Characterizing the Mechanisms Driving Tailocin Production and Target Specificity in Pseudomonas syringae

Abstract

Antimicrobial research and development are not of economic priority and has led to few companies bringing new antibiotics to market in recent years. Modern antibiotic usage dates back to the 1940s about a decade after the initial discovery of Penicillin, followed by the “golden era” of discovery of novel antibiotic classes between the 1950s and 1970s. Numerous classes of antibiotics have been discovered since, but only a few have come to market. With antibiotic resistance on the rise not only in human pathogens, but especially in agricultural settings, there is a need for a new class of antimicrobial that can be optimized to be narrow spectrum and combat antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Tailocins, a class of bacteriocins, are proteinaceous antimicrobials produced by a variety of bacteria that kill closely-related strains while also playing a role in shaping the microbiome. Previous studies have pointed to the potential for tailocins to be used prophylactically or therapeutically against bacterial infections, specifically against plant pathogens for healthier crop production. We used what was previously known in the field to better characterize tailocins-producing Pseudomonas syringae strains and uncover the genetic mechanisms behind production, specificity, and killing. Together, this research can be taken further towards the goal of developing new, more efficient antimicrobials.