The absence of surface D-alanylation, localized on lipoteichoic acid, impacts the Clostridioides difficile way of life and antibiotic resistance.

Introduction: The dlt operon encodes proteins responsible for the esterification of positively charged D-alanine on the wall teichoic acids and lipoteichoic acids of Gram-positive bacteria. This structural modification of the bacterial anionic surface in several species has been described to alter the physicochemical properties of the cell-wall. In addition, it has been linked to reduced sensibilities to cationic antimicrobial peptides and antibiotics. Methods: We studied the D-alanylation of Clostridioides difficile polysaccharides with a complete deletion of the dltDABCoperon in the 630 strain. To look for D-alanylation location, surface polysaccharides were purified and analyzed by NMR. Properties of the dltDABCmutant and the parental strains, were determined for bacterial surface's hydrophobicity, motility, adhesion, antibiotic resistance. Results: We first confirmed the role of the dltDABCoperon in D-alanylation. Then, we established the exclusive esterification of D-alanine on C. difficile lipoteichoic acid. Our data also suggest that D-alanylation modifies the cell-wall's properties, affecting the bacterial surface's hydrophobicity, motility, adhesion to biotic and abiotic surfaces,and biofilm formation. In addition, our mutant exhibitedincreased sensibilities to antibiotics linked to the membrane, especially bacitracin. A specific inhibitor DLT-1 of DltA reduces the D-alanylation rate in C. difficile but the inhibition was not sufficient to decrease the antibiotic resistance against bacitracin and vancomycin. Conclusion: Our results suggest the D-alanylation of C. difficile as an interesting target to tackle C. difficile infections.

Inhibition of In Vitro Clostridioides difficile Biofilm Formation by the Probiotic Yeast Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745 through Modification of the Extracellular Matrix Composition.

Clostridioides difficile is responsible for post-antibiotic diarrhea and most of the pseudomembranous colitis cases. Multiple recurrences, one of the major challenges faced in C. difficile infection (CDI) management, can be considered as chronic infections, and the role of biofilm formation in CDI recurrences is now widely considered. Therefore, we explored if the probiotic yeast Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745 could impact the in vitro formation of C. difficile biofilm. Biomass staining and viable bacterial cell quantification showed that live S. boulardii exerts an antagonistic effect on the biofilm formation for the three C. difficile strains tested. Confocal laser scanning microscopy observation revealed a weakening and an average thickness reduction of the biofilm structure when C. difficile is co-incubated with S. boulardii, compared to the single-species bacterial biofilm structure. These effects, that were not detected with another genetically close yeast, S. cerevisiae, seemed to require direct contact between the probiotic yeast and the bacterium. Quantification of the extrapolymeric matrix components, as well as results obtained after DNase treatment, revealed a significant decrease of eDNA, an essential structural component of the C. difficile biofilm matrix, in the dual-species biofilm. This modification could explain the reduced cohesion and robustness of C. difficile biofilms formed in the presence of S. boulardii CNCM I-745 and be involved in S. boulardii clinical preventive effect against CDI recurrences.

Amaltheys: A fluorescence-based analyzer to assess cheese milk denatured whey proteins.

The cheese industry faces many challenges to optimize cheese yield and quality. A very precise standardization of the cheese milk is needed, which is achieved by a fine control of the process and milk composition. Thorough analysis of protein composition is important to determine the amount of protein that will be retained in the curd or lost in the whey. The fluorescence-based Amaltheys analyzer (Spectralys Innovation, Romainville, France) was developed to assess pH 4.6-soluble heat-sensitive whey proteins (sWP*) in 5 min. These proteins are those that can be denatured upon heat-treatment and further retained in the curd after coagulation. Monitoring of sWP* in milk and subsequent adaptation of the process is a reliable solution to achieve stable cheese yield and quality. Performance of the method was evaluated by an accredited laboratory on a 0 to 7 g/L range. Accuracy compared with the reference Kjeldahl method is also provided with a standard error of 0.25 g/L. Finally, a 4-mo industrial trial in a cheese plant is described, where Amaltheys was used as a process analytical technology to monitor sWP* content in ingredients and final cheese milk. Calibration models over quality parameters of final cheese were also built from near-infrared and fluorescence spectroscopic data. The Amaltheys analyzer was found to be a rapid, compact, and accurate device to help implementation of standardization procedures in the dairy industry.

Synthesis, evaluation and absolute configuration assignment of novel dihydropyrimidin-2-ones as picomolar sodium iodide symporter inhibitors.

A small library of dihydropyrimidin-2-ones (DHPMs) was synthesized and evaluated for their potency to block iodide entrapment in rat thyroid cells. Synthesis was achieved using the multicomponent Biginelli reaction. Twelve compounds were tested for the inhibition of sodium iodide symporter (NIS) in a cell-based assay. One newly synthesized derivative exhibited a remarkably strong activity, with a half-maximum inhibitory concentration value (IC50) of 65 pM. Three DHPMs were further resolved from racemates using chiral HPLC and absolute configurations were assigned using circular dichroism spectroscopy. Biological evaluation showed that most of the activity against NIS resides in one enantiomer. This study provides new insights for the development of anti-thyroid drugs, as well as for the synthesis of novel pharmacological tools designed to investigate iodide transport mechanisms at cellular and molecular levels.

Synthesis and evaluation of 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones as sodium iodide symporter inhibitors.

The sodium iodide symporter (NIS) is responsible for the accumulation of iodide in the thyroid gland. This transport process is involved in numerous thyroid dysfunctions and is the basis for human contamination in the case of exposure to radioactive iodine species. 4-Aryl-3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones were recently discovered by high-throughput screening as the first NIS inhibitors. Described herein are the synthesis and evaluation of 115 derivatives with structural modifications at five key positions on the pyrimidone core. This study provides extensive structure-activity relationships for this new class of inhibitors that will serve as a basis for further development of compounds with in vivo efficacy and adequate pharmacokinetic properties. In addition, the SAR investigation provided a more potent compound, which exhibits an IC(50) value of 3.2 nM in a rat thyroid cell line (FRTL5).