Genomic analysis of vB_PaS-HSN4 bacteriophage and its antibacterial activity (in vivo and in vitro) against Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from burn.

The most frequent infections caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa are local infections in soft tissues, including burns. Today, phage use is considered a suitable alternative to cure infections caused by multi-drug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) bacteria. We investigated the potential of a novel phage (vB_PaS-HSN4) belonging to Caudoviricetes class, against XDR and MDR P. aeruginosa strains in vivo and in vitro. Its biological and genetic characteristics were investigated. The phage burst size and latent were 119 and 20 min, respectively. It could tolerate a broad range of salt concentrations, pH values, and temperatures. The combination with ciprofloxacin significantly enhanced biofilm removal after 24 h. The genome was dsDNA with a size of 44,534 bp and encoded 61 ORFs with 3 tRNA and 5 promoters. No virulence factor was observed in the phage genome. In the in vivo infection model, treatment with vB_PaS-HSN4 increased Galleria mellonella larvae survival (80%, 66%, and 60%) (MOI 100) and (60%, 40%, and 26%) (MOI 1) in the pre-treatment, co-treatment, and post-treatment experiments, respectively. Based on these characteristics, it can be considered for the cure of infections of burns caused by P. aeruginosa.

Gold Nanoparticles Impair Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus Replication.

In this study, we evaluated the antiviral activity of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) against the foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), that causes a contagious disease in cloven-hoofed animals. The anti-FMDV activity of AuNPs was assessed using plaque reduction assay. MTT assay was used for quantitatively measuring the cytopathic effect caused by the viral infection. The 50% cytotoxicity concentration of nanoparticles was measured and found to be 10.4 µg/ml. The virus yield reduction assay showed that AuNP have an approximately 4-fold virus titer reduction compared with controls. Plaque reduction assay showed that at non-cytotoxic concentrations, AuNPs do not show extracellular virucidal activity and inhibition of FMDV growth at the early stages of infection including attachment and penetration. Time-of-addition experiments revealed that AuNPs inhibited post-entry stages of viral replication concomitant with the onset of intracellular viral RNA synthesis; however, the mechanism of AuNPs against FMDV was unclear.

In vitro anti-foot-and-mouth disease virus activity of magnesium oxide nanoparticles.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an extremely contagious viral disease of cloven-hoofed animals that can lead to huge economic losses in the livestock production. No antiviral therapies are available for treating FMD virus (FMDV) infections in animals. The antiviral effects of magnesium oxide nanoparticles (MgO NPs) on the FMDV were investigated in cell culture. The viability of the cells after MgO NP treatment was determined using the MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assay. The direct effects of MgO NPs on the FMDV in extracellular (virucidal assay) and also different stages of virus replication (antiviral assay) were evaluated by plaque reduction assay. The results showed that MgO NPs were safe at concentrations up to 250 µg/ml in the Razi Bovine kidney cell line. The treatments with NPs indicated that the MgO NPs exerted in vitro virucidal and antiviral activities. Plaque reduction assay revealed that MgO NPs can inhibit FMDV by more than 90% at the early stages of infection such as attachment and penetration but not after penetration. The results of this study suggested that NPs might be applied locally as an antiviral agent in early stages of infection in susceptible animals.