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ROLE OF FUCOSE UTILIZATION ON KLEBSIELLA PNEUMONIAE GUT COLONIZATION AND PATHOGENESIS

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title
ROLE OF FUCOSE UTILIZATION ON KLEBSIELLA PNEUMONIAE GUT COLONIZATION AND PATHOGENESIS
author
Hudson, Andrew Wesley
abstract
Klebsiella pneumoniae is a leading cause of nosocomial infections in the U.S., owing to its broad antibiotic resistance and many potential infection sites. K. pneumoniae colonizes the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract asymptomatically, from where it can translocate within a host or transmit to another. While poorly understood, knowledge of this first step toward infection and spread is critical for combatting K. pneumoniae’s pathogenesis and transmission. To colonize the gut, K. pneumoniae must overcome colonization resistance provided by the host microbiota in the form of nutrient competition. Enteric pathogens are known to metabolize fucose, present in intestinal mucus, to avoid competition and successfully colonize. Using our murine model for K. pneumoniae GI colonization, we show that fucose metabolism is critical for K. pneumoniae to acquire a metabolic niche, bypass colonization resistance, and establish itself in the gut. Because alternative nutrient sources can allow pathogens to coordinate virulence, we investigated the role of fucose utilization on several established virulence phenotypes and observed positive modulation of hypermucoviscosity, autoaggregation, and biofilm formation. These insights lend a stronger understanding of the role of alternative carbon sources on K. pneumoniae GI colonization, as well as the complex relationship between metabolism and virulence in this important pathogen.
subject
Biofilm
Colonization Resistance
Enteric Pathogen
Fucose
Klebsiella pneumoniae
Virulence
contributor
Zafar, Muhammad A (committee chair)
Zafar, Muhammad A (committee member)
Walker, Kimberly A (committee member)
Grayson, Jason M (committee member)
date
2022-05-24T08:36:20Z (accessioned)
2022-11-23T09:30:13Z (available)
2022 (issued)
degree
Biomedical Science – MS (discipline)
embargo
2022-11-23 (terms)
identifier
http://hdl.handle.net/10339/100784 (uri)
language
en (iso)
publisher
Wake Forest University
type
Thesis

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