Testing the Lytic Capability of Recombinant P100.1 Phage Endolysin against Cutibacterium acnes

Faculty Mentor

Luis Matos

Presentation Type

Poster

Start Date

5-8-2024 11:15 AM

End Date

5-8-2024 1:00 PM

Location

PUB NCR

Primary Discipline of Presentation

Biology

Abstract

Acne vulgaris is one of the most common skin diseases globally. It is a chronic inflammatory disease of the pilosebaceous unit (hair follicle, hair shaft, and sebaceous gland collectively). The integumentary, endocrine, and immune systems all play roles in acne development and severity in addition to microbiotic colonization. One key aspect of acne pathogenesis is a disturbance of healthy strain diversity of the skin bacterium Cutibacterium acnes. Many acne treatments revolve around topical peroxides, antibiotics, and topical or systemic retinoids all of which directly, or indirectly target C. acnes. These treatments carry a variety of side effects and contribute to rising antibiotic resistance. Bacteriophages (or phage) are viruses that infect bacteria. Some phages produce enzymes called endolysins which contribute to a lytic life cycle wherein the phage kills the infected cell. Bacteriophages have been studied and successfully demonstrated reduction of C. acnes load in acne lesions, as well as reduced symptoms in patients. All current research uses live phages. This provides logistical challenges as the phages must be cultured, maintained, and kept alive until treatment. Here, we seek to recombinantly produce, and extracellularly excrete the endolysin protein responsible for targeting and killing C. acnes in a Lactococcus lactis production system. We hypothesize that the enzyme will retain its cell binding, and lytic capabilities through recombinant production and will cause significant reduction in C. acnes load when exposed to cultures. If successful, phage therapies do not contribute to raising antibiotic resistance, allow low-cost long-term storage, and allow scalable production.

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS
 
May 8th, 11:15 AM May 8th, 1:00 PM

Testing the Lytic Capability of Recombinant P100.1 Phage Endolysin against Cutibacterium acnes

PUB NCR

Acne vulgaris is one of the most common skin diseases globally. It is a chronic inflammatory disease of the pilosebaceous unit (hair follicle, hair shaft, and sebaceous gland collectively). The integumentary, endocrine, and immune systems all play roles in acne development and severity in addition to microbiotic colonization. One key aspect of acne pathogenesis is a disturbance of healthy strain diversity of the skin bacterium Cutibacterium acnes. Many acne treatments revolve around topical peroxides, antibiotics, and topical or systemic retinoids all of which directly, or indirectly target C. acnes. These treatments carry a variety of side effects and contribute to rising antibiotic resistance. Bacteriophages (or phage) are viruses that infect bacteria. Some phages produce enzymes called endolysins which contribute to a lytic life cycle wherein the phage kills the infected cell. Bacteriophages have been studied and successfully demonstrated reduction of C. acnes load in acne lesions, as well as reduced symptoms in patients. All current research uses live phages. This provides logistical challenges as the phages must be cultured, maintained, and kept alive until treatment. Here, we seek to recombinantly produce, and extracellularly excrete the endolysin protein responsible for targeting and killing C. acnes in a Lactococcus lactis production system. We hypothesize that the enzyme will retain its cell binding, and lytic capabilities through recombinant production and will cause significant reduction in C. acnes load when exposed to cultures. If successful, phage therapies do not contribute to raising antibiotic resistance, allow low-cost long-term storage, and allow scalable production.