Aims: We hypothesized that pretreating urinary catheters with benign Escherichia coli HU2117 plus an antipseudomonal bacteriophage (Phi E2005-A) would prevent Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm formation on catheters - a pivotal event in the pathogenesis of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI).
Methods & Results: Silicone catheter segments were exposed to one of four pretreatments (sterile media; E. coli alone; phage alone; E. coli plus phage), inoculated with P. aeruginosa and then incubated up to 72 h in human urine before rinsing and sonicating to recover adherent bacteria. Pseudomonas aeruginosa adherence to catheters was almost 4 log(10) units lower when pretreated with E. coli plus phage compared to no pretreatment (P < 0·001) in 24-h experiments and more than 3 log(10) units lower in 72-h experiments (P <0·05). Neither E. coli nor phage alone generated significant decreases.
Conclusions: The combination of phages with a pre-established biofilm of E. coli HU2117 was synergistic in preventing catheter colonization by P. aeruginosa.
Significance and Impact of Study: We describe a synergistic protection against colonization of urinary catheters by a common uropathogen. Escherichia coli-coated catheters are in clinical trials; adding phage may offer additional benefit.
Written by:
Liao KS, Lehman SM, Tweardy DJ, Donlan RM, Trautner BW Are you the author?
Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
Reference: J Appl Microbiol. 2012 Sep 17. (Epub ahead of print)
doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2672.2012.05432.x.
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 22985454
