Abstract
The complex bacterial populations that constitute the gut microbiota can harbor antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), including those encoding β-lactamase enzymes (BLA), which degrade commonly prescribed antibiotics such as ampicillin. The prevalence of such genes in commensal bacteria has been increased in recent years by the wide use of antibiotics in human populations and in livestock. While transfer of ARGs between bacterial species has well-established dramatic public health implications, these genes can also function in trans within bacterial consortia, where antibiotic-resistant bacteria can provide antibiotic-sensitive neighbors with leaky protection from drugs, as shown both in vitro and in vivo, in models of lung and subcutaneous coinfection. However, whether the expression of ARGs by harmless commensal bacterial species can destroy antibiotics in the intestinal lumen and shield antibiotic-sensitive pathogens is unknown. To address this question, we colonized germfree or wild-type mice with a model intestinal commensal strain of Escherichia coli that produces either functional or defective BLA. Mice were subsequently infected with Listeria monocytogenes or Clostridioides difficile, followed by treatment with oral ampicillin. The production of functional BLA by commensal E. coli markedly reduced clearance of these pathogens and enhanced systemic dissemination during ampicillin treatment. Pathogen resistance was independent of ARG acquisition via horizontal gene transfer but instead relied on antibiotic degradation in the intestinal lumen by BLA. We conclude that commensal bacteria that have acquired ARGs can mediate shielding of pathogens from the bactericidal effects of antibiotics.