Proteomic Analysis of Three Independent Series of Sequential Cystic Fibrosis Strains in an International Pseudomonas aeruginosa Reference Panel Indicates Positive Selection in Late Infection Strains

Abstract

ABSTRACT Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a highly diverse, adaptable Gram‐negative bacterium that thrives in many environments and is a frequent cause of chronic opportunistic infections in people with cystic fibrosis (CF). P. aeruginosa adapts over time of colonization to facilitate chronic infection, including loss of virulence factors; however, proteomic analyses of the adaptation to chronic infection have been limited. We previously assembled and characterized an international panel of P. aeruginosa strains from diverse clinical and geographical sources, including three sets of sequential CF isolates, enabling identification of conserved adaptations linked to chronic CF lung colonization. We compared the proteomes of eight strains (three early and five late infection) to assess whether common proteomic changes emerged during colonization across the sequential isolates. We identified 11 proteins showing increased abundance in late isolates in all three series, many of which are associated with virulence, regulation of virulence, or response to hypoxia. These include CF inhibitory factor repressor (CifR); WspR; 2 two‐component response regulators (PA2572 and PA3702), and transcriptional regulator (PA2551). Moreover, we identified three proteins (PA2572, PA3819, and PA5028) that showed increased abundance in all five late isolates. The probability of this being random is 5.06 × 10−53 and therefore, strong evidence of positive selection. The increased abundance of PA2573 and PA3819 appears to improve the fitness of P. aeruginosa in response to antibiotics and oxidative stress. All three proteins share a tyrosine phosphorylation motif, suggesting a common regulatory mechanism. Overall, despite substantial diversity across P. aeruginosa, common adaptations occur in the CF lung.