PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Josefin Eklöf
AU  - Mari-Anna Misiakou
AU  - Pradeesh Sivapalan
AU  - Karin Armbruster
AU  - Andrea Browatzki
AU  - Thyge L. Nielsen
AU  - Therese S. Lapperre
AU  - Helle F. Andreassen
AU  - Julie Janner
AU  - Charlotte S. Ulrik
AU  - Migle Gabrielaite
AU  - Helle K. Johansen
AU  - Annemette Jensen
AU  - Tine V. Nielsen
AU  - Frederik B. Hertz
AU  - Khaled Ghathian
AU  - Henrik Calum
AU  - Torgny Wilcke
AU  - Niels Seersholm
AU  - Jens-Ulrik Jensen
AU  - Rasmus L. Marvig
TI  - Persistence and genetic adaptation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in patients with COPD
AID  - 10.1183/13993003.congress-2020.4932
DP  - 2020 Sep 07
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - 4932
VI  - 56
IP  - suppl 64
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/56/suppl_64/4932.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/56/suppl_64/4932.full
SO  - Eur Respir J2020 Sep 07; 56
AB  - Background: Pulmonary P. aeruginosa infections increase morbidity in COPD patients. While low resolution molecular typing has shown that the same clonal lineage can persist and adapt in the lungs, the prevalence of chronic infections in consistently sampled COPD cohorts remains unknown.Objective: The study aim was to determine the prevalence and genetic adaptation of persistent P. aeruginosa infections in patients with COPD.Methods: Whole-genome sequencing study of P. aeruginosa strains sampled longitudinally from sputum cultures in 23 patients enrolled in an ongoing randomized controlled trial in Denmark (clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03262142).Results: A total of 153 P. aeruginosa isolates were sequenced in 23 patients during 365 days of follow-up. Genome sequencing showed that 18 patients were infected with clonal lineages that persisted for at least 30 days (Figure 1). We identified 37 P. aeruginosa genes that were independently mutated in two or more lineages, suggesting a positive selection for adaptive mutations. Mutation in the same genes have previously been shown to be important for persistent infections in patients with genetically defined mucociliary clearance defects.Conclusion: P. aeruginosa persists and genetically adapts in patients with COPD. Thus, our results indicate parallelism to P. aeruginosa infections in patients with genetically defined mucociliary clearance defects. FootnotesCite this article as: European Respiratory Journal 2020; 56: Suppl. 64, 4932.This abstract was presented at the 2020 ERS International Congress, in session “Respiratory viruses in the "pre COVID-19" era”.This is an ERS International Congress abstract. No full-text version is available. Further material to accompany this abstract may be available at www.ers-education.org (ERS member access only).