New publication in Scientific Reports investigates the response of group B Streptococcus to bilirubin through transcriptomic and proteomic analyses.
Through a collaboration between CGEBM and the research group of Professor Georgina Hold, genomics based techniques were utilised to investigate the effect of bilirubin on the growth of Streptococcus agalactiae. This bacterial species is a common cause of neonatal sepsis and the results here show that growth is reduced in the presence of bilirubin. Hyperbilirubinemia is associated with jaundice in newborns, and this work therefore hypothesises an evolutionary role for jaundice in protection of newborns against neonatal sepsis. Transcriptomic and proteomic profiling indicate that bilirubin alters the expression of genes associated with transport and carbohydrate metabolism in the bacteria, suggesting an impact on the utilisation of substrates.
The full publication can be viewed here.
Prof. Hold has recently left the University of Aberdeen to take on the post of Professor of Gut Microbiology at the St George and Sutherland Clinical School, UNSW Australia. For more details on her work - https://stgcs.med.unsw.edu.au/people/professor-georgina-hold.