AUTHOR=Jackson Jerreme J. , Heyer Samantha , Bell Geneva 

TITLE=Sortase-encoding genes, srtA and srtC, mediate Enterococcus faecalis OG1RF persistence in the Helicoverpa zea gastrointestinal tract

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=15

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2024.1322303

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2024.1322303

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>Enterococcus faecalis</italic> is a commensal and opportunistic pathogen in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of mammals and insects. To investigate mechanisms of bacterial persistence in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT), we developed a non-destructive sampling model using <italic>Helicoverpa zea</italic>, a destructive agricultural pest, as host to study the role of bacterial sortase enzymes in mitigating persistence in the gastrointestinal tract. <italic>E. faecalis</italic> OG1RF Δ<italic>srtA</italic> and <italic>E. faecalis</italic> OG1RF Δ<italic>srtC</italic>, isogenic <italic>E. faecalis</italic> OG1RF sortase mutants grew similarly under planktonic growth conditions relative to a streptomycin-resistant <italic>E. faecalis</italic> OG1RFS WT <italic>in vitro</italic> but displayed impaired biofilm formation under, both, physiological and alkaline conditions. In the <italic>H. zea</italic> GI model, both mutants displayed impaired persistence relative to the WT. This represents one of the initial reports in which a non-destructive insect model has been used to characterize mechanisms of bacterial persistence in the Lepidopteran midgut and, furthermore, sheds light on new molecular mechanisms employed by diverse microorganisms to associate with invertebrate hosts.</p>