Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39159286›Full record

ArticlePLoS pathogens2024

The diadenosine tetraphosphate hydrolase ApaH contributes to Pseudomonas aeruginosa pathogenicity.

Matteo Cervoni, Davide Sposato, Giulia Ferri, Heike Bähre, Livia Leoni, Giordano Rampioni, Paolo Visca, Antonio Recchiuti, Francesco Imperi

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PLoS pathogens, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Loss of the ApJournal of bacteriology · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Molecular insights into the promiscuous ApThe Journal of biological chemistry · 2026
    Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Matteo CervoniDepartment of Science, University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy.
Davide SposatoDepartment of Science, University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy.
Giulia FerriDepartment of Medical, Oral and Biotechnology Sciences, University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy.
Heike BähreResearch Core Unit Metabolomics, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
Livia LeoniDepartment of Science, University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy.
Giordano RampioniDepartment of Science, University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy.
Paolo ViscaDepartment of Science, University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy.
Antonio RecchiutiDepartment of Medical, Oral and Biotechnology Sciences, University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy.
Francesco ImperiDepartment of Science, University Roma Tre, Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-5080-5665

Funding

Department of Science of the University Roma Tre 20208LLXEJItalian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) COMMI 314-337 LEGGE 232/2016
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The opportunistic bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa causes a wide range of infections that are difficult to treat, largely because of the spread of antibiotic-resistant isolates. Antivirulence therapy, í.e. the use of drugs that inhibit the expression or activity of virulence factors, is currently considered an attractive strategy to reduce P. aeruginosa pathogenicity and complement antibiotic treatments. Because of the multifactorial nature of P. aeruginosa virulence and the broad arsenal of virulence factors this bacterium can produce, the regulatory networks that control the expression of multiple virulence traits have been extensively explored as potential targets for antivirulence drug development. The intracellular signaling molecule diadenosine tetraphosphate (Ap4A) has been reported to control stress resistance and virulence-related traits in some bacteria, but its role has not been investigated in P. aeruginosa so far. To fill this gap, we generated a mutant of the reference strain P. aeruginosa PAO1 that lacks the Ap4A-hydrolysing enzyme ApaH and, consequently, accumulates high intracellular levels of Ap4A. Phenotypic and transcriptomic analyses revealed that the lack of ApaH causes a drastic reduction in the expression of several virulence factors, including extracellular proteases, elastases, siderophores, and quorum sensing signal molecules. Accordingly, infection assays in plant and animal models demonstrated that ApaH-deficient cells are significantly impaired in infectivity and persistence in different hosts, including mice. Finally, deletion of apaH in P. aeruginosa clinical isolates demonstrated that the positive effect of ApaH on the production of virulence-related traits and on infectivity is conserved in P. aeruginosa. This study provides the first evidence that the Ap4A-hydrolysing enzyme ApaH is important for P. aeruginosa virulence, highlighting this protein as a novel potential target for antivirulence therapies against P. aeruginosa.

Indexed as

Dinucleoside PhosphatesPseudomonas aeruginosaPseudomonas InfectionsVirulence FactorsAcid Anhydride HydrolasesAnimalsBacterial ProteinsGene Expression Regulation, BacterialMiceVirulenceAcid Anhydride HydrolasesBacterial Proteinsdiadenosine tetraphosphateDinucleoside PhosphatesVirulence Factors

Identifiers

PMID39159286
PMCPMC11361744

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.