ArticleEMBO molecular medicine2023
Artificial sweeteners inhibit multidrug-resistant pathogen growth and potentiate antibiotic activity.
Article in EMBO molecular medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers.
What it found
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- Xylose-induced tricarboxylic acid cycle activation resensitizes gentamicin-resistantApplied and environmental microbiology · 2026Article
- A sucralose-based sweetener promotes biofilm formation and plasmid-mediated antibiotic resistance transfer in opportunistic gut bacteria.Archives of microbiology · 2026Article
- Network-level divergence in cyclic di-GMP signalling drives ecological versatility in Acinetobacter baumannii.NPJ biofilms and microbiomes · 2026Article
- Mechanisms, Modulation, and Mitigation: Dietary-Gut Microbiome Strategies Against Antibiotic Resistance.Probiotics and antimicrobial proteins · 2026Review
- Extracellular vesicles drive stress-induced antibiotic resistance spread in soil.Environmental science and ecotechnology · 2026Article
- Re-evaluation of sucralose (E 955) as a food additive and evaluation of a new application on extension of use of sucralose (E 955) in fine bakery wares.EFSA journal. European Food Safety Authority · 2026Article
- Artificial Sweeteners Induce Bacterial Drug Resistance and Modulate Gene Expression.Infection and drug resistance · 2026Article
- Phenylacetic acid mediatesMicrobiology (Reading, England) · 2026Article
- Comparative study of common over-the-counter wound care products against early and mature biofilms of antibiotic-resistant wound pathogens.JAC-antimicrobial resistance · 2025Article
- Metabolomics reveals the hindgut metabolic changes and physiological impacts in weaned piglets subjected to ETEC infection and berberine intervention.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- One Earth-One Health to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance Having a Dual Mutation Pattern, Based on the Robust Self-Regulation and Perpetual Reconstruction of Ecosystems.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- DNA uptake and twitching motility are controlled by the small RNA Arp through repression of pilin translation inbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Saccharin disrupts bacterial cell envelope stability and interferes with DNA replication dynamics.EMBO molecular medicine · 2025Article
- Phenylboronic Acid-Modified Polyethyleneimine: A Glycan-Targeting Anti-Biofilm Polymer for Inhibiting Bacterial Adhesion to Mucin and Enhancing Antibiotic Efficacy.ACS applied materials & interfaces · 2025Article
- Motility of Acinetobacter baumannii: regulatory systems and controlling strategies.Applied microbiology and biotechnology · 2024Review
- Cyclic AMP is a global virulence regulator governing inter and intrabacterial signalling in Acinetobacter baumannii.PLoS pathogens · 2024Article
- Alteration of oral microbial biofilms by sweeteners.Biofilm · 2024Review
- The artificial sweetener neotame negatively regulates the intestinal epithelium directly through T1R3-signaling and indirectly through pathogenic changes to model gut bacteria.Frontiers in nutrition · 2024Article
- The Effects of Artificial Sweeteners on Intestinal Nutrient-Sensing Receptors: Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde?Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Disrupting iron homeostasis can potentiate colistin activity and overcome colistin resistance mechanisms in Gram-Negative Bacteria.Communications biology · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most pressing concerns of our time. The human diet is rich with compounds that alter bacterial gut communities and virulence-associated behaviours, suggesting food additives may be a niche for the discovery of novel anti-virulence compounds. Here, we identify three artificial sweeteners, saccharin, cyclamate and acesulfame-K (ace-K), that have a major growth inhibitory effect on priority pathogens. We further characterise the impact of ace-K on multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii, demonstrating that it can disable virulence behaviours such as biofilm formation, motility and the ability to acquire exogenous antibiotic-resistant genes. Further analysis revealed the mechanism of growth inhibition is through bulge-mediated cell lysis and that cells can be rescued by cation supplementation. Antibiotic sensitivity assays demonstrated that at sub-lethal concentrations, ace-K can resensitise A. baumannii to last resort antibiotics, including carbapenems. Using a novel ex vivo porcine skin wound model, we show that ace-K antimicrobial activity is maintained in the wound microenvironment. Our findings demonstrate the influence of artificial sweeteners on pathogen behaviour and uncover their therapeutic potential.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.