scholarly journals SpoT-Triggered Stringent Response Controls usp Gene Expression in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

2008 ◽  
Vol 190 (21) ◽  
pp. 7189-7199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nelli Boes ◽  
Kerstin Schreiber ◽  
Max Schobert
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Stress Proteins ◽  
Stringent Response ◽  
Triple Mutant ◽  
Pyruvate Fermentation ◽  
Anaerobic Energy ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Layer Chromatography

ABSTRACT The universal stress proteins (Usps) UspK (PA3309) and UspN (PA4352) of Pseudomonas aeruginosa are essential for surviving specific anaerobic energy stress conditions such as pyruvate fermentation and anaerobic stationary phase. Expression of the respective genes is under the control of the oxygen-sensing regulator Anr. In this study we investigated the regulation of uspN and three additional P. aeruginosa usp genes: uspL (PA1789), uspM (PA4328), and uspO (PA5027). Anr induces expression of these genes in response to anaerobic conditions. Using promoter-lacZ fusions, we showed that P uspL -lacZ, P uspM -lacZ, and P uspO -lacZ were also induced in stationary phase as described for P uspN -lacZ. However, stationary phase gene expression was abolished in the P. aeruginosa triple mutant Δanr ΔrelA ΔspoT. The relA and spoT genes encode the regulatory components of the stringent response. We determined pppGpp and ppGpp levels using a thin-layer chromatography approach and detected the accumulation of ppGpp in the wild type and the ΔrelA mutant in stationary phase, indicating a SpoT-derived control of ppGpp accumulation. Additional investigation of stationary phase in LB medium revealed that alkaline pH values are involved in the regulatory process of ppGpp accumulation.

Regulation of expression of the cyanide-insensitive terminal oxidase in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Microbiology ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 149 (5) ◽  
pp. 1275-1284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan Cooper ◽  
Gholam Reza Tavankar ◽  
Huw D. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Culture Medium ◽  
Homoserine Lactone ◽  
Exponential Phase ◽  
Terminal Oxidase ◽  
Regulation Of Expression ◽  
Potent Inducer ◽  
Protein Levels ◽  
In The Wild

The regulation of the cyanide-insensitive oxidase (CIO) in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a bacterium that can synthesize HCN, is reported. The expression of a cioA–lacZ transcriptional fusion, CioA protein levels and CIO activity were low in exponential phase but induced about fivefold upon entry into stationary phase. Varying the O2 transfer coefficient from 11·5 h−1 to 87·4 h−1 had no effect on CIO expression and no correlation was observed between CIO induction and the dissolved O2 levels in the growth medium. However, a mutant deleted for the O2-sensitive transcriptional regulator ANR derepressed CIO expression in an O2-sensitive manner, with the highest induction occurring under low-O2 conditions. Therefore, CIO expression can respond to a signal generated by low O2 levels, but this response is normally kept in check by ANR repression. ANR may play an important role in preventing overexpression of the CIO in relation to other terminal oxidases. A component present in spent culture medium was able to induce CIO expression. However, experiments with purified N-butanoyl-l-homoserine lactone or N-(3-oxododecanoyl)homoserine lactone ruled out a role for these quorum-sensing molecules in the control of CIO expression. Cyanide was a potent inducer of the CIO at physiologically relevant concentrations and experiments using spent culture medium from a ΔhcnB mutant, which is unable to synthesize cyanide, showed that cyanide was the inducing factor present in P. aeruginosa spent culture medium. However, the finding that in a ΔhcnB mutant cioA–lacZ expression was induced normally upon entry into stationary phase indicated that cyanide was not the endogenous inducer of the terminal oxidase. The authors suggest that the failure of O2 to have an effect on CIO expression in the wild-type can be explained either by the requirement for an additional, stationary-phase-specific inducing signal or by the loss of an exponential-phase-specific repressing signal.

scholarly journals Anaerobic Survival of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by Pyruvate Fermentation Requires an Usp-Type Stress Protein

2006 ◽  
Vol 188 (2) ◽  
pp. 659-668 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerstin Schreiber ◽  
Nelli Boes ◽  
Martin Eschbach ◽  
Lothar Jaensch ◽  
Juergen Wehland ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Gene Fusion ◽  
Laser Scanning Microscopy ◽  
Green Fluorescent Protein Gene ◽  
Confocal Laser ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Long Term Survival ◽  
Pyruvate Fermentation

ABSTRACT Recently, we identified a pyruvate fermentation pathway in Pseudomonas aeruginosa sustaining anaerobic survival in the absence of alternative anaerobic respiratory and fermentative energy generation systems (M. Eschbach, K. Schreiber, K. Trunk, J. Buer, D. Jahn, and M. Schobert, J. Bacteriol. 186:4596-4604, 2004). Anaerobic long-term survival of P. aeruginosa might be essential for survival in deeper layers of a biofilm and the persistent infection of anaerobic mucus plaques in the cystic fibrosis lung. Proteome analysis of P. aeruginosa cells during a 7-day period of pyruvate fermentation revealed the induced synthesis of three enzymes involved in arginine fermentation, ArcA, ArcB, and ArcC, and the outer membrane protein OprL. Moreover, formation of two proteins of unknown function, PA3309 and PA4352, increased by factors of 72- and 22-fold, respectively. Both belong to the group of universal stress proteins (Usp). Long-term survival of a PA3309 knockout mutant by pyruvate fermentation was found drastically reduced. The oxygen-sensing regulator Anr controls expression of the P PA3309-lacZ reporter gene fusion after a shift to anaerobic conditions and further pyruvate fermentation. PA3309 expression was also found induced during the anaerobic and aerobic stationary phases. This aerobic stationary-phase induction is independent of the regulatory proteins Anr, RpoS, RelA, GacA, RhlR, and LasR, indicating a currently unknown mechanism of stationary-phase-dependent gene activation. PA3309 promoter activity was detected in the deeper layers of a P. aeruginosa biofilm using a P PA3309-gfp (green fluorescent protein gene) fusion and confocal laser-scanning microscopy. This is the first description of an Anr-dependent, anaerobically induced, and functional Usp-like protein in bacteria.

scholarly journals Plastidial (p)ppGpp Synthesis by the Ca2+-Dependent RelA–SpoT Homolog Regulates the Adaptation of Chloroplast Gene Expression to Darkness in Arabidopsis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumire Ono ◽  
Sae Suzuki ◽  
Doshun Ito ◽  
Shota Tagawa ◽  
Takashi Shiina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Stringent Response ◽  
Transient Increase ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Mrna Levels ◽  
Knockout Mutant ◽  
Chloroplast Gene Expression ◽  
Secondary Messenger ◽  
Hydrolytic Activities ◽  
In The Wild

Abstract In bacteria, the hyper-phosphorylated nucleotide, guanosine 3′,5′-bis(pyrophosphate) (ppGpp), functions as a secondary messenger under stringent conditions. ppGpp levels are controlled by two distinct enzymes, namely RelA and SpoT, in Escherichia coli. RelA–SpoT homologs (RSHs) are also conserved in plants where they function in the plastids. The model plant Arabidopsis thaliana contains four RSHs: RSH1, RSH2, RSH3 and Ca2+-dependent RSH (CRSH). Genetic characterizations of RSH1, RSH2 and RSH3 were undertaken, which showed that the ppGpp-dependent plastidial stringent response significantly influences plant growth and stress acclimation. However, the physiological significance of CRSH-dependent ppGpp synthesis remains unclear, as no crsh-null mutant has been available. Here, to investigate the function of CRSH, a crsh-knockout mutant of Arabidopsis was constructed using a site-specific gene-editing technique, and its phenotype was characterized. A transient increase in ppGpp was observed for 30 min in the wild type (WT) after the light-to-dark transition, but this increase was not observed in the crsh mutant. Similar analyses were performed with the rsh2-rsh3 double and rsh1-rsh2-rsh3 triple mutants and showed that the transient increments of ppGpp in the mutants were higher than those in the WT. The increase in ppGpp in the WT and rsh2 rsh3 accompanied decrements in the mRNA levels of some plastidial genes transcribed by the plastid-encoded plastid RNA polymerase. These results indicate that the transient increase in ppGpp at night is due to CRSH-dependent ppGpp synthesis and that the ppGpp level is maintained by the hydrolytic activities of RSH1, RSH2 and RSH3 to accustom plastidial gene expression to darkness.

scholarly journals Translation quality control is critical for bacterial responses to amino acid stress

2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (8) ◽  
pp. 2252-2257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tammy J. Bullwinkle ◽  
Michael Ibba
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Quality Control ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Acid Stress ◽  
Stringent Response ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Leader Peptide ◽  
Transcriptional Responses ◽  
Translation Quality ◽  
In The Wild

Gene expression relies on quality control for accurate transmission of genetic information. One mechanism that prevents amino acid misincorporation errors during translation is editing of misacylated tRNAs by aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. In the absence of editing, growth is limited upon exposure to excess noncognate amino acid substrates and other stresses, but whether these physiological effects result solely from mistranslation remains unclear. To explore if translation quality control influences cellular processes other than protein synthesis, an Escherichia coli strain defective in Tyr-tRNAPhe editing was used. In the absence of editing, cellular levels of aminoacylated tRNAPhe were elevated during amino acid stress, whereas in the wild-type strain these levels declined under the same growth conditions. In the editing-defective strain, increased levels of aminoacylated tRNAPhe led to continued synthesis of the PheL leader peptide and attenuation of pheA transcription under amino acid stress. Consequently, in the absence of editing, activation of the phenylalanine biosynthetic operon becomes less responsive to phenylalanine limitation. In addition to raising aminoacylated tRNA levels, the absence of editing lowered the amount of deacylated tRNAPhe in the cell. This reduction in deacylated tRNA was accompanied by decreased synthesis of the second messenger guanosine tetraphosphate and limited induction of stringent response-dependent gene expression in editing-defective cells during amino acid stress. These data show that a single quality-control mechanism, the editing of misacylated aminoacyl-tRNAs, provides a critical checkpoint both for maintaining the accuracy of translation and for determining the sensitivity of transcriptional responses to amino acid stress.

scholarly journals Plastidial (p)ppGpp synthesis by the Ca2+-dependent RelA-SpoT homolog regulates the adaptation of chloroplast gene expression to darkness in Arabidopsis

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumire Ono ◽  
Sae Suzuki ◽  
Doshun Ito ◽  
Shota Tagawa ◽  
Takashi Shiina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Nutrient Deficiency ◽  
Stringent Response ◽  
Transient Increase ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Mrna Levels ◽  
Knockout Mutant ◽  
Chloroplast Gene Expression ◽  
Hydrolytic Activities ◽  
In The Wild

AbstractIn bacteria, the hyper-phosphorylated nucleotides, guanosine 5’-diphosphate 3’-diphosphate (ppGpp) and guanosine 5’-triphosphate 3’-diphosphate (pppGpp), function as secondary messengers in the regulation of various metabolic processes of the cell, including transcription, translation, and enzymatic activities, especially under nutrient deficiency. The activity carried out by these nucleotide messengers is known as the stringent response. (p)ppGpp levels are controlled by two distinct enzymes, namely, RelA and SpoT, in Escherichia coli. RelA-SpoT homologs (RSHs) are also conserved in plants and algae where they function in the plastids. The model plant Arabidopsis thaliana contains four RSHs: RSH1, RSH2, RSH3, and Ca2+-dependent RSH (CRSH). Genetic characterizations of RSH1, RSH2, and RSH3 were undertaken, which showed that the (p)ppGpp-dependent plastidial stringent response significantly influences plant growth and stress acclimation. However, the physiological significance of CRSH-dependent (p)ppGpp synthesis remains unclear, as no crsh-null mutant has been available. Here to investigate the function of CRSH, a crsh-knockout mutant of Arabidopsis was constructed using a site-specific gene-editing technique, and its phenotype was characterized. A transient increase of ppGpp was observed for 30 min in the wild type (WT) after light-to-dark transition, but this increase was not observed in the crsh mutant. Similar analyzes were performed with the rsh2rsh3 double and rsh1rsh2rsh3 triple mutants of Arabidopsis and showed that the transient increments of ppGpp in the mutants were higher than those in the WT. The increase of (p)ppGpp in the WT and rsh2rsh3 accompanied decrements in the mRNA levels of psbD transcribed by the plastid-encoded plastid RNA polymerase. These results indicated that the transient increase of intracellular ppGpp at night is due to CRSH-dependent ppGpp synthesis and the (p)ppGpp level is maintained by the hydrolytic activities of RSH1, RSH2, and RSH3 to accustom plastidial gene expression to darkness.

scholarly journals Gene expression of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a mucin-containing synthetic growth medium mimicking cystic fibrosis lung sputum

2010 ◽  
Vol 59 (9) ◽  
pp. 1089-1100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carina Fung ◽  
Sharna Naughton ◽  
Lynne Turnbull ◽  
Pholawat Tingpej ◽  
Barbara Rose ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Luria Broth ◽  
Exponential Phase ◽  
Anaerobic Growth ◽  
Phase Growth ◽  
Early Exponential Phase

Pseudomonas aeruginosa airway infection is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. Various in vitro models have been developed to study P. aeruginosa pathobiology in the CF lung. In this study we produced a modified artificial-sputum medium (ASMDM) more closely resembling CF sputum than previous models, and extended previous work by using strain PAO1 arrays to examine the global transcription profiles of P. aeruginosa strain UCBPP-PA14 under early exponential-phase and stationary-phase growth. In early exponential phase, 38/39 nutrition-related genes were upregulated in line with data from previous in vitro models using UCBPP-PA14. Additionally, 23 type III secretion system (T3SS) genes, several anaerobic respiration genes and 24 quorum-sensing (QS)-related genes were upregulated in ASMDM, suggesting enhanced virulence factor expression and priming for anaerobic growth and biofilm formation. Under stationary phase growth in ASMDM, macroscopic clumps resembling microcolonies were evident in UCBPP-PA14 and CF strains, and over 40 potentially important genes were differentially expressed relative to stationary-phase growth in Luria broth. Most notably, QS-related and T3SS genes were downregulated in ASMDM, and iron-acquisition and assimilatory nitrate reductase genes were upregulated, simulating the iron-depleted, microaerophilic/anaerobic environment of CF sputum. ASMDM thus appears to be highly suitable for gene expression studies of P. aeruginosa in CF.

scholarly journals Heterogeneous rpoS and rhlR mRNA Levels and 16S rRNA/rDNA (rRNA Gene) Ratios within Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilms, Sampled by Laser Capture Microdissection

2010 ◽  
Vol 192 (12) ◽  
pp. 2991-3000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ailyn C. Pérez-Osorio ◽  
Kerry S. Williamson ◽  
Michael J. Franklin
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Quorum Sensing ◽  
16S Rrna ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Laser Capture Microdissection ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Mrna Levels ◽  
Bacterial Gene ◽  
Laser Capture

ABSTRACT The local environmental conditions in biofilms are dependent on the impinging aqueous solution, chemical diffusion, and the metabolic activities of cells within the biofilms. Chemical gradients established in biofilms lead to physiological heterogeneities in bacterial gene expression. Previously, we used laser capture microdissection (LCM) and quantitative reverse transcription (RT)-PCR to target defined biofilm subpopulations for gene expression studies. Here, we combined this approach with quantitative PCR of bacterial DNA to normalize the amount of gene expression per cell. By comparing the ratio of 16S rRNA to 16S rDNA (rRNA gene), we demonstrated that cells at the top of thick Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms have 16S rRNA/genome ratios similar to those of cells in a transition from the exponential phase to the stationary phase. Cells in the middle and bottom layers of these biofilms have ratios that are not significantly different from those of stationary-phase planktonic cultures. Since much of each biofilm appeared to be in a stationary-phase-like state, we analyzed the local amounts of the stationary-phase sigma factor rpoS gene and the quorum-sensing regulator rhlR gene per cell. Surprisingly, the amount of rpoS mRNA was largest at the top of the biofilms at the air-biofilm interface. Less than one rpoS mRNA transcript per cell was observed in the middle or base of the biofilms. The rhlR mRNA content was also greatest at the top of the biofilms, and there was little detectable rhlR expression at the middle or bottom of the biofilms. While the cell density was slightly greater at the bottom of the biofilms, expression of the quorum-sensing regulator occurred primarily at the top of the biofilms, where the cell metabolic activity was greatest, as indicated by local expression of the housekeeping gene acpP and by expression from a constitutive P trc promoter. The results indicate that in thick P. aeruginosa biofilms, cells in the 30 μm adjacent to the air-biofilm interface actively express genes associated with stationary phase, while cells in the interior portions do not express these genes and therefore are in a late-stationary-phase-like state and may be dormant.

scholarly journals Identification, Timing, and Signal Specificity of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Quorum-Controlled Genes: a Transcriptome Analysis

2003 ◽  
Vol 185 (7) ◽  
pp. 2066-2079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Schuster ◽  
C. Phoebe Lostroh ◽  
Tomoo Ogi ◽  
E. P. Greenberg
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Quorum Sensing ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Transcriptome Analysis ◽  
Homoserine Lactone ◽  
Logarithmic Phase ◽  
Acyl Homoserine Lactone ◽  
Global Regulators ◽  
Signaling Systems

ABSTRACT There are two interrelated acyl-homoserine lactone quorum-sensing-signaling systems in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. These systems, the LasR-LasI system and the RhlR-RhlI system, are global regulators of gene expression. We performed a transcriptome analysis to identify quorum-sensing-controlled genes and to better understand quorum-sensing control of P. aeruginosa gene expression. We compared gene expression in a LasI-RhlI signal mutant grown with added signals to gene expression without added signals, and we compared a LasR-RhlR signal receptor mutant to its parent. In all, we identified 315 quorum-induced and 38 quorum-repressed genes, representing about 6% of the P. aeruginosa genome. The quorum-repressed genes were activated in the stationary phase in quorum-sensing mutants but were not activated in the parent strain. The analysis of quorum-induced genes suggests that the signal specificities are on a continuum and that the timing of gene expression is on a continuum (some genes are induced early in growth, most genes are induced at the transition from the logarithmic phase to the stationary phase, and some genes are induced during the stationary phase). In general, timing was not related to signal concentration. We suggest that the level of the signal receptor, LasR, is a critical trigger for quorum-activated gene expression. Acyl-homoserine lactone quorum sensing appears to be a system that allows ordered expression of hundreds of genes during P. aeruginosa growth in culture.

scholarly journals Transcriptome Analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Growth: Comparison of Gene Expression in Planktonic Cultures and Developing and Mature Biofilms

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (18) ◽  
pp. 6571-6576 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard D. Waite ◽  
Anastasia Papakonstantinopoulou ◽  
Eddie Littler ◽  
Michael A. Curtis
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Solute Transport ◽  
Transcriptome Analysis ◽  
Transcriptional Regulators ◽  
Transport Proteins ◽  
Stages Of Development ◽  
Novel Genes ◽  
Genes Encoding

ABSTRACT The transcriptomes of logarithmic- and stationary-phase Pseudomonas aeruginosa planktonic cultures and static biofilms of different stages of development were compared. Developing and confluent biofilm transcriptomes were found to be related to those of logarithmic- and stationary-phase planktonic cultures, respectively. In addition, a number of novel genes were up-regulated in developing and confluent biofilms, including genes encoding putative solute transport proteins and transcriptional regulators, respectively.

scholarly journals Pyocyanin Alters Redox Homeostasis and Carbon Flux through Central Metabolic Pathways in Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14

2007 ◽  
Vol 189 (17) ◽  
pp. 6372-6381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexa Price-Whelan ◽  
Lars E. P. Dietrich ◽  
Dianne K. Newman
Keyword(s):  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Metabolic Pathways ◽  
Carbon Flux ◽  
Redox Homeostasis ◽  
Opportunistic Pathogen ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Physiological Relevance ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Phenazine Production

ABSTRACT The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa produces colorful, redox-active antibiotics called phenazines. Excretion of pyocyanin, the best-studied natural phenazine, is responsible for the bluish tint of sputum and pus associated with P. aeruginosa infections in humans. Although the toxicity of pyocyanin for other bacteria, as well as its role in eukaryotic infection, has been studied extensively, the physiological relevance of pyocyanin metabolism for the producing organism is not well understood. Pyocyanin reduction by P. aeruginosa PA14 is readily observed in standing liquid cultures that have consumed all of the oxygen in the medium. We investigated the physiological consequences of pyocyanin reduction by assaying intracellular concentrations of NADH and NAD+ in the wild-type strain and a mutant defective in phenazine production. We found that the mutant accumulated more NADH in stationary phase than the wild type. This increased accumulation correlated with a decrease in oxygen availability and was relieved by the addition of nitrate. Pyocyanin addition to a phenazine-null mutant also decreased intracellular NADH levels, suggesting that pyocyanin reduction facilitates redox balancing in the absence of other electron acceptors. Analysis of extracellular organic acids revealed that pyocyanin stimulated stationary-phase pyruvate excretion in P. aeruginosa PA14, indicating that pyocyanin may also influence the intracellular redox state by decreasing carbon flux through central metabolic pathways.

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