Comparative analysis of extracellular enzymes and virulence exhibited by Burkholderia pseudomallei from different sources

To evaluate the potential role of extracellular proteins in the pathogenicity and virulence of Burkholderia pseudomallei, the activities of several enzymes in the culture filtrates of nine clinical and six environmental isolates were investigated in vitro and in vivo in ICR strain of mice. The production of protease, phosphatase, phospholipase C, superoxide dismutase, catalase and peroxidase were detected in the culture filtrates of all the 15 isolates at different time points of growth 4–24 h. Over time, activity of each enzyme at each time point varied. Profile of secretion was similar among the 15 isolates irrespective of source, that is clinical or environmental. Catalase, phosphatase and phospholipase C were found to be increased in 60–100% of the isolates post-passage in mice. In vivo inoculation studies in ICR mice demonstrated a wide difference in their ability to cause bacteraemia, splenic or external abscesses and mortality rate ranged from few days to several weeks.