Researchgroup Krismer

Bernhard Krismer studied Biology in Innsbruck, Austria, and Tübingen, Germany, and obtained Diploma and PhD degrees in Microbiology. He held a postdoctoral position in the lab of Friedrich Götz in Tübingen. In 2002 he joined the company DR. PETRY genmedics GmbH as CSO (chief scientific officer), being responsible for contract research, development of large scale protein expression and purification with a proprietary expression system, and screening of natural product libraries. Since 2008 he is a member of the group of Prof. Andreas Peschel focusing on the human nose as habitat for pathogenic S. aureus and the development of new antiinfectives.

Ecology of staphylococcal nasal colonization (Bernhard Krismer et al): Colonization of the human nose by S. aureus in one third of the human population represents a major risk factor for invasive infections. The basis for adaptation of S. aureus to this specific habitat and reasons for the human predisposition to become colonized have remained largely unknown. We found that metabolite concentrations are similar in S. aureus carriers and non-carriers indicating that the predisposition to be a carrier is not associated with differences in nasal nutrient supply. Based on nasal metabolite profiles a synthetic nasal medium was composed representing a suitable surrogate environment for in vitro simulation of nasal colonization and gene expression. Notably, methionine biosynthesis was found to represents a promising new target for anti-staphylococcal agents because expression of a central S. aureus methionine-biosynthetic enzyme was strongly upregulated during nasal colonization and a specific enzyme inhibitor exhibited anti-staphylococcal activity.

Torres Salazar BO, Dema T, Schilling NA, Janek D, Bornikoel J, Berscheid A, Elsherbini AMA, Krauss S, Jaag SJ, Lämmerhofer M, Li M, Alqahtani N, Horsburgh MJ, Weber T, Beltrán-Beleña JM, Brötz-Oesterhelt H, Grond S, Krismer B, Peschel A. (2024) Commensal production of a broad-spectrum and short-lived antimicrobial peptide polyene eliminates nasal Staphylococcus aureus. Nat Microbiol. 9(1):200-213. doi: 10.1038/s41564-023-01544-2.

Fernández-Fernández R, Lozano C, Fernández-Pérez R, Zarazaga M, Peschel A, Krismer B, Torres C. (2023) Detection and evaluation of the antimicrobial activity of Micrococcin P1 isolated from commensal and environmental staphylococcal isolates against MRSA. Int J Antimicrob Agents. 62(5):106965. doi: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2023.106965.

Fernández-Fernández R, Elsherbini AMA, Lozano C, Martínez A, de Toro M, Zarazaga M, Peschel A, Krismer B, Torres C. (2023) Genomic Analysis of Bacteriocin-Producing Staphylococci: High Prevalence of Lanthipeptides and the Micrococcin P1 Biosynthetic Gene Clusters. Probiotics Antimicrob Proteins. doi: 10.1007/s12602-023-10119-w.

Krauss S, Harbig TA, Rapp J, Schaefle T, Franz-Wachtel M, Reetz L, Elsherbini AMA, Macek B, Grond S, Link H, Nieselt K, Krismer B, Peschel A, Heilbronner S. (2023) Horizontal Transfer of Bacteriocin Biosynthesis Genes Requires Metabolic Adaptation To Improve Compound Production and Cellular Fitness. Microbiol Spectr. 11(1):e0317622. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.03176-22.

Tricarico PM, Gratton R, Dos Santos-Silva CA, de Moura RR, Ura B, Sommella E, Campiglia P, Del Vecchio C, Moltrasio C, Berti I, D'Adamo AP, Elsherbini AMA, Staudenmaier L, Chersi K, Boniotto M, Krismer B, Schittek B, Crovella S. (2022) A rare loss-of-function genetic mutation suggest a role of dermcidin deficiency in hidradenitis suppurativa pathogenesis. Front Immunol. 13:1060547. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1060547.

Slavetinsky CJ, Hauser JN, Gekeler C, Slavetinsky J, Geyer A, Kraus A, Heilingbrunner D, Wagner S, Tesar M, Krismer B, Kuhn S, Ernst CM, Peschel A. (2022) Sensitizing Staphylococcus aureus to antibacterial agents by decoding and blocking the lipid flippase MprF. Elife. 11:e66376. doi: 10.7554/eLife.66376.

Torres Salazar BO, Heilbronner S, Peschel A, Krismer B. (2021) Secondary Metabolites Governing Microbiome Interaction of Staphylococcal Pathogens and Commensals. Microb Physiol. 31(3):198-216. doi: 10.1159/000517082.

Heilbronner S, Krismer B, Brötz-Oesterhelt H, Peschel A. (2021) The microbiome-shaping roles of bacteriocins. Nat Rev Microbiol.19(11):726-739. doi: 10.1038/s41579-021-00569-w.

Du X, Larsen J, Li M, Walter A, Slavetinsky C, Both A, Sanchez Carballo PM, Stegger M, Lehmann E, Liu Y, Liu J, Slavetinsky J, Duda KA, Krismer B, Heilbronner S, Weidenmaier C, Mayer C, Rohde H, Winstel V, Peschel A. (2021) Staphylococcus epidermidis clones express Staphylococcus aureus-type wall teichoic acid to shift from a commensal to pathogen lifestyle. Nat Microbiol. 6(6):757-768. doi: 10.1038/s41564-021-00913-z.

Saur JS, Wirtz SN, Schilling NA, Krismer B, Peschel A, Grond S. (2021) Distinct Lugdunins from a New Efficient Synthesis and Broad Exploitation of Its MRSA-Antimicrobial Structure. J Med Chem. 64(7):4034-4058. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.0c02170.

Krauss S, Zipperer A, Wirtz S, Saur J, Konnerth MC, Heilbronner S, Torres Salazar BO, Grond S, Krismer B, Peschel A. (2020) Secretion of and Self-Resistance to the Novel Fibupeptide Antimicrobial Lugdunin by Distinct ABC Transporters in Staphylococcus lugdunensis. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 65(1):e01734-20. doi: 10.1128/AAC.01734-20.

Bitschar K, Sauer B, Focken J, Dehmer H, Moos S, Konnerth M, Schilling NA, Grond S, Kalbacher H, Kurschus FC, Götz F, Krismer B, Peschel A, Schittek B (2019) Lugdunin amplifies innate immune responses in the skin in synergy with host- and microbiota-derived factors. Nat Commun 10(1):2730.

Laux C, Peschel A, Krismer B (2019) Staphylococcus aureus Colonization of the Human Nose and Interaction with Other Microbiome Members. Microbiol Spectr 7(2).

Schilling NA, Berscheid A, Schumacher J, Saur JS, Konnerth MC, Wirtz SN, Beltrán-Beleña JM, Zipperer A, Krismer B, Peschel A, Kalbacher H, Brötz-Oesterhelt H, Steinem C, Grond S (2019) Synthetic Lugdunin Analogues Reveal Essential Structural Motifs for Antimicrobial Action and Proton Translocation Capability. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 58(27):9234-9238.

Krismer B, Weidenmaier C, Zipperer A, Peschel A (2017) The commensal lifestyle of Staphylococcus aureus and its interactions with the nasal microbiota. Nat Rev Microbiol. 15(11):675-687.

Zipperer A, Konnerth MC, Laux C, Berscheid A, Janek D, Weidenmaier C, Burian M, Schilling NA, Slavetinsky C, Marschal M, Willmann M, Kalbacher H, Schittek B, Brötz-Oesterhelt H, Grond S, Peschel A, Krismer B. (2016) Human commensals producing a novel antibiotic impair pathogen colonization. Nature 535, 511–516.

Janek D, Zipperer A, Kulik A, Krismer B, Peschel A. (2016) High Frequency and Diversity of Antimicrobial Activities Produced by Nasal Staphylococcus Strains against Bacterial Competitors. PLoS pathogens 12(8):e1005812.

Ernst CM, Kuhn S, Slavetinsky CJ, Krismer B, Heilbronner S, Gekeler C, et al. (2015) The lipid-modifying multiple peptide resistance factor is an oligomer consisting of distinct interacting synthase and flippase subunits. mBio 6(1):e02340-14.

Krismer B, Liebeke M, Janek D, Nega M, Rautenberg M, Hornig G, et al. (2014) Nutrient limitation governs Staphylococcus aureus metabolism and niche adaptation in the human nose. PLoS pathogens. 10(1):e1003862.

CMFI - Cluster of Excellence - Controlling Microbes to Fight Infections
Spatiotemporal exometabolome investigation of human associated microbiota by low-temperature plasma ionization imaging mass spectrometry (LTP-IMS)

BMBF - German Center for Infection Research (DZIF)

Research area ‘hospital-associated and antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections’. Projekt: New strategies for specific decolonization of S. aureus