Inhibition of bacterial biofilms by the snake venom proteome

Neyaz A Khan; Fernanda G Amorim; John P Dunbar; Dayle Leonard; Damien Redureau; Loïc Quinton; Michel M Dugon; Aoife Boyd

doi:10.1016/j.btre.2023.e00810

Inhibition of bacterial biofilms by the snake venom proteome

Biotechnol Rep (Amst). 2023 Aug 1:39:e00810. doi: 10.1016/j.btre.2023.e00810. eCollection 2023 Sep.

Authors

Neyaz A Khan¹, Fernanda G Amorim², John P Dunbar³, Dayle Leonard^{1

3}, Damien Redureau², Loïc Quinton², Michel M Dugon³, Aoife Boyd¹

Affiliations

¹ Pathogenic Mechanisms Research Group, School of Natural Sciences, University of Galway, Ireland.
² Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, MolSys RU, University of Liège, Belgium.
³ Venom Systems & Proteomics Lab, School of Natural Sciences, Ryan Institute, University of Galway, Ireland.

Abstract

Snake venoms possess a range of pharmacological and toxicological activities. Here we evaluated the antibacterial and anti-biofilm activity against methicillin-susceptible and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA and MRSA) of venoms from the Samar spitting cobra Naja samarensis and the Puff adder Bitis arietans. Both venoms prevented biofilm production by pathogenic S. aureus in a growth-independent manner, with the B. arietans venom being most potent. Fractionation showed the active molecule to be heat-labile and >10 kDa in size. Proteomic profiles of N. samarensis venom revealed neurotoxins and cytotoxins, as well as an abundance of serine proteases and three-finger toxins, while serine proteases, metalloproteinases and C-lectin types were abundant in B. arietans venom. These enzymes may have evolved to prevent bacteria colonising the snake venom gland. From a biomedical biotechnology perspective, they have valuable potential for anti-virulence therapy to fight antibiotic resistant microbes.

Keywords: Anti-biofilm agents; Anti-virulence molecules; MRSA; MSSA; Snake venom.