scholarly journals In vivo transcriptome analysis provides insights into host-dependent expression of virulence factors by Yersinia entomophaga MH96, during infection of Galleria mellonella

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amber R. Paulson ◽  
Maureen O’Callaghan ◽  
Xue-Xian Zhang ◽  
Paul B. Rainey ◽  
Mark R.H. Hurst

AbstractThe function of microbes can be inferred from knowledge of genes specifically expressed in natural environments. Here we report the in vivo transcriptome of the entomopathogenic bacterium Yersinia entomophaga MH96, captured during three stages of intrahemocoelic infection in Galleria mellonella. A total of 1,285 genes were significantly upregulated by MH96 during infection; 829 genes responded to in vivo conditions during at least one stage of infection, 289 responded during two stages of infection and 167 transcripts responded throughout all three stages of infection. Genes upregulated during the earliest infection stage included components of the insecticidal toxin complex Yen-TC (chi1, chi2 and yenC1), genes for rearrangement hotspot element containing protein yenC3, cytolethal distending toxin cdtAB and vegetative insecticidal toxin vip2. Genes more highly expressed throughout the infection cycle included the putative heat-stable enterotoxin yenT and three adhesins (usher-chaperone fimbria, filamentous hemagglutinin and an AidA-like secreted adhesin). Clustering and functional enrichment of gene expression data also revealed expression of genes encoding type III and VI secretion system-associated effectors. Together these data provide insight into the pathobiology of MH96 and serve as an important resource supporting efforts to identify novel insecticidal agents.

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amber R Paulson ◽  
Maureen O’Callaghan ◽  
Xue-Xian Zhang ◽  
Paul B Rainey ◽  
Mark R H Hurst

Abstract The function of microbes can be inferred from knowledge of genes specifically expressed in natural environments. Here, we report the in vivo transcriptome of the entomopathogenic bacterium Yersinia entomophaga MH96, captured during initial, septicemic, and pre-cadaveric stages of intrahemocoelic infection in Galleria mellonella. A total of 1285 genes were significantly upregulated by MH96 during infection; 829 genes responded to in vivo conditions during at least one stage of infection, 289 responded during two stages of infection, and 167 transcripts responded throughout all three stages of infection compared to in vitro conditions at equivalent cell densities. Genes upregulated during the earliest infection stage included components of the insecticidal toxin complex Yen-TC (chi1, chi2, and yenC1), genes for rearrangement hotspot element containing protein yenC3, cytolethal distending toxin cdtAB, and vegetative insecticidal toxin vip2. Genes more highly expressed throughout the infection cycle included the putative heat-stable enterotoxin yenT and three adhesins (usher-chaperone fimbria, filamentous hemagglutinin, and an AidA-like secreted adhesin). Clustering and functional enrichment of gene expression data also revealed expression of genes encoding type III and VI secretion system-associated effectors. Together these data provide insight into the pathobiology of MH96 and serve as an important resource supporting efforts to identify novel insecticidal agents.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana P. Pires ◽  
Rodrigo Monteiro ◽  
Dalila Mil-Homens ◽  
Arsénio Fialho ◽  
Timothy K. Lu ◽  
...  

AbstractIn the era where antibiotic resistance is considered one of the major worldwide concerns, bacteriophages have emerged as a promising therapeutic approach to deal with this problem. Genetically engineered bacteriophages can enable enhanced anti-bacterial functionalities, but require cloning additional genes into the phage genomes, which might be challenging due to the DNA encapsulation capacity of a phage. To tackle this issue, we designed and assembled for the first time synthetic phages with smaller genomes by knocking out up to 48% of the genes encoding hypothetical proteins from the genome of the newly isolated Pseudomonas aeruginosa phage vB_PaeP_PE3. The antibacterial efficacy of the wild-type and the synthetic phages was assessed in vitro as well as in vivo using a Galleria mellonella infection model. Overall, both in vitro and in vivo studies revealed that the knock-outs made in phage genome do not impair the antibacterial properties of the synthetic phages, indicating that this could be a good strategy to clear space from phage genomes in order to enable the introduction of other genes of interest that can potentiate the future treatment of P. aeruginosa infections.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luther M. Swift ◽  
Morgan Burke ◽  
Devon Guerrelli ◽  
Manelle Ramadan ◽  
Marissa Reilly ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTRationaleThe heart continues to develop and mature after birth and into adolescence. Accordingly, cardiac maturation is likely to include a progressive refinement in both organ morphology and function during the postnatal period. Yet, age-dependent changes in cardiac electrophysiology and calcium handling have not yet been fully characterized.ObjectiveThe objective of this study, was to examine the relationship between cardiac maturation, electrophysiology, and calcium handling throughout postnatal development in a rat model.MethodsPostnatal rat cardiac maturation was determined by measuring the expression of genes involved in cell-cell coupling, electrophysiology, and calcium handling. In vivo electrocardiograms were recorded from neonatal, juvenile, and adult animals. Simultaneous dual optical mapping of transmembrane voltage and calcium transients was performed on isolated, Langendorff-perfused rat hearts (postnatal day 0–3, 4-7, 8-14, adult).ResultsYounger, immature hearts displayed slowed electrical conduction, prolonged action potential duration and increased ventricular refractoriness. Slowed calcium handling in the immature heart increased the propensity for calcium transient alternans which corresponded to alterations in the expression of genes encoding calcium handling proteins. Developmental changes in cardiac electrophysiology were associated with the altered expression of genes encoding potassium channels and intercalated disc proteins.ConclusionUsing an intact whole heart model, this study highlights chronological changes in cardiac electrophysiology and calcium handling throughout postnatal development. Results of this study can serve as a comprehensive baseline for future studies focused on pediatric cardiac research, safety assessment and/or preclinical testing using rodent models.


1959 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellicott McConnell ◽  
A. Glenn Richards

Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner produces in vitro a heat-stable, dialyzable substance which is toxic for insects when injected. The same or a similar substance is produced in vivo. The toxic principle is of unknown composition. It is heat-stable, water-soluble, dialyzable, and resistant to low temperatures. It is probably neither a protein nor a lipid. Clearly it is distinct from the heat-labile inclusion bodies and from lecithinase. Growth-curve studies showed that the heat-stable toxin appeared in liver broth cultures during the active growth phase, prior to the formation of spores or inclusion bodies. An attempt to produce the toxic principle from culture media in the absence of bacteria was unsuccessful from sterile inocula both from in vivo and in vitro sources. The LD50 for larvae of Galleria mellonella injected with autoclaved supernatant from a 10-day-old liver broth culture of B. thuringiensis was determined to be 0.00036 ml per larva or 0.002 ml per gram of larvae. Approximately the same level of toxicity was found for another caterpillar, a fly larva, and cockroaches. After larvae of Galleria or Pyrausla have been dead for more than 2 days from infection with B. thuringiensis the bacillus could no longer be recovered. A sublethal amount of the heat-stable toxin injected into old larvae of Galleria delayed emergence of the adults by 30 to 40%. The non-pathogenic Bacillus cereus was found to produce a similar-acting, heat-stable toxin under the same conditions that one is produced by B. thuringiensis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 681
Author(s):  
Tatsuya Kato ◽  
Konomi Nishimura ◽  
Ahmad Suparmin ◽  
Kazuho Ikeo ◽  
Enoch Y. Park

Cordyceps militaris produces cordycepin, a secondary metabolite that exhibits numerous bioactive properties. However, cordycepin pharmacology in vivo is not yet understood. In this study, the roles of cordycepin in C. militaris during its infection were investigated. After the injection of conidia, C. militaris NBRC100741 killed silkworm larvae more rapidly than NBRC103752. At 96 and 120 h, Cmcns genes (Cmcns1–4), which are part of the cordycepin biosynthesis gene cluster, were expressed in fat bodies and cuticles. Thus, cordycepin may be produced in the infection of silkworm larvae. Further, cordycepin enhanced pathogenicity toward silkworm larvae of Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana, that are also entomopathogenic fungi and do not produce cordycepin. In addition, by RNA-seq analysis, the increased expression of the gene encoding a lipoprotein 30K-8 (Bmlp20, KWMTBOMO11934) and decreased expression of genes encoding cuticular proteins (KWMTBOMO13140, KWMTBOMO13167) and a serine protease inhibitor (serpin29, KWMTBOMO08927) were observed when cordycepin was injected into silkworm larvae. This result suggests that cordycepin may aid the in vivo growth of C. militaris in silkworm larvae by the influence of the expression of some genes in silkworm larvae.


1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 2044-2050 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seok Hee Park ◽  
Sang Seok Koh ◽  
Jae Hwan Chun ◽  
Hye Jin Hwang ◽  
Hyen Sam Kang

ABSTRACT Expression of genes encoding starch-degrading enzymes is regulated by glucose repression in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We have identified a transcriptional repressor, Nrg1, in a genetic screen designed to reveal negative factors involved in the expression of STA1, which encodes a glucoamylase. TheNRG1 gene encodes a 25-kDa C2H2zinc finger protein which specifically binds to two regions in the upstream activation sequence of the STA1 gene, as judged by gel retardation and DNase I footprinting analyses. Disruption of theNRG1 gene causes a fivefold increase in the level of theSTA1 transcript in the presence of glucose. The expression of NRG1 itself is inhibited in the absence of glucose. DNA-bound LexA-Nrg1 represses transcription of a target gene 10.7-fold in a glucose-dependent manner, and this repression is abolished in bothssn6 and tup1 mutants. Two-hybrid and glutathione S-transferase pull-down experiments show an interaction of Nrg1 with Ssn6 both in vivo and in vitro. These findings indicate that Nrg1 acts as a DNA-binding repressor and mediates glucose repression of the STA1 gene expression by recruiting the Ssn6-Tup1 complex.


2006 ◽  
Vol 188 (23) ◽  
pp. 8033-8043 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grace L. Axler-DiPerte ◽  
Virginia L. Miller ◽  
Andrew J. Darwin

ABSTRACT Yersinia enterocolitica causes human gastroenteritis, and many isolates have been classified as either “American” or “non-American” strains based on their geographic prevalence and virulence properties. In this study we describe identification of a transcriptional regulator that controls expression of the Y. enterocolitica ytxAB genes. The ytxAB genes have the potential to encode an ADP-ribosylating toxin with similarity to pertussis toxin. However, a ytxAB null mutation did not affect virulence in mice. Nevertheless, the ytxAB genes are conserved in many Y. enterocolitica strains. Interestingly, American and non-American strains have different ytxAB alleles encoding proteins that are only 50 to 60% identical. To obtain further insight into the ytxAB locus, we investigated whether it is regulated as part of a known or novel regulon. Transposon mutagenesis identified a LysR-like regulator, which we designated YtxR. Expression of ytxR from a nonnative promoter increased Φ(ytxA-lacZ) operon fusion expression up to 35-fold. YtxR also activated expression of its own promoter. DNase I footprinting showed that a His6-YtxR fusion protein directly interacted with the ytxA and ytxR control regions at similar distances upstream of their probable transcription initiation sites, identified by primer extension. Deletion analysis demonstrated that removal of the regions protected by His6-YtxR in vitro eliminated YtxR-dependent induction in vivo. The ytxAB locus is not present in most Yersinia species. In contrast, ytxR is conserved in multiple Yersinia species, as well as in the closely related organisms Photorhabdus luminescens and Photorhabdus asymbiotica. These observations suggest that YtxR may play a conserved role involving regulation of other genes besides ytxAB.


2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (17) ◽  
pp. 3263-3275 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. T. Giang Ho ◽  
Audrey Stultiens ◽  
Johanne Dubail ◽  
Charles M. Lapière ◽  
Betty V. Nusgens ◽  
...  

RhoGTPases are key signaling molecules regulating main cellular functions such as migration, proliferation, survival, and gene expression through interactions with various effectors. Within the RhoA-related subclass, RhoA and RhoC contribute to several steps of tumor growth, and the regulation of their expression affects cancer progression. Our aim is to investigate their respective contributions to the acquisition of an invasive phenotype by using models of reduced or forced expression. The silencing of RhoC, but not of RhoA, increased the expression of genes encoding tumor suppressors, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug–activated gene 1 (NAG-1), and decreased migration and the anchorage-independent growth in vitro. In vivo, RhoC small interfering RNA (siRhoC) impaired tumor growth. Of interest, the simultaneous knockdown of RhoC and NAG-1 repressed most of the siRhoC-related effects, demonstrating the central role of NAG-1. In addition of being induced by RhoC silencing, NAG-1 was also largely up-regulated in cells overexpressing RhoA. The silencing of RhoGDP dissociation inhibitor α (RhoGDIα) and the overexpression of a RhoA mutant unable to bind RhoGDIα suggested that the effect of RhoC silencing is indirect and results from the up-regulation of the RhoA level through competition for RhoGDIα. This study demonstrates the dynamic balance inside the RhoGTPase network and illustrates its biological relevance in cancer progression.


Marine Drugs ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (9) ◽  
pp. 432
Author(s):  
Pilar Garcia-Jimenez ◽  
Sara R. Mantesa ◽  
Rafael R. Robaina

Carrageenan, the foremost constituent of extracellular matrix of some rhodophyta, is a galactan backbone with a different number of sulphate groups attached. Variations of degree of sulphation are associated with different types of carrageenans, which vary according to seaweed life cycles, and have consequences for the exploitation of this raw material. In this work, we used three well-recognised stages of development thalli and two stages of cystocarp maturation to analyse genes that encode addition and elimination of sulphate groups to cell-wall galactan of the red seaweed Grateloupia imbricata. Expressions of carbohydrate sulfotransferase and galactose-6 sulfurylase and genes encoding stress proteins such as cytochrome P450 and WD40, were examined. Results showed that transcript expression of carbohydrate sulfotransferase occurs at all stage of thalli development. Meanwhile galactose-6 sulfurylase expressions displayed different roles, which could be related to a temporal regulation of cystocarp maturation. Cytochrome P450 and WD40 are related to the disclosure and maturation of cystocarps of G. imbricata. Our conclusion is that differential expression of genes encoding proteins involved in the sulphation and desulphation of galactan backbone is associated with alterations in thalli development and cystocarp maturation in the red seaweed Grateloupia imbricata. Exploitation of industry-valued carrageenan will depend on insight into gene mechanisms of red seaweeds.


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