scholarly journals The OxyR homologue in Tannerella forsythia regulates expression of oxidative stress responses and biofilm formation

Microbiology ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 155 (6) ◽  
pp. 1912-1922 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kiyonobu Honma ◽  
Elina Mishima ◽  
Satoru Inagaki ◽  
Ashu Sharma

Tannerella forsythia is an anaerobic periodontal pathogen that encounters constant oxidative stress in the human oral cavity due to exposure to air and reactive oxidative species from coexisting dental plaque bacteria as well as leukocytes. In this study, we sought to characterize a T. forsythia ORF with close similarity to bacterial oxidative stress response sensor protein OxyR. To analyse the role of this OxyR homologue, a gene deletion mutant was constructed and characterized. Aerotolerance, survival after hydrogen peroxide challenge and transcription levels of known bacterial antioxidant genes were then determined. Since an association between oxidative stress and biofilm formation has been observed in bacterial systems, we also investigated the role of the OxyR protein in biofilm development by T. forsythia. Our results showed that aerotolerance, sensitivity to peroxide challenge and the expression of oxidative stress response genes were significantly reduced in the mutant as compared with the wild-type strain. Moreover, the results of biofilm analyses showed that, as compared with the wild-type strain, the oxyR mutant showed significantly less autoaggregation and a reduced ability to form mixed biofilms with Fusobacterium nucleatum. In conclusion, a gene annotated in the T. forsythia genome as an oxyR homologue was characterized. Our studies showed that the oxyR homologue in T. forsythia constitutively activates antioxidant genes involved in resistance to peroxides as well as oxygen stress (aerotolerance). In addition, the oxyR deletion attenuates biofilm formation in T. forsythia.

2008 ◽  
Vol 74 (9) ◽  
pp. 2690-2699 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaole Yang ◽  
Qun Ma ◽  
Thomas K. Wood

ABSTRACT Differential gene expression in biofilm cells suggests that adding the derepressed conjugative plasmid R1drd19 increases biofilm formation by affecting genes related to envelope stress (rseA and cpxAR), biofilm formation (bssR and cstA), energy production (glpDFK), acid resistance (gadABCEX and hdeABD), and cell motility (csgBEFG, yehCD, yadC, and yfcV); genes encoding outer membrane proteins (ompACF), phage shock proteins (pspABCDE), and cold shock proteins (cspACDEG); and phage-related genes. To investigate the link between the identified genes and biofilm formation upon the addition of R1drd19, 40 isogenic mutants were classified according to their different biofilm formation phenotypes. Cells with class I mutations (those in rseA, bssR, cpxA, and ompA) exhibited no difference from the wild-type strain in biofilm formation and no increase in biofilm formation upon the addition of R1drd19. Cells with class II mutations (those in gatC, yagI, ompC, cspA, pspD, pspB, ymgB, gadC, pspC, ymgA, slp, cpxP, cpxR, cstA, rseC, ompF, and yqjD) displayed increased biofilm formation compared to the wild-type strain but decreased biofilm formation upon the addition of R1drd19. Class III mutants showed increased biofilm formation compared to the wild-type strain and increased biofilm formation upon the addition of R1drd19. Cells with class IV mutations displayed increased biofilm formation compared to the wild-type strain but little difference upon the addition of R1drd19, and class V mutants exhibited no difference from the wild-type strain but increased biofilm formation upon the addition of R1drd19. Therefore, proteins encoded by the genes corresponding to the class I mutant phenotype are involved in R1drd19-promoted biofilm formation, primarily through their impact on cell motility. We hypothesize that the pili formed upon the addition of the conjugative plasmid disrupt the membrane (induce ompA) and activate the two-component system CpxAR as well as the other envelope stress response system, RseA-σE, both of which, along with BssR, play a key role in bacterial biofilm formation.


2010 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suda Tunpiboonsak ◽  
Rungrawee Mongkolrob ◽  
Kaniskul Kitudomsub ◽  
Phawatwaristh Thanwatanaying ◽  
Witcha Kiettipirodom ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shao-Yu Lee ◽  
Hsueh-Fen Chen ◽  
Ying-Chieh Yeh ◽  
Yao-Peng Xue ◽  
Chung-Yu Lan

Candida albicans is a commensal that inhabits the skin and mucous membranes of humans. Because of the increasing immunocompromised population and the limited classes of antifungal drugs available, C. albicans has emerged as an important opportunistic pathogen with high mortality rates. During infection and therapy, C. albicans frequently encounters immune cells and antifungal drugs, many of which exert their antimicrobial activity by inducing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Therefore, antioxidative capacity is important for the survival and pathogenesis of C. albicans. In this study, we characterized the roles of the zinc finger transcription factor Sfp1 in the oxidative stress response against C. albicans. A sfp1-deleted mutant was more resistant to oxidants and macrophage killing than wild-type C. albicans and processed an active oxidative stress response with the phosphorylation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) Hog1 and high CAP1 expression. Moreover, the sfp1-deleted mutant exhibited high expression levels of antioxidant genes in response to oxidative stress, resulting in a higher total antioxidant capacity, glutathione content, and glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase enzyme activity than the wild-type C. albicans. Finally, the sfp1-deleted mutant was resistant to macrophage killing and ROS-generating antifungal drugs. Together, our findings provide a new understanding of the complex regulatory machinery in the C. albicans oxidative stress response.


2013 ◽  
Vol 81 (8) ◽  
pp. 2952-2961 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sargurunathan Subashchandrabose ◽  
Rhiannon M. Leveque ◽  
Roy N. Kirkwood ◽  
Matti Kiupel ◽  
Martha H. Mulks

ABSTRACTActinobacillus pleuropneumoniaeis the etiological agent of porcine pleuropneumonia, an economically important disease of pigs. Thehfqgene inA. pleuropneumoniae, encoding the RNA chaperone and posttranscriptional regulator Hfq, is upregulated during infection of porcine lungs. To investigate the role of thisin vivo-induced gene inA. pleuropneumoniae, anhfqmutant strain was constructed. Thehfqmutant was defective in biofilm formation on abiotic surfaces. The level ofpgaCtranscript, encoding the biosynthesis of poly-β-1,6-N-acetylglucosamine (PNAG), a major biofilm matrix component, was lower and PNAG content was 10-fold lower in thehfqmutant than in the wild-type strain. When outer membrane proteins were examined, cysteine synthase, implicated in resistance to oxidative stress and tellurite, was not found at detectable levels in the absence of Hfq. Thehfqmutant displayed enhanced sensitivity to superoxide generated by methyl viologen and tellurite. These phenotypes were readily reversed by complementation with thehfqgene expressed from its native promoter. The role of Hfq in the fitness ofA. pleuropneumoniaewas assessed in a natural host infection model. Thehfqmutant failed to colonize porcine lungs and was outcompeted by the wild-type strain (median competitive index of 2 × 10−5). Our data demonstrate that thein vivo-induced genehfqis involved in the regulation of PNAG-dependent biofilm formation, resistance to superoxide stress, and the fitness and virulence ofA. pleuropneumoniaein pigs and begin to elucidate the role of anin vivo-induced gene in the pathogenesis of pleuropneumonia.


2016 ◽  
Vol 72 (6) ◽  
pp. 671-679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesús Manuel Huerta ◽  
Israel Aguilar ◽  
Liliana López-Pliego ◽  
Luis Ernesto Fuentes-Ramírez ◽  
Miguel Castañeda

1999 ◽  
Vol 181 (13) ◽  
pp. 3890-3897 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sang-Jin Suh ◽  
Laura Silo-Suh ◽  
Donald E. Woods ◽  
Daniel J. Hassett ◽  
Susan E. H. West ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The sigma factor RpoS (ςS) has been described as a general stress response regulator that controls the expression of genes which confer increased resistance to various stresses in some gram-negative bacteria. To elucidate the role of RpoS inPseudomonas aeruginosa physiology and pathogenesis, we constructed rpoS mutants in several strains of P. aeruginosa, including PAO1. The PAO1 rpoS mutant was subjected to various environmental stresses, and we compared the resistance phenotype of the mutant to that of the parent. The PAO1rpoS mutant was slightly more sensitive to carbon starvation than the wild-type strain, but this phenotype was obvious only when the cells were grown in a medium supplemented with glucose as the sole carbon source. In addition, the PAO1 rpoS mutant was hypersensitive to heat shock at 50°C, increased osmolarity, and prolonged exposure to high concentrations of H2O2. In accordance with the hypersensitivity to H2O2, catalase production was 60% lower in the rpoS mutant than in the parent strain. We also assessed the role of RpoS in the production of several exoproducts known to be important for virulence of P. aeruginosa. TherpoS mutant produced 50% less exotoxin A, but it produced only slightly smaller amounts of elastase and LasA protease than the parent strain. The levels of phospholipase C and casein-degrading proteases were unaffected by a mutation in rpoS in PAO1. The rpoS mutation resulted in the increased production of the phenazine antibiotic pyocyanin and the siderophore pyoverdine. This increased pyocyanin production may be responsible for the enhanced virulence of the PAO1 rpoS mutant that was observed in a rat chronic-lung-infection model. In addition, the rpoSmutant displayed an altered twitching-motility phenotype, suggesting that the colonization factors, type IV fimbriae, were affected. Finally, in an alginate-overproducing cystic fibrosis (CF) isolate, FRD1, the rpoS101::aacCI mutation almost completely abolished the production of alginate when the bacterium was grown in a liquid medium. On a solid medium, the FRD1rpoS mutant produced approximately 70% less alginate than did the wild-type strain. Thus, our data indicate that although some of the functions of RpoS in P. aeruginosa physiology are similar to RpoS functions in other gram-negative bacteria, it also has some functions unique to this bacterium.


2001 ◽  
Vol 183 (6) ◽  
pp. 1990-1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikki Bollinger ◽  
Daniel J. Hassett ◽  
Barbara H. Iglewski ◽  
J. William Costerton ◽  
Timothy R. McDermott

ABSTRACT Prior studies established that the Pseudomonas aeruginosa oxidative stress response is influenced by iron availability, whereas more recent evidence demonstrated that it was also controlled by quorum sensing (QS) regulatory circuitry. In the present study, sodA (encoding manganese-cofactored superoxide dismutase [Mn-SOD]) and Mn-SOD were used as a reporter gene and endogenous reporter enzyme, respectively, to reexamine control mechanisms that govern the oxidative stress response and to better understand how QS and a nutrient stress response interact or overlap in this bacterium. In cells grown in Trypticase soy broth (TSB), Mn-SOD was found in wild-type stationary-phase planktonic cells but not in alasI or lasR mutant. However, Mn-SOD activity was completely suppressed in the wild-type strain when TSB was supplemented with iron. Reporter gene studies indicated thatsodA transcription could be variably induced in iron-starved cells of all three strains, depending on growth stage. Iron starvation induction of sodA was greatest in the wild-type strain and least in the lasR mutant and was maximal in stationary-phase cells. Reporter experiments in the wild-type strain showed increasedlasI::lacZ transcription in response to iron limitation, whereas the expression level in the lasmutants was minimal and iron starvation induction oflasI::lacZ did not occur. Studies comparing Mn-SOD activity in P. aeruginosa biofilms and planktonic cultures were also initiated. In wild-type biofilms, Mn-SOD was not detected until after 6 days, although in iron-limited wild-type biofilms Mn-SOD was detected within the initial 24 h of biofilm establishment and formation. Unlike planktonic bacteria, Mn-SOD was constitutive in the lasI and lasR mutant biofilms but could be suppressed if the growth medium was amended with 25 μM ferric chloride. This study demonstrated that (i) the nutritional status of the cell must be taken into account when one is evaluating QS-based gene expression; (ii) in the biofilm mode of growth, QS may also have negative regulatory functions; (iii) QS-based gene regulation models based on studies with planktonic cells must be modified in order to explain biofilm gene expression behavior; and (iv) gene expression in biofilms is dynamic.


2008 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. 1798-1804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henriette Geier ◽  
Serge Mostowy ◽  
Gerard A. Cangelosi ◽  
Marcel A. Behr ◽  
Timothy E. Ford

ABSTRACT Mycobacterium avium is an environmental organism and opportunistic pathogen with inherent resistance to drugs, environmental stresses, and the host immune response. To adapt to these disparate conditions, M. avium must control its transcriptional response to environmental cues. M. avium forms biofilms in various environmental settings, including drinking water pipes and potable water reservoirs. In this study, we investigated the role of the universal signaling molecule autoinducer-2 (AI-2) in biofilm formation by M. avium. The addition of the compound to planktonic M. avium cultures resulted in increased biofilm formation. Microarray and reverse transcriptase PCR studies revealed an upregulation of the oxidative stress response upon addition of AI-2. This suggests that the response to AI-2 might be related to oxidative stress, rather than quorum sensing. Consistent with this model, addition of hydrogen peroxide, a known stimulus of the oxidative stress response, to M. avium cultures resulted in elevated biofilm formation. These results suggest that AI-2 does not act as a quorum-sensing signal in M. avium. Instead, biofilm formation is triggered by environmental stresses of biotic and abiotic origins and AI-2 may exert effects on that level.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahnaz Haque

Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) 0157:H7 is a food-borne pathogen that causes hemolytic uremic syndrome and hemorrhagic colitis. The mechanisms underlying the adhesion of EHEC 0157:H7 to intestinal epithelial cells are not well understood. Like other food-borne pathogens, ECEC 0157:H7 must survive the acid stress of the gastric juice in the stomach and short chain fatty acid in the intestine in order to colonize the large intestine. We have found that acid stress and short chain fatty acid stress significantly enhance host-adhesion of EHEC 0157:H7 and also upregulates expression of EHEC fimbrial genes, lpfA1, lpfA2 and yagZ, as demonstrated by our DNA microarray. We now report that disruption of the yagZ (also known as the E. coli common pilus A) gene results in loss of the acid-induced and short chain fatty acid-induced adhesion increase seen for the wild type strain. When the yagZ mutant is complemented with yagZ, the sress-induced and short chain fatty acid-induced adhesion increase seen for the wild type strain. When the yagZ mutant is complemented with yagZ, the stress-induced adhesion pehnotype is restored, confirming the role of yagZ in the acid as well as short chain fatty acid induced adhesion to HEp-2 cells. On the other hand, neither disruption in the long polar fimbria genes lpfA1 or lpfA2 in the wild type showed any effect in adherence to HEp-2 cells; rather displaying a hyperadherant phenotype to HEp-2 cells after acid-induced or short chain fatty acid-induced stress. The results also indicate that acid or short chain fatty acid stress, which is a part of the host's natural defense mechanism against pathogens, may regulate virulence factors resulting in enhanced bacteria-host attachment during colonization in the human or bovine host.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anindita Dutta ◽  
Apurba Das ◽  
Deep Bisht ◽  
Vijendra Arya ◽  
Rohini Muthuswami

Cells respond to oxidative stress by elevating the levels of antioxidants, signaling, and transcriptional regulation often implemented by chromatin remodeling proteins.  The study presented in this paper shows that the expression of PICH, an ATP-dependent chromatin remodeler, is upregulated during oxidative stress in HeLa cells. We also show that PICH regulates the expression of Nrf2, a transcription factor regulating antioxidant response, both in the absence and presence of oxidative stress. In turn, Nrf2 regulates the expression of PICH in the presence of oxidative stress. Both PICH and Nrf2 together regulate the expression of antioxidant genes and this transcriptional regulation is dependent on the ATPase activity of PICH. In addition, H3K27ac modification also plays a role in activating transcription in the presence of oxidative stress. Co-immunoprecipitation experiments show that PICH and Nrf2 interact with H3K27ac in the presence of oxidative stress. Mechanistically, PICH recognizes ARE sequences present on its target genes and introduces a conformational change to the DNA sequences leading us to hypothesize that PICH regulates transcription by remodeling DNA. PICH ablation leads to reduced expression of Nrf2 and impaired antioxidant response leading to increased ROS content, thus, showing PICH is essential for the cell to respond to oxidative stress.


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