Studies on proteases and biofilm formation: two potential critical factors in the pathogenesis of Streptococcus suis

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Streptococcus suis, a major swine pathogen worldwide, is transmitted via the respiratory route and colonizes the palatine tonsils of pigs. Major infections caused by this pathogen include septicemiae, meningitis and endocarditis. These bacterial infections generate important economic losses to the Canadian swine industry. The mechanisms by which S. suis invades and infects the host are still unclear even though numerous studies on potential virulence factors have been carried out over the past decade. The research program of my laboratory is based on our central hypothesis that host-bacteria interactions play a critical role in the pathogenesis of S. suis infections and focuses on protease activities and biofilm formation. Our laboratory is the first to study these two relevant aspects in S. suis infections. In this application, we propose to further investigate these properties of S. suis and to provide evidences for their contribution to the infectious process. Our research program has two complementary objectives: (i) increase our basic knowledge of the virulence determinants of the swine pathogen S. suis, and (ii) use this knowledge to identify new candidate vaccines or therapeutic targets to control S. suis infections.