scholarly journals Control of Acid Resistance inEscherichia coli

1999 ◽  
Vol 181 (11) ◽  
pp. 3525-3535 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Pierre Castanie-Cornet ◽  
Thomas A. Penfound ◽  
Dean Smith ◽  
John F. Elliott ◽  
John W. Foster
Keyword(s):  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Sigma Factor ◽  
Glutamate Decarboxylase ◽  
Glucose Repression ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Receptor Protein ◽  
Phase Cell ◽  
Alternative Sigma Factor ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Acid Challenge

ABSTRACT Acid resistance (AR) in Escherichia coli is defined as the ability to withstand an acid challenge of pH 2.5 or less and is a trait generally restricted to stationary-phase cells. Earlier reports described three AR systems in E. coli. In the present study, the genetics and control of these three systems have been more clearly defined. Expression of the first AR system (designated the oxidative or glucose-repressed AR system) was previously shown to require the alternative sigma factor RpoS. Consistent with glucose repression, this system also proved to be dependent in many situations on the cyclic AMP receptor protein. The second AR system required the addition of arginine during pH 2.5 acid challenge, the structural gene for arginine decarboxylase (adiA), and the regulatorcysB, confirming earlier reports. The third AR system required glutamate for protection at pH 2.5, one of two genes encoding glutamate decarboxylase (gadA or gadB), and the gene encoding the putative glutamate:γ-aminobutyric acid antiporter (gadC). Only one of the two glutamate decarboxylases was needed for protection at pH 2.5. However, survival at pH 2 required both glutamate decarboxylase isozymes. Stationary phase and acid pH regulation of the gad genes proved separable. Stationary-phase induction of gadA and gadBrequired the alternative sigma factor ςS encoded byrpoS. However, acid induction of these enzymes, which was demonstrated to occur in exponential- and stationary-phase cells, proved to be ςS independent. Neither gad gene required the presence of volatile fatty acids for induction. The data also indicate that AR via the amino acid decarboxylase systems requires more than an inducible decarboxylase and antiporter. Another surprising finding was that the ςS-dependent oxidative system, originally thought to be acid induced, actually proved to be induced following entry into stationary phase regardless of the pH. However, an inhibitor produced at pH 8 somehow interferes with the activity of this system, giving the illusion of acid induction. The results also revealed that the AR system affording the most effective protection at pH 2 in complex medium (either Luria-Bertani broth or brain heart infusion broth plus 0.4% glucose) is the glutamate-dependent GAD system. Thus, E. coli possesses three overlapping acid survival systems whose various levels of control and differing requirements for activity ensure that at least one system will be available to protect the stationary-phase cell under naturally occurring acidic environments.

scholarly journals One of Two OsmC Homologs in Bacillus subtilis Is Part of the ςB-Dependent General Stress Regulon

1998 ◽  
Vol 180 (16) ◽  
pp. 4212-4218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uwe Völker ◽  
Kasper Krogh Andersen ◽  
Haike Antelmann ◽  
Kevin M. Devine ◽  
Michael Hecker
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Bacillus Subtilis ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Expression Pattern ◽  
Sigma Factor ◽  
Minimal Medium ◽  
Alternative Sigma Factor ◽  
Rich Medium ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Complex Expression

ABSTRACT In this report we present the identification and analysis of twoBacillus subtilis genes, yklA andykzA, which are homologous to the partially RpoS-controlledosmC gene from Escherichia coli. TheyklA gene is expressed at higher levels in minimal medium than in rich medium and is driven by a putative vegetative promoter. Expression of ykzA is not medium dependent but increases dramatically when cells are exposed to stress and starvation. This stress-induced increase in ykzA expression is absolutely dependent on the alternative sigma factor ςB, which controls a large stationary-phase and stress regulon. ykzAis therefore another example of a gene common to the RpoS and ςB stress regulons of E. coli andB. subtilis, respectively. The composite complex expression pattern of the two B. subtilis genes is very similar to the expression profile of osmC in E. coli.

scholarly journals Arginine-Dependent Acid Resistance in Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium

2006 ◽  
Vol 188 (15) ◽  
pp. 5650-5653 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jasper Kieboom ◽  
Tjakko Abee
Keyword(s):  
Salmonella Enterica ◽  
Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Arginine Decarboxylase ◽  
Acidic Ph ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Serovar Typhimurium ◽  
Microaerobic Conditions ◽  
Acid Challenge

ABSTRACT Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium does not survive a pH 2.5 acid challenge under conditions similar to those used for Escherichia coli (J. W. Foster, Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 2:898-907, 2004). Here, we provide evidence that S. enterica serovar Typhimurium can display arginine-dependent acid resistance (AR) provided the cells are grown under anoxic conditions and not under the microaerobic conditions used for assessment of AR in E. coli. The role of the arginine decarboxylase pathway in Salmonella AR was shown by the loss of AR in mutants lacking adiA, which encodes arginine decarboxylase; adiC, which encodes the arginine-agmatine antiporter; or adiY, which encodes an AraC-like regulator. Transcription of adiA and adiC was found to be dependent on AdiY, anaerobiosis, and acidic pH.

Inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Apple Juice by Irradiation

1998 ◽  
Vol 64 (11) ◽  
pp. 4533-4535 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. L. Buchanan ◽  
S. G. Edelson ◽  
K. Snipes ◽  
G. Boyd
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Radiation Resistance ◽  
Apple Juice ◽  
Suspended Solids ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Cesium 137 ◽  
Microbiological Criteria ◽  
Ph Dependent

ABSTRACT Three strains (932, Ent-C9490, and SEA13B88) of Escherichia coli O157:H7 were used to determine the effectiveness of low-dose gamma irradiation for eliminating E. coli O157:H7 from apple juice or cider and to characterize the effect of inducing pH-dependent, stationary-phase acid resistance on radiation resistance. The strains were grown in tryptic soy broth with or without 1% dextrose for 18 h to produce cells that were or were not induced to pH-dependent stationary-phase acid resistance. The bacteria were then transferred to clarified apple juice and irradiated at 2°C with a cesium-137 irradiator. Non-acid-adapted cells had radiationD values (radiation doses needed to decrease a microbial population by 90%) ranging from 0.12 to 0.21 kGy. D values increased to 0.22 to 0.31 kGy for acid-adapted cells. When acid-adapted SEA13B88 cells were tested in five apple juice brands having different levels of suspended solids (absorbances ranging from 0.04 to 2.01 at 550 nm), radiation resistance increased with increasing levels of suspended solids, with D values ranging from 0.26 to 0.35 kGy. Based on these results, a dose of 1.8 kGy should be sufficient to achieve the 5D inactivation of E. colirecommended by the National Advisory Committee for Microbiological Criteria for Foods.

Stationary-Phase Acid Resistance and Injury of Recent Bovine Escherichia coli O157 and non-O157 Biotype I Escherichia coli Isolates†

2004 ◽  
Vol 67 (3) ◽  
pp. 583-590 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. D. BERRY ◽  
G. A. BARKOCY-GALLAGHER ◽  
G. R. SIRAGUSA
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Low Ph ◽  
Acid Adaptation ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Log Reduction ◽  
Natural Isolates ◽  
Acidic Conditions ◽  
Ph Challenge

Stationary-phase acid resistance and the induction of acid resistance were assessed for recent bovine carcass isolates of Escherichia coli, including 39 serotype O157 strains and 20 non-O157 strains. When grown to stationary phase in the absence of glucose and without prior acid exposure, there was a range of responses to a pH challenge of 6 h at pH 2.5. However, populations of 53 of the 59 E. coli isolates examined were reduced by less than 2.00 log CFU/ml, and populations of 24 of these isolates were reduced by less than 1.00 log CFU/ml. In contrast, there was little variation in population reductions when the E. coli were grown with glucose and preadapted to acidic conditions. With few exceptions, acid adaptation improved survival to the acid challenge, with 57 of the 59 isolates exhibiting a log reduction of less than 0.50. Differences in acid resistance or the ability to adapt to acidic conditions between E. coli O157:H7 and non-O157 commensal E. coli were not observed. However, we did find that the E. coli O157 were disposed to greater acid injury after the low pH challenge than the non-O157 E. coli, both for cells that were and were not adapted to acidic conditions before the challenge. The enhancement of low pH survival after acid adaptation that was seen among these recent natural isolates of E. coli O157 further supports the idea that the previous environment of this pathogen should be a consideration when designing microbial safety strategies for foods preserved by low pH and acid.

scholarly journals A Mutant RNA Polymerase Activates the General Stress Response, Enabling Escherichia coli Adaptation to Late Prolonged Stationary Phase

mSphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pabitra Nandy ◽  
Savita Chib ◽  
Aswin Seshasayee
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Stress Response ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Sigma Factor ◽  
Slow Growth ◽  
Content Type ◽  
General Stress Response ◽  
E Coli ◽  
General Stress ◽  
Small Colony

ABSTRACT Escherichia coli populations undergo repeated replacement of parental genotypes with fitter variants deep in stationary phase. We isolated one such variant, which emerged after 3 weeks of maintaining an E. coli K-12 population in stationary phase. This variant displayed a small colony phenotype and slow growth and was able to outcompete its ancestor over a narrow time window in stationary phase. The variant also shows tolerance to beta-lactam antibiotics, though not previously exposed to the antibiotic. We show that an RpoC(A494V) mutation confers the slow growth and small colony phenotype on this variant. The ability of this mutation to confer a growth advantage in stationary phase depends on the availability of the stationary-phase sigma factor σS. The RpoC(A494V) mutation upregulates the σS regulon. As shown over 20 years ago, early in prolonged stationary phase, σS attenuation, but not complete loss of activity, confers a fitness advantage. Our study shows that later mutations enhance σS activity, either by mutating the gene for σS directly or via mutations such as RpoC(A494V). The balance between the activities of the housekeeping major sigma factor and σS sets up a trade-off between growth and stress tolerance, which is tuned repeatedly during prolonged stationary phase. IMPORTANCE An important general mechanism of a bacterium’s adaptation to its environment involves adjusting the balance between growing fast and tolerating stresses. One paradigm where this plays out is in prolonged stationary phase: early studies showed that attenuation, but not complete elimination, of the general stress response enables early adaptation of the bacterium E. coli to the conditions established about 10 days into stationary phase. We show here that this balance is not static and that it is tilted back in favor of the general stress response about 2 weeks later. This can be established by direct mutations in the master regulator of the general stress response or by mutations in the core RNA polymerase enzyme itself. These conditions can support the development of antibiotic tolerance although the bacterium is not exposed to the antibiotic. Further exploration of the growth-stress balance over the course of stationary phase will necessarily require a deeper understanding of the events in the extracellular milieu.

Effects of pH and Acid Resistance on the Radiation Resistance of Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli

1999 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 219-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
ROBERT L. BUCHANAN ◽  
SHARON G. EDELSON ◽  
GLENN BOYD
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Radiation Resistance ◽  
Brain Heart Infusion ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia Coli ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Effects Of Ph ◽  
Ph Dependent ◽  
Subsequent Storage

The effects of pH and the induction of pH-dependent stationary-phase acid resistance on the radiation resistance of Escherichia coli were determined for seven enterohemorrhagic strains and one nonenterohemorrhagic strain. The isolates were grown in acidogenic or nonacidogenic media to pH levels of approximately 4.7 and 7.2, respectively. The cells were then transferred to brain heart infusion (BHI) broth adjusted to pH 4.0, 4.5, 5.0, and 5.5 (with HCl) that was preequilibrated to 2°C, and cultures were then irradiated using a 137Cs source. Surviving cells and the extent of injury were determined by plating on BHI and MacConkey agars both immediately after irradiation and after subsequent storage at 2°C for 7 days. Decreasing the pH of the BHI in which E. coli was irradiated had relatively little effect on the microorganism's radiation resistance. Substantial differences in radiation resistance were noted among strains, and induction of acid resistance consistently increased radiation resistance. Comparison of E. coli levels immediately after irradiation and after 7 days of refrigerated storage suggested that irradiation enhanced pH-mediated inactivation of the pathogen. These results demonstrate that prior growth under conditions that induce a pH-dependent stationary phase cross-protects E. coli against radiation inactivation and must be taken into account when determining the microorganism's irradiation D value.

scholarly journals Collaborative Regulation of Escherichia coli Glutamate-Dependent Acid Resistance by Two AraC-Like Regulators, GadX and GadW (YhiW)

2002 ◽  
Vol 184 (24) ◽  
pp. 7001-7012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhuo Ma ◽  
Hope Richard ◽  
Don L. Tucker ◽  
Tyrrell Conway ◽  
John W. Foster
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Acid Stress ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Negative Regulator ◽  
Receptor Protein ◽  
Growth Media ◽  
Infectious Dose ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Control Circuits

ABSTRACT An important feature of Escherichia coli pathogenesis is an ability to withstand extremely acidic environments of pH 2 or lower. This acid resistance property contributes to the low infectious dose of pathogenic E. coli species. One very efficient E. coli acid resistance system encompasses two isoforms of glutamate decarboxylase (gadA and gadB) and a putative glutamate:γ-amino butyric acid (GABA) antiporter (gadC). The system is subject to complex controls that vary with growth media, growth phase, and growth pH. Previous work has revealed that the system is controlled by two sigma factors, two negative regulators (cyclic AMP receptor protein [CRP] and H-NS), and an AraC-like regulator called GadX. Earlier evidence suggested that the GadX protein acts both as a positive and negative regulator of the gadA and gadBC genes depending on environmental conditions. New data clarify this finding, revealing a collaborative regulation between GadX and another AraC-like regulator called GadW (previously YhiW). GadX and GadW are DNA binding proteins that form homodimers in vivo and are 42% homologous to each other. GadX activates expression of gadA and gadBC at any pH, while GadW inhibits GadX-dependent activation. Regulation of gadA and gadBC by either regulator requires an upstream, 20-bp GAD box sequence. Northern blot analysis further indicates that GadW represses expression of gadX. The results suggest a control circuit whereby GadW interacts with both the gadA and gadX promoters. GadW clearly represses gadX and, in situations where GadX is missing, activates gadA and gadBC. GadX, however, activates only gadA and gadBC expression. CRP also represses gadX expression. It does this primarily by repressing production of sigma S, the sigma factor responsible for gadX expression. In fact, the acid induction of gadA and gadBC observed when rich-medium cultures enter stationary phase corresponds to the acid induction of sigma S production. These complex control circuits impose tight rein over expression of the gadA and gadBC system yet provide flexibility for inducing acid resistance under many conditions that presage acid stress.

scholarly journals Escherichia coli O157 : H7 glutamate- and arginine-dependent acid-resistance systems protect against oxidative stress during extreme acid challenge

Microbiology ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 155 (3) ◽  
pp. 805-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bradley L. Bearson ◽  
In Soo Lee ◽  
Thomas A. Casey
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Hydrogen Peroxide ◽  
Acid Stress ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Bacterial Survival ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Stress Protection ◽  
Acid Challenge

Micro-organisms may simultaneously encounter multiple stresses in their environment. To investigate the protection that several known Escherichia coli O157 : H7 acid-resistance systems might provide against both oxidative and acid stress, the addition of diamide, a membrane-permeable thiol-specific oxidizing agent, or hydrogen peroxide were used concurrent with acid challenge at pH 2.5 to determine bacterial survival. The addition of either diamide or hydrogen peroxide decreased bacterial survival in a dose-dependent manner for E. coli O157 : H7 during challenge at pH 2.5 following overnight growth in LB MES pH 5.5 (acid-resistance system 1, AR1). In contrast, the presence of either glutamate or arginine during challenge provided significant protection against diamide- and hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress during pH 2.5 acid challenge. Oxidative stress protection during acid challenge required gadC and adiA for the glutamate- (AR2) and arginine- (AR3) dependent acid-resistance systems, respectively. In addition, maximal protection against oxidative stress in the presence of glutamate required a low external pH (pH 2.5), since pH 5.5 did not protect. This study demonstrates that the glutamate- and arginine-dependent acid-resistance systems of E. coli O157 : H7 can simultaneously protect against oxidative stress during extreme acid challenge.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document