Bacteriocins for control of Salmonella enterica
Inventors
Hahn, Simone • Schneider, Tobias • Stephan, Anett • Schulz, Steve • Giritch, Anatoli • Gleba, Yuri • Prochaska, Heike
Assignees
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Publication Number
US-12264183-B2
Publication Date
2025-04-01
Expiration Date
Abstract
The present invention relates to bacteriocins for control of Salmonella enterica (salmocins). The bacteriocins are derived from Salmonella. The salmocins can be expressed in plants and can be used in a method of preventing or reducing infection or contamination of an object with Salmonella.
Core Innovation
The invention relates to salmocins, Salmonella-derived bacteriocin proteins intended to exert a cytotoxic effect on Salmonella. It defines salmocin protein architectures that include a binding domain and a cytotoxic or catalytic domain with cytotoxic activities including pore-forming activity, nuclease activities such as DNase and RNase, and cell wall degrading activity such as muramidase, and the salmocins can include an optional translocation domain for transport of the cytotoxic domain.
The description specifies salmocin protein sequence variants by defining sequence segments and allowable sequence changes using sequence identity and sequence similarity thresholds. It also defines permitted amino acid substitutions, additions, insertions, and deletions, and minimum contiguous amino acid residue lengths for relevant sequence parts, with multiple sequence examples using SEQ ID numbers corresponding to specific salmocin proteins and related variants.
Compositions and uses are described that include salmocins as proteins in pharmaceutical or food-decontamination contexts, including plant-expressed salmocins provided as plant material or extracts or as aqueous solutions. The document further describes preventing or reducing Salmonella contamination of objects, including food, and treating Salmonella infection in subjects, with expression in plants and activity screening across multiple Salmonella serovars and application on chicken meat matrices to show bacterial load reductions.
Claims Coverage
The independent claim recites a protein-containing composition defined by specific salmocin amino-acid sequences and permissible variants together with additional specified salmocin proteins. The claim’s inventive coverage is centered on sequence-defined proteins and variant criteria combined with additional specified salmocin proteins using identity, similarity, length, and substitution, addition, insertion, and deletion constraints.
Sequence-defined salmocin protein composition centered on SEQ ID NO: 28
A composition comprising a protein comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 28, or an amino acid sequence meeting specified sequence identity or sequence similarity thresholds to SEQ ID NO: 28, or an amino acid sequence with from 1 to 40 amino acid substitutions, additions, insertions or deletions to SEQ ID NO: 28, or an amino acid sequence comprising or consisting of at least 215 contiguous amino acid residues of SEQ ID NO: 28.
Composition further comprising multiple additional specified salmocin proteins with sequence constraints
The composition further comprises at least one additional protein corresponding to SEQ ID NO: 3, and/or SEQ ID NO: 25, and/or SEQ ID NO: 26, and/or SEQ ID NO: 27, where each additional protein is defined using analogous constraints based on specified sequence identity or sequence similarity thresholds, or the allowed range of substitutions, additions, insertions, or deletions, or minimum contiguous amino acid residue lengths.
Across the independent claim, the inventive subject matter is a defined protein composition that combines a SEQ ID NO: 28-based salmocin protein with additional salmocin proteins from the set of SEQ ID NO: 3, 25, 26, and 27, each governed by specified sequence identity, similarity, length, and mutation constraints.
Stated Advantages
Broad, high antibacterial coverage against diverse Salmonella pathovars.
Higher/broader potency than colicins against Salmonella.
Low/narrow inter-specific activity against E. coli STEC.
Bactericidal efficacy in contaminated chicken meat matrices, with dose-dependent log reductions.
Documented Applications
Simulation on contaminated chicken meat matrices demonstrating bactericidal efficacy of plant-produced salmocin ScolE1a and salmocin blends.
Antimicrobial susceptibility testing using strain panels against Salmonella and E. coli STEC.
Preventing or reducing Salmonella contamination of objects, including food, using compositions comprising the claimed salmocin proteins.
Treating Salmonella infection in subjects using compositions comprising the claimed salmocin proteins.
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