Adsorption of extracellular proteases and pyocyanin produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa using a macroporous magnesium oxide-templated carbon decreases cytotoxicity

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is one of the most common pathogens isolated in clinical settings and produces a wide range of extracellular molecules that contributes to the virulence. Chemotherapy options to prevent and treat P. aeruginosa infections are limited because this pathogen is highly and innately resistant to some classes of conventional drugs. Alternative methods to conquer P. aeruginosa, including multidrug resistant strains, are being investigated. This study showed that a macroporous magnesium oxide (MgO)-templated carbon material (MgOC(150)) attenuates the toxicity of this bacterium in human epithelial cells. A proteomic analysis revealed that MgOC(150) adsorbs some extracellular proteases, including elastase (LasB) and alkaline protease (AprA), required for the virulence of P. aeruginosa, which decreases the accumulation of these molecules. MgOC(150) also adsorbed pyocyanin, which is another molecule involved in its pathogenesis, but is a nonprotein small-sized molecule. These results suggest a potency of MgOC(150) that suppresses the virulence of P. aeruginosa. MgOC(150) has been used for industrial purposes, as an electrode catalyst and a bioelectrode and for enzyme immobilization. Thus, MgOC(150) could be beneficial for developing novel anti-Pseudomonas therapy.