High Osmotic Stress Increases OmpK36 Expression through the Regulation of KbvR to Decrease the Antimicrobial Resistance of Klebsiella pneumoniae
Meng Wang, Yujiao Tian, Li Xu, Fusheng Zhang, Huigai Lu, Moran Li, Bei Li
Abstract
Klebsiella pneumoniae is considered a global threat because of the rising prevalence of multidrug-resistant strains and their optimal adaptation to clinical environments and the human host. The sensing and adaption abilities of bacteria to the environmental osmotic stress can change the expression of their outer membrane porins, membrane permeability, and resistance to antibiotics. This study reports that KbvR is a newly found regulator that can be upregulated under high osmotic stress and directly regulate the expression of OmpK36 to change the resistance of K. pneumoniae to β-lactam antibiotics. The results demonstrate how adaptation to high osmotic stress changes the sensitivity of K. pneumoniae to antibiotics. The mechanism can be used to sensitize bacteria to antibiotics and highlight new potential strategies for exploiting shared constraints in governing adaptation to diverse environmental challenges.