Proteomic analysis of an Enterococcus faecalis mutant generated against the exposure to silver nanoparticles

• DOI: 10.1111/jam.15182
• Publication Date: 2021-06-16T14:43:51Z
• Authors: Marco Felipe Sala...; Nereyda Niño‐Mart...; Gabriel‐Alejandro...; Fernando Torres M...; Gabriela Margarit...; Aranza Eliana Ben...; Facundo Ruiz; Horacio Bach
• Keywords: Proteomics; 0303 health sciences; 03 medical and health sciences; Silver; Enterococcus faecalis; Animals; Humans; Metal Nanoparticles; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Anti-Bacterial Agents; 3. Good health

Nanoparticles (NPs) have been widely studied as an alternative to antibiotic use due to their antimicrobial properties at lower concentrations. Enterococcus faecalis is a facultative Gram-positive microorganism inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract of humans and animals. It can also be present in other environments such as the oral cavity, water, sewage, soil and food.We evaluated whether E. faecalis could develop resistance to silver NPs (AgNPs) after exposure to sublethal concentrations of the NPs.Proteomic analyses revealed that different pathways were activated during the acquired resistance under sublethal concentrations, and selected genes were validated by qPCR.The results of this study showed that E. faecalis is capable of generating resistance to AgNPs.To avoid the generation of resistance against AgNPs, future use of these NPs should be combined with other NPs prepared with different metals to prevent the dissemination of resistant strains.