scholarly journals Chitinase Expression in Listeria monocytogenes Is Influenced by lmo0327, Which Encodes an Internalin-Like Protein

2017 ◽  
Vol 83 (22) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dafni Katerina Paspaliari ◽  
Vicky Gaedt Kastbjerg ◽  
Hanne Ingmer ◽  
Magdalena Popowska ◽  
Marianne Halberg Larsen

ABSTRACT The chitinolytic system of Listeria monocytogenes thus far comprises two chitinases, ChiA and ChiB, and a lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase, Lmo2467. The role of the system in the bacterium appears to be pleiotropic, as besides mediating the hydrolysis of chitin, the second most ubiquitous carbohydrate in nature, the chitinases have been deemed important for the colonization of unicellular molds, as well as mammalian hosts. To identify additional components of the chitinolytic system, we screened a transposon mutant library for mutants exhibiting impaired chitin hydrolysis. The screening yielded a mutant with a transposon insertion in a locus corresponding to lmo0327 of the EGD-e strain. lmo0327 encodes a large (1,349 amino acids [aa]) cell wall-associated protein that has been proposed to possess murein hydrolase activity. The single inactivation of lmo0327, as well as of lmo0325 that codes for a putative transcriptional regulator functionally related to lmo0327, led to an almost complete abolishment of chitinolytic activity. The effect could be traced at the transcriptional level, as both chiA and chiB transcripts were dramatically decreased in the lmo0327 mutant. In accordance with that, we could barely detect ChiA and ChiB in the culture supernatants of the mutant strain. Our results provide new information regarding the function of the lmo0325-lmo0327 locus in L. monocytogenes and link it to the expression of chitinolytic activity. IMPORTANCE Many bacteria from terrestrial and marine environments express chitinase activities enabling them to utilize chitin as the sole source of carbon and nitrogen. Interestingly, several bacterial chitinases may also be involved in host pathogenesis. For example, in the important foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes, the chitinases ChiA and ChiB and the lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase Lmo2467 are implicated in chitin assimilation but also act as virulence factors during the infection of mammalian hosts. Therefore, it is important to identify their regulators and induction cues to understand how the different roles of the chitinolytic system are controlled and mediated. Here, we provide evidence for the importance of lmo0327 and lmo0325, encoding a putative internalin/autolysin and a putative transcriptional activator, respectively, in the efficient expression of chitinase activity in L. monocytogenes and thereby provide new information regarding the function of the lmo0325-lmo0327 locus.

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (13) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanhong Liu ◽  
Aixia Xu ◽  
Pina M. Fratamico ◽  
Christopher H. Sommers ◽  
Luca Rotundo ◽  
...  

Listeria monocytogenes is an important foodborne pathogen that causes listeriosis. Here, we report the draft genome sequences of seven L. monocytogenes strains isolated from food, environmental, and clinical sources.


2016 ◽  
Vol 82 (22) ◽  
pp. 6557-6572 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuka Kojima ◽  
Anikó Várnai ◽  
Takuya Ishida ◽  
Naoki Sunagawa ◽  
Dejan M. Petrovic ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTFungi secrete a set of glycoside hydrolases and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) to degrade plant polysaccharides. Brown-rot fungi, such asGloeophyllum trabeum, tend to have few LPMOs, and information on these enzymes is scarce. The genome ofG. trabeumencodes four auxiliary activity 9 (AA9) LPMOs (GtLPMO9s), whose coding sequences were amplified from cDNA. Due to alternative splicing, two variants ofGtLPMO9A seem to be produced, a single-domain variant,GtLPMO9A-1, and a longer variant,GtLPMO9A-2, which contains a C-terminal domain comprising approximately 55 residues without a predicted function. We have overexpressed the phylogenetically distinctGtLPMO9A-2 inPichia pastorisand investigated its properties. Standard analyses using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography–pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) and mass spectrometry (MS) showed thatGtLPMO9A-2 is active on cellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose, and xyloglucan. Importantly, compared to other known xyloglucan-active LPMOs,GtLPMO9A-2 has broad specificity, cleaving at any position along the β-glucan backbone of xyloglucan, regardless of substitutions. Using dynamic viscosity measurements to compare the hemicellulolytic action ofGtLPMO9A-2 to that of a well-characterized hemicellulolytic LPMO,NcLPMO9C fromNeurospora crassarevealed thatGtLPMO9A-2 is more efficient in depolymerizing xyloglucan. These measurements also revealed minor activity on glucomannan that could not be detected by the analysis of soluble products by HPAEC-PAD and MS and that was lower than the activity ofNcLPMO9C. Experiments with copolymeric substrates showed an inhibitory effect of hemicellulose coating on cellulolytic LPMO activity and did not reveal additional activities ofGtLPMO9A-2. These results provide insight into the LPMO potential ofG. trabeumand provide a novel sensitive method, a measurement of dynamic viscosity, for monitoring LPMO activity.IMPORTANCECurrently, there are only a few methods available to analyze end products of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase (LPMO) activity, the most common ones being liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Here, we present an alternative and sensitive method based on measurement of dynamic viscosity for real-time continuous monitoring of LPMO activity in the presence of water-soluble hemicelluloses, such as xyloglucan. We have used both these novel and existing analytical methods to characterize a xyloglucan-active LPMO from a brown-rot fungus. This enzyme,GtLPMO9A-2, differs from previously characterized LPMOs in having broad substrate specificity, enabling almost random cleavage of the xyloglucan backbone.GtLPMO9A-2 acts preferentially on free xyloglucan, suggesting a preference for xyloglucan chains that tether cellulose fibers together. The xyloglucan-degrading potential ofGtLPMO9A-2 suggests a role in decreasing wood strength at the initial stage of brown rot through degradation of the primary cell wall.


Microbiology ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 157 (11) ◽  
pp. 3150-3161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianshun Chen ◽  
Changyong Cheng ◽  
Ye Xia ◽  
Hanxin Zhao ◽  
Chun Fang ◽  
...  

Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen causing listeriosis. Acid is one of the stresses that foodborne pathogens encounter most frequently. The ability to survive and proliferate in acidic environments is a prerequisite for infection. However, there is limited knowledge about the molecular basis of adaptation of L. monocytogenes to acid. Arginine deiminase (ADI) and agmatine deiminase (AgDI) systems are implicated in bacterial tolerance to acidic environments. Homologues of ADI and AgDI systems have been found in L. monocytogenes lineages I and II strains. Sequence analysis indicated that lmo0036 encodes a putative carbamoyltransferase containing conserved motifs and residues important for substrate binding. Lmo0036 acted as an ornithine carbamoyltransferase and putrescine carbamoyltransferase, representing the first example, to our knowledge, that catalyses reversible ornithine and putrescine carbamoyltransfer reactions. Catabolic ornithine and putrescine carbamoyltransfer reactions constitute the second step of ADI and AgDI pathways. However, the equilibrium of in vitro carbamoyltransfer reactions was overwhelmingly towards the anabolic direction, suggesting that catabolic carbamoyltransferase was probably the limiting step of the pathways. lmo0036 was induced at the transcriptional level when L. monocytogenes was subjected to low-pH stress. Its expression product in Escherichia coli exhibited higher catabolic carbamoyltransfer activities under acidic conditions. Consistently, absence of this enzyme impaired the growth of Listeria under mild acidic conditions (pH 4.8) and reduced its survival in synthetic human gastric fluid (pH 2.5), and corresponded to a loss in ammonia production, indicating that Lmo0036 was responsible for acid tolerance at both sublethal and lethal pH levels. Furthermore, Lmo0036 played a possible role in Listeria virulence.


2020 ◽  
Vol 86 (22) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tracey Lee Peters ◽  
Yaxiong Song ◽  
Daniel W. Bryan ◽  
Lauren K. Hudson ◽  
Thomas G. Denes

ABSTRACT Bacteriophages (phages) are currently available for use by the food industry to control the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes. Although phage biocontrols are effective under specific conditions, their use can select for phage-resistant bacteria that repopulate phage-treated environments. Here, we performed short-term coevolution experiments to investigate the impact of single phages and a two-phage cocktail on the regrowth of phage-resistant L. monocytogenes and the adaptation of the phages to overcome this resistance. We used whole-genome sequencing to identify mutations in the target host that confer phage resistance and in the phages that alter host range. We found that infections with Listeria phages LP-048, LP-125, or a combination of both select for different populations of phage-resistant L. monocytogenes bacteria with different regrowth times. Phages isolated from the end of the coevolution experiments were found to have gained the ability to infect phage-resistant mutants of L. monocytogenes and L. monocytogenes strains previously found to be broadly resistant to phage infection. Phages isolated from coinfected cultures were identified as recombinants of LP-048 and LP-125. Interestingly, recombination events occurred twice independently in a locus encoding two proteins putatively involved in DNA binding. We show that short-term coevolution of phages and their hosts can be utilized to obtain mutant and recombinant phages with adapted host ranges. These laboratory-evolved phages may be useful for limiting the emergence of phage resistance and for targeting strains that show general resistance to wild-type (WT) phages. IMPORTANCE Listeria monocytogenes is a life-threatening bacterial foodborne pathogen that can persist in food processing facilities for years. Phages can be used to control L. monocytogenes in food production, but phage-resistant bacterial subpopulations can regrow in phage-treated environments. Coevolution experiments were conducted on a Listeria phage-host system to provide insight into the genetic variation that emerges in both the phage and bacterial host under reciprocal selective pressure. As expected, mutations were identified in both phage and host, but additionally, recombination events were shown to have repeatedly occurred between closely related phages that coinfected L. monocytogenes. This study demonstrates that in vitro evolution of phages can be utilized to expand the host range and improve the long-term efficacy of phage-based control of L. monocytogenes. This approach may also be applied to other phage-host systems for applications in biocontrol, detection, and phage therapy.


2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (49) ◽  
Author(s):  
Taylor W. Bailey ◽  
Naila C. do Nascimento ◽  
Arun K. Bhunia

ABSTRACT Listeria monocytogenes is an opportunistic invasive foodborne pathogen. Here, we performed whole-genome sequencing of L. monocytogenes strain F4244 (serotype 4b) using Illumina sequencing. The sequence showed 94.5% identity with strain F2365, serotype 4b, and 90.6% with EGD-e, serotype 1/2a.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (41) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren K. Hudson ◽  
Tracey L. Peters ◽  
Yaxiong Song ◽  
Thomas G. Denes

Bacteriophages that infect the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes were previously isolated from New York dairy farms. The complete genome sequences for three of these Listeria phages, with genome sizes of 64.6 to 65.7 kb, are presented here. Listeria phages LP-010, LP-013, and LP-031-2 are siphoviruses that belong to the genus Homburgvirus.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren K. Hudson ◽  
Tracey Lee Peters ◽  
Daniel W. Bryan ◽  
Yaxiong Song ◽  
Henk C. den Bakker ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Bacteriophages can be used as a biocontrol for the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes. Propagation of phages is a necessary step for their use in experimental studies and biocontrol applications. Here, we present the complete genomes of three Listeria monocytogenes strains commonly used as propagation hosts for Listeria phages.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (46) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tracey L. Peters ◽  
Lauren K. Hudson ◽  
Yaxiong Song ◽  
Thomas G. Denes

Bacteriophages isolated from environmental sources can be used as a biocontrol against the foodborne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes. Here, we present the complete genomes of LP-039 and LP-066, two Pecentumvirus bacteriophages that infect L. monocytogenes. The genome sizes of LP-039 and LP-066 are 136.2 kb and 139.0 kb, respectively.


2017 ◽  
Vol 85 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Corbett ◽  
Marie Goldrick ◽  
Vitor E. Fernandes ◽  
Kelly Davidge ◽  
Robert K. Poole ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen responsible for a number of life-threatening infections of humans. During an infection, it invades epithelial cells before spreading from the intestine to the cells of the liver and spleen. This requires an ability to adapt to varying oxygen levels. Here, we demonstrate that L. monocytogenes has two terminal oxidases, a cytochrome bd-type (CydAB) and a cytochrome aa 3-type menaquinol (QoxAB) oxidase, and that both are used for respiration under different oxygen tensions. Furthermore, we show that possession of both terminal oxidases is important in infection. In air, the CydAB bd-type oxidase is essential for aerobic respiration and intracellular replication, and cydAB mutants are highly attenuated in mice. In contrast, the QoxAB aa 3-type oxidase is required neither for aerobic respiration in air nor for intracellular growth. However, the qoxAB mutants are attenuated in mice, with a delay in the onset of disease signs and with increased survival time, indicating a role for the QoxAB aa 3-type oxidase in the initial stages of infection. Growth of bacteria under defined oxygen conditions revealed that at 1% (vol/vol), both oxidases are functional, and the presence of either is sufficient for aerobic respiration and intracellular replication. However, at 0.2% (vol/vol), both oxidases are necessary for maximum growth. These findings are consistent with the ability of L. monocytogenes to switch between terminal oxidases under different oxygen conditions, providing exquisite adaptation to different conditions encountered within the infected host.


2015 ◽  
Vol 83 (9) ◽  
pp. 3740-3748 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiahui Wang ◽  
Jane E. King ◽  
Marie Goldrick ◽  
Martin Lowe ◽  
Frank B. Gertler ◽  
...  

Listeria monocytogenesis a foodborne pathogen capable of invading a broad range of cell types and replicating within the host cell cytoplasm. This paper describes the colocalization of host cell lamellipodin (Lpd) with intracellularL. monocytogenesdetectable 6 h postinfection of epithelial cells. The association was mediated via interactions between both the peckstrin homology (PH) domain in Lpd and phosphatidylinositol (3,4)-bisphosphate [PI(3,4)P2] on the bacterial surface and by interactions between the C-terminal EVH1 (Ena/VASP [vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein] homology domain 1) binding domains of Lpd and the host VASP (vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein) recruited to the bacterial cell surface by the listerial ActA protein. Depletion of Lpd by short interfering RNA (siRNA) resulted in reduced plaque size and number, indicating a role for Lpd in cell-to-cell spread. In contrast, overexpression of Lpd resulted in an increase in the number ofL. monocytogenes-containing protrusions (listeriopods). Manipulation of the levels of Lpd within the cell also affected the intracellular velocity ofL. monocytogenes, with a reduction in Lpd corresponding to an increase in intracellular velocity. These data, together with the observation that Lpd accumulated at the interface between the bacteria and the developing actin tail at the initiation of actin-based movement, indicate a possible role for Lpd in the actin-based movement and the cell-to-cell spread ofL. monocytogenes.


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