Streptococcus pneumoniaesecretes hydrogen peroxide leading to DNA damage and apoptosis in lung cells

• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1424144112
• Publication Date: 2015-06-16T03:01:21Z
• Authors: Prashant Rai; Marcus Parrish; Ian Jun Jie Tay; Na Li; Shelley Ackerman; Fang He; Jimmy Kwang; Vincent T. Chow; Bevin P. Engelward
• Keywords: Mice, Inbred BALB C; 0303 health sciences; DNA Repair; Virulence; Apoptosis; Epithelial Cells; Hydrogen Peroxide; 3. Good health; Pulmonary Alveoli; Mice; 03 medical and health sciences; Streptococcus pneumoniae; Animals; Female; DNA Damage

SignificanceStreptococcus pneumoniaeis the most common cause of pneumonia, a leading cause of death globally. Limitations in antibiotic efficacy and vaccines call attention to the need to develop our understanding of host–pathogen interactions to improve mitigation strategies. Here, we show that lung cells exposed toS. pneumoniaeare subject to DNA damage caused by hydrogen peroxide, which is secreted by strains ofS. pneumoniaethat carry the spxBgene. The observation thatS. pneumoniaesecretes hydrogen peroxide at genotoxic and cytotoxic levels is consistent with a model wherein host DNA damage and repair modulate pneumococcal pathogenicity.