scholarly journals Quorum Sensing and Iron-Dependent Coordinated Control of Autoinducer-2 Production via Small RNA RyhB in Vibrio vulnificus

Author(s):  
Keun-Woo Lee ◽  
Yancheng Wen ◽  
Na-Young Park ◽  
Kun-Soo Kim

Abstract Roles for the non-coding small RNA RyhB in quorum-sensing and iron-dependent gene modulation in the human pathogen V. vulnificus were assessed in this study. Both the quorum sensing master regulator SmcR and the Fur-iron complex were observed to bind to the region upstream of the non-coding small RNA RyhB gene to repress expression, which suggests that RyhB is associated with both quorum-sensing and iron-dependent signaling in this pathogen. We found that expression of LuxS, which is responsible for the biosynthesis of autoinducer-2 (AI-2), was higher in wild type than in a ryhB-deletion isotype. RyhB binds directly to the 5'-UTR of the luxS transcript to form a heteroduplex, which not only stabilizes LuxS mRNA but also disrupts the secondary structure that normally obscures the translational start codon and thereby allows translation of LuxS to begin. The binding of RyhB to LuxS mRNA requires the chaperone protein Hfq, which stabilizes RyhB. These results demonstrate that the small RNA RyhB is a key element associated with feedback control of AI-2 production, and that it inhibits quorum-sensing signaling in an iron-dependent manner. This study, taken together with previous studies, shows that iron availability and cell density signals are funneled to SmcR and RyhB, and that these regulators coordinate cognate signal pathways that result in the proper balance of protein expression in response to environmental conditions.

2007 ◽  
Vol 189 (17) ◽  
pp. 6109-6117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethany A. Rader ◽  
Shawn R. Campagna ◽  
Martin F. Semmelhack ◽  
Bonnie L. Bassler ◽  
Karen Guillemin

ABSTRACT The genome of the gastric pathogen Helicobacter pylori contains a homologue of the gene luxS, which has been shown to be responsible for production of the quorum-sensing signal autoinducer 2 (AI-2). We report here that deletion of the luxS gene in strain G27 resulted in decreased motility on soft agar plates, a defect that was complemented by a wild-type copy of the luxS gene and by the addition of cell-free supernatant containing AI-2. The flagella of the luxS mutant appeared normal; however, in genetic backgrounds lacking any of three flagellar regulators—the two-component sensor kinase flgS, the sigma factor σ28 (also called fliA), and the anti-sigma factor flgM—loss of luxS altered flagellar morphology. In all cases, the double mutant phenotypes were restored to the luxS + phenotype by the addition of synthetic 4,5-dihydroxy-2,3-pentanedione (DPD), which cyclizes to form AI-2. Furthermore, in all mutant backgrounds loss of luxS caused a decrease in transcript levels of the flagellar regulator flhA. Addition of DPD to luxS cells induced flhA transcription in a dose-dependent manner. Deletion of flhA in a wild-type or luxS mutant background resulted in identical loss of motility, flagella, and flagellar gene expression. These data demonstrate that AI-2 functions as a secreted signaling molecule upstream of FlhA and plays a critical role in global regulation of flagellar gene transcription in H. pylori.


2000 ◽  
Vol 182 (22) ◽  
pp. 6401-6411 ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaus Winzer ◽  
Colin Falconer ◽  
Nachman C. Garber ◽  
Stephen P. Diggle ◽  
Miguel Camara ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT In Pseudomonas aeruginosa, many exoproduct virulence determinants are regulated via a hierarchical quorum-sensing cascade involving the transcriptional regulators LasR and RhlR and their cognate activators,N-(3-oxododecanoyl)-l-homoserine lactone (3O-C12-HSL) and N-butanoyl-l-homoserine lactone (C4-HSL). In this paper, we demonstrate that the cytotoxic lectins PA-IL and PA-IIL are regulated via quorum sensing. Using immunoblot analysis, the production of both lectins was found to be directly dependent on the rhl locus while, in alasR mutant, the onset of lectin synthesis was delayed but not abolished. The PA-IL structural gene, lecA, was cloned and sequenced. Transcript analysis indicated a monocistronic organization with a transcriptional start site 70 bp upstream of thelecA translational start codon. A lux box-type element together with RpoS (ςS) consensus sequences was identified upstream of the putative promoter region. InEscherichia coli, expression of alecA::lux reporter fusion was activated by RhlR/C4-HSL, but not by LasR/3O-C12-HSL, confirming direct regulation by RhlR/C4-HSL. Similarly, in P. aeruginosaPAO1, the expression of a chromosomallecA::lux fusion was enhanced but not advanced by the addition of exogenous C4-HSL but not 3O-C12-HSL. Furthermore, mutation of rpoS abolished lectin synthesis inP. aeruginosa, demonstrating that both RpoS and RhlR/C4-HSL are required. Although the C4-HSL-dependent expression of the lecA::lux reporter in E. coli could be inhibited by the presence of 3O-C12-HSL, this did not occur in P. aeruginosa. This suggests that, in the homologous genetic background, 3O-C12-HSL does not function as a posttranslational regulator of the RhlR/C4-HSL-dependent activation oflecA expression.


2017 ◽  
Vol 115 (2) ◽  
pp. 331-336 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heesoo Uhm ◽  
Wooyoung Kang ◽  
Kook Sun Ha ◽  
Changwon Kang ◽  
Sungchul Hohng

Because RNAs fold as they are being synthesized, their transcription rate can affect their folding. Here, we report the results of single-molecule fluorescence studies that characterize the ligand-dependent cotranscriptional folding of the Escherichia coli thiM riboswitch that regulates translation. We found that the riboswitch aptamer folds into the “off” conformation independent of its ligand, but switches to the “on” conformation during transcriptional pausing near the translational start codon. Ligand binding maintains the riboswitch in the off conformation during transcriptional pauses. We expect our assay will permit the controlled study of the two main physical mechanisms that regulate cotranscriptional folding: transcriptional pausing and transcriptional speed.


2002 ◽  
Vol 83 (11) ◽  
pp. 2857-2867 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilfred F. J. IJkel ◽  
Els C. Roode ◽  
Rob W. Goldbach ◽  
Just M. Vlak ◽  
Douwe Zuidema

Spodoptera exigua multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (SeMNPV) contains a number of genes with a homologue found so far only in a distantly related baculovirus. One of these, SeMNPV ORF17/18 (Se17/18) shares 55% amino acid similarity to ORF129 of Xestia c-nigrum granulovirus (XcGV). Se17/18 was transcribed in cultured S. exigua 301 cells, as a polyadenylated transcript of 1·1 kb. 5′-RACE analysis demonstrated that Se17/18 transcripts started at 134, 131 and 126 nt upstream of the putative translational start codon. These sites overlap with a baculovirus consensus early promoter motif. Se17/18 transcripts were detected by Northern blot analysis and RT–PCR with increasing abundance from 8 h to 24 h post infection (p.i.) and still present until 72 h p.i. A C-terminal GFP-fusion protein of Se17/18 was primarily localized in the cytoplasm of Se301 and Sf21 cells. A chicken polyclonal antiserum was raised that reacted specifically to Se17/18 protein produced in E. coli. However, no immunoreactive protein was detected in SeMNPV-infected Se301 cells and S. exigua larvae, neither in concentrated BV and ODV preparations. These observations and the inability to detect a C-terminal GFP-fusion protein of Se17/18 in Se301 cells using a GFP antibody suggest that Se17/18 protein is present, if at all, in spurious amounts. Based on the low homology of the Se17/18 protein to (methyl) transferases its possible involvement in transcription regulation is discussed.


2001 ◽  
Vol 183 (18) ◽  
pp. 5239-5247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew P. DeLisa ◽  
Chi-Fang Wu ◽  
Liang Wang ◽  
James J. Valdes ◽  
William E. Bentley

ABSTRACT Bacterial cell-to-cell communication facilitates coordinated expression of specific genes in a growth rate-II and cell density-dependent manner, a process known as quorum sensing. While the discovery of a diffusible Escherichia coli signaling pheromone, termed autoinducer 2 (AI-2), has been made along with several quorum sensing genes, the overall number and coordination of genes controlled by quorum sensing through the AI-2 signal has not been studied systematically. We investigated global changes in mRNA abundance elicited by the AI-2 signaling molecule through the use of aluxS mutant that was unable to synthesize AI-2. Remarkably, 242 genes, comprising ca. 5.6% of the E. coli genome, exhibited significant transcriptional changes (either induction or repression) in response to a 300-fold AI-2 signaling differential, with many of the identified genes displaying high induction levels (more than fivefold). Significant induction of ygeV, a putative ς54-dependent transcriptional activator, andyhbH, a ς54 modulating protein, suggests ς54 may be involved in E. coli quorum sensing.


2013 ◽  
Vol 81 (8) ◽  
pp. 2888-2898 ◽  
Author(s):  
In Hwang Kim ◽  
Yancheng Wen ◽  
Jee-Soo Son ◽  
Kyu-Ho Lee ◽  
Kun-Soo Kim

ABSTRACTThe genevvpE, encoding the virulence factor elastase, is a member of the quorum-sensing regulon inVibrio vulnificusand displays enhanced expression at high cell density. We observed that this gene was repressed under iron-rich conditions and that the repression was due to a Fur (ferricuptakeregulator)-dependent repression ofsmcR, a gene encoding a quorum-sensing master regulator with similarity toluxRinVibrio harveyi. A gel mobility shift assay and a footprinting experiment demonstrated that the Fur-iron complex binds directly to two regions upstream ofsmcR(−82 to −36 and −2 to +27, with respect to the transcription start site) with differing affinities. However, binding of the Fur-iron complex is reversible enough to allow expression ofsmcRto be induced by quorum sensing at high cell density under iron-rich conditions. Under iron-limiting conditions, Fur fails to bind either region and the expression ofsmcRis regulated solely by quorum sensing. These results suggest that two biologically important environmental signals, iron and quorum sensing, converge to direct the expression ofsmcR, which then coordinates the expression of virulence factors.


2013 ◽  
Vol 81 (11) ◽  
pp. 4053-4062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Yu ◽  
Melissa L. Madsen ◽  
Michael D. Carruthers ◽  
Gregory J. Phillips ◽  
Jeffrey S. Kavanaugh ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe autoinducer-2 (AI-2) quorum-sensing system has been linked to diverse phenotypes and regulatory changes in pathogenic bacteria. In the present study, we performed a molecular and biochemical characterization of the AI-2 system inYersinia pestis, the causative agent of plague. In strain CO92, the AI-2 signal is produced in aluxS-dependent manner, reaching maximal levels of 2.5 μM in the late logarithmic growth phase, and both wild-type and pigmentation (pgm) mutant strains made equivalent levels of AI-2. Strain CO92 possesses a chromosomallsrlocus encoding factors involved in the binding and import of AI-2, and confirming this assignment, anlsrdeletion mutant increased extracellular pools of AI-2. To assess the functional role of AI-2 sensing inY. pestis, microarray studies were conducted by comparing Δpgmstrain R88 to a ΔpgmΔluxSmutant or a quorum-sensing-null ΔpgmΔypeIRΔyspIRΔluxSmutant at 37°C. Our data suggest that AI-2 quorum sensing is associated with metabolic activities and oxidative stress genes that may helpY. pestissurvive at the host temperature. This was confirmed by observing that theluxSmutant was more sensitive to killing by hydrogen peroxide, suggesting a potential requirement for AI-2 in evasion of oxidative damage. We also show that a large number of membrane protein genes are controlled by LuxS, suggesting a role for quorum sensing in membrane modeling. Altogether, this study provides the first global analysis of AI-2 signaling inY. pestisand identifies potential roles for the system in controlling genes important to disease.


2000 ◽  
Vol 182 (16) ◽  
pp. 4596-4605 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haruka Yamazaki ◽  
Yasuo Ohnishi ◽  
Sueharu Horinouchi

ABSTRACT A-factor (2-isocapryloyl-3R-hydroxymethyl-γ-butyrolactone) at an extremely low concentration triggers streptomycin production and aerial mycelium formation in Streptomyces griseus. A-factor induces the expression of an A-factor-dependent transcriptional activator, AdpA, essential for both morphological and physiological differentiation by binding to the A-factor receptor protein ArpA, which has bound and repressed the adpA promoter, and dissociating it from the promoter. Nine DNA fragments that were specifically recognized and bound by histidine-tagged AdpA were isolated by cycles of a gel mobility shift-PCR method. One of them was located in front of a gene encoding an extracytoplasmic function ς factor belonging to a subgroup of the primary ς70 family. The cloned gene was named AdpA-dependent sigma factor gene (adsA), and the gene product was named ςAdsA. Transcription ofadsA depended on A-factor and AdpA, since adsAwas transcribed at a very low and constant level in an A-factor-deficient mutant strain or in an adpA-disrupted strain. Consistent with this, transcription of adsA was greatly enhanced at or near the timing of aerial hyphae formation, as determined by low-resolution S1 nuclease mapping. High-resolution S1 mapping determined the transcriptional start point 82 nucleotides upstream of the translational start codon. DNase I footprinting showed that AdpA bound both strands symmetrically between the transcriptional start point and the translational start codon; AdpA protected the antisense strand from positions +7 to +41 with respect to the transcriptional start point and the sense strand from positions +12 to +46. A weak palindrome was found in the AdpA-binding site. The unusual position bound by AdpA as a transcriptional activator, in relation to the promoter, suggested the presence of a mechanism by which AdpA activates transcription of adsA in some unknown way. Disruption of the chromosomal adsA gene resulted in loss of aerial hyphae formation but not streptomycin or yellow pigment production, indicating that ςAdsA is involved only in morphological development and not in secondary metabolic function. The presence of a single copy in each of the Streptomycesspecies examined by Southern hybridization suggests a common role in morphogenesis in this genus.


Microbiology ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 157 (9) ◽  
pp. 2445-2455 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethany A. Rader ◽  
Christopher Wreden ◽  
Kevin G. Hicks ◽  
Emily Goers Sweeney ◽  
Karen M. Ottemann ◽  
...  

Helicobacter pylori moves in response to environmental chemical cues using a chemotaxis two-component signal-transduction system. Autoinducer-2 (AI-2) is a quorum-sensing signal produced by the LuxS protein that accumulates in the bacterial environment in a density-dependent manner. We showed previously that a H. pylori luxS mutant was defective in motility on soft agar plates. Here we report that deletion of the luxS gene resulted in swimming behaviour with a reduced frequency of stops as compared to the wild-type strain. Stopping frequency was restored to wild-type levels by genetic complementation of the luxS mutation or by addition of synthetic 4,5-dihydroxy-2,3-pentanedione (DPD), which cyclizes to form AI-2. Synthetic DPD also increased the frequency of stops in wild-type H. pylori, similar to the behaviour induced by the known chemorepellent HCl. We found that whereas mutants lacking the chemoreceptor genes tlpA, tlpC or tlpD responded to an exogenous source of synthetic DPD, the chemoreceptor mutant tlpB was non-responsive to a gradient or uniform distribution of the chemical. Furthermore, a double mutant lacking both tlpB and luxS exhibited chemotactic behaviour similar to the tlpB single mutant, whereas a double mutant lacking both tlpB and the chemotransduction gene cheA behaved like a nonchemotactic cheA single mutant, supporting the model that tlpB functions in a signalling pathway downstream of luxS and upstream of cheA. We conclude that H. pylori perceives LuxS-produced AI-2 as a chemorepellent via the chemoreceptor TlpB.


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