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Viruses
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Inoviruses
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Inoviruses

A special issue of Viruses (ISSN 1999-4915). This special issue belongs to the section "Bacterial Viruses".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (24 December 2024) | Viewed by 5050

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Danielle Peters

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Human Health and Therapeutics Research Center (HHT), National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Interests: bacteriophage biology; phage therapy; antimicrobial resistance; enzybiotics; alternatives to antibiotics
Prof. Dr. Wangxue Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Human Health and Therapeutics Research Center (HHT), National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Interests: antimicrobial resistance; phage therapy; host–pathogen interaction; vaccines; alternatives to antibiotics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Inoviruses are filamentous bacteriophages that cause a chronic infection of their bacterial host. Significant research has been conducted into the classic inovirus M13 for its molecular biology and biotechnology applications. However, there is limited research into the impact of inoviruses on the fitness and virulence of multidrug-resistant bacterial pathogens.

In this Special Issue, we aim to gather contributions that advance the current knowledge on the role and impact of these unique understudied phages on bacterial fitness, microbial pathogenesis, and host–pathogen interactions. Manuscripts of original research, reviews, mini-reviews, commentary and perspectives on the following areas of inovirus study are particularly welcome:

  • Identification of novel inoviruses, including the use of viral metagenomics approach
  • Contribution to bacterial pathogenesis
  • Inoviruses as virulence factors
  • Prevalence in multidrug-resistant pathogens
  • Targets for vaccine development (pre-clinical studies)
  • Impact on bacterial fitness
  • Other inoviruses research areas

Dr. Danielle L. Peters
Prof. Dr. Wangxue Chen
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Viruses is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bacteriophages
  • inoviruses
  • filamentous phages
  • antimicrobial resistance
  • phage and host interaction
  • pathogenesis

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1965 KiB  
Article
Inovirus-Encoded Peptides Induce Specific Toxicity in Pseudomonas aeruginosa
by Juehua Weng, Yunxue Guo, Jiayu Gu, Ran Chen and Xiaoxue Wang
Viruses 2025, 17(1), 112; https://doi.org/10.3390/v17010112 - 15 Jan 2025
Viewed by 569
Abstract
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a common opportunistic pathogen associated with nosocomial infections. The primary treatment for infections typically involves antibiotics, which can lead to the emergence of multidrug-resistant strains. Therefore, there is a pressing need for safe and effective alternative methods. Phage therapy stands [...] Read more.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a common opportunistic pathogen associated with nosocomial infections. The primary treatment for infections typically involves antibiotics, which can lead to the emergence of multidrug-resistant strains. Therefore, there is a pressing need for safe and effective alternative methods. Phage therapy stands out as a promising approach. However, filamentous prophages (Pfs) commonly found in P. aeruginosa encode genes with phage defense activity, thereby reducing the efficacy of phage therapy. Through a genomic analysis of the Pf4 prophage, we identified a 102 bp gene co-transcribed with the upstream gene responsible for phage release (zot gene), giving rise to a 33-amino-acid polypeptide that we have named Pf4-encoded toxic polypeptide (PftP4). The overexpression of PftP4 demonstrated cellular toxicity in P. aeruginosa, with subcellular localization indicating its presence in the cell membrane and a subsequent increase in membrane permeability. Notably, PftP4 homologues are found in multiple Pf phages and exhibit specificity in their toxicity towards P. aeruginosa among the tested bacterial strains. Our study reveals that the novel Pf-encoded polypeptide PftP4 has the potential to selectively target and eradicate P. aeruginosa, offering valuable insights for combating P. aeruginosa infections. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Inoviruses)
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10 pages, 1262 KiB  
Article
A New Inovirus from the Human Blood Encodes Proteins with Nuclear Subcellular Localization
by Nikolay Popgeorgiev, Mart Krupovic, Julien Hiblot, Laura Fancello, Sonia Monteil-Bouchard and Christelle Desnues
Viruses 2024, 16(3), 475; https://doi.org/10.3390/v16030475 - 20 Mar 2024
Viewed by 1763
Abstract
Viruses infecting bacteria (bacteriophages) represent the most abundant viral particles in the human body. They participate in the control of the human-associated bacterial communities and play an important role in the dissemination of virulence genes. Here, we present the identification of a new [...] Read more.
Viruses infecting bacteria (bacteriophages) represent the most abundant viral particles in the human body. They participate in the control of the human-associated bacterial communities and play an important role in the dissemination of virulence genes. Here, we present the identification of a new filamentous single-stranded DNA phage of the family Inoviridae, named Ralstonia Inoviridae Phage 1 (RIP1), in the human blood. Metagenomics and PCR analyses detected the RIP1 genome in blood serum, in the absence of concomitant bacterial infection or contamination, suggesting inovirus persistence in the human blood. Finally, we have experimentally demonstrated that the RIP1-encoded rolling circle replication initiation protein and serine integrase have functional nuclear localization signals and upon expression in eukaryotic cells both proteins were translocated into the nucleus. This observation adds to the growing body of data suggesting that phages could have an overlooked impact on the evolution of eukaryotic cells. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Inoviruses)
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19 pages, 3155 KiB  
Article
The Inovirus Pf4 Triggers Antiviral Responses and Disrupts the Proliferation of Airway Basal Epithelial Cells
by Medeea C. Popescu, Naomi L. Haddock, Elizabeth B. Burgener, Laura S. Rojas-Hernandez, Gernot Kaber, Aviv Hargil, Paul L. Bollyky and Carlos E. Milla
Viruses 2024, 16(1), 165; https://doi.org/10.3390/v16010165 - 22 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2076
Abstract
Background: The inovirus Pf4 is a lysogenic bacteriophage of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Pa). People with Cystic Fibrosis (pwCF) experience chronic airway infection with Pa and a significant proportion have high numbers of Pf4 in their airway secretions. Given the known severe damage [...] Read more.
Background: The inovirus Pf4 is a lysogenic bacteriophage of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Pa). People with Cystic Fibrosis (pwCF) experience chronic airway infection with Pa and a significant proportion have high numbers of Pf4 in their airway secretions. Given the known severe damage in the airways of Pa-infected pwCF, we hypothesized a high Pf4 burden can affect airway healing and inflammatory responses. In the airway, basal epithelial cells (BCs) are a multipotent stem cell population critical to epithelium homeostasis and repair. We sought to investigate the transcriptional responses of BCs under conditions that emulate infection with Pa and exposure to high Pf4 burden. Methods: Primary BCs isolated from pwCF and wild-type (WT) donors were cultured in vitro and exposed to Pf4 or bacterial Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) followed by transcriptomic and functional assays. Results: We found that BCs internalized Pf4 and this elicits a strong antiviral response as well as neutrophil chemokine production. Further, we found that BCs that take up Pf4 demonstrate defective migration and proliferation. Conclusions: Our findings are highly suggestive of Pf4 playing a role in the pathogenicity of Pa in the airways. These findings provide additional evidence for the ability of inoviruses to interact with mammalian cells and disrupt cell function. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Inoviruses)
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