Silencing the nosocomial pathogen Serratia marcescens by glyceryl trinitrate

Quorum sensing is a cell-to-cell communication system in bacteria that controls the production of virulence factors. Serratia marcescens is a causative agent of hospital-acquired infections that shows high resistance to antibiotics. This makes the treatment of these infections difficult. Quorum sensing regulates the production of virulence factors of S. marcescens such as prodigiosin, protease, swimming and swarming motilities and formation of biofilms. Inhibition of quorum sensing may be an alternative to antibiotic treatment to avoid emergence of resistance