Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41254278›Full record

ArticleCommunications biology2025

A critical role of copper homeostasis in the virulence of Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Mingxiao Han, Qi Chen, Feng Xu, Chenhao Zhao, Xin Ma, Qiyuan Jin, Jing Yang, Yi Wang, Rui Qiang, Du Hong and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Communications biology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. CueO Possesses Copper Detoxification Activity Linking Bacterial Virulence and Drug Resistance in Brucella.FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology · 2026
    Article
  4. CuiT is a Cu importer required for metal homeostasis inBiochemistry and biophysics reports · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Mingxiao Han *Department of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Qi Chen *Department of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Feng Xu *Jiangsu Provincial Medical Innovation Center of Trauma Medicine, Institute of Trauma Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Chenhao Zhao *Department of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Xin MaDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Qiyuan JinDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Jing YangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Yi WangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Rui QiangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Du HongDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Haifang ZhangDepartment of Clinical Laboratory, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China. haifangzhang@suda.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0007-9146-1265

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 82172332
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Pathogens are exposed to toxic levels of copper during infection, and copper tolerance may represent a general virulence mechanism utilized by bacteria to evade host defenses. Therefore, the precise regulation of copper homeostasis in bacteria is crucial for coping with external copper stress. However, little is known about the role of copper homeostasis in the virulence of Klebsiella pneumoniae (K. pneumoniae), an important clinical pathogen. This study focused on the potential systems of copper homeostasis in K. pneumoniae and found that deletion of Cue system genes significantly reduced bacterial copper tolerance. The decreased tolerance was due to increased intracellular copper accumulation and greater susceptibility to oxidative stress in the mutants. Furthermore, ΔcopA, ΔcueO ΔcopA, and ΔcueO ΔcusRS mutants may also be associated with reduced virulence and increased susceptibility to phagocytosis or killing by macrophages. Notably, the decreased virulence of ΔcopA and ΔcueO ΔcopA mutants may be associated with impaired capsule polysaccharide and biofilm formation. The ΔcueO ΔcusRS mutant also appeared to display increased sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide. Importantly, these attenuated mutants demonstrated protective effects and may serve as potential vaccine candidates. Altogether, this study identifies the critical role of copper homeostasis in bacterial copper tolerance and the virulence of K. pneumoniae.

Indexed as

CopperHomeostasisKlebsiella InfectionsKlebsiella pneumoniaeAnimalsBacterial ProteinsBiofilmsGene Expression Regulation, BacterialMiceOxidative StressVirulenceBacterial ProteinsCopper

Identifiers

PMID41254278
PMCPMC12627731

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.