterium shows a great genomic plasticity that allows it to adapt to varied environments and cause infections in different organs (for instance, the lungs, where it can cause acute and chronic pneumonia).
Specifically, the study describes variations in the strains of the bacterium to conduct the intracell invasion efficiently. “We detected differences in the persistence within the cell between laboratory strains and others from sputum of patients with cystic fibrosis, according to the type of infected epithelial cell: alveolar, bronchial, or affected by mutation found in patients with cystic fibrosis”, notes Torrents.
“We have also detected that the class II ribonucleotide reductase enzyme (RNR) is highly expressed in these persistence conditions. Therefore, it plays a critical role in the maintenance of the viability of the bacterium P. aeruginosa during its intracellular period”, says the expert. This Discovery cound help develop drugs to prevent recurrences in lung infections.