scholarly journals Global Expression of Prophage Genes in Escherichia coli O157:H7 Strain EDL933 in Response to Norfloxacin

2005 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 931-944 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvia Herold ◽  
Jutta Siebert ◽  
Andrea Huber ◽  
Herbert Schmidt

ABSTRACT We investigated the influence of a low concentration of the gyrase inhibitor norfloxacin on the transcriptome of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 strain EDL933. For this purpose, we used a commercial DNA microarray containing oligonucleotides specific for E. coli O157:H7 strains EDL933 and RIMD0509952 and E. coli K-12 strain MG1655. Under the conditions applied, 5,963 spots (94% of all spots) could be analyzed. Among these, 118 spots (P < 0.05) indicated transcriptional upregulation and 122 spots (P < 0.05) indicated transcriptional downregulation of the E. coli genes present on the array. Eighty-five upregulated EDL933 genes were phage borne. Fifty-two of them could be ascribed to the Shiga toxin-encoding phages (Stx phages) BP-933W and CP-933V; the other 33 genes belonged to non-Stx prophage elements in the EDL933 genome. Genes present in the BP-933W prophage genome were induced most strongly up to 158-fold in the case of stxA2 upon induction with norfloxacin. Twenty-two additional upregulated genes appeared to be E. coli O157:H7 strain RIMD0509952-specific phage elements, and the remaining 11 genes were related mainly to recombination and stress functions. Downregulation was indicated predominantly for genes responsible for bacterial primary metabolism, such as energy production, cell division, and amino acid biosynthesis. Interestingly, some genes present in the locus of enterocyte effacement appeared to be downregulated. The results of the study have shown that a low concentration of norfloxacin has profound effects on the transcriptome of E. coli O157:H7.

2002 ◽  
Vol 70 (6) ◽  
pp. 3085-3093 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa Sperandio ◽  
Caiyi C. Li ◽  
James B. Kaper

ABSTRACT The locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) is a chromosomal pathogenicity island that encodes the proteins involved in the formation of the attaching and effacing lesions by enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) and enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC). The LEE comprises 41 open reading frames organized in five major operons, LEE1, LEE2, LEE3, tir (LEE5), and LEE4, which encode a type III secretion system, the intimin adhesin, the translocated intimin receptor (Tir), and other effector proteins. The first gene of LEE1 encodes the Ler regulator, which activates all the other genes within the LEE. We previously reported that the LEE genes were activated by quorum sensing through Ler (V. Sperandio, J. L. Mellies, W. Nguyen, S. Shin, and J. B. Kaper, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96:15196-15201, 1999). In this study we report that a putative regulator in the E. coli genome is itself activated by quorum sensing. This regulator is encoded by open reading frame b3243; belongs to the LysR family of regulators; is present in EHEC, EPEC, and E. coli K-12; and shares homology with the AphB and PtxR regulators of Vibrio cholerae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, respectively. We confirmed the activation of b3243 by quorum sensing by using transcriptional fusions and renamed this regulator quorum-sensing E. coli regulator A (QseA). We observed that QseA activated transcription of ler and therefore of the other LEE genes. An EHEC qseA mutant had a striking reduction of type III secretion activity, which was complemented when qseA was provided in trans. Similar results were also observed with a qseA mutant of EPEC. The QseA regulator is part of the regulatory cascade that regulates EHEC and EPEC virulence genes by quorum sensing.


2017 ◽  
Vol 85 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roslen Bondì ◽  
Paola Chiani ◽  
Valeria Michelacci ◽  
Fabio Minelli ◽  
Alfredo Caprioli ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE)-negative Shiga toxin (Stx)-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) strains are human pathogens that lack the LEE locus, a pathogenicity island (PAI) involved in the intimate adhesion of LEE-positive strains to the host gut epithelium. The mechanism used by LEE-negative STEC strains to colonize the host intestinal mucosa is still not clear. The cell invasion determinant tia, previously described in enterotoxigenic E. coli strains, has been identified in LEE-negative STEC strains that possess the subtilase-encoding pathogenicity island (SE-PAI). We evaluated the role of the gene tia, present in these LEE-negative STEC strains, in the invasion of monolayers of cultured cells. We observed that these strains were able to invade Caco-2 and HEp-2 cell monolayers and compared their invasion ability with that of a mutant strain in which the gene tia had been inactivated. Mutation of the gene tia resulted in a strong reduction of the invasive phenotype, and complementation of the tia mutation with a functional copy of the gene restored the invasion activity. Moreover, we show that the gene tia is overexpressed in bacteria actively invading cell monolayers, demonstrating that tia is involved in the ability to invade cultured monolayers of epithelial cells shown by SE-PAI-positive E. coli, including STEC, strains. However, the expression of the tia gene in the E. coli K-12 strain JM109 was not sufficient, in its own right, to confer to this strain the ability to invade cell monolayers, suggesting that at least another factor must be involved in the invasion ability displayed by the SE-PAI-positive strains.


1998 ◽  
Vol 66 (6) ◽  
pp. 2553-2561 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Boerlin ◽  
Shu Chen ◽  
John K. Colbourne ◽  
Roger Johnson ◽  
Stephanie De Grandis ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT This study assessed the diversity of the enterohemorrhagicEscherichia coli (EHEC) hemolysin gene (ehxA) in a variety of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) serotypes and the relationship between ehxA types and virulence markers on the locus for enterocyte effacement (LEE). Restriction fragment length polymorphism of the ehxA gene and flanking sequences and of the E. coli attaching and effacing (eae) gene was determined for 79 EHEC hemolysin-positive STEC isolates of 37 serotypes. Two main groups of EHEC hemolysin sequences and associated plasmids, which corresponded to the eae-positive and the eae-negative isolates, were delineated. Comparisons of the ehxA gene sequences of representative isolates of each group showed that this gene and the rest of the EHEC hemolysin operon are highly conserved. Digestion of anehxA PCR product with the restriction endonucleaseTaqI showed a unique restriction pattern foreae-negative isolates and another one for isolates of serotypes O157:H7 and O157:NM. A conserved fragment of 5.6 kb with four potential open reading frames was identified on the EHEC hemolysin plasmid of eae-positive STEC. Phylogenetic analysis of a subset of 27 STEC isolates, one enteropathogenic E. coliisolate, and a K-12 reference isolate showed thateae-positive STEC isolates all belong to a single evolutionary lineage and that the EHEC hemolysin plasmid and theehxA gene evolved within this lineage without recent horizontal transfer. However, the eae gene and the LEE appear to have been transferred horizontally within this STEC lineage on several occasions. The reasons for the lack of transfer or maintenance of the LEE in other STEC lineages are not clear and require further study.


2006 ◽  
Vol 74 (7) ◽  
pp. 4190-4199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maite Muniesa ◽  
Mark A. Schembri ◽  
Nadja Hauf ◽  
Trinad Chakraborty

ABSTRACT The locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) is a large multigene chromosomal segment encoding gene products responsible for the generation of attaching and effacing lesions in many diarrheagenic Escherichia coli strains. A recently sequenced LEE harboring a pathogenicity island (PAI) from a Shiga toxin E. coli serotype O26 strain revealed a LEE PAI (designated LEE O26) almost identical to that obtained from a rabbit-specific enteropathogenic O15:H− strain. LEE O26 comprises 59,540 bp and is inserted at 94 min within the mature pheU tRNA locus. The LEE O26 PAI is flanked by two direct repeats of 137 and 136 bp (DR1 and DR2), as well as a gene encoding an integrase belonging to the P4 integrase family. We examined LEE O26 for horizontal gene transfer. By generating mini-LEE plasmids harboring only DR1 or DR2 with or without the integrase-like gene, we devised a simple assay to examine recombination processes between these sequences. Recombination was shown to be integrase dependent in a ΔrecA E. coli K-12 strain background. Recombinant plasmids harboring a single direct repeat cloned either with or without the LEE O26 integrase gene were found to insert within the chromosomal pheU locus of E. coli K-12 strains with equal efficiency, suggesting that an endogenous P4-like integrase can substitute for this activity. An integrase with strong homology to the LEE O26 integrase was detected on the K-12 chromosome associated with the leuX tRNA locus at 97 min. Strains deleted for this integrase demonstrated a reduction in the insertion frequency of plasmids harboring only the DR into the pheU locus. These results provide strong evidence that LEE-harboring elements are indeed mobile and suggest that closely related integrases present on the chromosome of E. coli strains contribute to the dynamics of PAI mobility.


2010 ◽  
Vol 192 (14) ◽  
pp. 3699-3712 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin J. Habdas ◽  
Jennifer Smart ◽  
James B. Kaper ◽  
Vanessa Sperandio

ABSTRACT Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) O157:H7 responds to the host-produced epinephrine and norepinephrine, and bacterially produced autoinducer 3 (AI-3), through two-component systems. Further integration of multiple regulatory signaling networks, involving regulators such as the LysR-type transcriptional regulator (LTTR) QseA, promotes effective regulation of virulence factors. These include the production of flagella, a phage-encoded Shiga toxin, and genes within the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) responsible for attaching and effacing (AE) lesion formation. Here, we describe a new member of this signaling cascade, an LTTR heretofore renamed QseD (quorum-sensing E. coli regulator D). QseD is present in all enterobacteria but exists almost exclusively in O157:H7 isolates as a helix-turn-helix (HTH) truncated isoform. This “short” isoform (sQseD) is still able to regulate gene expression through a different mechanism than the full-length K-12 E. coli “long” QseD isoform (lQseD). The EHEC ΔqseD mutant exhibits increased expression of all LEE operons and deregulation of AE lesion formation. The loss of qseD in EHEC does not affect motility, but the K-12 ΔqseD mutant is hypermotile. While the lQseD directly binds to the ler promoter, encoding the LEE master regulator, to repress LEE transcription, the sQseD isoform does not. LTTRs bind to DNA as tetramers, and these data suggest that sQseD regulates ler by forming heterotetramers with another LTTR. The LTTRs known to regulate LEE transcription, QseA and LrhA, do not interact with sQseD, suggesting that sQseD acts as a dominant-negative partner with a yet-unidentified LTTR.


1999 ◽  
Vol 67 (8) ◽  
pp. 4260-4263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon J. Elliott ◽  
Jie Yu ◽  
James B. Kaper

ABSTRACT The locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) pathogenicity island of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) O157:H7 possesses the same genes in identical order and orientation as the LEE of enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) O127:H6 but is unable to form attaching and effacing (A/E) lesions or to secrete Esp proteins when it is cloned in an E. coli K-12 background. The A/E phenotype could not be restored by trans complementation with a variety of cloned EPEC LEE fragments, suggesting functional and/or regulatory differences between the LEE pathogenicity islands of EPEC O127:H6 and EHEC O157:H7.


Genetics ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 125 (4) ◽  
pp. 691-702 ◽  
Author(s):  
B L Berg ◽  
V Stewart

Abstract Formate oxidation coupled to nitrate reduction constitutes a major anaerobic respiratory pathway in Escherichia coli. This respiratory chain consists of formate dehydrogenase-N, quinone, and nitrate reductase. We have isolated a recombinant DNA clone that likely contains the structural genes, fdnGHI, for the three subunits of formate dehydrogenase-N. The fdnGHI clone produced proteins of 110, 32 and 20 kDa which correspond to the subunit sizes of purified formate dehydrogenase-N. Our analysis indicates that fdnGHI is organized as an operon. We mapped the fdn operon to 32 min on the E. coli genetic map, close to the genes for cryptic nitrate reductase (encoded by the narZ operon). Expression of phi(fdnG-lacZ) operon fusions was induced by anaerobiosis and nitrate. This induction required fnr+ and narL+, two regulatory genes whose products are also required for the anaerobic, nitrate-inducible activation of the nitrate reductase structural gene operon, narGHJI. We conclude that regulation of fdnGHI and narGHJI expression is mediated through common pathways.


1982 ◽  
Vol 152 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-88
Author(s):  
E H Berglin ◽  
M B Edlund ◽  
G K Nyberg ◽  
J Carlsson

Under anaerobic conditions an exponentially growing culture of Escherichia coli K-12 was exposed to hydrogen peroxide in the presence of various compounds. Hydrogen peroxide (0.1 mM) together with 0.1 mM L-cysteine or L-cystine killed the organisms more rapidly than 10 mM hydrogen peroxide alone. The exposure of E. coli to hydrogen peroxide in the presence of L-cysteine inhibited some of the catalase. This inhibition, however, could not fully explain the 100-fold increase in hydrogen peroxide sensitivity of the organism in the presence of L-cysteine. Of other compounds tested only some thiols potentiated the bactericidal effect of hydrogen peroxide. These thiols were effective, however, only at concentrations significantly higher than 0.1 mM. The effect of L-cysteine and L-cystine could be annihilated by the metal ion chelating agent 2,2'-bipyridyl. DNA breakage in E. coli K-12 was demonstrated under conditions where the organisms were killed by hydrogen peroxide.


2004 ◽  
Vol 186 (1) ◽  
pp. 192-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Yohannes ◽  
D. Michael Barnhart ◽  
Joan L. Slonczewski

ABSTRACT During aerobic growth of Escherichia coli, expression of catabolic enzymes and envelope and periplasmic proteins is regulated by pH. Additional modes of pH regulation were revealed under anaerobiosis. E. coli K-12 strain W3110 was cultured anaerobically in broth medium buffered at pH 5.5 or 8.5 for protein identification on proteomic two-dimensional gels. A total of 32 proteins from anaerobic cultures show pH-dependent expression, and only four of these proteins (DsbA, TnaA, GatY, and HdeA) showed pH regulation in aerated cultures. The levels of 19 proteins were elevated at the high pH; these proteins included metabolic enzymes (DhaKLM, GapA, TnaA, HisC, and HisD), periplasmic proteins (ProX, OppA, DegQ, MalB, and MglB), and stress proteins (DsbA, Tig, and UspA). High-pH induction of the glycolytic enzymes DhaKLM and GapA suggested that there was increased fermentation to acids, which helped neutralize alkalinity. Reporter lac fusion constructs showed base induction of sdaA encoding serine deaminase under anaerobiosis; in addition, the glutamate decarboxylase genes gadA and gadB were induced at the high pH anaerobically but not with aeration. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that there is a connection between the gad system and GabT metabolism of 4-aminobutanoate. On the other hand, 13 other proteins were induced by acid; these proteins included metabolic enzymes (GatY and AckA), periplasmic proteins (TolC, HdeA, and OmpA), and redox enzymes (GuaB, HmpA, and Lpd). The acid induction of NikA (nickel transporter) is of interest because E. coli requires nickel for anaerobic fermentation. The position of the NikA spot coincided with the position of a small unidentified spot whose induction in aerobic cultures was reported previously; thus, NikA appeared to be induced slightly by acid during aeration but showed stronger induction under anaerobic conditions. Overall, anaerobic growth revealed several more pH-regulated proteins; in particular, anaerobiosis enabled induction of several additional catabolic enzymes and sugar transporters at the high pH, at which production of fermentation acids may be advantageous for the cell.


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