scholarly journals Collagen-Like Glycoprotein BclS Is Involved in the Formation of Filamentous Structures of the Lysinibacillus sphaericus Exosporium

2014 ◽  
Vol 80 (21) ◽  
pp. 6656-6663 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ni Zhao ◽  
Yong Ge ◽  
Tingyu Shi ◽  
Xiaomin Hu ◽  
Zhiming Yuan

ABSTRACTLysinibacillus sphaericusproduces mosquitocidal binary toxins (Bin toxins) deposited within a balloon-like exosporium during sporulation. UnlikeBacillus cereusgroup strains, the exosporium ofL. sphaericusis usually devoid of the hair-like nap, an external filamentous structure formed by a collagen-like protein, BclA. In this study, a new collagen-like exosporium protein encoded by Bsph_0411 (BclS) fromL. sphaericusC3-41 was characterized. Thin-section electron microscopy revealed that deletion ofbclSresulted in the loss of the filamentous structures that attach to the exosporium basal layer and spread through the interspace of spores.In vivovisualization of BclS-green fluorescent protein (GFP)/mCherry fusion proteins revealed a dynamic pattern of fluorescence that encased the spore from the mother cell-distal (MCD) pole of the forespore, and the BclS-GFP fusions were found to be located in the interspace of the spore, as confirmed by three-dimensional (3D) superresolution fluorescence microscopy. Further studies demonstrated that thebclSmutant spores were more sensitive to wet-heat treatment and germinated at a lower rate than wild-type spores and that these phenotypes were significantly restored in thebclS-complemented strain. These results suggested novel roles of collagen-like protein in exosporium assembly and spore germination, providing a hint for a further understanding of the genetic basis of the high level of persistence of Bin toxins in nature.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vlasta Lungova ◽  
Susan Thibeault

Abstract Development of treatments for vocal dysphonia has been inhibited by lack of human vocal fold (VF) mucosa models because of difficulty in procuring VF epithelial cells, epithelial cells’ limited proliferative capacity and absence of cell lines. We report development of engineered VF mucosae from hiPSC, transfected via TALEN constructs for green fluorescent protein, that mimic development of VF epithelial cells in utero. Modulation of FGF signaling achieves stratified squamous epithelium from definitive and anterior foregut derived cultures. Robust culturing of these cells on collagen-fibroblast constructs produces three-dimensional models comparable to in vivo VF mucosa.


2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (16) ◽  
pp. 4877-4889
Author(s):  
Jie-Yang Lu ◽  
Shuang-Xi Xiong ◽  
Wenzhe Yin ◽  
Xiao-Dong Teng ◽  
Yue Lou ◽  
...  

Abstract Sporophytic pollen coat proteins (sPCPs) derived from the anther tapetum are deposited into pollen wall cavities and function in pollen–stigma interactions, pollen hydration, and environmental protection. In Arabidopsis, 13 highly abundant proteins have been identified in pollen coat, including seven major glycine-rich proteins GRP14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, and GRP–oleosin; two caleosin-related family proteins (AT1G23240 and AT1G23250); three lipase proteins EXL4, EXL5 and EXL6, and ATA27/BGLU20. Here, we show that GRP14, 17, 18, 19, and EXL4 and EXL6 fused with green fluorescent protein (GFP) are translated in the tapetum and then accumulate in the anther locule following tapetum degeneration. The expression of these sPCPs is dependent on two essential tapetum transcription factors, MALE STERILE188 (MS188) and MALE STERILITY 1 (MS1). The majority of sPCP genes are up-regulated within 30 h after MS1 induction and could be restored by MS1 expression driven by the MS188 promoter in ms188, indicating that MS1 is sufficient to activate their expression; however, additional MS1 downstream factors appear to be required for high-level sPCP expression. Our ChIP, in vivo transactivation assay, and EMSA data indicate that MS188 directly activates MS1. Together, these results reveal a regulatory cascade whereby outer pollen wall formation is regulated by MS188 followed by synthesis of sPCPs controlled by MS1.


2013 ◽  
Vol 79 (23) ◽  
pp. 7351-7359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleksandra W. Debowski ◽  
Phebe Verbrugghe ◽  
Miriam Sehnal ◽  
Barry James Marshall ◽  
Mohammed Benghezal

ABSTRACTDeletion mutants and animal models have been instrumental in the study ofHelicobacter pyloripathogenesis. Conditional mutants, however, would enable the study of the temporal gene requirement duringH. pyloricolonization and chronic infection. To achieve this goal, we adapted theEscherichia coliTn10-derived tetracycline-inducible expression system for use inH. pylori. TheureApromoter was modified by inserting one or twotetoperators to generate tetracycline-responsive promoters, nameduPtetO, and these promoters were then fused to the reportergfpmut2 and inserted into different loci. The expression of the tetracycline repressor (tetR) was placed under the control of one of three promoters and inserted into the chromosome. Conditional expression of green fluorescent protein (GFP) in strains harboringtetRanduPtetO-GFPwas characterized by measuring GFP activity and by immunoblotting. The twotet-responsiveuPtetOpromoters differ in strength, and induction of these promoters was inducer concentration and time dependent, with maximum expression achieved after induction for 8 to 16 h. Furthermore, the chromosomal location of theuPtetO-GFPconstruct and the nature of the promoter driving expression oftetRinfluenced the strength of theuPtetOpromoters upon induction. Integration ofuPtetO-GFPandtetRconstructs at different genomic loci was stablein vivoand did not affect colonization. Finally, we demonstrate tetracycline-dependent induction of GFP expressionin vivoduring chronic infection. These results open new experimental avenues for dissectingH. pyloripathogenesis using animal models and for testing the roles of specific genes in colonization of, adaptation to, and persistence in the host.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vlasta Lungova ◽  
Xia Chen ◽  
Ziyue Wang ◽  
Christina Kendziorski ◽  
Susan L. Thibeault

Abstract Development of treatments for vocal dysphonia has been inhibited by lack of human vocal fold (VF) mucosa models because of difficulty in procuring VF epithelial cells, epithelial cells’ limited proliferative capacity and absence of cell lines. Here we report development of engineered VF mucosae from hiPSC, transfected via TALEN constructs for green fluorescent protein, that mimic development of VF epithelial cells in utero. Modulation of FGF signaling achieves stratified squamous epithelium from definitive and anterior foregut derived cultures. Robust culturing of these cells on collagen-fibroblast constructs produces three-dimensional models comparable to in vivo VF mucosa. Furthermore, we demonstrate mucosal inflammation upon exposure of these constructs to 5% cigarette smoke extract. Upregulation of pro-inflammatory genes in epithelium and fibroblasts leads to aberrant VF mucosa remodeling. Collectively, our results demonstrate that hiPSC-derived VF mucosa is a versatile tool for future investigation of genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying epithelium-fibroblasts interactions in health and disease.


2007 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 7290.2007.00007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anikitos Garofalakis ◽  
Giannis Zacharakis ◽  
Heiko Meyer ◽  
Eleftherios N. Economou ◽  
Clio Mamalaki ◽  
...  

2001 ◽  
Vol 155 (5) ◽  
pp. 733-738 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josef Priller ◽  
Derek A. Persons ◽  
Francisco F. Klett ◽  
Gerd Kempermann ◽  
Georg W. Kreutzberg ◽  
...  

The versatility of stem cells has only recently been fully recognized. There is evidence that upon adoptive bone marrow (BM) transplantation (BMT), donor-derived cells can give rise to neuronal phenotypes in the brains of recipient mice. Yet only few cells with the characteristic shape of neurons were detected 1–6 mo post-BMT using transgenic or newborn mutant mice. To evaluate the potential of BM to generate mature neurons in adult C57BL/6 mice, we transferred the enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene into BM cells using a murine stem cell virus-based retroviral vector. Stable and high level long-term GFP expression was observed in mice transplanted with the transduced BM. Engraftment of GFP-expressing cells in the brain was monitored by intravital microscopy. In a long-term follow up of 15 mo post-BMT, fully developed Purkinje neurons were found to express GFP in both cerebellar hemispheres and in all chimeric mice. GFP-positive Purkinje cells were also detected in BM chimeras from transgenic mice that ubiquitously express GFP. Based on morphologic criteria and the expression of glutamic acid decarboxylase, the newly generated Purkinje cells were functional.


2015 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. 1458-1464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Job Alves de Souza Filho ◽  
Vicente de Paulo Martins ◽  
Priscila Carneiro Campos ◽  
Juliana Alves-Silva ◽  
Nathalia V. Santos ◽  
...  

Brucellaspecies can cause brucellosis, a zoonotic disease that causes serious livestock economic losses and represents a public health threat. The mechanism of virulence ofBrucellaspp. is not yet fully understood. Therefore, it is crucial to identify new molecules that serve as virulence factors to better understand this host-pathogen interplay. Here, we evaluated the role of theBrucellamembrane fusogenic protein (Mfp) and outer membrane protein 19 (Omp19) in bacterial pathogenesis. In this study, we showed thatB. abortusΔmfp::kanand Δomp19::kandeletion mutant strains have reduced persistencein vivoin C57BL/6 and interferon regulatory factor 1 (IRF-1) knockout (KO) mice. Additionally, 24 h after macrophage infection with a Δmfp::kanor Δomp19::kanstrain expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) approximately 80% or 65% ofBrucella-containing vacuoles (BCVs) retained the late endosomal/lysosomal marker LAMP-1, respectively, whereas around 60% of BCVs containing wild-type S2308 were found in LAMP-1-negative compartments.B. abortusΔomp19::kanwas attenuatedin vivobut had a residual virulence in C57BL/6 and IRF-1 KO mice, whereas the Δmfp::kanstrain had a lower virulence in these same mouse models. Furthermore, Δmfp::kanand Δomp19::kanstrains were used as live vaccines. Challenge experiments revealed that in C57BL/6 and IRF-1 KO mice, the Δmfp::kanstrain induced greater protection than the vaccine RB51 and protection similar that of vaccine S19. However, a Δomp19::kanstrain induced protection similar to that of RB51. Thus, these results demonstrate thatBrucellaMfp and Omp19 are critical for full bacterial virulence and that the Δmfp::kanmutant may serve as a potential vaccine candidate in future studies.


mBio ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Duprey ◽  
Eduardo A. Groisman

ABSTRACT DNA supercoiling (DS) is essential for life because it controls critical processes, including transcription, replication, and recombination. Current methods to measure DNA supercoiling in vivo are laborious and unable to examine single cells. Here, we report a method for high-throughput measurement of bacterial DNA supercoiling in vivo. Fluorescent evaluation of DNA supercoiling (FEDS) utilizes a plasmid harboring the gene for a green fluorescent protein transcribed by a discovered promoter that responds exclusively to DNA supercoiling and the gene for a red fluorescent protein transcribed by a constitutive promoter as the internal standard. Using FEDS, we uncovered single-cell heterogeneity in DNA supercoiling and established that, surprisingly, population-level decreases in DNA supercoiling result from a low-mean/high-variance DNA supercoiling subpopulation rather than from a homogeneous shift in supercoiling of the whole population. In addition, we identified a regulatory loop in which a gene that decreases DNA supercoiling is transcriptionally repressed when DNA supercoiling increases. IMPORTANCE DNA represents the chemical support of genetic information in all forms of life. In addition to its linear sequence of nucleotides, it bears critical information in its structure. This information, called DNA supercoiling, is central to all fundamental DNA processes, such as transcription and replication, and defines cellular physiology. Unlike reading of a nucleotide sequence, DNA supercoiling determinations have been laborious. We have now developed a method for rapid measurement of DNA supercoiling and established its utility by identifying a novel regulator of DNA supercoiling in the bacterium Salmonella enterica as well as behaviors that could not have been discovered with current methods.


2010 ◽  
Vol 78 (9) ◽  
pp. 3969-3980 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shifeng Wang ◽  
Yuhua Li ◽  
Giorgio Scarpellini ◽  
Wei Kong ◽  
HuoYing Shi ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTWe have developed a regulated delayed antigen synthesis (RDAS) system for use in recombinant attenuatedSalmonellavaccine (RASV) strains to enhance immune responses by reducing the adverse effects of high-level antigen synthesis. This system includes a chromosomal repressor gene,lacI, expressed from the arabinose-regulatedaraCPBADpromoter. LacI serves to regulate expression from a plasmid promoter, Ptrc, that directs antigen synthesis. In the presence of arabinose LacI is produced, which binds to Ptrc, blocking antigen synthesis.In vivo, an arabinose-poor environment, the concentration of LacI decreases with each cell division, allowing increased antigen synthesis. To optimize the system and for comparison, we altered thelacIribosome-binding site, start codon, and/or codon content to construct RDAS strains χ9095, χ9959, and χ9241, synthesizing from low to high levels of LacI, respectively, and non-RDAS strain χ9555 as a control. We evaluated this system with two test antigens, the green fluorescent protein for initialin vitroassessment and theStreptococcus pneumoniaePspA protein for validation of our system in mice. All RASV strains expressing PspA generated high antilipopolysaccharide antibody titers, indicating that expression oflacIdid not interfere with the capacity to induce an immune response. Strain χ9241 induced significantly higher anti-PspA IgG and IgA antibody titers than strain χ9555, which expressed PspA constitutively. Anti-PspA antibody titers were inversely correlated to the level of LacI synthesis. Strain χ9241 also induced significantly greater protective efficacy against challenge with virulentS. pneumoniae. These results suggest that regulated delayed antigen synthesis is useful for improving immunogenicity of RASV strains.


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