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. 2013 Dec 11;14(6):641-51.
doi: 10.1016/j.chom.2013.11.002.

Microbiota-derived hydrogen fuels Salmonella typhimurium invasion of the gut ecosystem

Lisa Maier  1 , Rounak Vyas  2 , Carmen Dolores Cordova  1 , Helen Lindsay  2 , Thomas Sebastian Benedikt Schmidt  2 , Sandrine Brugiroux  3 , Balamurugan Periaswamy  1 , Rebekka Bauer  1 , Alexander Sturm  1 , Frank Schreiber  4 , Christian von Mering  2 , Mark D Robinson  2 , Bärbel Stecher  3 , Wolf-Dietrich Hardt  5
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Free article

Microbiota-derived hydrogen fuels Salmonella typhimurium invasion of the gut ecosystem

Lisa Maier et al. Cell Host Microbe. .
Free article

Abstract

The intestinal microbiota features intricate metabolic interactions involving the breakdown and reuse of host- and diet-derived nutrients. The competition for these resources can limit pathogen growth. Nevertheless, some enteropathogenic bacteria can invade this niche through mechanisms that remain largely unclear. Using a mouse model for Salmonella diarrhea and a transposon mutant screen, we discovered that initial growth of Salmonella Typhimurium (S. Tm) in the unperturbed gut is powered by S. Tm hyb hydrogenase, which facilitates consumption of hydrogen (H2), a central intermediate of microbiota metabolism. In competitive infection experiments, a hyb mutant exhibited reduced growth early in infection compared to wild-type S. Tm, but these differences were lost upon antibiotic-mediated disruption of the host microbiota. Additionally, introducing H2-consuming bacteria into the microbiota interfered with hyb-dependent S. Tm growth. Thus, H2 is an Achilles' heel of microbiota metabolism that can be subverted by pathogens and might offer opportunities to prevent infection.

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  • A hydrogen boost for salmonella.
    Sassone-Corsi M, Raffatellu M. Sassone-Corsi M, et al. Cell Host Microbe. 2013 Dec 11;14(6):603-4. doi: 10.1016/j.chom.2013.11.011. Cell Host Microbe. 2013. PMID: 24331457

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