Microbe Magazine

Microbe
August 2010 Y The News Magazine of the American Society for Microbiology Y Vol. 5 Y No. 8
Features
Molecular Diagnostics and
Hidden ␤-Lactamases
N ␧-Lysine Acetylation
Control Conserved in All
Three Life Domains
ASM News
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Microbe
VOLUME 5, NUMBER 8 CODEN ASMBO 5 (8) 324 –366 (2010) ISSN: 1558-7452
FEATURES
333 Molecular Diagnostics Could Help in Coping with Hidden ␤-Lactamases

Nancy D. Hanson
By adopting molecular tests, clinical laboratories will do better at detecting
antimicrobial resistance, guiding treatment choices
340 N ␧-Lysine Acetylation Control Conserved in All Three Life Domains

Jorge C. Escalante-Semerena
The relative simplicity of studying microbes could prove critical for
understanding this posttranslational modification system
CURRENT TOPICS
324 APL Prize for Device Yielding Fast Antibiotic Resistance Readouts
324 Chaotropic Agents Enable Microbes To Withstand Extreme Cold
325 Siderophores Shed Light on the “Great Plate Count Anomaly”
326 Synthetic, Transplanted Genome Directs New Host Cell
327 Microbiology Meets, Might Succumb to, Analytic Nanotechnology
328 Role for Microbes in Coping with Gulf Oil Spill
328 Shift in Fungal Pathogen Could Be Key to Bee Colony Collapse
329 Odds and Ends from the 2010 ASM General Meeting
329 Peroxisomes Mount First-Line Antiviral Defense
DEPARTMENTS
331 Public Affairs Report

346 Journal Highlights
360 Reviews and Resources
361 Application Deadlines
362 Calendar Cover: Scanning electron micro-
363 Employment graph of Candida albicans. C.
albicans can be a benign inhab-
366 Small Things Considered itant of the human digestive
tract or an invasive pathogen;
researchers exploring the sur-
face proteins of this yeast find
that both types express many of
the same surface proteins (see
p. 346). (Image 姝 David M. Phil-
lips/Photo Researchers, Inc.)
Microbe / Volume 5, Number 8, 2010

ASM News Microbe
Editor in Chief: Contributing Editor:
348 Scripps Milestone in Microbiology Site • sanofi-
Michael I. Goldberg Bernard Dixon
aventis ICAAC Award • 2010 ICAAC Young mgoldberg@asmusa.org ASM Features Editor:
Investigator Awards Managing Editor: Barbara Hyde
353 Divisions Patrick N. Lacey bhyde@asmusa.org
353 Education Board placey@asmusa.org James Sliwa
Current Topics and jsliwa@asmusa.org
354 International Affairs Features Editor: Journal Highlights Editor:
357 Branches: ASM Activities at the Local Level Jeffrey L. Fox David Holzman
359 Membership jfox@asmusa.org dcholzman@aol.com
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Volume 5, Number 8, 2010 /Microbe

Current Topics
APL Prize for Device “If we observe such a shift when “slowly growing and difficult-to-
Yielding Fast Antibiotic examining a microorganism in a la- culture microorganisms.”
Resistance Readouts beled medium when a drug is pres- The unit cost for each isoMS-drug-
ent, this means that the drug is not array test could be as low as $10,
affecting the growth of that micro- according to Demirev. However, that
Five researchers at the Johns Hopkins organism,” Demirev says. Meanwhile, unit estimate comes after an initial
Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) re- the matrix-assisted laser desorption- investment of as much as $175,000
ceived the APL invention of the year ionization (MALDI)-MS signature for a suite of instruments, including a
award for their device that can rapidly can be used to identify a broad variety commercial MS, APL-designed hard-
identify whether microbial pathogens of biological agents, including viruses, ware, an automated prep station, pro-
are resistant to antibiotics. The pro- bacteria, spores, and fungi, Demirev tocols, and software.
totype isoMS-drug-array depends on points out. The TOF for each ion cor- This analytic system could also be
proprietary algorithms to interpret relates with its mass, resulting in a mounted inside a vehicle for a first-
results of stable isotope mass spec- characteristic mass spectrum for each response team to use on site. How-
trometry (MS) analyses. Once refined, organism. ever, the next phase of development
this analytic package could be used “Let’s say you have Bacillus will depend on the APL Technology
for forensic purposes in homeland de- spores,” Demirev says. “The identifi- Transfer Office finding an appropriate
fense settings, in clinical microbiology cation can be done directly within 30 partner in the private sector. More-
laboratories, and for research and minutes using our technology that in- over, Demirev notes, “Clinical appli-
development of antimicrobial drugs, cludes hardware, protocols, and algo- cations will require Food and Drug
according to Plamen Demirev of rithms, based on predicted and ob- Administration approval, which means
APL and his fellow awardees Miquel served signatures for Bacillus spores. much more work to test and optimize
Antoine, Andrew Feldman, Nathan At the same time, with part of the protocols.”
Hagan, and Jeffrey Lin. sample one can start the growth pro- Barry E. DiGregorio
The isoMS-drug-array prototype tocol and within five hours we can Barry E. DiGregorio is a freelance writer in
builds on several earlier APL devel- confirm (or refute) the identification, Middleport, N.Y.
opments, particularly the chemical- depending on whether we observe the
biological, time-of-flight (CB-TOF) predicted signature for the vegetative
system that analyzes suspicious “white cells.” Chaotropic Agents Enable
powders” to determine whether they “The novelty and innovation of Microbes To Withstand
contain Bacillus anthracis spores. This this technology lies not so much in its Extreme Cold
earlier analytic system was developed ability to rapidly identify unknown
for the U.S. Department of Homeland microorganisms, but rather in its abil- Chaotropes, which ordinarily disrupt
Security, Demirev notes. ity to rapidly determine whether an macromolecules, apparently enhance
The newer isoMS-drug-array anal- unknown or uncharacterized microbe the survival of microorganisms that
ysis begins with investigators growing is antibiotic resistant,” says Todd San- are subjected to extreme cold, accord-
an unidentified microorganism in a drin of Arizona State University in ing to John Hallsworth of Queen’s
medium that is enriched with nutrients Phoenix, who also uses MALDI-TOF University of Belfast in Belfast, North-
containing the nonradioactive iso- to fingerprint bacterial species, includ- ern Ireland, and his collaborators.
tope carbon-13, according to Demirev. ing Escherichia coli and Enterococcus. “The Earth’s biosphere may be more
As the bacteria grow, they incorporate Describing the use of stable isotopes extensive than we previously thought
the heavier isotope into any carbon- to determine antibiotic resistance because organisms may be able to
containing molecules being synthe- “intriguing,” he says that the APL function in places previously thought
sized, leading to a shift in molecular approach could face “more limited to be too cold,” he says. The findings
mass. utility” when it comes to analyzing also support the continuing search
324 Y Microbe / Volume 5, Number 8, 2010

colonies on media containing kosmo-
tropes stopped growing, whereas media
with chaotropes enhanced microbial
growth and survival. “Microbial cells
may preferentially synthesize and accu-
mulate chaotropic metabolites . . . to
retain activity in the cold,” Hallsworth
adds. Further, spores treated with chao-
tropes outsurvived untreated spores
when held at ⫺80°C.
The study breaks new ground, says
Rocco Mancinelli of the National
Aeronautics and Space Administra-
tion. “The environments in which or-
ganisms live are extremely important
in defining the limits in which they can
survive, compared with standard lab-
oratory studies.” Moreover, he adds,
changes in environments can drasti-
Glacier colored by green and red algae in Antarctica. The growth of algae and other cally change organisms within them,
microorganisms in very cold conditions is aided by chaotropes, which ordinarily disrupt a generalization that carries major
macromolecules but which enhance survival of microbes even at temperatures well below the
freezing point of water. (Photo © Getty Images/John Eastcott and Yva Momatiuk.) implications for carbon and nitrogen
cycling on Earth.
David C. Holzman
David C. Holzman is the Microbe Journal
Highlights Editor.
for extraterrestrial life, including on though high solute concentrations
Mars and Europa, he and his col- keep water from freezing once it
leagues note. Their report appears in reaches 0°C, high solute itself is excep-
the April 27, 2010, Proceedings of the tionally stressful to microbes. Chao-
National Academy of Sciences (107: tropes, however, can loosen cellular
Siderophores Shed Light
7835–7840). structures that ordinarily stiffen with on the “Great Plate
Chaotropes comprise a diverse set falling temperatures. “I wondered Count Anomaly”
of structurally disruptive compounds whether and how such cells would be Missing siderophores may account for
that includes ethanol, urea, fructose, able to use the solute activities of en- why microbiologists can culture only
salts such as magnesium chloride, vironmental substances or their own about 1% of the microorganisms that
and aromatic agents such as phenol. metabolites to enhance their meta- they collect from diverse environ-
They work by interfering with non- bolic activities at otherwise prohibi- ments, according to Kim Lewis of
covalent bonds and find use in labs tively low temperatures, he says. Northeastern University and his col-
during purifications and analyses of Hallsworth, Underwood, and their laborators there and at nearby Har-
macromolecules. collaborators screened cold-tolerant vard Medical School, both in Boston,
At lower temperatures, because chao- algae, fungi, and bacteria for solute Mass. Without siderophores to bind
tropes disrupt noncovalent interactions tolerance, screened a set of 161 solute- iron for them, these microorganisms
among macromolecules, their presence tolerant fungi for low-temperature fail to grow in the lab despite being
tends to enliven metabolic activities that tolerance, and then cultured the mi- bathed in nutrients. If this explanation
would otherwise remain sluggish. For crobes with the highest combined holds up, it should enable microbiolo-
example, sea-ice algae withstand solute-and-low-temperature tolerance gists to overcome what some of them
⫺20°C and very high levels of sodium on growth media supplemented ei- call the “great plate count anomaly”
chloride, according to microbial ecolo- ther with chaotropes or with their and to learn a great deal more about
gist Graham Underwood of the Univer- functional opposites, macromolecule- countless recalcitrant species that
sity of Essex in Essex, England. stabilizing compounds, called kosmo- were set aside as “nongrowers.” The
Cold can be a double whammy tropes. work appeared in the March 26, 2010
for prokaryotes, Hallsworth says. Al- At temperatures near 0°C, microbial Chemistry & Biology.
Volume 5, Number 8, 2010 / Microbe Y 325

Uncultured microorganisms from cultured bacterial strains induced by Highlights from 2010 ASM
marine biofilms can be coaxed to grow M. luteus KLE1011 in marine envi- General Meeting
when they are exposed to natural ma- ronmental biofilms. Six isolates were
rine sediment or other bacterial species selected that prove particularly de- Synthetic, Transplanted
from the same environment. The re- pendent on M. luteus KLE1101 for Genome Directs New
search team suspected that some type growth. The six isolates and M. poly- Host Cell
of natural diffusible molecule stimu- siphoniae KLE1104 were treated
lates this syntrophy among marine with 20 commercial siderophores, A synthetic and slightly streamlined
microbes. representing different chemical classes, version of the Mycoplasma mycoides
The researchers inoculated the un- such as phenols/catechols and oxa- genome, consisting of about 1.08 mil-
cultured isolate Marinbacter polysi- zolines/thiazolines. The different un- lion base pairs, worked fine and took
phoniae KLE1104 with strains of cultured bacterial strains, including over the genetic controls after being
Escherichia coli containing deletions Cyclobacterium, Sulfitobacter, and transplanted into a similar but distinct
for various growth factors to iden- Bacteroidetes, show distinctly differ- host cell, Mycoplasma capricolum, ac-
tify metabolites that promote growth. ent patterns of siderophore depen- cording to Clyde Hutchison from the
From among three likely candidates— dence. Some siderophores universally J. Craig Venter Institute, San Diego,
the siderophore enterobactin, the induce growth, whereas others act Calif. He spoke during the colloquium
universal quorum sensing factor AI-2, more specifically. The results suggest “Engineering a Better Bacterium,”
and an autoinducer indole— only the that siderophores show wide varia- held during the 110th ASM General
strain missing enterobactin fails to tions in their preference for aiding Meeting last May in San Diego, Calif.
induce growth. “We had no idea what growth of uncultured isolates. The synthetic genome, which omits
the growth factor would be, and The multitude of uncultured mi- 14 “dispensable” genes that are found
we got lucky using our knockout col- crobes likely will require other yet- in the natural version of the M. my-
lection of E. coli mutants,” says undiscovered factors to stimulate coides genome, also carries slight
study leader Kim Lewis, director of growth. Nonetheless, siderophores changes, or “watermarks,” to make it
Northeastern’s Antimicrobial Discov- are a first important step towards readily distinguishable from that na-
ery Center. solving the 100-year-old mystery of tive version, Hutchison says. Assem-
Lewis’ team also discovered that the great plate count anomaly. “It bled in step-wise fashion, the gargan-
another strain, Micrococcus luteus gives us a tool to access biodiversity tuan piece of DNA is eased into the
KLE1011, is a potent natural helper that has been hidden from us,” says recipient cell with assistance from
that promotes the growth of M. poly- Lewis, thus allowing exploration of polyethylene glycol (PEG) in a step
siphoniae KLE1104 and other uncul- unknown bacterial metabolites, such that is nearly as inefficient as it is
tured strains in the laboratory. They as much-needed novel antibiotics. mechanistically inscrutable. PEG
purified five novel siderophores in me- “Improving our ability to culture dif- “may cause cell membranes to fuse,”
dia collected from cultures of M. lu- ficult micoorganisms promises to in- he says, “but we don’t know how to
teus KLE1011. These newly identi- crease our understanding of them and study this step.” Thus, the genome
fied siderophores belong to the des- verify that bacteria detected indirectly “transplantation” from one cell into
ferrioxamine class of iron-binding using gene sequencing techniques are another remains a “rare event.”
agents, and they all have flanking acyl truly present in particular environ- Nonetheless, the recipient cells con-
side chains that make them very hy- ments,” says Garth James, medical taining the synthetic genome are
drophobic. Their unusual chemical projects manager at the Center for Bio- “happy,” and even grow slightly
structure “probably helps them stay film Engineering at Montana State Uni- “faster than the reference strain,”
within the biofilm, and they do not versity, Bozeman. For example, 16S Hutchison continues. Having cells un-
easily leak out into the open ocean,” rRNA data indicate that chronic questionably under control of syn-
Lewis says. Moreover, the five new wounds contain diverse bacteria that thetic DNA speaks to the “main inter-
siderophores individually induce the cannot be cultured. “It would not sur- est” of the Venter group, namely to try
growth of uncultured M. polpolysi- prise me,” says Garth, “to find sid- to understand what genes are essential
phoniae KLE1104, confirming their erophore-based syntrophy in wounds for life and, down the road, develop a
role as factors that aid the growth of and across the human microbiome.” model to predict how “subsets of
uncultured bacteria. Carol Potera genes affect cell behavior.” Eventu-
The importance of siderophores Carol Potera is a freelance writer in Great ally, the research group would like to
was further explored by screening un- Falls, Mont. do away with recipient host cells and

perhaps assemble living cells from their
component parts, but that undertaking
is not yet tractable. FDA Urged To Consolidate Food Safety
In terms of safety and ethics, some Efforts and Make them Risk-based
researchers see these results as “falling
along a continuum,” says Jeffrey In dealing with its food safety responsibilities, the U.S. Food and Drug
Miller of the University of California, Administration “should implement a risk-based approach,” and also
Los Angeles, who cochaired the collo- should move away from a long-established “piecemeal approach to
quium. “We crossed this Rubicon in gathering and using information on risks,” according to a report issued
the 1970s,” he adds, referring to other last June by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and National Research
developments in microbiology and Council (NRC) in Washington, D.C. The report also calls on the
molecular biology that enabled, for federal government to “establish a centralized food safety data center
example, the full synthesis of viral ge- to . . . conduct rapid, sophisticated assessments of food safety risks and
nomes and the ever-widening use of appropriate policy interventions.” Further, FDA should consider dele-
recombinant-DNA techniques to gating food inspection responsibilities to the states while setting na-
modify the genetics and physiologic tional standards for such activities, according to the report. “Our
properties of many different types of report’s recommendations aim to help FDA achieve a comprehensive
microorganisms (as well as plants and vision for proactively protecting against threats to the nation’s food
animals). supply,” says IOM-NRC committee chair Robert Wallace of the Col-
In terms of safety, there are “two lege of Public Health at the University of Iowa, Iowa City. “Foodborne
classes of issues,” one involving in- diseases cause significant suffering, so it’s imperative that our food
advertent risks that develop despite safety system functions effectively at all levels.” The report, “Enhanc-
“good intent” and the other is de- ing Food Safety: The Role of the Food and Drug Administration,” is
liberate misuse, Hutchison says. In available at http://www.nap.edu.
terms of the former, “there is no dif-
ference from traditional genetic engi-
neering.” As for the latter, “aside sion report on this subject is due some- culture, he says. Quake spoke during
from toxins, we don’t know how to time before the end of this year. the opening session, “Technology and
design something really novel, but Jeffrey L. Fox Revolutions in Microbiology,” of the
there are people thinking about this Jeffrey L. Fox is the Microbe Current 110th ASM General Meeting last May
problem,” he adds, alluding to the Topics and Features Editor. in San Diego.
National Science Advisory Board for One striking trait is Quake’s
Biosecurity, whose mandate is to safe- pride in boasting about how small his
guard potential dual-use research of Microbiology Meets, work scale, and that of others in the
this sort. Might Succumb to, field, is becoming. For instance, he
Scientists working in this field as Analytic Nanotechnology says, “nanoliter performs better than
well as ethicists who follow it closely microliter” for those analyzing single
are weighing in with an array of opin- Microfluidics, lithographic fabrica- copies of microbial genomes, explain-
ions about reaching this milestone. tions processes, and nanotechnology ing that the smaller scale of the ana-
For instance, some critics complain are major new analytical components lytic vessels “lowers contamination
about the Venter Institute seeking pat- that are helping to change how scien- and restricts side reactions.” Even so,
ents to cover commercial rights for tists study microorganisms, some- in some cases that shrunken frame-
this research, saying they could impair times enabling the study of individual work is considered too voluminous,
progress in the field. Meanwhile, some cells instead of massive numbers of leading some researchers to resort to
ethicists express enthusiasm for the cells, according to Steven Quake of “using a laser trap to isolate single
progress being made, while others, in- Stanford University in Palo Alto, cells,” he continues. Once trapped, in-
cluding Vatican representatives, urge Calif. These analytic tools, in turn, are dividual cells can be “moved into a
caution. Amid these responses, Presi- enabling researchers to address ques- clean part of a microfluidic device,
dent Obama asked the members of his tions that were beyond the scope of where there is no ‘background’
recently revamped Presidential Com- conventional microbiology and al- DNA.” The cells remain undamaged
mission for the Study of Bioethical ready are illuminating the “dark mat- during this procedure through use of a
Issues to put synthetic biology at the ter” of microbiology, namely those trapping laser that works in the infra-
top of its agenda item. The commis- species that so far cannot be grown in red range.

Another noteworthy example of mi- polar fractions in crude oil. And the tars pathogens— one a fungus, the other
crobiology analysis on this shrunken in oils tend to deposit, much like as- several similar types of RNA viruses—
scale points to some of the unusual chal- phalt, along the ocean floor or on coinfecting and thus weakening bees
lenges that may arise. Thus, adapt- beaches. during a vulnerable stage as they move
ing a chemostat to work on the mi- One proven way to accelerate micro- from winter to spring, according to
crofluidic scale forced investigators to bial action is to add fertilizer to provide Jay Evans of the U.S. Department of
confront the impact of biofilms that oil-decomposing species and consortia Agriculture (USDA) research labs in
formed along the walls of these tiny with a better balance of nutrients, Atlas Beltsville, Md. He spoke during the
vessels, Quake says. In a traditional che- says. For the Gulf spill, he recommends colloquium “Microbes in Extinction
mostat, the bulk cell population gener- adding fertilizers when oil comes on- Events.”
ally overshadows biofilm effects. On a shore and “sooner, rather than later.” Separately, Arturo Casadevall of
nanoscale, however, the biofilm effects Typically, there is a “burst” in activity Albert Einstein College of Medicine in
can dominate. Overcoming this chal- and a sharp rise in populations of hy- Bronx, N.Y., speculates that global
lenge took a “plumbing solution,” he drocarbon-degrading microorganisms, warming could lead to the emergence
says. The overall device is designed to temporarily reducing the local diversity of novel fungal diseases as fungi adapt
permit periodic scrubbing of biofilm- of microbial populations. to higher ambient temperatures, mak-
laden chambers with lysing buffers, Dispersants can help speed these ing them better suited to survive in
while moving the planktonic growers degradative processes by making the mammalian hosts. He outlined that
elsewhere. Such relatively mundane ma- crude oil more accessible to the micro- hypothesis, which is detailed in the
neuvers “extend the active lifetime of organisms, according to Atlas. How- inaugural (April 2010) issue of mBio.
the device.” ever, those dispersants, whose use is The new journal, the first open-access
Jeffrey L. Fox
generally limited to oil floating on publication from ASM, was rolled out
open waters, can damage other spe- during the 110th ASM General Meet-
cies, including fish and birds. Thus, ing in San Diego last May.
Role for Microbes in he calls dispersants a “two-edged “Global warming means narrow-
Coping with Gulf Oil Spill sword.” Not a great deal is known ing of the thermal gradient between
about the toxicology of oil-dispersant ambient and mammalian tempera-
Amid anguish and anger over the mas- mixtures, Grimes says, noting that a tures,” Casadevall says. “As thermo-
sive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico— colleagues of his recently began to tolerance is more commonly found
particularly its destructive impact on look systematically at the chronic ef- within the basidiomycetes, this group
that ecosystem—indigenous microor- fects of this combination on several may be the major contributor of new
ganisms will slowly but relentlessly play representative species of fish and shell- fungal pathogens.” Moreover, he
a major role in degrading much of that fish. “There soon may be serious fed- points out, “The risk from newly
oil and helping to restore the equilib- eral money available for more stud- emerged fungal pathogens could be
rium of that region, according to Jay ies,” he notes. magnified by the fact that there are
Grimes of the University of Southern Despite interest in inoculating mi- few antifungal drugs available and no
Mississippi in Hattiesburg and Ronald croorganisms, including those spe- licensed vaccines.”
Atlas of the University of Louisville in cially selected or genetically engi- Meanwhile, Evans of USDA does
Louisville, Kentucky, who spoke during neered to degrade crude oil, there is not argue that the emergent fungus
a special session about the oil spill dur- little to suggest that they could outper- Nosema ceranae—now often associ-
ing the 110th ASM General Meeting form indigenous microbes, Grimes ated with honeybee colonies in North
last May in San Diego. says. Adds Atlas, “I gave up looking America and elsewhere in the North-
“Microorganisms consume many for such miracle ‘bugs’ years ago.” ern Hemisphere—is a sign of global
but not all the components in crude oil, Jeffrey L. Fox
warming, but he does say that it could
but it’s not an instantaneous process,” be “interacting” with other factors
Atlas says. “However, we’re better off such as pesticides or that affect the
to clean it up physically than waiting for food supply of bees. More impor-
the microbes.” In general, the hydrocar- Shift in Fungal Pathogen tantly, this newer fungus may be “dis-
bon fractions in oil are degraded to car- Could Be Key to Bee placing fungal species in the United
bon dioxide and water, while producing Colony Collapse States,” while also interacting with
proteins and other macromolecules for RNA viruses from the family Dicistro-
the organisms. Less in the way of micro- Bee colony collapse disorder could be viridae. Indeed the presence of both
bial decomposition happens to the more due to the impact of two very different that fungus and those viruses is “a

pretty strong predictor of [colony] col- zerland and her collaborators; she with obesity, adds Margaret Zu-
lapse,” he says. Indeed, several years spoke during the symposium, “Per- pancic of the University of Mary-
ago, W. Ian Lipkin of Columbia Uni- sistence of Foodborne Pathogens land Medical School in Baltimore,
versity in New York and his collabo- from Farm to Fork.” Curiously, who spoke during the same session.
rators reported evidence associating this desiccation-resistant and bio- However, when host obesity-pre-
one of these viruses with colony col- film-forming opportunistic patho- disposing genetic factors are taken
lapse disorder (Microbe, November gen produces cellulose, which she into account, “intriguing patterns”
2007, p. 523). considers a “virulence factor,” in GI bacterial population composi-
By itself, the fungus infects cells lin- mainly because it renders these bac- tion begin to emerge, she says. Al-
ing the gut wall of bees, damaging the teria resistant to chloride-contain- though the analysis is at an early
cells and causing a mild diarrhea ing cleaning agents. These bacteria stage, those patterns “hold up” and
among the bees while robbing them of contaminate powdered milk, likely those correlations may make it pos-
nutrients. The fungal infection also through additions of plant-derived sible to determine who is more “at
renders those cells more susceptible to supplements and fortifiers. The bac- risk” for becoming obese. Both
viral infections, according to Evans. teria may persist in such dried milk studies point to the “multifactorial”
These combined effects thus may ren- products for several years before character underlying epidemic obe-
der colonies vulnerable to collapse, they are reconstituted with water sity, both researchers point out.
which happens during the key survival and given to premature infants via Jeffrey L. Fox
“pinch point” in spring when the in- feeding tubes, she says. Infections
sects begin foraging after the latent typically cause severe inflammation
winter period during which they con- of the intestinal tract and, less often,
sume honey to survive. meningitis or sepsis. Peroxisomes Mount
Honeybee colonies began collaps- • Mice fed with live Mycobacterium First-Line Antiviral Defense
ing about six years ago, affecting per- vaccae, a soil bacterium, navigated
haps one-quarter of beekeepers and mazes more efficiently, according to In addition to metabolizing fatty acids
affecting not only those who collect Dorothy Matthews of the Sage Col- and ridding cells of toxic substances,
and sell honey but also those who leges in Troy, N.Y., and her collab- peroxisomes help cells fend off vi-
purvey bees to pollinate nuts and orators, who reported their findings ruses, acting alone and in concert with
fruits and other crops, according to during the session “Microbial Inter- mitochondria. Both cases involve the
Evans. These shortages are stimulat- actions with Plants or Animals.” antiviral signaling (MAVS) protein,
ing considerable research into ways of That exposure, which apparently which induces both peroxisomes and
understanding and combating the also reduces anxiety levels among mitochondria to release other antivi-
phenomenon, and researchers are mice, seems to be “temporary,” and ral agents, according to Jonathan Ka-
studying whether genetic factors could be due to the bacteria stimu- gan of Harvard Medical School in
might yield resistant lines of bees and lating serotonin production in the Boston, Mass., and his collaborators.
also whether various management central nervous system of the ani- “This is the first demonstration that
practices can help to curtail colony mals, she says. peroxisomes are involved in innate
losses, he says. • Bacteria in the gastrointestinal (GI) immunity,” he says. Thus, peroxi-
Jeffrey L. Fox
tracts of obese children living in somes are more than metabolic or-
Switzerland produce higher levels ganelles within cells. Details appear in
of short-chain fatty acids than do the May 14, 2010 Cell.
the otherwise indistinguishable GI- Discovered about five years ago, the
Odds and Ends from the dwelling microorganisms of their MAVS protein, also called interfer-
2010 General Meeting leaner classmates, according to on-␤ promoter stimulator (IPS)-1, was
Amanda Payne of the Institute of thought to act solely on mitochondria.
• Cronobacter sakazakii (formerly Food, Health, and Nutrition, ETH However, after reovirus infects vari-
Enterobacter sakazakii) and other in Zurich, Switzerland and her col- ous types of mouse cells, including
species in this genus are foodborne laborators; she spoke during a “Mi- embryonic fibroblasts and macro-
pathogens that can cause rare but crobial Sciences” session. Among a phages, or human hepatocytes, MAVS
serious and often fatal infections genetically “closed” population of attaches to membranes of peroxi-
among premature and newborn in- Old-World Amish in Pennsylvania, somes and then induces antiviral sig-
fants, according to Angelika Lehner there is little or no correlation in naling, Kagan and his collaborators
of the University of Zurich in Swit- terms of GI microbiome differences report.

Meanwhile, cells infected with inactivate some antiviral substance like suggests that spatial and temporal
fluenza virus respond similarly, viperin and avoid the side effects of compartmentalization of antiviral sig-
whereas cells infected with vesicular interferons,” Kagan says. naling events is necessary for a timely
stomatitis virus (VSV), which inter- Hepatitis C, other viruses, and some and appropriate antiviral response,”
feres with type I interferon signals, bacteria also stimulate protective re- says immunologist Michael Gale from
apparently respond only through the sponses via the peroxisomes. These the University of Washington, Seattle.
peroxisomal antiviral pathway. responses likely occur throughout the Which viruses trigger peroxisomal
Within a few hours, MAVS induces body because peroxisomes are present MAVS signaling and at what stages of
a signaling pathway that leads to ex- in most cell types, according to Kagan. viral replication these events occur
pression of the gene encoding viperin “This is unique, considering all other await further studies, he adds.
along with other antiviral genes, in- innate immunity networks operate in These finding might help to explain
cluding those encoding type I interfer- a cell-specific manner,” he says. “Ev- Zellweger syndrome, a rare but often
ons, Kagan says. These agents act to- ery bacterial and viral pathogen may fatal condition in which peroxisomes
gether to block replication of reovirus. be subject to peroxisomal detection.” fail to develop properly. Although
The immediate immune response MAVS usually operates via the viewed as a metabolic disorder, in-
launched with viperin deters viral in- RIG-1-like receptor protein family, fants with Zellweger syndrome are
vaders until mitochondrial MAVS which detects viruses and induces type highly vulnerable to lung infections.
kicks in with interferons to halt viral I interferons, Kagan continues. How- Perhaps such patients succumb to in-
replication. ever, the peroxisomal MAVS acts at fections because they are lacking an
Viperin specifically targets viruses, an independent site. essential peroxisome-dependent im-
whereas interferons are toxic to vi- “This study clearly demonstrates
mune response, Kagan suggests.
ruses and other cells. “It may be pos- that IPS-1 [MAVS] is both localized to
sible to create treatments to selectively and signals from peroxisomes, and Carol Potera

Public Affairs Report
ASM Statement on JVCI Paper holder Listening Session convened to grams, over a period of five years. The
on Synthesizing DNA Genome discuss the work of the Trans-Atlantic legislation would authorize $30.2 bil-
Task Force on Antimicrobial Resis- lion for the Department of Energy
On 21 May, ASM released a state- tance (TATFAR). ASM commended Office of Science, $44 billion for
ment recognizing the scientific signifi- the establishment of the TATFAR, the National Science Foundation, and
cance of the newly released report by provided some preliminary comments $5.4 billion for the National Insti-
the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI) on addressing antimicrobial resistance tute of Standards and Technology. In
describing the laboratory’s construc- and requested more information about April, ASM cosigned a letter support-
tion of a synthetic genome that, when how it could assist the Task Force as ing the legislation, that stated: “We
introduced into a preexisting micro- it pursues its focus on urgent antimi- believe that a strong, five-year autho-
bial cell, was successfully propagated. crobial issues world wide. The ASM rization for the Office of Science—
The ASM statement is available on comments are available on the Public consistent with the doubling path
the Public Affairs web page at http:// Affairs web page at http://www.asm established by the bipartisan 2007
www.asm.org/index.php?option⫽com .org/index.php?option⫽com_content America COMPETES Act—should be
_content&view⫽article&id⫽91483. &view⫽article&id⫽91489. The a priority for Congress.”
President Obama has asked the Com- TATFAR, which is a government to
mission for the Study of Bioethical government task force, was formed
Issues to undertake a 6-month study
ASM General Meeting
following the November 3, 2009 U.S.- Minority Travel Grant
of the implications of the recent ad- European Union Summit Declaration
vance by the JVCI to synthesize a Awardees–2010
which focused on the specific areas of
DNA genome, including the “poten- appropriate therapeutic use of anti- During the ASM General Meeting in
tial medical, environmental, security, microbial drugs in the medical and San Diego, Calif., the awardees of
and other benefits of this field of re- veterinary communities, prevention of the ASM General Meeting Minority
search, as well as any potential health, both healthcare and community asso- Travel Grant were honored at a recep-
security or other risks.” The President ciated drug resistant infections and tion. The ASM General Meeting Mi-
asked the panel to recommend any ac- strategies for improving the pipeline nority Travel Grant program offers
tions the Federal government should of new antimicrobial drugs. Represen- travel grants to increase the partici-
take “to ensure that America reaps the tatives from the National Institutes pation of underrepresented minority
benefits of this developing field of sci- of Health, the National Institute of (URM) groups in the ASM General
ence while identifying appropriate Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Meeting. The following outstanding
ethical boundaries and minimizing Centers for Disease Control and Pre- 2010 awardees were introduced at the
identified risks.” In its statement the vention, the Food and Drug Adminis- ASM General Meeting:
ASM said “Although this research is a tration, and the Department of Health
milestone technical advance in syn- and Human Services Global Health Postdoctoral Awardees
thetic biology, the ASM believes that Office are expected to hold their first Magdia De Jesus, Ph.D., New York
the laboratory designed genome does meeting with European Union repre- State Department of Health
not warrant any new concerns by poli- sentatives the week of 14 June. Robert Martinez, Ph.D., University
cymakers or the general public.” of Alabama
Kathy Milligan-Myhre, Ph.D.,
ASM Comments for the ASM Applauds Passage of University of Oregon
Trans-Atlantic Task Force the America COMPETES Act Everett C. Salas, Ph.D., Rice
on Antimicrobial Resistance University
In May, Congress passed the America
On 7 June, ASM presented comments COMPETES Reauthorization Act of Faculty Awardees
to the Department of Health and Hu- 2010, authorizing $85.6 billion dol- Doreen F. Cunningham, Ph.D., Saint
man Services (HHS) at the Stake- lars for federal science research pro- Augustine’s College

Kimberly D. Lebby, Ph.D., Florida
A&M University
Mariel E. Pérez Vélez, Ph.D.,
Universidad del Este
Miguel A. Urdaneta, Ph.D.,
University of Puerto Rico
The reception was organized by the

Committee on Microbiological Issues
Impacting Minorities (CMIIM), chaired
by Marian Johnson-Thompson. The
CMIIM developed the grant program
for ASM. A number of ASM volunteers
attended the reception, including ASM
Past Presidents Alison O’Brien and Clif-
ford Houston, ASM Treasurer James
Tiedje, ASM Secretary Joseph Campos,
ASM President-Elect David Hooper,
Underrepresented Members Committee
Chair Maureen Wright, and Meetings
Board Chair and CMIIM member Lu- ASM General Meeting Minority Travel Grant awardees and ASM volunteers. Back row (l-r):
Marian Johnson-Thompson, Lucia Rothman-Denes, Agnes Day, Robert Martinez, Miguel A.
cia Rothman-Denes. CMIIM member Urdaneta, Heather Garvey, Doreen F. Cunningham, and Clifford Houston. Front row (l-r): Magdia
Agnes Day also attended the reception. De Jesus, Kathy Milligan-Myhre, Kimberly D. Lebby, Everett C. Salas, and Mariel E. Pérez-Vélez.
The ASM General Meeting Minor-
ity Travel Grant program is in its fifth the National Institutes of Allergy and If you have colleagues or postdoc-
year. ASM selects postdoctoral schol- Infectious Diseases of the National toral members of your department
ars from underrepresented minority Institutes of Health. For more infor- who you think are eligible for the
groups in the microbiological sciences mation about the grant program award, please let them know about
or faculty from Minority Serving Insti- contact ASMGMTravelGrant@asmusa the program. The CMIIM would like
tutions. Each grantee is offered up .org. The deadline for submission to to encourage as many applications as
to $1,500 to defray expenses associ- apply for a grant to attend the 2011 possible. More information is avail-
ated with travel to the ASM General General Meeting in New Orleans, LA able online at http://www.asm.org/
Meeting. The grants are supported by is 28 January 2011. asmgmminoritytravelgrant.

Molecular Diagnostics Could Help in
Coping with Hidden ␤-Lactamases
By adopting molecular tests, clinical laboratories will do better at
detecting antimicrobial resistance, guiding treatment choices
Nancy D. Hanson
ntibiotic-resistant, gram-negative ␤-lactamases produced by gram-negative or-
A bacteria are a global challenge, with

a major concern being widespread
resistance to ␤-lactam antibiotics.
The variety of such drugs is impres-
ganisms are difficult to detect in clinical settings
using current methodologies, particularly ex-
tended-spectrum ␤-lactamases (ESBLs), AmpC
␤-lactamases, and KPC ␤-lactamases. Many of
sive, yet their availability for clinical use is dwin- the genes encoding these ␤-lactamases are car-
dling because of expanding resistance. Two ried on plasmids or transposons, allowing trans-
main strategies help to curb the development of fer of resistance genes between isolates and thus
antibiotic resistance, and they are not mutually further spreading resistance. The emergence of
exclusive. One strategy is to develop new anti- pathogens that produce multiple ␤-lactamases
bacterial agents and drug combinations faster and carry other means for resisting ␤-lactam
than resistance develops. However, we have al- antibiotics generates a need for better technolo-
ready failed to make this strategy work for gies for detecting ␤-lactamases.
gram-negative infections. The second, but often “Rapid screening techniques are needed in
overlooked, strategy is to develop technology to order to effectively track and prevent [antibiotic
enable rapid surveillance of resistant pathogens resistance] spread in clinical settings,” states the
in hospital and community settings. Rapidly September 2009 report from the American
detecting and identifying resistance in turn Academy of Microbiology, “Antibiotic Resis-
could enable us to use antibiotics more judi- tance: An Ecological Perspective on an Old
ciously and thus minimize development of fur- Problem.” Bringing those tests into wider use in
ther resistance. clinical laboratories will usher in a range of
benefits not only for clinical microbiolo-
gists, physicians, and their patients but also
for epidemiologists.
Summary
• Gram-negative bacteria that are resistant to Nancy D. Hanson is
␤-lactam antibiotics are a global challenge. a Professor in the
History, Current Status of Antibiotic
• Molecular-based technologies are needed for Susceptibility Testing
Department of
identifying gram-negative pathogens carrying Medical Microbiol-
multiple ␤-lactamases. Antibiotic susceptibility testing methods ogy and Immunol-
• Specific types of ␤-lactamases complicate efforts trace back to more than 100 years ago. For ogy and Director of
to adapt, use, and interpret phenotype-based example, the Dutch microbiologist Marti- Molecular Biology
antibiotic-susceptibility tests. nus Beijerinck developed agar diffusion at the Center for
• PCR-based testing can be customized, and techniques by 1889, while Edward Abra- Research in Anti-
wider use of such testing could improve overall ham and his collaborators in England devel- Infectives and Bio-
treatment effectiveness while cutting overall oped broth dilution techniques using tur- technology, Creigh-
health care costs. bidity as an endpoint in 1941 as part of their ton University,
efforts to develop and test penicillin. Omaha, Neb.

As microbiologists developed susceptibility bacterial pathogens have been accumulating
methods, they also wrote guidelines for per- multiple types of ␤-lactamases, making it more
forming these tests as a way of addressing vari- difficult to treat infected patients. In addition,
ables that affected precision and accuracy. For other antibiotic drug-resistance mechanisms, in-
instance, in 1966, the Kirby-Bauer disk tech- cluding those that involve membrane porins that
niques helped to standardize plate-diffusion keep drugs out or efflux pumps that drive anti-
tests of antibiotic susceptibility tests. biotics from cells, add to the challenge of deter-
A decade later, the National Committee for mining the specific antibiotic resistance mecha-
Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) issued nism of a particular pathogen via current
refined guidelines for disk diffusion assays. Since susceptibility testing methods.
then, the NCCLS successor organization, the
Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI), Need To Modernize ESBL Testing with
and the European Committee on Antimicrobial Molecular Techniques
Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) have contin-
ued to issue reports describing minimal inhibi- In light of such complexities, we see a need to
tory concentrations for antibiotics for many incorporate molecular means for detecting
pathogens. Those reports adhere to refined ␤-lactamase genes into standard diagnostic clin-
guidelines for susceptibility testing and criteria ical microbiology laboratory testing procedures.
for interpreting drug breakpoints. Importantly, they would add greater sensitivity
While susceptibility testing was being stan- and specificity to current phenotypic testing
dardized, resistance to ␤-lactam drugs among methods. Indeed, many clinical microbiologists
gram-negative pathogens was minimal. More- consider “hidden ␤-lactamases” one of the most
over, resistant strains were easily detected using challenging issues facing them when they con-
phenotypic testing methods. The first ESBL was duct susceptibility tests.
recognized in 1983 using phenotypic methods. However, with more than 800 known ␤-lac-
Its MICs to several expanded-spectrum cepha- tamases, where does one begin to design and
losporins, including cefotaxime and ceftazi- implement molecular protocols to detect clini-
dime, were significantly elevated compared to cally relevant ␤-lactamase genes? Although it
narrow-spectrum ␤-lactamases. In 1985, the would be wonderful to detect all the known
ESBL was evaluated using molecular methods ␤-lactamases, doing so remains impractical. In-
and designated SHV-2. stead, it makes sense to start with simple PCR
When organisms produced one ESBL and assays for clinically challenging ␤-lactam resis-
other non-ESBL enzymes, susceptibility testing tance mechanisms. Although some laboratories
typically proved adequate in terms of giving use “home brew” PCR assays, others lack the
physicians an accurate guide for prescribing personnel or means to develop and validate such
effective antibiotics. However, gram-negative assays. Hence, a commercially available PCR kit
would be extremely helpful.
Soon it should be possible to detect large
␤-Lactamases Requiring Molecular Detection arrays of ␤-lactamase genes in gram-negative
␤-Lactamase
pathogens, likely through microarray assays
type Subtypes or mass spectrometry. However, before that
CTX-Ms ESBLs that are both hospital and community acquired technology develops, commercial PCR-based
Family Groups: 1, 2, and 14 protocols will be needed to detect clinically
important mechanisms that phenotypic test-
Imported AmpCs All 6 family groups: ACC, MOX, FOX, CIT (CMY-2-like), ing misses. These mechanisms include genes
DHA, and FOX
encoding CTX-M ESBLs, the plasmid-en-
Carbapenemases KPCs: one universal primer set for all 10 variants; KPC2 coded AmpC ␤-lactamases, and the class A,
and KPC-3 most prevalent B, and D carbapenemases (Table 1). Other
ESBLs include TEM and SHV that, until
MBLs:
VIM, IMP, GIM, SPM, NDM CTX-M ESBLs emerged, were considered the
OXA carbapenemases: 3 family groups for now most prevalent ESBLs.
OXA-48, OXA-23, OXA-24 Although important for therapeutic con-
sideration, TEM and SHV ESBLs are more

Hanson: From Snails, Worms, and Viruses to ␤-lactamases and French Cooking
Nancy Dohse Hanson began doing ex- faculty position at Creighton with the Before attend-
periments early. “I was about 15, I understanding that I would develop a ing graduate
guess, and wanted to learn more about program evaluating molecular mecha- school, Hanson
snails,’’ she recalls. “I collected a nice nisms of antibiotic resistance, mainly taught high
group from our pond and took them to ␤-lactam resistance,” she says. “I knew school science
the cellar to experiment.” Left on their nothing when I started, but gained mo- for several years.
own, the snails crawled from their jar, mentum with every experiment.” “I love teaching
onto a table, and died. Days later, her Hanson, one of three sisters, grew people how to do
mother went to the cellar for some up on a farm in Nebraska. “My dad science, what it
canned goods and “yelled my name also had a full-time job in Omaha, as takes, how to Hanson
very loudly,” Hanson says. “I realized our farm was small and farming was think, what ques-
I’d forgotten my experiment.” not always as lucrative as was needed tions to ask—it doesn’t matter to me
Undaunted, Hanson soon moved for the family,” she says. Meanwhile, the age of the student,” she says.
from snails to planaria. “I learned I her mother worked as a nurse. “So my “Graduate students are the easiest, as
could collect them from fresh water folks were very hard working, and that they already have the passion to do
using liver,’’ she says. She appropriated must have influenced me, as science is a science. High school and, for that mat-
liver from the refrigerator, converted a demanding but rewarding career. ter, college kids are still figuring out
doll case into a science kit, and em- Growing up, I was always surrounded what they want . . . and unless the pas-
barked on another expedition. The by animals and, like most kids, enjoyed sion is there, science is hard.”
liver proved excellent planaria bait. that—and perhaps that got me started She married at 19. Her husband,
“Out they came,” she says. “I wanted thinking about how life works.” Richard Hanson, is a mechanical con-
to evaluate their ability to regener- Hanson wanted to be a scientist tractor, and they have been married
ate—to see if I could get a head to from an early age, but remembers cry- nearly 35 years. “When I went to col-
lege I was sure I was never going to get
attach and grow from the midgut of the ing after taking “one of those terrible
married, but, alas, I fell in love my
worm—but before I could do my ex- state exams, when most of my friends
freshman year,” she says. “My first
periment, my dad saw the worms. He did better than I.” Her 7th-grade
daughter was born before I started my
made me flush them down the toilet. teacher, Thelma Frederick, consoled
Master’s, and my second daughter
My experiment was ruined, but fortu- her, saying: “Nancy, you can be what-
while I was a postdoc. I refer to them as
nately I have had many more.” ever you want to be—these scores
my pre- and postdoc kids.” The older
Hanson, 54, is now a professor in mean nothing.” Her parents also sup-
daughter, Laura Hanson Molzer, is
the department of medical microbiol- ported her goals. “Mom worked when
married, lives in Colorado, and is a
ogy and immunology at Creighton most moms at that time did not,” she
family therapist. The younger daugh-
University School of Medicine, where says. “Dad told me to be cautious of
ter, Lindsay, will be a high school se-
she joined the faculty in 1995, initially Ph.D.s—they think they know so
nior next year, and is interested in the
as an assistant professor in the depart- much—and that kept me grounded.” field of fashion.
ment of pediatrics. Since 1999, she also Hanson earned her B.S. in biology “Between my genetic family and my
has been director of molecular biology and chemistry in 1979 from the Uni- science family, I don’t have a lot of time
for the Center for Research in Anti- versity of Texas, Permian Basin in for hobbies,” Hanson says. However,
Infectives and Biotechnology at Odessa, followed by a Master’s degree she enjoys French cooking and wine
Creighton. in biology in 1984 from the University tasting. She now lives in the same town
During the past 15 years, Hanson of Nebraska, Omaha, and in 1991, she where she grew up “so I can be close to
focused her research on antibiotic resis- received her doctorate in medical mi- my parents, so if they need me—they
tance, evaluating how bacterial patho- crobiology from the University of Ne- are still very independent—I will be
gens become resistant to ␤-lactam anti- braska Medical Center. Between there for them, as they were there for
biotics and developing molecular tools 1992–1994 she served as a postdoc- me.”
to identify bacteria that carry genes en- toral research associate in the depart- Marlene Cimons
coding ␤-lactamases. “I was trained as ment of veterinary science at the Uni- Marlene Cimons lives and writes in
a molecular virologist, and obtained a versity of Nebraska, Lincoln. Bethesda, Md.

challenging to detect at the molecular level than (CMY-2-like), and two species of Enterobacter
are CTX-M ESBLs. Investigators know of 127 (ACT-1-like and MIR-1-like).
SHV and 175 TEM genes (http://www.lahey- For AmpC ␤-lactamases to cause resistance to
.org), and the similarities between different fam- extended-spectrum ␤-lactams, ␤-lactam/␤-lac-
ily members (or alleles) increase the challenge of tam-inhibitor combinations, or aztreonam, the
designing molecular-based assays to differenti- organism must produce the enzyme at high lev-
ate among them. els. When high levels of AmpC combine with a
When these enzymes are produced in the ab- mutation that affects penetration of the drug,
sence of ␤-lactamases that interfere with suscep- cells become resistant to cefepime and the car-
tibility testing, the likelihood of detecting these bapenems. Because levels of this enzyme vary
other enzymes while following the 2009 CLSI widely, susceptibility patterns for these isolates
confirmatory testing guidelines for ESBLs is very also vary.
good. However, if the pathogen produces an To overcome some of these problems, we devel-
AmpC or a class A carbapenemase such as KPC, oped a multiplex ampC PCR to detect all six
for example, then the ESBL may be missed. families of plasmid-encoded AmpC ␤-lactamase
However, because molecular tests can readily genes that is being used in “home brew” PCR
detect both AmpC and KPC genes, these tests assays around the world. This PCR-based ap-
would make it easier to evaluate therapeutic proach appears to surpass a recently developed
options even if the ESBL goes undetected using disk test because it can differentiate between iso-
molecular screens. lates that overproduce the chromosomally en-
coded AmpC enzyme from those that produce a
plasmid-encoded AmpC enzyme. In addition, the
Need To Set Appropriate Screening Goals
AmpC disk test cannot determine the inducibility
CTX-M ESBLs make up a family of enzymes of the enzyme whereas the molecular identifica-
that laboratories need to be able to identify. tion of the gene family can be used to help deter-
Both hospital- and community-acquired patho- mine whether that gene is capable of induction,
gens produce these enzymes. When individuals which proves important clinically. An added bo-
from the community are hospitalized when in- nus for the molecular test for plasmid-encoded
fected with CTX-M-producing pathogens, they ampC genes is that it specifies that the gene is
could put hospital patients at risk. mobile, a fact that is important for setting infec-
CTX-M ESBLs are the most prevalent ESBLs tion control measures in hospitals.
in the world, with CTX-M-15 being the most
prevalent and with both CTX-M-14 and CTX-
Carbapenemases Are a Key
M-2 also being frequently detected. There are
Class of ␤-lactamases
five genetic families of CTX-M, groups 1, 4, 2,
3, and 5, and there are 90 CTX-M family mem- Several types of carbapenemases hydrolyze car-
bers (http://www.lahey.org). For clinical pur- bapenems, the most potent ␤-lactam antibiotics
poses, it is necessary to identify only the genetic available to physicians. These enzymes also hy-
group. For example, CTX-15 belongs to the drolyze, and thus inactivate, other major ␤-lac-
group-1 family of CTX-M genes, whereas CTX- tam antibiotics, including penicillins, cephalo-
M-9 and CTX-M-14 belong to the CTX-M sporins, and, in some cases, aztreonam.
group 4 family. Screening for these groups of The genes encoding carbapenemases are found
enzymes would aid in infection control efforts. on both the chromosome and plasmids. Carbap-
Gram-negative pathogens sometimes produce enemases are classified into three of the four mo-
imported but clinically important AmpC ␤-lacta- lecular classes of ␤-lactamases, A, B, and D. The
mases that may be difficult to detect using conven- most prevalent class A carbapenemases include
tional testing methods. There are six families of KPC and GES variants. The genes encoding the
plasmid-encoded AmpC ␤-lactamases, which KPCs were found within a 10-kb transposon,
originated from chromosomal genes of Enter- which is associated with both chromosomes and
obacteriaceae. These families consist of enzymes plasmids. KPC-producing pathogens have spread
from Hafnia alvei (AAC), Aeromonas hydrophila rapidly throughout the world.
(MOX-1-like), A. caviae (FOX-1-like), Mor- Although the purified KPC enzymes can hy-
ganella morganii (DHA-like), Citrobacter freundii drolyze carbapenems, in many cases the gram-

negative pathogens that produce KPCs are not efflux mutations. The clinical impact of OXA
outright resistant to carbapenems but show re- carbapenemases is unknown, but their presence
duced susceptibility to these drugs. In addition in K. pneumoniae or E. coli increases the diffi-
to carbapenems, these enzymes hydrolyze peni- culty in the interpretation of susceptibility data
cillins and extended-spectrum cephalosporins when clinical laboratories are screening for the
such as ceftazidime and cefotaxime. KPC en- presence of KPC producing pathogens.
zymes also hydrolyze aztreonam, whereas GES
enzymes do not.
Another Key Group: the
This pattern presents a challenge when trying
Metallo-␤-lactamases
to detect KPC- and GES-producing pathogens
because it can be confused with that of an ESBL. The metallo-␤-lactamase class B enzymes in-
Another challenge in detecting KPC-producing clude the IMP, VIM, GIM, SPM, and NDM-1
isolates is that many of these isolates produce ␤-lactamases. Of these five types, IMP and VIM
multiple ␤-lactamases, further increasing the are the most prevalent worldwide. Although
difficulty of evaluating results from current sus- many VIM and IMP enzymes are found in
ceptibility tests. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, they also are found in
The 2009 CLSI guidelines which many labo- K. pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, and several
ratories will still be using in 2010 and beyond other genera of Enterobacteriaceae.
recommends that laboratories screen for KPC The susceptibility pattern associated with or-
using the Hodge test if the isolates have carbap- ganisms that produce metallo-␤-lactamases
enem MICs of 2– 4 ␮g/ml and are resistant to includes resistance to penicillins and cephalo-
extended-spectrum cephalosporins. However, sporins in addition to carbapenems but suscep-
data presented at the 49th ICAAC, held in San tibility to aztreonam. Because their hydrolytic
Francisco, Calif., in September 2009, suggest profiles vary extensively, detecting metallo-␤-
that some extended-spectrum cephalosporins, lactamase-associated resistance by susceptibility
including ceftazidime, do not have MICs above assays proves difficult. Further, when isolates
the susceptible breakpoint. Therefore, these iso- also produce AmpC enzymes or ESBLs, such
lates likely would not be screened for KPC if the tests may yield false-negative results for aztreo-
laboratory used ceftazidime as a screening tool. nam.
Further, the presence of an AmpC ␤-lactamase Although Etests and other susceptibility tests
might test falsely positive for KPC, and might that use EDTA to inhibit the activity of metallo-
mislead a clinician to forego using a carbap- ␤-lactamase and thus test for their production
enem, according to my colleague Kenneth are widely used in clinical laboratories, these
Thomson at Creighton University. tests may yield false-negative and false-positive
If a KPC-producing isolate is suspected, it results. These inaccurate results, especially for
makes sense to use molecular methods to test for metallo-␤-lactamases produced by P. aerugi-
blaKPC. Many clinical laboratories now use KPC nosa, are a problem because they may lead cli-
PCR for this purpose, while others send their nicians to select inappropriate antibiotic ther-
specimens to reference laboratories. If clinical apy for their patients. In addition, implemention
laboratories had access to commercial kits for of proper control measures requires that person-
detecting KPC genes, they could test suspect nel know when pathogens carrying these en-
organisms immediately instead of relying on zymes are identified in certain patient popula-
additional phenotypic screening or waiting for tions within the hospital.
results from reference laboratories.
Meanwhile, the OXA carbapenemases
Improvements in Diagnostic
emerged within the class D ␤-lactamase en-
Testing on Several Fronts
zymes, and are found mainly within species of
Acinetobacter. Additionally, investigators are Investigators continue to modify susceptibility
recovering isolates of K. pneumoniae and E. coli test methods to increase their sensitivity and to
in Europe that produce OXA-48. Although the adapt them to detect specific resistance mecha-
OXA carbapenemases lead to minimal resis- nisms. Some of these upgraded tests are based
tance on their own, their potency rises when on simple disk diffusion tests in which multiple
combined with other ␤-lactamases and porin or ␤-lactam disks are used. Spatial requirements

FIGURE 1 pitalized patients, then a real-time PCR
assay could be adapted to the genes
encoding those enzymes. Or, if a hospi-
tal were concerned specifically about
carbapenem resistance in Enterobacte-
riaceae, its lab could adjust its assays to
detect carbapenemase genes. The cus-
tomized combinations are endless.
Appropriate antibiotic therapy ad-
ministered early has a significant impact
on the effectiveness of treatment. Real-
time surveillance to identify the preva-
lence of specific types of ␤-lactamases
produced by pathogens collected within
a given hospital can help guide the most
appropriate empiric therapy possible.
This information will not only increase
the successful treatment outcomes for
patients but has the potential to de-
Initiation of PCR into the workflow of the clinical laboratory. After initial isolation of the crease the length of hospital stay and
organism, PCR could be initiated at the time of susceptibility testing if previous thus hospital care costs.
surveillance data indicate the presence of a particular resistance mechanism or mecha- Clinical laboratories must take an
nisms (such as a high incidence of KPC-, CTX-M-, or AmpC-producing pathogens). The
laboratory could also wait until initial susceptibility testing was completed, but the active role urging diagnostics compa-
number of days postisolation to report the outcome could increase by 1 day depending nies to develop molecular tests for
on the method used for susceptibility testing. ␤-lactamases. Clinical laboratory su-
pervisors must also take an active role
in convincing hospital administrators
prove critical when interpreting these tests and, to invest in equipment and training of person-
many times, these modified disk tests fail. Some- nel because those investments will benefit both
times, for example, the zones of inhibition are so patients and hospitals. Some laboratories may
slightly changed that only very experienced mi- already have some of this equipment on hand,
crobiologists can interpret the data. using it to detect pathogens such as the influ-
To overcome such drawbacks and to provide enza and herpes simplex viruses as well as
faster turnarounds, molecular tests are needed Bordetella pertussis, which causes whooping
in clinical laboratories. Their use will require cough. For those labs, it would take little
training but the advantage of adopting such effort to adapt that equipment for detecting
methods far outweigh the time required for that ␤-lactamase genes.
training. Moreover, adopting molecular detec- Those of us following the rise in resistant
tion assays for ␤-lactamase genes will provide gram-negative organisms must be voices for
physicians and hospital epidemiologists the ben- change. Clinical microbiology laboratories need
efit of knowing what mechanisms are responsi- to do better at detecting antimicrobial resis-
ble for local antibiotic treatment failures (Fig. tance. Although they should continue to use
1). This type of information will aid physicians phenotypic testing methods, they also need to
in choosing the most appropriate therapies for implement molecular detection protocols. Vigi-
their patient and will also guide infection con- lant surveillance and appropriate infection con-
trol practices. trol strategies, based on a deep understanding of
PCR-based testing can be customized to indi- drug-resistance mechanisms, are critical for our
vidual health care settings. For instance, multi- patients. We can serve them more effectively if
plex real-time PCR can reflect the most clinically we learn to use ␤-lactam antibiotics more judi-
relevant ␤-lactamase genes for a given region, ciously. And until we begin using novel classes
which may be too challenging for phenotypic of antibiotics to treat gram-negative infections,
susceptibility testing. Thus, if KPCs and CTX-M better surveillance strategies are our best re-
ESBLs are being produced by isolates from hos- course.

SUGGESTED READING
Bonnet, R. 2004. Growing group of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases: the CTX-M enzymes. Antimicrob. Agents Che-
mother. 48:1–14.
Naas, T., G. Cuzon, M. V. Villegas, M. F. Lartigue, J. P. Quinn, and P. Nordmann. 2008. Genetic structures at the origin of
acquisition of the beta-lactamase bla KPC gene. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 52:1257–1263.
Pai, H., C. I. Kang, J. H. Byeon, K. D. Lee, W. B. Park, H. B. Kim, E. C. Kim, M. D. Oh, and K. W. Choe. 2004. Epidemiology
and clinical features of bloodstream infections caused by AmpC-type-beta-lactamase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae.
Antimicrob Agents Chemother 48:3720 –3728.
Paterson, D. L., and R. A. Bonomo. 2005. Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases: a clinical update. Clin. Microbiol. Rev.
18:657– 686.
Perez-Perez, F. J., and N. D. Hanson. 2002. Detection of plasmid-mediated AmpC beta-lactamase genes in clinical isolates by
using multiplex PCR. J. Clin. Microbiol. 40:2153–2162.
Pitout, J. D., N. D. Hanson, D. L. Church, and K. B. Laupland. 2004. Population-based laboratory surveillance for Escherichia
coli-producing extended-spectrum beta-lactamases: importance of community isolates with blaCTX-M genes. Clin. Infect.
Dis. 38:1736 –1741.
Pitout, J. D., A. Hossain, and N. D. Hanson. 2004. Phenotypic and molecular detection of CTX-M-beta-lactamases produced
by Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. J. Clin. Microbiol. 42:5715–5721.
Queenan, A. M., and K. Bush. 2007. Carbapenemases: the versatile beta-lactamases. Clin. Microbiol. Rev. 20:440 – 458.
Rice, L. B. 2007. Emerging issues in the management of infections caused by multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacteria.
Cleveland Clinic J. Med. 74(Suppl. 4):S12–20.
Wheat, P. F., and R. C. Spencer. 1988. The evolution of in-vitro antimicrobial susceptibility techniques. J. Antimicrob.
Chemother. 22:579 –582.
A
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Nε-Lysine Acetylation Control Conserved
in All Three Life Domains
The relative simplicity of studying microbes could prove critical for
understanding this posttranslational modification system
Jorge C. Escalante-Semerena
orking with microbes provides of specific chemical groups, including hydroxyls,
W opportunities to better under-

stand fundamental cellular pro-
cesses, including some that, al-
though discovered in eukaryotes,
sulfhydryls, amines, or carbon skeletons. Those
changes can exert positive or negative effects on
the biological functions of the target molecules. In
some cases, the changes lead to turnover of the
have their origins in Bacteria or Archaea. One modified target molecule.
such example, reversible Nε-lysine (Nε-Lys) Such enzymes modify all kinds of molecules in
acetylation of proteins, appears crucial for all cells. Some of them, for example, account for
organisms. With that universality in mind, the particular kinds of antibiotic resistance. Thus, in
relative simplicity of bacteria and archaea could some cases, transferases of bacterial pathogens
prove critical for advancing our understanding modify the core structure of an antibiotic— e.g.,
of how this posttranslational modification sys- acetylating chloramphenicol or phosphorylat-
tem influences cell survival. ing kanamycin—rendering them inactive.
Nε-Lys acetylation could well prove to be a Other enzymes modify DNA, RNA, tRNA, or
fundamental process for cells from all three do- proteins. One type of those protein modifica-
mains of life. If true, this control of protein tions—the reversible acetylation of the ε-amino
function likely arose early during evolution.
Chemical changes can control the activi-
ties of both small and macromolecules in
cells, rapidly halting or enhancing a wide Summary
range of physiological processes. These con-
• Reversible Nε-lysine (Nε-Lys) acetylation of
trol mechanisms are particularly important proteins appears crucial throughout three do-
to microorganisms, especially those in hab- mains of biology.
itats subject to sudden changes in composi- • Enzymes that acetylate or deacetylate histone
tion, temperature, and pH. These modifica- tails help to control gene expression in eu-
tion mechanisms can prove pivotal for karyotes and archaea; similar processes may
microbial stress response systems that en- also affect gene expression in some bacteria.
able microbes to adapt to and survive in • Altogether about 90 proteins in E. coli are
such environments. acetylated, and more than 50% of them appear
to be involved in protein synthesis, catabolism,
How Chemical Change-Based Cellular or energy metabolism.
Jorge C. Escalante- Control Systems Work • The number of Gcn-5 acetyltransferase en-
Semerena is Profes- zymes—GNATs—in a particular bacterial spe-
sor of Bacteriology Many biochemical change systems typi- cies appears to reflect its metabolic complexity.
in the Department cally depend on transferase enzymes to • Bacterial proteins called sirtuins are class III,
of Bacteriology, Uni- modify target molecules. Such modifica- NAD⫹-consuming histone deacetylases that ap-
versity of Wisconsin, tions include alkylation, acylation, phos- pear to partake in metabolic stress responses.
Madison. phorylation, thiolation, or nitrosylation

group of lysine (Nε-Lys acetylation)— FIGURE 1
proves crucial for regulating gene ex-
pression among eukaryotes.
For instance, the enzymes that acety-
late or deacetylate histone tails help to
fine tune gene expression in eukaryotes
and archaea. Thus, positively charged,
hypoacetylated histone tails interact
with other chromatin components, si-
lencing genes. Nε-Lys acetylation neu-
tralizes those charges, yielding a less-
condensed nucleosome that facilitates
transcriptional read-through.
Whether Nε-Lys acetylation affects
the DNA-binding activity of bacterial
nucleoid-associated proteins is uncer-
tain. However, the catabolism repressor
protein (Crp) and the tryptophan biosyn-
thesis repressor (TrpR) from Escherichia
coli are acetylated in vivo, according to Metabolic fates of acetyl-CoA.
recent reports by Y. Zhao (now at the
University of Chicago) and coworkers
and collaborators, and by J.-G. Pan and terica can undergo autoacetylation, even under
coworkers at the Korea Research Institute of Bio- conditions that minimize the lability of the thio-
science and Biotechnology at Daejon. Other tran- ester bond in acetyl-CoA. Because we measure
scription factors might also fall under Nε-Lys acet- these enzyme-independent events under chemi-
ylation control in this or other bacteria and cally defined conditions with homogeneous pro-
archaea. Similar studies have been performed in teins, we need to be cautious when ascertaining
Salmonella enterica. A group of investigators from whether any specific protein is a substrate for a
several research centers in China and the United particular acetyltransferase. The role of protein
States recently reported the potentially broad im- autoacetylation is not known.
pact of Nε-Lys acetylation in Salmonella enterica
physiology.
What We Know about Acetyltransferase
N ␧-Lys Acetylation Could Control Systems in Microbes
Many Cellular Processes
Eukaryotes produce different classes of histone
Altogether about 90 proteins in E. coli are acety- acetyltransferases (HATs) and deacetylases
lated, and more than 50% of them appear to be (HDACs). Bacterial homologues of the yeast
involved either in protein synthesis, including ribo- Gcn-5 acetyltransferase (yGNAT)— called
somal proteins; catabolism, including proteins GNATs–are common. Although the catalytic core
that are part of the pentose phosphate pathway, of GNATs is conserved, their numbers vary in
glycolysis, and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle; bacteria. For example, the E. coli K-12 genome
or energy metabolism, including proteins involved encodes 23 putative GNATS, while the Rhodo-
in synthesizing menaquinone and ubiquinone. The pseudomonas palustris genome encodes about 40,
acetylation state of these proteins varies with the Bacillus subtilis genome about 50, and the
growth stage, suggesting that these systems re- Streptomyces coelicolor genome about 100. Ap-
spond to physiological signals. parently, bacteria acylate many target molecules
The reactivity of acetyl-CoA, which can acet- to control their availability or reactivity. Thus the
ylate proteins on its own, complicates efforts to number of GNATs in a bacterial species appears
measure enzyme-dependent, reversible Nε-Lys to reflect its metabolic complexity.
acetylations in cells. For example, we find that Our understanding of the contributions of
many proteins from E. coli and Salmonella en- GNATs to bacterial and archaeal cell physiol-

FIGURE 2 ars and for producing ornithine, lipid
A, and macromolecules.
However, except in the case of the sir-
tuins, deacetylases are not implicated as
part of protein modification systems in E.
coli or S. enterica. Bacillus subtilis is dif-
ferent. For instance, a class II, acetate-
forming deacetylase is part of a system in
B. subtilis that modulates the activity of
acetyl-CoA synthetase.
Bacterial, Sirtuin-Dependent
Protein Acetylation System
Bacterial proteins called sirtuins are

class III histone deacetylases that are
homologues of the yeast Sir2 protein
(ySir2p). For instance, the cobB gene in
both E. coli and S. enterica encodes a
sirtuin, CobB sirtuin, that is involved in
short-chain fatty acid catabolism. The
cognate GNAT that works in concert
with CobB in S. enterica is protein
acetyltransferase (Pat), encoded by pat
(formerly, yfiQ).
CobB and Pat are components of the
sirtuin-dependent protein acylation-
deacylation system (SDPADS), which
controls acetyl-CoA synthetase (Acs) by
reversible acetylation and propionyl-
CoA synthetase (PrpE) by reversible
propionylation (Fig. 1). SDPADS ap-
pears to respond to metabolic stress
N␧-Lysine acetylation controls the activity of acetyl-CoA synthetase. The two steps of the when CoA becomes imbalanced and re-
reaction catalyzed by the acetyl-coenzyme A synthetase (Acs) enzyme is shown at the
bottom of the figure. Each color represents a different conformation state of Acs. Green, dox homeostasis is disrupted.
Acs in the conformation that catalyzes the formation of the acyl-AMP intermediate; red, Pat deactivates both Acs and PrpE by
Acs in the conformation that converts acyl-AMP to acyl-CoA; gray-shaded hexagon, apo acylating conserved lysine residues in the
Acs in the conformation with the side chain of a critical Lys residue exposed; colored
hexagon, inactive acetylated Acs; blue, acetylated Acs with ATP and acetate bound to the active sites of these enzymes, presumably
active site. in response to a decrease in the CoA:acyl-
CoA ratio. Acyl-CoA could build up as its
use for biosynthesis or generating energy
ogy is limited. For example, in E. coli, there are decreases (Fig. 1). Under such conditions, the Pat
experiments to describe the functions of only 10 enzyme of SDPADS would slow down, preventing
GNAT-encoding genes, namely speG, rimI, further imbalances in CoA. Acyl-CoA would re-
rimJ, rimL, yfiQ, wecD, phnO, argA, aat, and vert to physiological levels when it is consumed or
tmcA, leaving the other 13 GNATs wholly enig- if thioesterases hydrolyze its thioester bond. Once
matic. In contrast, the numbers of homologues CoA homeostasis is reestablished, the cell must
of deacetylases in E. coli and Salmonella en- reactivate acylated acyl-CoA synthetases to build
terica are much smaller, and we know more acyl-CoA levels for growth.
about them. These bacteria use Zn(II)-depen- Like other deacetylases, sirtuins require Zn(II)
dent deacetylases in breaking down amino sug- ions. However, unlike other deacetylases, sirtuins

use NAD⫹ as a substrate, not as a cofac- FIGURE 3
tor, meaning that sirtuins consume
NAD⫹. The biochemical function of sir-
tuins was identified in 2000 when inves-
tigators learned that these enzymes use
NAD⫹ to deacetylate acetylated proteins.
Free acetate is not a product of the sirtuin
reaction. Instead, sirtuins synthesize 2⬘-
O-acetyl-ADPribose (O-AADPr), whose
role in bacterial and archaeal cell physiol-
ogy remains an open question.
The link of sirtuin function to eu-
karyotic cell longevity, cancer, and
other human diseases makes it impor-
tant not only for the scientific commu-
nity but also the general public. Study-
ing sirtuins in microbes will likely
reveal basic principles that may well
apply to cells in other domains of life.
Roles of N ␧-Lys Acetylation in

Bacteria and Archaea
We still know relatively little about re-

versible Nε-Lys acetylation in bacteria
such as S. enterica serovar Typhi-
murium LT2, E. coli K-12, B. subtilis
SMY, Rhodopseudomonas palustris,
and archaea such as Haloferax volcanii,
Sulfolobus solfataricus P2, and Ar-
chaeoglobus fulgidus.
Reversible Nε-Lys acetylation was
linked to bacterial metabolism by ob-
serving how sirtuin-deficient S. en-
terica strains grow when fed short-
Putative acylation motif found in members of the AMP-forming family of enzymes. The
chain fatty acids. For instance, such following are enzymes present in E. coli K-12, and S. enterica serovar Typhimurium LT2:
strains fail to use acetate or propi- Acs, acetyl-CoA synthetase; PrpE, propionyl-CoA synthetase; Aas, acyl-[acyl carrier
onate as carbon and energy source, protein] synthetase/2-acylglycerophosphoethanolamine acyltramnsferase; FadD, long-
chain, fatty acid:CoA ligase; EntE, enterobactin synthase subunit E; EntF, enterobactin
even though such cells carry enzymes synthase, subunit F; CaiC, crotonobetaine/carnitine:CoA ligase; YdiD (FadK, short-chain
needed for catabolizing these short- acid:CoA ligase. GrsA, gramicidin synthetase from Bacillus brevis; hmAcs2A, human
chain fatty acids. mitochondrial acetyl-CoA synthetase 2A; BadA, bezoate:CoA ligase from Rhodopseudo-
monas palustris. The lower part of the figure shows the frequency at which a specific
Apparently, when a Lys residue in the residue is found within the motif.
active site of acyl-CoA synthetases is
acetylated, the enzyme is no longer cat-
alytic, thus blocking use of those fatty CoA synthetase (Acs) rotates its C-terminal
acids. This modification interferes with the first domain, removing that Lys and exposing it to
step of the reaction, which ordinarily consumes the medium, thus making it available to the
ATP to form an acyl-adenylate intermediate, acetyltransferase, according to structural
releasing pyrophosphate. studies (Fig. 2). Although the acylation site is
Critical to this step is a conserved Lys resi- part of a motif found in this class of enzymes,
due that orients the acid substrate in the active we do not understand how GNATs recognize
site. Binding of CoA to the active site in acetyl- residues within or flanking that motif. More-

over, different GNATs may be responsible for pacity to turn genes on or off to respond to
acetylating proteins with similar motifs (Fig. 3). changing environmental stimuli.
Phenotypic analyses can be extremely useful,
providing an in vivo context for gene functions.
Expanding Our Understanding of GNAT
The search for a phenotype typically involves
Functions in Cells
testing strains that either carry a null allele of the
GNATs continue to attract interest because of gene of interest or a plasmid encoding that gene
their involvement in several key processes, in- to look at what happens when gene dosage
cluding microbial antibiotic resistance, com- increases. These approaches disrupt optimal lev-
pacting eukaryotic DNA, and controlling gene els of a protein, with the goal of revealing a
expression. However, GNATs play other roles, substantial negative or positive effect in the be-
including in biochemical metabolism, but the havior of the strain under specific conditions.
details of these other functions are mostly un- In the absence of any in vivo information,
known. high-throughput in vitro approaches also offer
In elucidating gene functions, valuable clues opportunities to study GNAT functions. This
come from databases such as http://genexpdb approach involves constructing proteome chips
.ou.edu/index.php and http://smd.stanford.edu similar to those used to study Saccharomyces
/resources/databases.shtml. Genome context is cerevisiae. One approach would be to probe for
also useful, especially if a GNAT-encoding gene putative protein substrates of GNATs in the
might be co-expressed with others of known presence of radiolabeled acetyl-CoA. One ad-
function, or if global or local regulators regulate vantage of this approach is that it probes as
its expression. Another way to approach GNAT many of the expressed and modified proteins as
functions involves exploring diverse stress con- possible. An important consideration for the use
ditions that microbes may face in particular of this approach is that proteins may be attached
environments where posttranslational modifica- to surfaces in ways that block interactions with
tion systems confer on microorganisms the ca- GNATs, leading to false negatives.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This work was supported by NIH grant R01 GM62203 to J. C. E.-S.
SUGGESTED READING
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activity of propionyl-CoA synthetase. J. Biol. Chem. 282:30239 –30245.
Gulick, A. M., V. J. Starai, A. R. Horswill, K. M. Homick, and J. C. Escalante-Semerena. 2003. The 1.75Å crystal structure
of acetyl-CoA synthetase bound to adenosine-5’-propylphosphate and coenzyme A. Biochemistry 42:2866 –2873.
Imai, S., F. B. Johnson, R. A. Marciniak, M. McVey, P. U. Park, and L. Guarente. 2000. Sir2: an NAD-dependent histone
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Starai, V. J., I. Celic, R. N. Cole, J. D. Boeke, and J. C. Escalante-Semerena. 2002. Sir2-dependent activation of acetyl-CoA
synthetase by deacetylation of active lysine. Science 298:2390 –2392.
Starai, V. J., H. Takahashi, J. D. Boeke, and J. C. Escalante-Semerena. 2004. A link between transcription and intermediary
metabolism: a role for Sir2 in the control of acetyl-coenzyme A synthetase. Curr. Opin. Microbiol. 7:115–119.
Tsang, A. W., and J. C. Escalante-Semerena. 1998. CobB, a new member of the SIR2 family of eucaryotic regulatory proteins,
is required to compensate for the lack of nicotinate mononucleotide:5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole phosphoribosyltransferase
activity in cobT mutants during cobalamin biosynthesis in Salmonella typhimurium LT2. J. Biol. Chem. 273:31788 –31794.
Wang, Q., Y. Zhang, C. Yang, H. Xiong, Y. Lin, J. Yao, H. Li, L. Xie, W. Zhao, Z. Ning, R. Zeng, Y. Xiomng, K. L. Guan,
S. Zhao, and G. P. Zhao. 2010. Acetylation of metabolic enzymes coordinates carbon source utilization and metabolic flux.
Science 327:1004 –1007.
Yu, B. J., J. A. Kim, J. H. Moon, S. E. Ryu, and J. G. Pan. 2008. The diversity of lysine-acetylated proteins in Escherichia coli.
J. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 18:1529 –1536.
Zhang, J., R. Sprung, J. Pei, X. Tan, S. Kim, H. Zhu, C. F. Liu, N. V. Grishin, and Y. Zhao. 2009. Lysine acetylation is a highly
abundant and evolutionarily conserved modification in Escherichia coli. Mol. Cell. Proteomics 8:215–225.

Journal Highlights
Genetic Locus Controls Nodulation Specificity in Soybean Cultivars
Sinorhizobium fredii USDA257 is a fast-growing rhizobium that forms nitrogen-fixing nodules on
Glycine max, Glycine sojo, Neonotonia wightii, and several other legumes. The symbiotic relation-
ship between S. fredii USDA257 (aka USDA257) and soybean is of scientific and economic interest
because this bacterium nodulates soybean in a cultivar-specific manner. Earlier, Hari Krishnan and
colleagues of the University of Missouri, Columbia, showed that it forms nodules on soybean
cultivars that predate modern agronomic manipulation, but not on those that have undergone such
Krishnan (l) and Kim
manipulation, and further, that a mutation in any gene of the plasmid-encoded locus nolXWBTU
enables USDA257 to nodulate modern soybean cultivars. Now this team shows evidence for
involvement of a new genetic locus that controls soybean cultivar specificity. This locus is composed
of three proteins that bear significant amino acid homology to the glycine cleavage system of
Escherichia coli and other organisms. “Information obtained from this basic study will help us to
better understand the factors that limit the formation of nitrogen-fixing nodules on North American
soybean cultivars,” says Krishnan. “Such an understanding will enable scientists to manipulate
biological nitrogen fixation so that farmers can increase the soybean yields with minimal use of
nitrogen fertilizers.”
(J. C. Lorio, W.-S. Kim, A. H. Krishnan, and H. B. Krishnan. 2010. Disruption of the glycine cleavage system
enables Sinorhizobium fredii USDA257 to form nitrogen-fixing nodules on agronomically improved North
American Soybean cultivars. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 76:4185– 4193.)
Candida albicans: Comparing the Benign and the Invasive

Despite its reputation as a scourge, Candida albicans normally benignly inhabits the human intestinal
tract. Carol Kumamoto of Tufts University, Boston, et al. show that benign colonizers and invasive
C. albicans express many of the same cell surface proteins. “This suggests that these proteins help the
organism adapt to being in a host regardless of whether the organism is causing disease,” says
Kumamoto. But they also found many genes that are expressed by invasive organisms, and not by
benign colonizers. They found further that “colonizing cells express some of the genes characteristic
of rapid growth and some characteristic of slowly growing cells,” says Kumamoto. “Some of the
latter include stress-responsive genes. So it seems that organisms growing in the host are both able to
grow fast and to resist stresses. These may be important characteristics for organisms growing inside
Kumamoto
a host.” She also says that the knowledge gained from this work “will help us identify activities that
could be useful as targets for therapies or as the basis for diagnostics.”
(A. Rosenbach, D. Dignard, J. V. Pierce, M. Whiteway, and C. A. Kumamoto. 2010. Adaptations of Candida
albicans for growth in the mammalian intestinal tract. Eukaryot. Cell 9:1075–1086.)
ASM Articles in the Spotlight. The ASM journals Eukaryotic Cell, Infection and Immunity,
and the Journal of Virology highlight current articles of interest in their Spotlight sections:
http://ec.asm.org/current.dtl#SPOTLIGHT
http://iai.asm.org/current.dtl#SPOTLIGHT
http://jvi.asm.org/current.dtl#SPOTLIGHT

Sequence Inconsistencies Identified among Lab Strains of M. tuberculosis
H37Rv is a virulent reference strain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis used by laboratories throughout
the world for biochemical and genetic studies on tuberculosis, which was published in 1998. Since
then, several groups have identified ⬃73 inconsistencies (which could have been sequencing errors)
as compared to current strains, including several that cause frame shift mutations, which result in
phenotypic differences. Thomas R. Ioerger of Texas A&M University, College Station, et al.
sequenced six strains from different labs, identifying up to five polymorphisms unique to each strain,
and additional polymorphisms shared between subsets of strains reflecting their provenance or
relationships. “Some of these differences are nonsynonymous mutations in proteins that could
potentially affect metabolism or growth of the bacterium,” says Ioerger. “Understanding how each
individual strain differs from the standard reference genome sequence is important for interpreting
differences in results from different labs, and also for drug discovery efforts that depend on accurate
knowledge of the genome sequence.”
(T.R. Ioerger, Y. Feng, K. Ganesula, X. Chen, K.M. Dobos, S. Fortune, W.R. Jacobs, Jr., V. Mizrahi, T. Parish, E.
Rubin, C. Sassetti, and J. C. Sacchettini. 2010. Variation among genome sequences of H37Rv strains of
Mycobacterium tuberculosis from multiple laboratories. J. Bacteriol. 192:3645–3653.)
Streamlining Investigation of Invasive Aspergillosis

Mice are the gold standard for infection models of invasive aspergillosis. However, screening in
mice is slow and has become a bottleneck in efforts to screen the virulence of large numbers of
Aspergillus fumigatus strains. Ilse Jacobsen of the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research
and Infection Biology, Jena, Germany, et al. show that embryonated chicken eggs are a suitable
alternative model for determining the virulence of A. fumigatus strains. Prescreening mutants of
interest in this model provides a true alternative which reduces the number of mammals needed
for experimental infections, says Jacobsen. Moreover, “the egg model is inexpensive, easy to Jacobsen (l) and Brock
handle, and can be performed without specialized facilities, thus allowing researchers without
direct access to mouse facilities to perform reliable virulence screens.” She adds that aspergillosis is an
important disease in poultry, and the model might be useful for studying pathogenesis and protective
defense mechanisms of aspergillosis in birds. The team is also planning to investigate pathogenicity
mechanisms of C. albicans in embryonated eggs.
(I. D. Jacobsen, K. Gro␤e, S. Slesiona, B. Hube, A. Berndt, and M. Brock. 2010. Embryonated eggs as an
alternative infection model to investigate Aspergillus fumigatus virulence. Infect. Immun. 78:2995–3006.)
Resurrecting an Old Antibiotic against Extended-Spectrum

␤-Lactamase Producers
The spread of extended-spectrum ␤-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli is becoming a
global threat. These bacteria are often multidrug-resistant. Now Jun-ichi Wachino and colleagues of
the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, show that the old antibiotic, fosfomycin, was
able to maintain a high level of antimicrobial activity against ESBL-producing E. coli. Yet, new
resistant strains have already developed among ESBL-producers, says Wachino. Two fosfomycin-
inactivating enzymes, FosA3 and FosC2, are colocated with CTX-M ␤-lactamase on transferable
plasmids. “We plan to determine the crystal structure of FosA3 and FosC2 enzymes, and develop
potent inhibitors of these enzymes based on their structures,” says Wachino. In addition to restoring
fosfomycin’s efficacy against resistant bacteria, these could be applied to developing rapid screening
for fosfomycin-resistant bacteria in clinical microbiology laboratories, he says.
(J. Wachino, K. Yamane, S. Suzuki, K. Kimura, and Y. Arakawa. 2010. Prevalence of fosfomycin resistance
among CTX-M-producing Escherichia coli clinical isolates in Japan and identification of novel plasmid-mediated
fosfomycin-modifying enzymes. Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 54:3061–3064.)

ASM News
Scripps Institution of
Oceanography Designated as
Milestone in Microbiology Site
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO)

was designated a “Milestones in Microbiology”
site by ASM in a formal recognition ceremony
Saturday, 22 May at Sumner Auditorium on the
Scripps campus.
ASM President Roberto Kolter presented a
plaque to Scripps Director Tony Haymet. The
plaque recognizes the tremendous contributions
of Scripps to the discipline of marine microbiol-
ogy and commemorating the long and successful
career of microbiologist Claude ZoBell, who
joined Scripps in 1932. During his research ca-
reer at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at
the University of California San Diego, Claude
ZoBell laid a scientific foundation that would
shape the field of marine microbiology. The
plaque will be affixed to Hubbs Hall, site of
ASM News
ZoBell’s laboratory.
ZoBell is considered the father of marine mi-
crobiology because of his pioneering work on
the effects of microorganisms on chemical, geo-
logical, and biological processes in the ocean.
ZoBell collected the first bacteria brought back
alive from the extreme ocean depths present in
ocean trenches and published nearly 300 scien- ZoBell.” One of ZoBell’s Ph.D. students, Rich-
tific papers. He developed the areas of petro- ard Morita, said that ZoBell’s greatest achieve-
leum microbiology and microbial corrosion and ment was “laying the foundation for all marine
founded the Geomicrobiology Journal. His most microbiology.”
noted work was Marine Microbiology, the first “There are only three other Milestones in Mi-
text to bring together information on this field. crobiology locations around the country, and so
“ZoBell’s work is very this is a highly notable recognition of the contribu-
important because his tions of Claude ZoBell and others at Scripps to the
work always involved the field of marine microbiology,” said Scripps Profes-
design and construction sor Doug Bartlett. “I myself have spent countless
of novel equipment for enjoyable hours reading over Claude’s contribu-
research, and the devel- tions to microbial community development on
opment of media for cul- solid surfaces and his work collecting microbes
tivation,” wrote Tim from great seawater depths.”
Gough in “The Life, While at Scripps, ZoBell served as assistant to
Work and Scientific Con- the director (1936 –1952) and chairman of the
ZoBell tributions of Claude E. Marine Biology Research Division (1956 –1960).

He died in 1989 at the age of 84. Many members vestigations and clinical research have greatly
of the ZoBell family attended the presentation advanced the field of antifungal therapy and
ceremony. have improved the lives of thousands of patients
The presentation occurred in conjunction worldwide, particularly those with hematologi-
with a meeting of the San Diego Microbiology cal malignancies and stem cell transplantation in
Group and included remarks on the history and their battles against invasive candidiasis, as-
future of marine microbiology by Aristides pergillosis, and less common but emerging my-
Yayanos, Professor Emeritus, SIO, and Farooq coses such as trichosporonosis, fusariosis, and
Azam, Distinguished Professor, SIO. zygomycosis.”
The ASM Milestones in Microbiology Pro- In response to a major unmet medical need,
gram has been designed to recognize institutions Walsh and his colleagues established a consor-
and the scientists who worked there that have tium that systematically studied the safety, tol-
made significant contributions toward advanc- erability, and pharmacokinetics of the entire
ing the science of microbiology. By placing class of systemic antifungal agents used in pedi-
explanatory plaques at these sites, the ASM atric oncology and other immunodeficient chil-
hopes to increase professional and public recog- dren during the past 20 years. These transla-
nition of the significance of the science of micro- tional research studies assure that children now
biology. receive pharmacokinetically based antifungal
therapy that is comparable to those of adults.
John Rex, M.D., of Astra-Zeneca, who sec-
sanofi-aventis ICAAC Award onded the nomination, further commented,
“Dr. Walsh is a dedicated mentor and inspiring
Thomas J. Walsh, M.D.,
teacher in the field of antifungal therapy. Under
Director of the Transplan-
Tom’s mentorship, numerous fellows have
tation-Oncology Infec-
flourished and made important contributions in
tious Diseases Program of
the field of antifungal chemotherapy and phar-
Weill Cornell Medical
macology.”
College of Cornell Univer-
Further supporting Walsh’s nomination,
sity, New York, N.Y., has
Robert H. Rubin of Harvard Medical School
been selected as the 2010
remarked, “His teaching and mentoring has
laureate of the sanofi-
created an entire generation of laboratory and
aventis ICAAC Award for Walsh
clinical investigators with expertise in anti-
his translational research
fungal chemotherapy, who continue this impor-
on antifungal pharmacology and therapeutics. tant mission throughout the world. Finally, his
Walsh received his M.D. degree from the Johns strength as a world-renowned clinician in anti-
Hopkins University School of Medicine and sub- fungal therapy is credited with directly saving
sequently pursued 10 postdoctoral years of train- the lives of numerous children and adults with
ing, which he completed at the National Cancer severe life-threatening invasive fungal infec-
Institute in Bethesda, Md. There he established a tions. He harnesses his knowledge from his lab-
world-renowned program of translational re- oratory and clinical research in a seamless tran-
search in antifungal pharmacology, innate host sition to the bedside to make a major impact on
defenses, and molecular diagnostics of life-threat- care of patients with life-threatening invasive
ening and debilitating mycoses of immunocom- fungal infections.”
promised children and adults.
As observed by Walsh’s nominator, Elias J.
Anaissie, M.D., of the Myeloma Research Insti- 2010 ICAAC Young
tute, Little Rock Ark., “His exhaustive body of Investigator Awards
laboratory and clinical investigations has been a
paradigm for translational research in advanc- The 2010 ICAAC Young Investigator Awards rec-
ing important chemotherapeutic interventions ognize and reward five early-career scientists for
systematically from in vitro to in vivo systems to their research excellence and potential in microbi-
phase-I and to ultimately phase-III clinical tri- ology and infectious diseases. Since 1983, two
als.” He further stated, “Tom’s laboratory in- awards have been supported by an unrestricted

educational grant from Merck, U.S. Human that knowledge to gener-
Health Division, while two are sponsored by ate novel strategies for
ASM. In 2007, an additional award from vaccine and antiviral
Merck, U.S. Human Health Division was added drug design. His research
to recognize excellence in HIV research. Binh An has been published in
Diep and Benjamin tenOever are the 2010 lau- more than a dozen high-
reates for the Merck-sponsored awards, and impact journals includ-
Carol Iversen and Manuela Raffatellu are the ing Science, Immunity,
2010 laureates for the ASM-sponsored awards. Proceedings of the Na-
Catherine Blish is the 2010 laureate for the tional Academy of Sci- tenOever
Merck-sponsored award for HIV research. ence, Nature Biotechnol-
ogy, and Cell.
Binh An Diep is honored for his significant In addition to his research, tenOever has
contributions to our understanding of methicil- taught both molecular biology and virology
lin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) ep- throughout his scientific training and has be-
idemiology and pathogenesis. Diep earned his come a noted lecturer in that time. While at
B.A. in 2000 and his Ph.D. in 2005 from the Harvard, tenOever also served as assistant di-
University of California, Berkeley, and com- rector of the DNA Sequencing and Genotyping
pleted his postdoctoral training in 2008 at the Facility. tenOever presently is a guest lecturer
University of California, San Francisco. He is for Advanced Virology both at Mount Sinai and
currently an Assistant Adjunct Professor in the at New York University and teaches a medical
Diep
Department of Medicine, University of Califor- microbiology course.
nia, San Francisco. tenOever’s exceptional promise as a microbi-
Diep’s research is focused on understanding the ologist has been acknowledged with significant
genetic basis of increased frequency and severity of publications in medical journals, international
MRSA infections. His published papers in the An- recognition, and prestigious honors, including
nals of Internal Medicine, Journal of Infectious the Presidential Early Career in Science and En-
Diseases, and the Lancet report on the emergence gineering award, the highest honor bestowed by
and epidemic spread of a community-associated the U.S. government on outstanding scientists
MRSA clone called USA300. Diep and his col- and engineers beginning their independent ca-
leagues determined mechanisms by which exotox- reers. He was nominated by Peter Palese, Mount
ins produced by USA300 cause severe lung necro- Sinai School of Medicine and Fellow of the
sis, pulmonary edema, alveolar hemorrhage, American Academy of Microbiology.
profound respiratory failure, and death. Diep is
currently funded by a five-year NIH R01 award Carol Iversen is best
and a Pfizer Young Investigator award to develop known for her work re-
specific treatment strategies to treat staphylococ- classifying the taxonomy
cal pneumonia in the rabbit model. of Enterobacter sakazakii,
Diep was nominated by Henry F. Chambers, which led to the creation
University of California, San Francisco. of a new genus called
Cronobacter that includes
Benjamin tenOever is acknowledged for his six recognized species.
studies on virus-host interactions and the role of Iversen received her
miRNAs in the cellular response to virus infec- B.Sc. degree in Applied Iversen
tion. tenOever completed his postdoctoral train- Biology from Notting-
ing in Molecular Biology at Harvard University ham Trent University in 1998, after having ini-
in 2007 after receiving his Ph.D. in Experimen- tially left school at age 16 to work and raise a
tal Medicine from McGill University in 2004. In family. She returned to Nottingham Trent Uni-
August of 2007, tenOever joined Mount Sinai versity to study the emerging pathogen Enter-
School of Medicine as an Assistant Professor of obacter sakazakii, receiving her Ph.D. in 2007.
Microbiology. His work continues to focus on Iversen’s research provided data on the pres-
the intricacies governing the cell’s response to ence, persistence, and growth of E. sakazakii in
infection and the subsequent exploitation of infant formula. She also conducted a detailed

investigation of the biochemical characteristics sponse in the gut. Her subsequent work
of an extensive collection of strains and an in- contributed to the identification of the Vi capsu-
vestigation of virulence factors. lar antigen as a novel virulence factor promoting
In collaboration with Patrick Druggan (Ox- immune evasion by S. typhi.
oid, U.K.), Iversen worked on the development More recently, Raffatellu’s research has been
of microbiological media to improve the de- focused on the gut pathogen Salmonella enterica
tection and isolation of E. sakazakii. While serovar Typhimurium, with the goal of elucidat-
working at the Nestlé Research Centre, Iversen ing its interaction with both immunocompetent
brought together a team of scientists from indus- and immunocompromised hosts. Raffatellu be-
try, academia and government research insti- came interested in understanding which compo-
tutes across Europe and the USA to clarify the nents of the gut inflammatory response prevent
taxonomic description of E. sakazakii. In 2008 a S. enterica serovar Typhimurium from contain-
new genus, Cronobacter, was named within the ing the infection to the mucosa. Her work has
Enterobacteriaceae family to house the six spe- identified a novel role for early T cell responses
cies groups so far identified. and the cytokine IL-17 in preventing S. enterica
Iversen moved to Ireland under an IRCSET serovar Typhimurium dissemination from the
postdoctoral fellowship in 2008 to work at the gut, thus benefiting the host. These findings were
Centre for Food Safety, University College Dub- published in Nature Medicine in 2008.
lin. There she led the organization of the 1st Raffatellu subsequently began studying the
International Conference on Cronobacter from mechanisms by which S. enterica serovar Typhi-
21–23 January 2009, attracting the leading murium thrives in the inflamed gut and has since
Cronobacter researchers in academia, experts shown that resistance to lipocalin 2, a host an-
from the food industry, and regulatory profes- timicrobial peptide that mediates iron withhold-
sionals from around the world. She returned to ing, facilitates S. enterica serovar Typhimurium
Switzerland in February 2010 and is currently colonization of the inflamed gut. S. enterica
based in the Microbiological and Molecular serovar Typhimurium resistance to lipocalin 2 is
Analytics group at the Nestlé Research Centre in conferred by the iroBCDEN locus, which en-
Lausanne. With the hope of inspiring children to codes the siderophore salmochelin. The ability
follow a career in science, Iversen is currently to acquire iron when lipocalin 2 is expressed is
funding a “Science Challenge” project within one of the mechanisms that promote S. enterica
the nine Primary schools (ages 4 –11) and two serovar Typhimurium growth in the inflamed
Secondary schools (ages 12–18) in Calderdale, gut. This work was published in Cell Host and
West Yorkshire, U.K., where she grew up. Microbe in 2009 as a featured article and was
Iversen was nominated by Patrick Druggan, selected as a research highlight in Nature Re-
Oxoid Ltd. views Microbiology.
Raffatellu established her lab at the University
Manuela Raffatellu is honored for her funda- of California, Irvine in 2008, where she contin-
mental contributions to our understanding of ues working on the mucosal response to Salmo-
Salmonella pathogenesis and her identification nella. She was nominated by Andreas Bäumler,
of novel mechanisms of immune evasion in hu- University of California, Davis, and Fellow of
man typhoid fever. Raffatellu earned her M.D. the American Academy of Microbiology.
at the University of Sassari, Italy, and completed
her postdoctoral work at Catherine A. Blish is recognized for her out-
Texas A&M University standing work in the area of HIV transmission
and the University of to elucidate the role of neutralizing antibodies.
California, Davis. Blish earned her M.D. and Ph.D. from the Uni-
Early in her postdoc- versity of Washington. After completing her res-
toral studies, Raffatellu idency in internal medicine, she entered the In-
was intrigued by the clin- fectious Diseases fellowship at the University of
ical observation that the Washington and began studies of HIV at the
human pathogen Salmo- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. She
nella typhi does not trig- first characterized a panel of early HIV envelope
Raffatellu ger an inflammatory re- variants that were transmitted heterosexually in Blish

Africa. These variants, which had variable neu- infection. She demonstrated that even individu-
tralization sensitivity, now form the basis of a als with relatively broad neutralizing antibody
panel of standard reagents for evaluating the responses could succumb to superinfection, or
neutralizing potential of plasma samples. Dur- reinfection, with a second strain of HIV. Thus,
ing these studies, she identified two amino acid preventing HIV infection by vaccination will
mutations in an early variant that expose con- likely require broader and more potent neutral-
served neutralization. When these mutations izing antibody responses than those found in
were incorporated into immunogens, they did chronically HIV infected individuals. She is now
not generate enhanced neutralizing antibody extending this work to evaluate whether other
breadth in immunized animals, indicating that aspects of the immune response correlate with
exposure of conserved neutralization epitopes protection from HIV reinfection. She has also
on HIV envelope does not necessarily predict begun projects examining how coinfections
immunogenicity of that variant. These studies, with pathogens such as helminths and tubercu-
published in AIDS, the Journal of Virology, and losis alter immunity to HIV. She is currently an
PLoS Medicine, demonstrated that transmitted Acting Instructor in Medicine at the University
HIV variants have very diverse neutralization of Washington and an Associate in the Human
profiles and highlighted the difficulties in design- Biology Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer
ing protective HIV vaccines. Research Center.
Blish has continued this work by evaluating Blish was nominated by Wesley C. Van Voor-
immune correlates of HIV reinfection and co- his, University of Washington.
10th Anniversary
y
Annual Biomedical Research

Conference for Minority Students
November 10-13, 2010
Charlotte, North Carolina
ABRCMS Important Deadlines

The Annual Biomedical Research Abstract Submission:
Conference for Minority Students September 10, 2010
(ABRCMS) is the largest,
Student Travel Award Application:
multidisciplinary biomedical and September 10, 2010
behavioral sciences conference for
undergraduate students, graduate Judges’ Travel Subsidy Application:
students, postdoctoral scientists, September 17, 2010
faculty and administrators. Discount Registration:
October 15, 2010
URL: www.abrcms.org E-mail: abrcms@asmusa.org

Divisions Please send your comments to clinmicro experiences allowed me to see ‘the big
@asmusa.org picture,’ said one participant in a post-
Clinical Microbiology Task institute survey. “I can now more easily
design multiple projects across several
Force Update
Education Board courses in a way that promotes develop-
The Clinical Microbiology Task Force mental learning and maintains student in-
was created to assess, prioritize, and over- 2010 Functional Genomics terest.”
see implementation of recommendations Institute: Connecting For many participants, the institute was
stemming from a meeting between ASM Bioinformatics-Driven transformational. Engaging in authentic
leadership and senior members of the clin- research is challenging for faculty at pre-
Hypotheses to Wet-Lab Projects
ical microbiology community in February dominantly undergraduate institutions,
2010. The Task Force membership in- The common soil bacterium and plant especially community colleges. With lim-
cludes David Hooper (Chair, ASM Presi- pathogen Agrobacterium tumefaciens was ited laboratory infrastructure and time as
dent-Elect), Peter Gilligan, Janet Hindler, the star of the ASM Functional Genomics well as extensive teaching responsibilities,
Nathan Ledeboer, J. Michael Miller, Rob- Institute, held 6 –11 June 2010 at Hiram faculty members from these institutions
ert Sautter, Joseph Campos, Lucia Roth- College, Hiram, Ohio. Eleven U.S. biology frequently see their research interest lapse.
man-Denes, and James Tiedje. faculty members convened for the insti- The institute offers these educators a
The Task Force had its initial meeting at tute, where studies of the A. tumefaciens means of becoming engaged in research
genome provided the cornerstone for alongside their students. One participant
the ASM General Meeting and discussed
hands-on lab experiences in functional said, “Here’s my new career in a box, a
the priority rankings of issues and the
genomics. Participants set up matings, new genome (organism) to study, mutants,
assessment of these issues by an ad hoc
screened and selected for mutants of related references and papers, vectors,
committee composed of Peter Gilligan,
interest, and isolated genomic DNA. protocols, reagents. Here’s my chance to
Carol Rauch, and Susan Sharp. The Task
“The beauty of incorporating functional reinvent myself as a scientist.”
Force agreed to form six working groups
genomics in undergraduate education is Because the institute included five days
to assess key action steps and where pos-
the multiple entry and exit points for stu- of classroom sessions followed by longer
sible begin implementation of them by
dents to engage in genuine research,” says laboratory work, small-group discussions,
the time of its next meeting in September Brad Goodner, a professor at Hiram Col- and numerous opportunities for socializ-
at ICAAC. The working groups and their lege and leader of the institute. Other in- ing and networking, such as a barbeque,
chairs are as follows. stitute faculty members included Seth a campfire, a nature walk, a special lun-
Axen (U.S. Department of Energy Joint cheon, etc., participants likened the expe-
• Development of evidence-based prac-
Genome Institute), Kathryn Reynolds rience to a summer science camp for
tice guidelines, Susan Sharp and Alice
(Hiram College), Christopher Kvaal (St. adults.
Weissfeld
Cloud State University), Kathleen (K.T.) The Functional Genomics Institute is
• Development of a clinical microbiol-
Scott (University of South Florida), and managed by ASM and sponsored by the
ogy portal on the ASM website, J.
Steve Slater (University of Wisconsin). U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome
Michael Miller
The process of studying A. tumefa- Institute and Hiram College. The next in-
• Examine the ASM organizational ciens—where the genes are, what proteins stitute will be held in June 2011. To learn
structure to determine the optimal they code for, and their putative roles more, visit www.facultyprograms.org.
means to meet the needs of clinical in the biology— helped the idea of build-
microbiologists, Peter Gilligan ing an entire undergraduate curriculum
• Examine the ways that ASM can around functional genomics take form. Educators Share Best Practices
work with other scientific societies to “The combination of instruction and lab and Student-Learning Research
ensure there is a unified voice for the at ASMCUE 2010
clinical laboratory profession, Vickie
Baselski The Town & Country Resort
• Examine the ways that ASM can in San Diego, Calif., provided
enhance professional development an excellent venue for over 300
through mentoring to promote the microbiology and biology fac-
profession of clinical microbiology, ulty members to share the latest
Janet Hindler updates in the biological sci-
• Coordinate planning for Clinical Mi- ences and education research at
crobiology sessions for the newly the 17th Annual ASM Confer-
structured ASM General Meeting in ence for Undergraduate Educa-
2011, Robert Sautter tors (ASMCUE) on 20 –23 May
2010. The theme of the meeting,
The Task Force and ASM would like to Participants at the 2010 ASM Functional Genomics Insti- “One Health, One Earth: A Sus-
hear your thoughts about these activities. tute, held 6 –11 June 2010 at Hiram College, Hiram, Ohio. tainable Future,” encompassed

the education community’s efforts to sus-
tain both the future of our planet and the
ASMCUE 2010 Travel Awardees success of students in the sciences.
Stanley Maloy, a professor at University
ASMCUE offers several travel awards that support the conference of California, San Diego, and the confer-
attendance of exceptional educators who are learning about under- ence’s local organizing chair, provided an
graduate research and new instructional pedagogy. The travel award opening lecture that set the tone for four
recipients for this year are as follows: days of talks from leading scientists, ped-
agogical sessions, exhibits, and poster ses-
Textbook Travel Awardee ASM Undergraduate Teaching sions demonstrating the scholarship of
Enid Gonzalez, California State Fellowship Awardee teaching and learning. This year a record
number of abstracts were submitted for
University, Sacramento, CA Andrew Mo, The Johns
the poster and “Microbrew” sessions.
Hopkins University, Registration numbers also matched an all-
Early-Career Travel Awardees Baltimore, MD time high set in 2008. In addition, 45% of
Russell Cossaboom, University
ASM-UNESCO Train-the- the registrants were first-time attendees
of Michigan-Flint, Flint, MI and 22 international educators repre-
Linsey Donner, University of Trainers Scholarship for
sented 14 countries.
Nebraska Medical Center, International Educators
New this year were collaborations with
Omaha, NE Awardees several national, National Science Foun-
Jean Huang, Franklin W. Olin Jane-Francis Akoachere, dation-funded biology education projects,
College of Engineering, University of Buea, SW including the Introductory Biology
Needham, MA Region, Buea, Cameroon Project, Concept Assessments in Biology
Jeffrey Olimpo, University of Maria Julia Amoroso, Project, and Cyberlearning for Commu-
Maryland, College Park, MD Universidad Nacional de nity Colleges Project. Leaders in these
Jennifer Powell, Gettysburg Tucumán, Tucumán, groups held preconference focus groups
Argentina and presented sessions and posters solicit-
College, Gettysburg, PA
Maria Tersita Bertolı́ Avella, ing and creating opportunities for commu-
Melissa Schreiber, Valencia nities of practice to evolve around these
Community College, Universidad Dr. José Matı́as
subjects.
Orlando, FL Delgado, La Libertad, El
Also debuting at ASMCUE was the
Heidi Smith, Front Range Salvador newly expanded Journal of Microbiology
Community College, Fort Esperanza C. Cabrera, De La & Biology Education (JMBE) “2.0”
Collins, CO Salle University, Manila, (http://jmbe.asm.org). Educators were en-
Julie Torruellas Garcia, Nova Philippines couraged to submit articles and serve as
Southeastern University, Ft. Ousman Diagne, Institut reviewers for the newly open-access jour-
Lauderdale, FL Sénégalais de Recherches nal. Perhaps most exciting was the deci-
Agricoles, Dakar, Senegal sion to include the ASMCUE abstracts in
Faculty Enhancement Program Uchechi Ekwenye, Michael the journal, so authors can showcase their
Awardees Okpara University of contribution to the conference.
Gina Cano-Monreal, Texas Agriculture, Umudike, The next ASMCUE will be held 2–5
June 2011. For details, visit www.asmcue
State Technical College, Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria
.org.
Harlingen, TX Uzoamaka Ogechi George-
Stella Doyungan, Texas A&M Okafor, Enugu State
University-Corpus Christi, University of Science and
Corpus Christi, TX Technology, Enugu, Enugu International Affairs
Gary Patterson, College of the State, Nigeria
Marshall Islands, Majuro, MH Hygia Maria Nunes Guerreiro, ASM Ambassador Participation
Ann Stewart-Akers, South Escola Bahiana de Medicina in 110th General Meeting
University, Columbia, SC e Saúde Pública, Salvador,
The ASM Ambassador Network includes
Jacqueline Washington, Nyack Bahia, Brazil
18 Ambassadors and 46 Country Liaisons,
College, Nyack, NY Debananda S. Ningthoujam, which provide the Society with an effective
Maureen Whitehurst, Trident Manipur University, channel of communication between ASM
Technical College, Canchipur, Imphal, headquarters and our worldwide member-
Charleston, SC Manipur, India ship. While each Ambassador manages
one of the 20 ASM regions, Country Liai-

sons focus on their particular country of Forum was outstanding, and the diverse plained next steps and future prospects
residence. Ambassadors and Country Liai- topics reflect the range of the interests of for scaling up and further strengthening
sons are selected based on a range of crite- ASM’s membership that often generate of these efforts. It was of special interest
ria including history of ASM membership, important ‘cross-discipline’ collabora- particularly in light of the threats posed
level of recognition within their region tions.” globally by new emerging infections and
or country, and recommendations from The opportunity for Ambassadors and anti-microbial drug resistance.
other members. As ASM representatives Country Liaisons to interact with each Speakers included John Nkengasong of
around the world, Ambassadors and other as well as staff and other volunteers the Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
Country Liaisons are committed to the is a highly productive exercise that fosters vention Center for Global Health; Mau-
Society. This commitment was highly vis- a more informed network, a stronger bond rine Murtagh of the Clinton Health Access
ible at the ASM General Meeting in San between colleagues, and additional moti- Initiative; May Chu of the World Health
Diego, Calif., where 17 ASM Ambassa- vation to ensure that ASM continues to Organization; Robert Martin of the
dors and Country Liaisons were in atten- pursue activities that increase its relevance University of Washington, Seattle; and
dance and participated in the International to microbiologists worldwide. MacArthur Charles of the Weill Medical
Membership Committee Meeting, an Am- College of Cornell University.
bassador Meeting, and an Ambassador The speakers focused on the impor-
International Laboratory tance of achieving public health labora-
Forum. Said International Membership
Capacity Building: Next Steps tory accreditation in developing nations
Committee (IMC) Chair Edmundo Calva,
and Beyond via a stepwise approach, as well as high-
“The significant turnout of Ambassadors
and Country Liaisons at the General Meet- The ASM International Board, through lighting existing efforts to strengthen
ing was both impressive and exemplary, its International Laboratory Capacity laboratory systems and emerging infec-
as they all traveled great distances, mostly Building (LabCap) Program, has for the tion diagnosis and surveillance in re-
from developing countries, to participate past several years become significantly source-limited environments. The need
with enthusiasm and commitment in the involved in international laboratory ca- to reinforce antimicrobial susceptibility
business meetings pertaining to their re- pacity-building efforts. The LabCap Pro- testing and workforce development ac-
gram is providing a service component to tivities received special emphasis. Ses-
sponsibilities, aside from eagerly taking
ASM by harnessing the expertise of ASM sion attendees also received an update on
the opportunity to benefit from the scien-
volunteers and allowing them to transfer priorities for strengthening public health
tific sessions.”
their skills in countries lacking access to laboratories systems in post-earthquake
During the International Board (IB)
key microbiological resources. At the Haiti.
meeting, Ambassador Caucus Chair
Kwai-Lin Thong led a discussion on the 2010 ASM General Meeting in San Di-
Ambassador Program and updated the IB ego, International Board Chair Keith 2010 ASM International
members on the significant accomplish- Klugman and LabCap Committee Chair
Affairs Fellowship and
ments realized by the Network during the Steven Specter convened a special-inter-
est session entitled “International Labo-
Professorship Recipients
past year. Thong expressed her apprecia-
tion to all Ambassadors and Country Liai- ratory Capacity Building: Next Steps
The ASM International Education Com-
sons for their tireless efforts to connect and Beyond.” The session discussed
mittee (IEC) is pleased to announce the
ASM with microbiologists from around global achievements made in the arena of
winners of Round Two of the 2010 ASM
the world despite their already demanding building laboratory capacity for diag-
International Fellowships and Professor-
schedules. nosing major infectious diseases in re-
ships. These programs strive to put the
Ambassadors and Country Liaisons source-limited countries, as well as ex-
IEC’s Strategic Plan into action
were also active participants in the IMC by providing high-quality edu-
meeting held during the GM. During the cation and training programs to
meeting Ambassadors provided keen and microbiologists and institutions
valuable insight on a range of topics, from at all levels, fostering the pro-
membership benefits and rates to network- fessional development of inter-
ing opportunities from the perspective of national microbiologists, and
their particular region. Ambassadors and promoting excellence in the mi-
Country Liaisons also participated in an crobiological sciences through
Ambassador meeting where they discussed scholarly exchange. To learn
successes, challenges, and ways to improve more about how to apply for
the program. these programs, please visit:
Finally, several Ambassadors and www.asm.org/international/
Country Liaisons delivered scientific pre- grants.
sentations during the annual Ambassador
Forum. Said Thong, “The quality of the ASM International Fellowships
presentations during the Ambassador ASM Ambassadors at the 2010 ASM General Meeting. The International Fellowship

Program encourages research and training project “Chemical and genetic identifica- linezolid” with Cesar Arias at the Univer-
collaborations in microbiological sciences tion of phage receptors in Lactobacillus sity of Texas Medical School, Houston.
worldwide by enabling early career scien- plantarum.”
tists or students from developing countries
to visit the host laboratories of experi-
Fernando Sorroche,
enced ASM members. The International Mariella Guere, a
a Ph.D. Student at
Fellows for Round Two, 2010 are listed D.V.M. Student at
Rı́o Cuarto Na-
below. San Marcos Major
tional University in
National University
Marelize Van Wyk, Rı́o Cuarto, Argen-
in Lima, Peru, was
a Medical Scientist tina, was awarded
awarded an ASM-
at the National In- an ASM Interna-
PAHO Infectious
stitute for Commu- tional Fellowship
Diseases Epidemiol-
nicable Diseases for Latin America
ogy & Surveillance
(NICD) in Johan- Sorroche and the Caribbean
Guere Fellowship to pur-
nesburg, South Af- to pursue the re-
sue the research
rica, was awarded search project “Burkholderia tuberum
project “Comparison of resistance levels
an ASM Interna- cell-cell interactions: influence of EPS II
to oxacillin in methicillin-resistant Staph-
Van Wyk tional Fellowship from Sinorhizobium meliloti” with Ann
ylococcus aureus (SARM) in pig farming
for Africa to pursue Hirsch at the University of California at
in Lima, Peru” with Robert Skov at the
the research project “Molecular compari- Los Angeles.
Statens Serum Institute in Copenhagen,
son of cryptococcal isolates from incident
Denmark.
and recurrent disease episodes” with host
Thomas Mitchell at Duke University Med- Nicolas Vozza, a
ical Center in Durham, N.C. Doctoral Fellow at
Fundacion Instituto
Anna Perevalova, a Leloir in Buenos Gabriel Lozano, a
Research Scientist Aires, Argentina, master’s student at
at the Winogradsky was awarded an Universidad de los
Institute of Microbi- ASM International Andes in Bogota,
ology in the Russian Fellowship for Latin Colombia, was
Academy of Science, America and the awarded an ASM-
Moscow, Russia, was Caribbean to pursue PAHO Infectious
Vozza
awarded an ASM the research project Diseases Epidemiol-
International Fellow- “Rhizobium leguminosarum on continu- ogy & Surveillance
Perevalova ship for Asia to ous flow conditions and the role of adhe- Fellowship to pur-
Lozano
pursue the research sion factors on biofilm development” with sue the research
project “Molecular basis for cellulose degra- Soeren Molin at the Center for Systems project “Screening for genes for antibiotic
dation and hydrogen production capabili- Microbiology in the Technical University resistance in various metagenomic librar-
ties of Desulfurococcus fermentans, a hy- of Denmark in Lyngby, Denmark. ies constructed with DNA samples iso-
perthermophilic crenarchaeon” with Biswa- lated from USA and/or Colombia” with Jo
rup Mukhopadhyay at the Virginia Poly- Handelsman at the Yale University in New
technic Institute and State University in Sandra Diaz, a Haven, Conn.
Blacksburg, Va. Ph.D. student at
Pontificia Univer-
Mariángeles Brigg- sidad Javeriana in
iler Marcó, a doc- Bogotá, Colombia, ASM International Professorships
toral student at the was awarded an The International Professorship Pro-
Universidad Nacio- ASM-PAHO Infec- gram provides microbiological expertise
nal del Litoral in tious Diseases Epi- to faculty and students throughout the
Santa Fe, Argentina, demiology & Sur- world. The program enables an ASM
was awarded an Diaz veillance Fellowship member who is scientifically recognized
ASM International to pursue the re- in his/her area to travel to an institution
Fellowship for Latin search project “Evaluation of MRSA of higher learning in a developing coun-
Marcó America and the Ca- pathogenesis and antibiotic resistance in try to teach an interactive short course
ribbean to work Drosophila melanogaster: focus on a new on a topic in any of the microbiological
with Sylvain Moineau at the Université variant of USA300 community-associated disciplines. The International Professors
Laval, Québec, Canada, on the research MRSA and the role of cfr in resistance to for Round Two of 2010 are listed below.

Michael Benedik, a Soledad Benitez at the Escuela Politecnica Atul Kumar Johri,
Professor at Texas del Ejercito in Sangolqui, Ecuador. an Assistant Profes-
A&M University in sor at the Jawahar-
College Station, was Robert Bonomo, a Professor at Case West- lal Nehru University
awarded an ASM in New Delhi, India,
ern Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio,
International Pro- was awarded an
was awarded an ASM-PAHO Infectious
fessorship for Africa Indo-U.S. Research
Diseases Epidemiology & Surveillance
to teach a course on Professorship to visit
Professorship to teach a course entitled
Microbial Genetics Robert Stroud at the
“Mechanisms of resistance and clinical
Benedik and Biotechnology Johri University of Cali-
impact of Acinetobacter baumannii infec-
with host Dr. fornia San Francisco
tions in Colombia” with host Maria Ville-
Mathew Olusoji Ilori at the University of to perform a research project entitled
gas at the Centro Internacional de Entre-
Lagos, Nigeria. “Structural studies of a phosphate trans-
namiento e Investigaciones Medicas porter gene (PiPT) from endophytic fun-
(CIDEIM) in Cali, Colombia. gus Piriformospora indica.”
Yousef Abu Kwaik,
a Professor and
Bumgardner En- Annette Fothergill,
dowed Chair in an Assistant Profes-
Branches: ASM Activities
Molecular Patho- sor and Technical at the Local Level
genesis at the Uni- Director at Univer-
versity of Louisville, sity of Texas Health ASM Postdoctoral Chapter
Louisville, Ky., was Science Center in
awarded an ASM On 26 May 2010, the first American Soci-
San Antonio, was ety for Microbiology postdoctoral chapter
Kwaik International Pro- awarded an ASM-
fessorship for Asia was approved at the ASM council meeting.
PAHO Infectious The chapter was proposed by postdoctoral
to teach a course on cellular microbiology Diseases Epidemiol-
Fothergill scientists at the Wadsworth Center, New
with host Dina Bitar at Al-Quds University ogy & Surveillance
in Jerusalem. York State Department of Health and Al-
Professorship to teach a course entitled bany Medical College with the support of
“Antifungal susceptibility testing and re- the ASM Eastern New York Branch.
Wondwossen Ge- sistance issues” with host Angela Restrepo The need to create a postdoctoral chap-
breyes, an Associate at the Corporacion para Investigaciones ter came from the fact that many post-
Professor at Ohio Biologicas in Medellin, Colombia. doctoral scientists took advantage of all
State University in
of the opportunities offered by ASM at the
Columbus, was
student level including the establishment
awarded an ASM Indo-U.S. Professorships in Microbiology of chapters. Unfortunately, upon transi-
International Pro- This Professorship Program encour- tioning to the postdoctoral level, individu-
fessorship for Latin ages scientific partnerships between the als were no longer eligible for full mem-
America and the United States and India and is sponsored bership in student chapters. Additionally,
Gebreyes Caribbean to teach by the Indo-U.S. Science & Technology postdoctoral members are too junior to
a course entitled Forum. enjoy all of the benefits available for more
“Molecular epidemiologic techniques and
senior microbiologists at the faculty level.
applications in foodborne and nosocomial
Postdoctoral scientists, unlike students and
pathogens” with host Celso Oliveira at the
Bijender Bajaj, As- faculty members, are in a period of transi-
Federal University of Paraiba, Brazil.
sistant Professor at tion in their careers and thus there is an
Jorge Rodrigues, an the University of important need for a common place for
Assistant Professor Jammu in Jammu, resources such as networking, travel
at University of India, was awarded awards, fellowships, and professional de-
Texas, Arlington, an Indo-U.S. Re- velopment opportunities.
was awarded an search Professorship ASM offers all of these great resources
ASM International to perform a research for postdoctoral scientists, but this in-
Professorship for project entitled “De- formation can be further communicated
Latin America and Bajaj velopment of cost- through the implementation of ASM post-
the Caribbean to effective technology doctoral chapters at the grass-roots level.
Rodrigues teach a course enti- for production of cellulase and xylanase Having ASM postdoctoral chapters is in-
tled “Microbial di- enzymes with industrial process suitabil- credibly powerful since it provides a cen-
versity and metagenomics: science, tech- ity” with Thaddeus Ezeji at The Ohio State tral source of information for members
nology, and applications” with host Maria University in Wooster. and it also provides the Society with a

tory books. As in past years, the The final Branch presentation was from
meeting started for many of us Silvia Rossbach, Michigan Branch Coun-
with the Branch Officers’ Fo- cilor, who gave an overview of her very
rum, where Branch officers met active and vibrant Branch. Of particular
with the Branch Organization note is the Branch’s commitment to stu-
Committee (BOC) and other dents, as evidenced by their nine active
representatives of National Student Chapters. Among their many ac-
ASM to network, share Branch tivities, the Branch and Chapters focus on
success stories, and make plans outreach to the K-12 audience.
for the upcoming year. Ron Butler, Director of ASM’s Informa-
The Forum agenda included tion Technology, reviewed the tools avail-
several presentations that sup- able on the new ASM Community website
ported this year’s Branch theme, (best described as Facebook on steroids),
Come Join Us! Iris Chen of the http://community.asm.org, including blog,
Hawaii Branch Student Chapter calendaring, wiki, and group features. The
Wadsworth Center and Albany Medical College members
of the ASM Postdoctoral Chapter. (l-r) Kris Spaeth, Gwen- started the Forum off with a buzz around the tables was how many
dowlyn S. Knapp, Magdia De Jesus, Timothy J. Sellati bang by showing a video she Branch members are already using ASM
(Faculty Advisor), Jennifer Wilson-Welder, and Sarah N. made of an event in which her Community and how easy it is to use. The
Buss. Chapter participated, the 53rd BOC welcomes the Branches’ rapid adop-
Hawaii State Science and Engi- tion of the tools and hopes they will prove
group of talented young scientists that are neering Fair. The video captured the en- useful as Branches work to fulfill the core
about to make the transition to indepen- ergy and enthusiasm of the event and dem- missions of facilitating networking among
dence and even fuller participation in the onstrated how valuable digital media can members and providing interesting and in-
national ASM. be. By recording the event on video and clusive programming.
At the Wadsworth Center and Albany posting it on an easy-to-find website, the The Forum ended on an upbeat note—
Medical College we strongly and enthusi- Chapter hopes to interest others in its ac- Regional Planning Coordinators (RPCs)
astically agree that the purpose of the tivities. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one in Nellie Dumas, Kenneth Goodrum,
ASM postdoctoral chapters is (i) To pro- the audience who was thinking, “How Daniel Lim, Michael Sadowsky, and
mote communication amongst postdoc- can I join them for their next event?” Terry Else expressed their delight with
toral members interested in microbiology; Go to http://www.hawaii.edu/scasm/stuff the enthusiasm displayed by Branch of-
(ii) to provide scientific and career guid- /53rdscifair.mov to view the video. ficers. RPCs are confident Branches will
ance for new postdoctoral members inter- Next, Northern California Branch excel this year and are looking forward
ested in microbiology; (iii) to facilitate in- Councilor Dr. Daniel Mills discussed his to hearing more success stories in New
tellectual exchange between members Branch’s highly successful workshop on Orleans in 2011 when the Branch Offic-
and promote faculty/ postdoctoral mem- Anaerobes, “Anaerobes You ‘Otter’ ers’ Forum will again kick off another
ber interactions; (iv) to promote aware- Know,” which was conducted in con- successful ASM General Meeting. Fi-
ness of career and networking opportuni- junction with the California Veterinary nally, Forum participants publicly ac-
ties available in the field of microbiology; knowledged and thanked Allen Laskin
Medical Association. The workshop fea-
(v) to sponsor meetings where outside for his many dedicated years of service to
tured multimedia from Anaerobe Sys-
speakers will be invited; and (vi) to en- ASM and its Branches. Allen completed
tems, Inc., an outstanding faculty, and a
courage activities between the local post- his term as the RPC for Region II this
keynote lecture focused on Clostridium
doctoral chapters and the national Society. year. The BOC has benefited greatly
perfringens in the California sea otter
We invite other postdoctoral members from Allen’s wise counsel over his many
population. Mills reported that the
to establish their own postdoctoral chap- years of service. He will be missed, but
meeting’s success can be attributed in
ters and continue to use the American the lessons he has taught us will not be
part to Branch website improvements
Society for Microbiology as a valuable soon forgotten. Allen was the inspiration
which include an easy-to-use meeting
career tool. for this year’s theme, Come Join Us! So
registration component, and to the from all of us associated with Branches,
Magdia De Jesus Branch’s commitment to providing in- please do.
Wadsworth Center, New York State clusive and interesting programming.
Department of Health To learn of your next opportunity to
Diane M. Citron, Southern California participate in ASM Branch programming
Albany, N.Y.
Branch President, gave a presentation in and networking opportunities, go to http:
which she highlighted several successful //www.asm.org/index.php?option⫽com
Branch events and explained her Branch’s _content&view⫽article&id⫽398&Itemid
Branch Officers’ Forum:
approach to meeting planning. The take- ⫽156.
Come Join Us!
home message: start early, sweat the de-
The 2010 General Meeting of the Ameri- tails, and make sure everyone has fun Michael G. Schmidt
can Society for Microbiology is in the his- while learning—a perfect combination. Chair, Branch Organization Committee

Membership nade of the university’s Bioscience Re- As senior laboratory manager of micro-
search Building. biological research at General Foods, he
established in-process and final product
Award microbiological specifications for foods
Deceased Member
and produced reports on other business
The University of Maryland College of Nino F. Insalata, a native of New York prospects to assess their technical profi-
Chemical & Life Sciences recently in- state, died on 7 May 2010 at the age of 83. ciency and regulatory or health risks.
ducted Philip J. Provost into its Circle of Insalata received his undergraduate and These reports aided in decisions to acquire
Discovery. The Circle of Discovery was graduate degrees from St. John’s Univer- companies or technologies by General
inaugurated in 2007 to honor members of sity in New York. He spent 35 years work- Foods. While at General Foods, he devel-
the University of Maryland community for ing in the field of industrial microbiology oped microbiological standards for raw
their visionary leadership and outstanding research. He worked for National Distill- materials and final products and identified
research in the biosciences and chemistry. ers Corporation from 1949 –1953 and for risks in new products, standardized micro-
Provost, who received his Ph.D. in mi- General Foods-Kraft from 1953 until biological methods and specifications, and
crobiology from the University of Mary- 1983, when he retired as Principal Scien- audited all quality control and consulting
land in 1961, was honored for pioneering tist. While at General Foods he was recog- labs. Insalata patented everninomycin for
laboratory research on the hepatitis A vi- nized as “an expert in his field, both na- controlling botulinum spores, developed
rus while working in Maurice Hilleman’s tionally and internationally . . . [acting] as the first AOAC-approved fluorescent anti-
laboratory at Merck, which led to the de- a consultant and corporate microbiologist body method for detecting salmonellae in
velopment of a vaccine against the virus. . . . and displayed exceptional competence foods, developed a method for detection of
Other members of the Circle of Discovery in his field.” botulinum toxin in commercially prepared
are Constance Cepko, Gary D. Christian, As chief microbiologist at National Dis- foods, and developed a rapid method for
Theodor O. Diener, Elisabeth Gantt, tillers, he identified microbiological prob- detection of coagulase-positive staphylo-
George H. Lorimer, Geerat J. Vermeij, lems in plants and products, oversaw 30 cocci in foods. In the course of his career
John D. Weeks, and ASM past presidents national and international facilities, estab- Insalata published 30 peer-reviewed pub-
Walter R. Dowdle and Rita R. Colwell. A lished quality control tests and specifici- lications and was issued 8 patents. He was
permanent display honoring these pio- ties, and identified the role of carbonic acid a member of 12 professional associations,
neering scientists is located in the colon- as a microbial suppressant in beverages. including ASM.

Reviews and Resources
BOOK lems with immunization, and then dis- A chapter entitled “Poverty and Infec-
cusses AIDS. The present worldwide situ- tious Diseases from a Global Point of
The New Plagues— ation regarding this disease is elucidated, View” emphasizes organizations and
Pandemics and Poverty and the societal factors involved (“A virus goals. In the present worldwide economic
by itself does not make an illness”) are climate it seems that nongovernmental
In a Globalized World considered. Suggestions for interruption foundations and organizations may prove
Stefan H. E. Kaufmann. Haus Publishing, of spread, including potential vaccines, as more effective than vague promises from
London, 2009, 270 p., $14.95 (paperback). well as the drawbacks associated with cost highly publicized summit meetings.
This short paperback appears to be an infor so doing, are discussed. In “Swimming against the Tide” we
troduction to infectious diseases for the The chapter continues with an overview learn, not surprisingly, that pharmaceuti-
layman. It is part of the initiative “Encour- of the tuberculosis problem, focusing on cal research emphasizes development of
aging Sustainability” and hopes to “enable South Africa and Russia, and noting that drugs that will sell well in developed coun-
as many people as possible to form their complacency has been our worst enemy. tries, with only 10% targeted towards dis-
own opinions about the globalization of Almost 345 times as much money was eases in developing countries, where 90%
infectious diseases in the modern, net- spent to fight HIV infection by the World of the global disease burden is concen-
worked world.” Bank in 2005 and almost 50 times as much trated. Blockbuster drugs are what ensure
Many universities are now requiring in- was focused on malaria programs in Af- economic viability for the pharmaceutical
coming freshmen to read challenging and rica. Compounding the problem is the fact companies.
thought-provoking texts. This book well that 15 million people are concurrently What are the hot spots for old and new
fits that description and certainly deserves infected with AIDS. Of course, HIV infec- epidemics? The poor and the sick, catas-
to be considered for such programs. tion compounds another problem, i.e. im- trophes and conflicts, transmission from
The chapters are brief but concise. They munization of immunocompromised chil- research laboratories, climate change with
begin with “The Invaders” and “The De- dren—another example of “interaction.” its associated localized increase in vectors
fenders,” briefly introducing the reader A brief section on malaria (and the DDT as a result of higher temperatures, excur-
to disease-producing organisms and then controversy) leads the reader to a discussions into the wilderness (logging and ex-
discussing immune responses. A some- sion of influenza from a historical as well portation of exotic animals, e.g. Ebola,
what longer chapter considers the “Co- as a microbial viewpoint. Avian influenza Marburg disease and other illnesses), ani-
existence of Mankind and Microbe.” The (specifically H5N1) is discussed at length. mal farms as breeding grounds for disease
author notes that human development, in- Unfortunately, at the time of publication,
through crowding, improper use of antibi-
cluding changes in nutrition and adapta- the author did not foresee the recent out-
otics, the leap of animal diseases to other
tion away from nomadic life, as well as break of swine flu. A brief description of
species (e.g. BSE, SARS and bird flu).
animal husbandry, led to the onset of epi- SARS is followed by a short section on
Kaufman sees human-animal interaction
demics. The chapter also discusses micro- tropical diseases. I would refer the reader
as the gravest threat of a new pandemic.
bial strategies, coexistence and symbiosis, to Peter Hotez’s Forgotten People, Forgot-
In the book’s conclusion, entitled “Five
and the role of viral carcinogens such ten Diseases for a true evaluation of how
To or Five Past Twelve,” the author sug-
as Helicobacter, human papillomavirus, unaware the Western world is of these
gests a 10-point program for the control of
and the hepatitis B and C viruses. Many scourges of the developing world.
infectious diseases. Some of them, such as
diseases must be considered as multidi- Two short chapters deal with anti-
making intensive use of available interven-
mensional systems, i.e., interaction with microbials and immunization. The latter
tion measures, seem a little more doable
environmental and genetic factors, rather emphasizes modes of action, resistance,
than combating poverty. Many of them
than assuming that a pathogen causes dis- nosocomial infections, and the problems
bring to my mind my father’s words,
ease simply by direct action. associated with the addition of antibiotics
to animal feed. Insofar as vaccines are “Whatever you do, you have to remain an
The major chapter in the book, “More
concerned, the author admits that none optimist.” We have made great strides.
Than a Body Count: the Major Infectious
Diseases,” takes up almost 100 of the less of them are perfect but that they save five The author tells us that we have to finish
than 300 pages of text. It begins with an million lives each year. When the diseases the job, or at least attempt to do that.
overview of respiratory, diarrheal, and against which they protect have been erad- Fred Rosenberg
food-induced diseases, continues with the icated, he says, then we will be able to con- California Lutheran University
so-called “children’s diseases” and prob- sider suspending immunization programs. Thousand Oaks, Calif.

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Employment
Positions Available
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Employment Advertising
Sciences Microbe is published monthly and available to nearly 43,000 ASM members and
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The Department of Biological Sciences at Mis-
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a 9-month, tenure-track faculty position at the Please consider delivery dates when setting application deadlines.
rank of Assistant Professor, beginning fall 2010 ASM does not accept classified advertisements that indicate a limitation,
or spring 2011. We seek a microbiologist with specification, or discrimination on the basis of race, religion, national origin, sex,
expertise in microbial genetics or microbial
ecology, but other areas of microbiology will
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Engineering Rates:
Research Associate, Metabolic Engineering De- 1–50 words $180 201–250 words $885
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Biotechnology company, for design and con- 101–150 words $520 ⬎301 words $3.45 per word
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Faculty Position—Virology Display
The Department of Microbiology at U.T. Display advertising closes the 1st of the month preceding publication. For
Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas seeks a specifications, rates, and deadlines for display ads, contact Rhonda Beamer at the
new faculty member in molecular virology at address given above.
the Assistant Professor (tenure track) level. The
appointee will be expected to develop a front-

rank, competitive, independent research pro- Research Associate—Pathogenesis of sity of California, Davis. Candidates are sought
gram that focuses on one or more aspects of the Haemophilus influenzae for a tenure-track position at the level of Assis-
viral life cycle (host-pathogen interactions, viral tant or Associate Professor/Assistant or Associ-
pathogenesis, disruption of viral replication, The Research Institute at Nationwide Chil- ate Professor in Residence in the Center for
command or subversion of host cell processes, dren’s Hospital, Columbus, Ohio, seeks a Re- Comparative Medicine, a research center at the
etc.), and that will complement existing pro- search Associate interested in joining a labora- University of California, Davis, co-sponsored
grams in poliovirus, HCV, yellow fever virus, tory devoted to studying the pathogenesis of by the Schools of Medicine and Veterinary
HIV, KSHV, and viral oncogenesis. Research Haemophilus influenzae. Specifically, the asso- Medicine and a relevant Instructional and Re-
on any virus of medical relevance is of interest. ciate will work under the supervision of Dr. search (I&R) academic department. The center
The appointee will contribute to the teaching of Subinoy Das, a sinus surgeon, to study the role is engaged in investigative research involving
medical and graduate students. Attractive of Haemophilus in the development of chronic animal models of human disease. We seek indi-
start-up packages, including a competitive sal- sinusitis. Work will include in vitro imaging and viduals with D.V.M and/or Ph.D. degrees or
ary and new laboratory space, are available to study of biofilms, in vivo development of a equivalent, postdoctoral experience, and a
conduct research in an expanding, dynamic en- chinchilla model of chronic sinusitis based on a record of publication in high-quality journals.
vironment. For exceptional candidates, an En- successful model of otitis media, biomarker We are soliciting applications from candidates
dowed Scholars Program offers start-up funds analysis of clinical samples, and understanding who have enthusiasm for the investigation of
of the clinical manifestations of chronic sinus-
of $700,000 (plus $300,000 towards salary human infectious diseases in animal models and
itis. The successful applicant will be indepen-
support) over a four-year period. Candidates the concepts of “One Health.” Candidates are
dent, highly motivated, with a strong work
should have a Ph.D. and/or M.D. degree with at expected to have or to establish and maintain a
ethic, and have a track record of successful
least three years of postdoctoral experience and strong extramurally funded research program
publications. Please go to www.nationwide
an exceptional publication record. Candidates childrens.org /research/Find a Career/Research and to participate in professional and graduate
please forward a c.v., three letters of recommen- Associate in Microbial Pathogenesis for more education in their fields. Ample office and labo-
dation, two or three representative publica- details. Nationwide Children’s Hospital is an ratory space is available in the Center (including
tions, and a brief summary of future research to equal opportunity employer that values diver- access to BSL2 and BSL3 laboratory space),
Dr. Michael V. Norgard, Chair, Department of sity. Candidates of diverse backgrounds are en- with state-of-the art facilities, instrumentation,
Microbiology, U.T. Southwestern Medical Cen- couraged to apply. and administrative support. Center research
ter, 6000 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX and teaching programs interdigitate with other
75390 –9048 (michael.norgard@utsouth Postdoctoral Researcher— campus-wide programs and resources in the
western.edu). U.T. Southwestern is an Equal Schools of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine,
Yeast/Proline/ Oxidative Stress
Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. the Mouse Biology Program, the California Na-
A postdoctoral research associate position in tional Primate Research Center, and the Cancer
the Institute of Plant Genomics and Biotechnol- Center. Faculty members will hold an academic
Postdoctoral Position ogy, Texas A&M University, is available imme- appointment in the commensurate department
An NIH-funded postdoctoral position is avail- diately. This project has two components: (1) of the School of Veterinary Medicine. The posi-
able to study horizontal DNA transfer in the Characterize the mechanisms by which proline tion will provide 0.5 salary support. Review of
periodontal pathogen Porphyromonas gingiva- ameliorates oxidative stress and inhibits pro- applications will commence immediately until
lis. The successful applicant will use molecular grammed cell death. (2) Development of an the position is filled. Priority will be given to
techniques to identify genes important for inter- efficient transformation system for an oleagenic applications received by October 1, 2010. Sub-
strain DNA transfer, and will use cell culture yeast. Experience in yeast manipulation, trans- mit applications with letter of interest, curricu-
and biofilm model systems to characterize phe- formation, genetics and molecular biology are lum vita, concise statement of present and fu-
notypic effects. Applicants should have a Ph.D. essential. Experience with mammalian cell culture research plans, summary of teaching
or equivalent in Microbiology or related field. ture and Illumina sequencing desirable. Send experience, up to three representative reprints,
Please send a cover letter, CV, and contact in- C.V. and names of three references to Dr. Marty and names of four references (including ad-
formation for three references to Dr. Gena Dickman, Director, IPGB; mbdickman@tamu dresses, telephone numbers and e-mail ad-
Tribble, Department of Periodontics, University .edu. Texas A&M University is an AA/EOE. dresses) to Recruitment Committee Chair, c/o
of Texas Dental Branch at Houston, 6516 MD Center for Comparative Medicine, University of
Anderson Blvd., Houston, TX 77030; e-mail,
Faculty Position California, Davis, CA 95616. The University of
Gena.D.Tribble@uth.tmc.edu. See www.uth The Center For Comparative Medicine, Schools California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative
.tmc.edu/postdocs/ for further information. of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, Univer- Action Employer.

13th International Symposium
on Microbial Ecology
Tenure-track Faculty Position
Seattle, Washington, USA (Assistant/Associate/Full Professor)
Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy
August 22-27, 2010 Departments of Medicine and
Molecular Genetics and Microbiology,
Duke University Medical Center
Building on the success of ISME12 the 13th
International Society for Microbial Ecology Applications are invited for a tenure-track position at Duke University
Medical Center. The position is a partnership of the Institute for Genome
Conference will be in Seattle, USA from Sciences and Policy and the Departments of Medicine and Molecular
August 22 - 27, 2010. Genetics and Microbiology. We are currently seeking individuals studying
infectious diseases via the application of genome sciences to the host,
microbial pathogens or commensals, or both. Existing areas of strength in the
institute and departments include:
PRESENTERS
1) infectious diseases and global health
As is ISME tradition there is a vibrant scientiÀc 2) microbial pathogenesis (bacteriology, virology, mycology)
program planned with plenary presenters; 3) mechanisms of host-pathogen interactions and innate immunity
4) genomics and genetics of the host-pathogen interaction
Penny Chisholm, Jeffrey Gordon, Ian Sanders,
5) genomic signatures of infection.
Christa Schleper, and Warwick Vincent.
Areas of particular interest include analysis of the microbiome in health and
disease and the application of genetics and genomics to define mutations
that confer resistance or susceptibility to infection or modulate therapeutic
THE VENUE responses in humans.
Washington State Convention & Trade Center, Applications should include a curriculum vita, a description of research
accomplishment and plans for future research, and reprints of three
is at the centre of downtown Seattle, a city
representative publications. Applicants should also arrange to have three
that inspires innovation. Seattle combines letters of recommendation submitted on their behalf. Application materials
the best of the outdoors, surrounded by should be emailed as pdf files to: IGSP.DOM.MGMSearch2010@duke.edu
dramatically beautiful mountains and forests, The deadline for receipt of applications is October 15, 2010.
with the best of city life. Known to many as Women and minorities are encouraged to apply.
the “Emerald City”, Seattle is renowned for Duke University is An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
being “green” and you notice the eco-friendly
policies of the city at every corner.
We invite you as an integral part of this

stimulating symposium and we are looking
forward to welcoming you to Seattle.
http://www.isme-microbes.org
B LO G E XC E r P T S
Small Things Considered Elio Schaechter Merry Youle
The Microbe Blog (at http://www.smallthingsconsidered.us)
Of Archaeal Periplasm and outer membrane and sending it to the this organism? Note that this two mem-
Iconoclasm cytoplasm, is not part of the old belief. brane system is different from that of
Yet it’s been known for some time that a ordinary Gram-negatives, as here the
http://schaechter.asmblog.org/schaechter/ goodly number of bacteria can energize outer membrane is not known to con-
2010/02/of-archaeal-periplasm-iconoclasm. their outer membrane, having cyto- tain LPS or porins.
html chromes inserted in the outer membrane Is the Ignicoccus story relevant to
where they carry out extracellular elec- other prokaryotes? Who’s to say at this
Biology is the iconoclast’s paradise. Over tron transfer. This ability allows these point. Ignicoccus is mightily idiosyn-
and over, cherished beliefs, some dating organisms to utilize metals in rocks as cratic. Not only does it grow at very high
back for centuries, fall to the ground as electron acceptors. temperature and use reduction of ele-
exceptions to the rule are discovered. To Dual membrane systems have not be mental sulfur as its main energy source,
the long list of such exceptions, we now found in archaea other than Ignicoccus. but it also lives in intimate association
add the finding by groups in Regensburg What are the new conclusions about with another archaeon, the smaller
and Frankfurt that the outer membrane power generation in its outer membrane Nanoarchaeum equitans, which has a
of an archaeon, Ignicoccus hospitalis, is based on? Mainly on immunoelectron reduced genome and apparently gets its
energized and capable of generating ATP. microscopy of sections using gold-la- energy from its larger partner. The un-
Granted, this is a hyperthermophile who beled antibodies and immunofluores- usual ignicoccal ability to make ATP
helped shatter the ancient belief that life cence showing ATP synthase and within its periplasm may help it to sup-
at high temperatures is not possible, thus H2:sulfur oxidoreductase located in the ply ATP to its associates across the
hardly a conformist. But this discovery outer membrane. These two enzymes outer membrane.
is, to say the least, unexpected. are required for energizing membranes The authors propose a tantalizing
The old tenet is that the energetic and for ATP production. Thus, ATP can notion: if the eukaryotic cell arose by
business-end of prokaryotes is the cell be expected be made in the outer mem- an archaeon having swallowed a bac-
membrane, whether surrounded by an brane and released into the periplasm terium (hold on, we’re not getting into
outer membrane, as in gram-negatives, (which in this organism is huge—larger that discussion right now), then Ig-
or not, as in gram-positives. I should than the cytoplasm). You may ask, are nicoccus or something like it would
know, I taught this for umpteen years. these two enzymes also found in the have been the ideal ancestor, able as it
True, in gram-negatives, energy can be inner membrane? The answer is no. appears to be to donate ATP to anyone
transmitted to the outer membrane via Since the periplasm is so large and the residing within its boundaries. True or
the Ton system (a system that provides two membranes so far apart, enzyme not, one should further respect the
energy for the transport of iron sidero- localization to one membrane or the outliers in the biological scheme of
phores, vitamin B12, and some colicins), other can be readily discerned. So, things as potential sources of novel and
but the reverse, making energy on the which is the cytoplasmic membrane in deeper relationships.
Kuper, U., C. Meyer, V. Muller, R. Rachel, H.

Huber. 2010. Energized outer membrane and
Talmudic Question of the Month* spatial separation of metabolic processes
by Ian Booth in the hyperthermophilic Archaeon Ignicoc-
Do bacteria ever take up intact RNA molecules? cus hospitalis. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA
107(7):3152-3156.
Answers? Add a comment online to Talmudic Question #49, May 28, 2009.
http://schaechter.asmblog.org/schaechter/2009/05/talmudic-question-49.html
*We use this term to denote questions whose answers cannot be found by a Google search.
366 • Microbe / Volume 5, Number 8, 2010
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333 Molecular Diagnostics Could Help in Coping with Hidden ␤-Lactamases

340 N ␧-Lysine Acetylation Control Conserved in All Three Life Domains

331 Public Affairs Report

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The reception was organized by the

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ntibiotic-resistant, gram-negative ␤-lactamases produced by gram-negative or-

A bacteria are a global challenge, with

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orking with microbes provides of specific chemical groups, including hydroxyls,

W opportunities to better under-

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Bacterial proteins called sirtuins are

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Roles of N ␧-Lys Acetylation in

We still know relatively little about re-

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Candida albicans: Comparing the Benign and the Invasive

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Streamlining Investigation of Invasive Aspergillosis

Resurrecting an Old Antibiotic against Extended-Spectrum

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The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO)

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Annual Biomedical Research

ABRCMS Important Deadlines

URL: www.abrcms.org E-mail: abrcms@asmusa.org

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