scholarly journals The gatekeeper of Yersinia type III secretion is under RNA thermometer control

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (11) ◽  
pp. e1009650
Author(s):  
Stephan Pienkoß ◽  
Soheila Javadi ◽  
Paweena Chaoprasid ◽  
Thomas Nolte ◽  
Christian Twittenhoff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Yersinia Pseudotuberculosis ◽  
Mutational Analysis ◽  
Foodborne Pathogen ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Effector Protein ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Rna Thermometer

Many bacterial pathogens use a type III secretion system (T3SS) as molecular syringe to inject effector proteins into the host cell. In the foodborne pathogen Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, delivery of the secreted effector protein cocktail through the T3SS depends on YopN, a molecular gatekeeper that controls access to the secretion channel from the bacterial cytoplasm. Here, we show that several checkpoints adjust yopN expression to virulence conditions. A dominant cue is the host body temperature. A temperature of 37°C is known to induce the RNA thermometer (RNAT)-dependent synthesis of LcrF, a transcription factor that activates expression of the entire T3SS regulon. Here, we uncovered a second layer of temperature control. We show that another RNAT silences translation of the yopN mRNA at low environmental temperatures. The long and short 5’-untranslated region of both cellular yopN isoforms fold into a similar secondary structure that blocks ribosome binding. The hairpin structure with an internal loop melts at 37°C and thereby permits formation of the translation initiation complex as shown by mutational analysis, in vitro structure probing and toeprinting methods. Importantly, we demonstrate the physiological relevance of the RNAT in the faithful control of type III secretion by using a point-mutated thermostable RNAT variant with a trapped SD sequence. Abrogated YopN production in this strain led to unrestricted effector protein secretion into the medium, bacterial growth arrest and delayed translocation into eukaryotic host cells. Cumulatively, our results show that substrate delivery by the Yersinia T3SS is under hierarchical surveillance of two RNATs.

scholarly journals The gatekeeper of Yersinia type III secretion is under RNA thermometer control

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephan Pienkoß ◽  
Soheila Javadi ◽  
Paweena Chaoprasid ◽  
Thomas Nolte ◽  
Christian Twittenhoff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Yersinia Pseudotuberculosis ◽  
Mutational Analysis ◽  
Foodborne Pathogen ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Effector Protein ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Rna Thermometer

Many bacterial pathogens use a type III secretion system (T3SS) as molecular syringe to inject effector proteins into the host cell. In the foodborne pathogen Yersinia pseudotuberculosis , delivery of the secreted effector protein cocktail through the T3SS depends on YopN, a molecular gatekeeper that controls access to the secretion channel from the bacterial cytoplasm. Here, we show that several checkpoints adjust yopN expression to virulence conditions. A dominant cue is the host body temperature. A temperature of 37 °C is known to induce the RNA thermometer (RNAT)-dependent synthesis of LcrF, a transcription factor that activates expression of the entire T3SS regulon. Here, we uncovered a second layer of temperature control. We show that another RNAT silences translation of the yopN mRNA at low environmental temperatures. The long and short 5’-untranslated region of both cellular yopN isoforms fold into a similar secondary structure that blocks ribosome binding. The hairpin structure with an internal loop melts at 37 °C and thereby permits formation of the translation initiation complex as shown by mutational analysis, in vitro structure probing and toeprinting methods. Importantly, we demonstrate the physiological relevance of the RNAT in the faithful control of type III secretion by using a point-mutated thermostable RNAT variant with a trapped SD sequence. Abrogated YopN production in this strain led to unrestricted effector protein secretion into the medium, bacterial growth arrest and delayed translocation into eukaryotic host cells. Cumulatively, our results show that substrate delivery by the Yersinia T3SS is under hierarchical surveillance of two RNATs.

scholarly journals Interactions between effector proteins of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa type III secretion system do not significantly affect several measures of disease severity in mammals

Microbiology ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 152 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ciara M. Shaver ◽  
Alan R. Hauser
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Disease Severity ◽  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Disease Process ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Secreted Proteins ◽  
Secretion Systems ◽  
Type Iii

The effector proteins of the type III secretion systems of many bacterial pathogens act in a coordinated manner to subvert host cells and facilitate the development and progression of disease. It is unclear whether interactions between the type-III-secreted proteins of Pseudomonas aeruginosa result in similar effects on the disease process. We have previously characterized the contributions to pathogenesis of the type-III-secreted proteins ExoS, ExoT and ExoU when secreted individually. In this study, we extend our prior work to determine whether these proteins have greater than expected effects on virulence when secreted in combination. In vitro cytotoxicity and anti-internalization activities were not enhanced when effector proteins were secreted in combinations rather than alone. Likewise in a mouse model of pneumonia, bacterial burden in the lungs, dissemination and mortality attributable to ExoS, ExoT and ExoU were not synergistically increased when combinations of these effector proteins were secreted. Because of the absence of an appreciable synergistic increase in virulence when multiple effector proteins were secreted in combination, we conclude that any cooperation between ExoS, ExoT and ExoU does not translate into a synergistically significant enhancement of disease severity as measured by these assays.

scholarly journals Pseudolipasin A Is a Specific Inhibitor for Phospholipase A2 Activity of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Cytotoxin ExoU

2006 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
pp. 1089-1098 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincent T. Lee ◽  
Stefan Pukatzki ◽  
Hiromi Sato ◽  
Eriya Kikawada ◽  
Anastasia A. Kazimirova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Specific Inhibitor ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Cytotoxic Effects ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Secretion Pathway ◽  
Phospholipase A2 Activity

ABSTRACT A number of bacterial pathogens utilize the type III secretion pathway to deliver effector proteins directly into the host cell cytoplasm. Certain strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa associated with acute infections express a potent cytotoxin, exoenzyme U (ExoU), that is delivered via the type III secretion pathway directly into contacting host cells. Once inside the mammalian cell, ExoU rapidly lyses the intoxicated cells via its phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activity. A high-throughput cell-based assay was developed to screen libraries of compounds for those capable of protecting cells against the cytotoxic effects of ExoU. A number of compounds were identified in this screen, including one group that blocks the intracellular activity of ExoU. In addition, these compounds specifically inhibited the PLA2 activity of ExoU in vitro, whereas eukaryotic secreted PLA2 and cytosolic PLA2 were not inhibited. This novel inhibitor of ExoU-specific PLA2 activity, named pseudolipasin A, may provide a new lead for virulence factor-based therapeutic design.

scholarly journals Small-Molecule Inhibitors Specifically Targeting Type III Secretion

2005 ◽  
Vol 73 (5) ◽  
pp. 3104-3114 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Nordfelth ◽  
A. M. Kauppi ◽  
H. A. Norberg ◽  
H. Wolf-Watz ◽  
M. Elofsson
Keyword(s):  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Antibacterial Agents ◽  
Plant Pathogens ◽  
Yersinia Pseudotuberculosis ◽  
Cell Model ◽  
Specific Interaction ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Type Iii

ABSTRACT The type III secretion (TTS) system is used by several animal and plant pathogens to deliver effector proteins into the cytosol of the eukaryotic target cell as a strategy to evade the defense reactions elicited by the infected organism. The fact that these systems are highly homologous implies that novel antibacterial agents that chemically attenuate the pathogens via a specific interaction with the type III secretion mechanism can be identified. A number of small organic molecules having this potential have recently been identified (A. M. Kauppi, R. Nordfelth, H. Uvell, H. Wolf-Watz, and M. Elofsson, Chem. Biol. 10:241-249, 2003). Using different reporter gene constructs, we showed that compounds that belong to a class of acylated hydrazones of different salicylaldehydes target the TTS system of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. One of these compounds, compound 1, was studied in detail and was found to specifically block Yop effector secretion under in vitro conditions by targeting the TTS system. In this respect the drug mimics the well-known effect of calcium on Yop secretion. In addition, compound 1 inhibits Yop effector translocation after infection of HeLa cells without affecting the eukaryotic cells or the bacteria. A HeLa cell model that mimics in vivo conditions showed that compound 1 chemically attenuates the pathogen to the advantage of the eukaryotic cell. Thus, our results show proof of concept, i.e., that small compounds targeting the TTS system can be identified, and they point to the possible use of TTS inhibitors as a novel class of antibacterial agents.

scholarly journals Role of the Salmonella Pathogenicity Island 1 (SPI-1) Protein InvB in Type III Secretion of SopE and SopE2, Two Salmonella Effector Proteins Encoded Outside of SPI-1

2003 ◽  
Vol 185 (23) ◽  
pp. 6950-6967 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristin Ehrbar ◽  
Andrea Friebel ◽  
Samuel I. Miller ◽  
Wolf-Dietrich Hardt
Keyword(s):  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Inflammatory Responses ◽  
Pathogenicity Island ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Effector Protein ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Serovar Typhimurium

ABSTRACT Salmonella enterica subspecies 1 serovar Typhimurium encodes a type III secretion system (TTSS) within Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 (SPI-1). This TTSS injects effector proteins into host cells to trigger invasion and inflammatory responses. Effector proteins are recognized by the TTSS via signals encoded in their N termini. Specific chaperones can be involved in this process. The chaperones InvB, SicA, and SicP are encoded in SPI-1 and are required for transport of SPI-1-encoded effectors. Several key effector proteins, like SopE and SopE2, are located outside of SPI-1 but are secreted in an SPI-1-dependent manner. It has not been clear how these effector proteins are recognized by the SPI-1 TTSS. Using pull-down and coimmunoprecipitation assays, we found that SopE is copurified with InvB, the known chaperone for the SPI-1-encoded effector protein Sip/SspA. We also found that InvB is required for secretion and translocation of SopE and SopE2 and for stabilization of SopE2 in the bacterial cytosol. Our data demonstrate that effector proteins encoded within and outside of SPI-1 use the same chaperone for secretion via the SPI-1 TTSS.

scholarly journals A Solvent-Exposed Patch in Chaperone-Bound YopE Is Required for Translocation by the Type III Secretion System

2010 ◽  
Vol 192 (12) ◽  
pp. 3114-3122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Loren Rodgers ◽  
Romila Mukerjea ◽  
Sara Birtalan ◽  
Devorah Friedberg ◽  
Partho Ghosh
Keyword(s):  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Yersinia Pseudotuberculosis ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Potential Association ◽  
Chaperone Binding ◽  
Bacterial Type ◽  
Characteristic Manner

ABSTRACT Most effector proteins of bacterial type III secretion (T3S) systems require chaperone proteins for translocation into host cells. Such effectors are bound by chaperones in a conserved and characteristic manner, with the chaperone-binding (Cb) region of the effector wound around the chaperone in a highly extended conformation. This conformation has been suggested to serve as a translocation signal in promoting the association between the chaperone-effector complex and a bacterial component required for translocation. We sought to test a prediction of this model by identifying a potential association site for the Yersinia pseudotuberculosis chaperone-effector pair SycE-YopE. We identified a set of residues in the YopE Cb region that are required for translocation but are dispensable for expression, SycE binding, secretion into the extrabacterial milieu, and stability in mammalian cells. These residues form a solvent-exposed patch on the surface of the chaperone-bound Cb region, and thus their effect on translocation is consistent with the structure of the chaperone-bound Cb region serving as a signal for translocation.

scholarly journals Type III secretion system effector proteins are mechanically labile

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (12) ◽  
pp. e2019566118
Author(s):  
Marc-André LeBlanc ◽  
Morgan R. Fink ◽  
Thomas T. Perkins ◽  
Marcelo C. Sousa
Keyword(s):  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Protein Unfolding ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Effector Protein ◽  
Secretion Systems ◽  
Channel Diameter ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Pass Through ◽  
Partially Unfolded

Multiple gram-negative bacteria encode type III secretion systems (T3SS) that allow them to inject effector proteins directly into host cells to facilitate colonization. To be secreted, effector proteins must be at least partially unfolded to pass through the narrow needle-like channel (diameter <2 nm) of the T3SS. Fusion of effector proteins to tightly packed proteins—such as GFP, ubiquitin, or dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR)—impairs secretion and results in obstruction of the T3SS. Prior observation that unfolding can become rate-limiting for secretion has led to the model that T3SS effector proteins have low thermodynamic stability, facilitating their secretion. Here, we first show that the unfolding free energy (ΔGunfold0) of two Salmonella effector proteins, SptP and SopE2, are 6.9 and 6.0 kcal/mol, respectively, typical for globular proteins and similar to published ΔGunfold0 for GFP, ubiquitin, and DHFR. Next, we mechanically unfolded individual SptP and SopE2 molecules by atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based force spectroscopy. SptP and SopE2 unfolded at low force (Funfold ≤ 17 pN at 100 nm/s), making them among the most mechanically labile proteins studied to date by AFM. Moreover, their mechanical compliance is large, as measured by the distance to the transition state (Δx‡ = 1.6 and 1.5 nm for SptP and SopE2, respectively). In contrast, prior measurements of GFP, ubiquitin, and DHFR show them to be mechanically robust (Funfold > 80 pN) and brittle (Δx‡ < 0.4 nm). These results suggest that effector protein unfolding by T3SS is a mechanical process and that mechanical lability facilitates efficient effector protein secretion.

scholarly journals SOS Regulation of the Type III Secretion System of Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli

2007 ◽  
Vol 189 (7) ◽  
pp. 2863-2872 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jay L. Mellies ◽  
Kenneth R. Haack ◽  
Derek C. Galligan
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Type Iii Secretion System ◽  
Secretion System ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Watery Diarrhea ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Lexa Protein

ABSTRACT Genomes of bacterial pathogens contain and coordinately regulate virulence-associated genes in order to cause disease. Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC), a major cause of watery diarrhea in infants and a model gram-negative pathogen, expresses a type III secretion system (TTSS) that is encoded by the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) and is necessary for causing attaching and effacing intestinal lesions. Effector proteins encoded by the LEE and in cryptic prophage are injected into the host cell cytoplasm by the TTTS apparatus, ultimately leading to diarrhea. The LEE is comprised of multiple polycistronic operons, most of which are controlled by the global, positive regulator Ler. Here we demonstrated that the LEE2 and LEE3 operons also responded to SOS signaling and that this regulation was LexA dependent. As determined by a DNase I protection assay, purified LexA protein bound in vitro to a predicted SOS box located in the divergent, overlapping LEE2/LEE3 promoters. Expression of the lexA1 allele, encoding an uncleavable LexA protein in EPEC, resulted in reduced secretion, particularly in the absence of the Ler regulator. Finally, we obtained evidence that the cryptic phage-located nleA gene encoding an effector molecule is SOS regulated. Thus, we demonstrated, for the first time to our knowledge, that genes encoding components of a TTSS are regulated by the SOS response, and our data might explain how a subset of EPEC effector proteins, encoded in cryptic prophages, are coordinately regulated with the LEE-encoded TTSS necessary for their translocation into host cells.

scholarly journals Differential Modulation by Ca2+ of Type III Secretion of Diffusely Adhering Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli

2003 ◽  
Vol 71 (4) ◽  
pp. 1725-1732 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina Ide ◽  
Silke Michgehl ◽  
Sabine Knappstein ◽  
Gerhard Heusipp ◽  
M. Alexander Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Chromosomal Locus ◽  
Type Iii ◽  
Calcium Chelation ◽  
Host Plasma Membrane ◽  
Enterocyte Effacement

ABSTRACT Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) strains are a common cause of persistent diarrhea among infants, primarily in developing countries. The pathogenicity of EPEC is associated with the expression and secretion of bacterial proteins encoded by the chromosomal locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE). The LEE-encoded type III-secreted proteins EspA, EspB, and EspD are part of a molecular syringe, which is used by EPEC to translocate effector proteins directly into the cytoplasm of host cells. The type III-secreted translocated intimin receptor (Tir) protein is thought to be delivered by an Esp-dependent mechanism into the host cell, and this is followed by insertion into the host plasma membrane, where the protein serves as the receptor for intimin, an afimbrial bacterial adhesin. Type III secretion is subject to environmental regulation, and secretion can be induced in vitro by growing bacteria in cell culture medium. In this study we found that Ca2+ is involved in the regulation of type III secretion both in classical locally adherent EPEC and in atypical diffusely adherent EPEC. Interestingly, we observed contrasting secretion of Esp proteins and Tir in response to Ca2+. While the secretion of Tir is clearly enhanced and the protein is integrated into HeLa membranes under calcium chelation conditions, Esp secretion is strongly reduced under these conditions. These data suggest that under Ca2+-depleted conditions Tir might be secreted into the medium and integrated into host membranes by an Esp-independent mechanism, without the need for a functional type III translocation machinery.

scholarly journals Functional Characterization of the Type III Secretion ATPase HrcN from the Plant Pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria

2008 ◽  
Vol 191 (5) ◽  
pp. 1414-1428 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Lorenz ◽  
Daniela Büttner
Keyword(s):  
Type Iii Secretion ◽  
Xanthomonas Campestris ◽  
Pathogenic Bacteria ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Phosphate Binding ◽  
Type Iii

ABSTRACT Many gram-negative plant and animal pathogenic bacteria employ a type III secretion (T3S) system to inject effector proteins into the cytosol of eukaryotic host cells. The membrane-spanning T3S apparatus is associated with an ATPase that presumably provides the energy for the secretion process. Here, we describe the role of the predicted ATPase HrcN from the plant pathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas campestris pathovar vesicatoria. We show that HrcN hydrolyzes ATP in vitro and is essential for T3S and bacterial pathogenicity. Stability of HrcN in X. campestris pv. vesicatoria depends on the conserved HrcL protein, which interacts with HrcN in vitro and in vivo. Both HrcN and HrcL bind to the inner membrane protein HrcU and specifically localize to the bacterial membranes under T3S-permissive conditions. Protein-protein interaction studies revealed that HrcN also interacts with the T3S substrate specificity switch protein HpaC and the global T3S chaperone HpaB, which promotes secretion of multiple effector proteins. Using an in vitro chaperone release assay, we demonstrate that HrcN dissociates a complex between HpaB and the effector protein XopF1 in an ATP-dependent manner, suggesting that HrcN is involved in the release of HpaB-bound effectors. Effector release depends on a conserved glycine residue in the HrcN phosphate-binding loop, which is crucial for enzymatic activity and protein function during T3S. There is no experimental evidence that T3S can occur in the absence of the ATPase, in contrast to recent findings reported for animal pathogenic bacteria.

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