Exogenous amino acids and saccharides mediate the sensitivity of Klebsiella pneumoniae phage
7 affiliations
- 1Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The Affiliated Yangming Hospital of Ningbo University (Yuyao People’s Hospital), Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
- 2Ningbo Key Laboratory of Malignant Tumor Immunodiagnosis and Immunotherapy, Health Science Center, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
- 3School of Basic Medical Sciences, Health Science Center, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
- 4Department of Clinical Laboratory Medicine, Ningbo No.2 Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China
- 5School of Marine Sciences, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
- 6School of Pharmacy, Health Science Center, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China
- 7School of Pharmacy, Changsha Medical University, Changsha, China
Abstract
Klebsiella pneumoniae is a major opportunistic pathogen responsible for severe infections, particularly in nosocomial settings. The increasing prevalence of multidrug-resistant strains has greatly limited the effectiveness of conventional antibiotics, highlighting the urgent need for alternative therapeutic strategies. Phage therapy has emerged as a promising approach; however, its efficacy is often influenced by bacterial physiological states, leading to variability in phage susceptibility. Amino acids and saccharides, as essential nutritional components, play important roles in bacterial growth and metabolism. Nevertheless, the mechanisms by which these nutrients affect bacterial physiological states and subsequently modulate susceptibility to phage infection remain poorly understood. In this study, the effects of 18 exogenous amino acids and eight saccharides on the growth of K. pneumoniae were assessed, and the variations in phage adsorption sensitivity of the treated bacteria were analyzed. Additionally, the impact of exogenous carbon sources on bacterial characteristics was further investigated through minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and biofilm formation assays. Compared with the control group, phage adsorption efficiency was significantly reduced after carbon source treatment. Furthermore, MIC values and biofilm formation capacity were altered to varying degrees, indicating that environmental nutrient conditions may influence the efficacy of phage therapy against drug-resistant K. pneumoniae infection.
IMPORTANCE: The success of phage therapy depends not only on phage properties but also on the physiological state of the bacterial host. Although nutrients are fundamental determinants of bacterial metabolism and growth, their effects on phage susceptibility remain poorly characterized. Here, we systematically evaluated the influence of multiple amino acids and saccharides on K. pneumoniae and demonstrated that nutrient availability can markedly alter bacterial susceptibility to phage adsorption. In addition, nutrient-induced changes were associated with variations in antimicrobial susceptibility and biofilm formation. These findings highlight the importance of environmental nutritional conditions in shaping phage-host interactions and suggest that nutrient availability should be considered when optimizing phage-based strategies against multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.
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BibTeX
@article{pan2026exogenous,
title = {{Exogenous amino acids and saccharides mediate the sensitivity of Klebsiella pneumoniae phage}},
author = {Jieting Pan and Wanting Shan and Zhu Chen and Mengye Ma and Bingqing Xu and Jiasong Xie and Xibang Liu and Lijian Ding and Liming Jiang},
journal = {Microbiology Spectrum},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1128/spectrum.01902-26},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.01902-26},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Exogenous amino acids and saccharides mediate the sensitivity of Klebsiella pneumoniae phage
AU - Jieting Pan
AU - Wanting Shan
AU - Zhu Chen
AU - Mengye Ma
AU - Bingqing Xu
AU - Jiasong Xie
AU - Xibang Liu
AU - Lijian Ding
AU - Liming Jiang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/23
JO - Microbiology Spectrum
DO - 10.1128/spectrum.01902-26
UR - https://doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.01902-26
AB - Klebsiella pneumoniae is a major opportunistic pathogen responsible for severe infections, particularly in nosocomial settings. The increasing prevalence of multidrug-resistant strains has greatly limited the effectiveness of conventional antibiotics, highlighting the urgent need for alternative therapeutic strategies. Phage therapy has emerged as a promising approach; however, its efficacy is often influenced by bacterial physiological states, leading to variability in phage susceptibility. Amino acids and saccharides, as essential nutritional components, play important roles in bacterial growth and metabolism. Nevertheless, the mechanisms by which these nutrients affect bacterial physiological states and subsequently modulate susceptibility to phage infection remain poorly understood. In this study, the effects of 18 exogenous amino acids and eight saccharides on the growth of K. pneumoniae were assessed, and the variations in phage adsorption sensitivity of the treated bacteria were analyzed. Additionally, the impact of exogenous carbon sources on bacterial characteristics was further investigated through minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and biofilm formation assays. Compared with the control group, phage adsorption efficiency was significantly reduced after carbon source treatment. Furthermore, MIC values and biofilm formation capacity were altered to varying degrees, indicating that environmental nutrient conditions may influence the efficacy of phage therapy against drug-resistant K. pneumoniae infection. IMPORTANCE: The success of phage therapy depends not only on phage properties but also on the physiological state of the bacterial host. Although nutrients are fundamental determinants of bacterial metabolism and growth, their effects on phage susceptibility remain poorly characterized. Here, we systematically evaluated the influence of multiple amino acids and saccharides on K. pneumoniae and demonstrated that nutrient availability can markedly alter bacterial susceptibility to phage adsorption. In addition, nutrient-induced changes were associated with variations in antimicrobial susceptibility and biofilm formation. These findings highlight the importance of environmental nutritional conditions in shaping phage-host interactions and suggest that nutrient availability should be considered when optimizing phage-based strategies against multidrug-resistant bacterial infections.
SN - 2165-0497
ER -