Hypertonic saline enhances the efficacy of aerosolized gentamicin against Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Aerosol inhalation is a promising strategy for the delivery of antibiotic agents. The efficacy of antibiotic treatment by aerosol inhalation is reduced by the formation of microbial biofilms in the respiratory system and excessive airway mucus build-up. Various approaches have been taken in order to overcome this barrier. In this in vitro study, we used hypertonic saline (7%, by weight), a low cost Food and Drug Administration-approved reagent, as an aerosol carrier to study its effects with the antibiotic, gentamicin, on the most common respiratory opportunistic pathogen, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, present in the mucus. The results indicated that the hypertonic saline aerosol containing gentamicin, a low cost antibiotic, significantly eliminated biofilm growth by ~3-fold, compared to the regular saline aerosol containing gentamicin. In addition to enhancing the penetration efficiency of drug molecules by 70%, bacterial motility also decreased (~50%) after treatment with aerosolised hypertonic saline. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that hypertonic saline can significantly enhance the efficacy of antibiotic aerosols, which may contribute to the current use of inhaled therapeutic compounds.

The role of the C-terminal domain of PCSK9 and SEC24 isoforms in PCSK9 secretion.

Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) is a secretory protein that promotes low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) degradation and thereby regulating plasma levels of LDL cholesterol. Previous studies have revealed the role of the C-terminal domain (CTD) of PCSK9 in its secretion, however, how CTD regulates PCSK9 secretion is not completely understood. Additionally, SEC24A, the cargo adaptor protein of the coat protein complex II, has been implicated in the secretion of mouse PCSK9. Here, we investigated how CTD and SEC24 regulated PCSK9 secretion in humans. We found that mutant PCSK91-528, in which amino acids from 529 to the end (amino acid 692) were deleted, was maturated and secreted from cells as effectively as the wild-type protein. On the other hand, lacking amino acids 454 to 692 in mutant PCSK91-453 significantly reduced its maturation and secretion, but to a lesser extent when compared to mutants PCSK91-446, PCSK91-445 and PCSK91-444, that all markedly impaired PCSK9 maturation. However, mutant PCSK91-444 virtually eliminated PCSK9 secretion while PCSK91-446 and PCSK91-445 could still be adequately detected in culture medium. Interestingly, mutation of Pro445 to other amino acid residues considerably impaired the secretion of mutant PCSK91-445 but not the full-length protein. We also found that natural variants in CTD including S462P, S465L, E482G, R495Q and A522T impaired PCSK9 secretion. Further, the knockdown of SEC24A, SEC24B, SEC24C but not SEC24D reduced secretion of the full-length PCSK9 but not mutant PCSK91-446. Therefore, SEC24A, SEC24B, and SEC24C facilitate endogenous PCSK9 secretion from cultured human hepatocytes, that are most likely mediated by the CTD of PCSK9. Our studies also indicate that the CTD of PCSK9 may allosterically and independently modulate the stability of the hinge region. Collectively, these data revealed that the CTD of PCSK9 and the hinge region play a critical role in PCSK9 maturation and secretion.