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Li X, Zhou J, Liu X, Jin C, Liu L, Sun H, Wang Q, Wang Q, Liu R, Zheng X, Liu Y, Pang Y. Nucleoside-diphosphate kinase of uropathogenic Escherichia coli inhibits caspase-1-dependent pyroptosis facilitating urinary tract infection. Cell Rep 2024; 43:114051. [PMID: 38564334 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 02/19/2024] [Accepted: 03/19/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the most common causative agent of urinary tract infection (UTI). UPEC invades bladder epithelial cells (BECs) via fusiform vesicles, escapes into the cytosol, and establishes biofilm-like intracellular bacterial communities (IBCs). Nucleoside-diphosphate kinase (NDK) is secreted by pathogenic bacteria to enhance virulence. However, whether NDK is involved in UPEC pathogenesis remains unclear. Here, we find that the lack of ndk impairs the colonization of UPEC CFT073 in mouse bladders and kidneys owing to the impaired ability of UPEC to form IBCs. Furthermore, we demonstrate that NDK inhibits caspase-1-dependent pyroptosis by consuming extracellular ATP, preventing superficial BEC exfoliation, and promoting IBC formation. UPEC utilizes the reactive oxygen species (ROS) sensor OxyR to indirectly activate the regulator integration host factor, which then directly activates ndk expression in response to intracellular ROS. Here, we reveal a signaling transduction pathway that UPEC employs to inhibit superficial BEC exfoliation, thus facilitating acute UTI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xueping Li
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Jiarui Zhou
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Xingmei Liu
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Chen Jin
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Le Liu
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Hongmin Sun
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Qian Wang
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Qiushi Wang
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Ruiying Liu
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Xiaoyu Zheng
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China
| | - Yutao Liu
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China.
| | - Yu Pang
- TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, TEDA Institute of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Nankai University, Ministry of Education, Tianjin 300457, P.R. China.
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Graham CI, MacMartin TL, de Kievit TR, Brassinga AKC. Molecular regulation of virulence in Legionella pneumophila. Mol Microbiol 2024; 121:167-195. [PMID: 37908155 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.15172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 09/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/02/2023]
Abstract
Legionella pneumophila is a gram-negative bacteria found in natural and anthropogenic aquatic environments such as evaporative cooling towers, where it reproduces as an intracellular parasite of cohabiting protozoa. If L. pneumophila is aerosolized and inhaled by a susceptible person, bacteria may colonize their alveolar macrophages causing the opportunistic pneumonia Legionnaires' disease. L. pneumophila utilizes an elaborate regulatory network to control virulence processes such as the Dot/Icm Type IV secretion system and effector repertoire, responding to changing nutritional cues as their host becomes depleted. The bacteria subsequently differentiate to a transmissive state that can survive in the environment until a replacement host is encountered and colonized. In this review, we discuss the lifecycle of L. pneumophila and the molecular regulatory network that senses nutritional depletion via the stringent response, a link to stationary phase-like metabolic changes via alternative sigma factors, and two-component systems that are homologous to stress sensors in other pathogens, to regulate differentiation between the intracellular replicative phase and more transmissible states. Together, we highlight how this prototypic intracellular pathogen offers enormous potential in understanding how molecular mechanisms enable intracellular parasitism and pathogenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher I Graham
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Teassa L MacMartin
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Teresa R de Kievit
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Ann Karen C Brassinga
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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3
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Norris V, Kayser C, Muskhelishvili G, Konto-Ghiorghi Y. The roles of nucleoid-associated proteins and topoisomerases in chromosome structure, strand segregation, and the generation of phenotypic heterogeneity in bacteria. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2023; 47:fuac049. [PMID: 36549664 DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fuac049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Revised: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
How to adapt to a changing environment is a fundamental, recurrent problem confronting cells. One solution is for cells to organize their constituents into a limited number of spatially extended, functionally relevant, macromolecular assemblies or hyperstructures, and then to segregate these hyperstructures asymmetrically into daughter cells. This asymmetric segregation becomes a particularly powerful way of generating a coherent phenotypic diversity when the segregation of certain hyperstructures is with only one of the parental DNA strands and when this pattern of segregation continues over successive generations. Candidate hyperstructures for such asymmetric segregation in prokaryotes include those containing the nucleoid-associated proteins (NAPs) and the topoisomerases. Another solution to the problem of creating a coherent phenotypic diversity is by creating a growth-environment-dependent gradient of supercoiling generated along the replication origin-to-terminus axis of the bacterial chromosome. This gradient is modulated by transcription, NAPs, and topoisomerases. Here, we focus primarily on two topoisomerases, TopoIV and DNA gyrase in Escherichia coli, on three of its NAPs (H-NS, HU, and IHF), and on the single-stranded binding protein, SSB. We propose that the combination of supercoiling-gradient-dependent and strand-segregation-dependent topoisomerase activities result in significant differences in the supercoiling of daughter chromosomes, and hence in the phenotypes of daughter cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vic Norris
- University of Rouen, Laboratory of Bacterial Communication and Anti-infection Strategies, EA 4312, 76821 Mont Saint Aignan, France
| | - Clara Kayser
- University of Rouen, Laboratory of Bacterial Communication and Anti-infection Strategies, EA 4312, 76821 Mont Saint Aignan, France
| | - Georgi Muskhelishvili
- Agricultural University of Georgia, School of Natural Sciences, 0159 Tbilisi, Georgia
| | - Yoan Konto-Ghiorghi
- University of Rouen, Laboratory of Bacterial Communication and Anti-infection Strategies, EA 4312, 76821 Mont Saint Aignan, France
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4
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Fan Z, Fu T, Li Z, Du B, Cui X, Zhang R, Feng Y, Zhao H, Xue G, Cui J, Yan C, Gan L, Feng J, Xu Z, Yu Z, Tian Z, Ding Z, Chen J, Chen Y, Yuan J. The role of integration host factor in biofilm and virulence of high-alcohol-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0117023. [PMID: 37732783 PMCID: PMC10581059 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.01170-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Klebsiella pneumoniae is a well-known human nosocomial pathogen with an arsenal of virulence factors, including capsular polysaccharides (CPS), fimbriae, flagella, and lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Our previous study found that alcohol acted as an essential virulence factor for high-alcohol-producing K. pneumoniae (HiAlc Kpn). Integration host factor (IHF) is a nucleoid-associated protein that functions as a global virulence regulator in Escherichia coli. However, the regulatory role of IHF in K. pneumoniae remains unknown. In the present study, we found that deletion of ihfA or ihfB resulted in a slight defect in bacterial growth, a severe absence of biofilm formation and cytotoxicity, and a significant reduction in alcohol production. RNA sequencing differential gene expression analysis showed that compared with the wild-type control, the expression of many virulence factor genes was downregulated in ΔihfA and ΔihfB strains, such as those related to CPS (rcsA, galF, wzi, and iscR), LPS (rfbABCD), type I and type III fimbriae (fim and mrk operon), cellulose (bcs operon), iron transporter (feoABC, fhuA, fhuF, tonB, exbB, and exbD), quorum sensing (lsr operon and sdiA), type II secretion system (T2SS) and type VI secretion system (T6SS) (tssG, hcp, and gspE). Of these virulence factors, CPS, LPS, fimbriae, and cellulose are involved in biofilm formation. In addition, IHF could affect the alcohol production by regulating genes related to glucose intake (ptsG), pyruvate formate-lyase, alcohol dehydrogenase, and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. Our data provided new insights into the importance of IHF in regulating the virulence of HiAlc Kpn. IMPORTANCE Klebsiella pneumoniae is a well-known human nosocomial pathogen that causes various infectious diseases, including urinary tract infections, hospital-acquired pneumonia, bacteremia, and liver abscesses. Our previous studies demonstrated that HiAlc Kpn mediated the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease by producing excess endogenous alcohol in vivo. However, the regulators regulating the expression of genes related to metabolism, biofilm formation, and virulence of HiAlc Kpn remain unclear. In this study, the regulator IHF was found to positively regulate biofilm formation and many virulence factors including CPS, LPS, type I and type III fimbriae, cellulose, iron transporter, AI-2 quorum sensing, T2SS, and T6SS in HiAlc Kpn. Furthermore, IHF positively regulated alcohol production in HiAlc Kpn. Our results suggested that IHF could be a potential drug target for treating various infectious diseases caused by K. pneumoniae. Hence, the regulation of different virulence factors by IHF in K. pneumoniae requires further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Fan
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Tongtong Fu
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Zhoufei Li
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
- Graduate School of Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China
| | - Bing Du
- University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Xiaohu Cui
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Rui Zhang
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
- Graduate School of Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China
| | - Yanling Feng
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Hanqing Zhao
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Guanhua Xue
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Jinghua Cui
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Chao Yan
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Lin Gan
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Junxia Feng
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Ziying Xu
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Zihui Yu
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Ziyan Tian
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Zanbo Ding
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Jinfeng Chen
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Yujie Chen
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Jing Yuan
- Department of Bacteriology, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
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Pozdeev G, Beckett MC, Mogre A, Thomson NR, Dorman CJ. Reciprocally rewiring and repositioning the Integration Host Factor (IHF) subunit genes in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium: impacts on physiology and virulence. Microb Genom 2022; 8. [PMID: 35166652 PMCID: PMC8942017 DOI: 10.1099/mgen.0.000768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The Integration Host Factor (IHF) is a heterodimeric nucleoid-associated protein that plays roles in bacterial nucleoid architecture and genome-wide gene regulation. The ihfA and ihfB genes encode the subunits and are located 350 kbp apart, in the Right replichore of the Salmonella chromosome. IHF is composed of one IhfA and one IhfB subunit. Despite this 1 : 1 stoichiometry, MS revealed that IhfB is produced in 2-fold excess over IhfA. We re-engineered Salmonella to exchange reciprocally the protein-coding regions of ihfA and ihfB, such that each relocated protein-encoding region was driven by the expression signals of the other's gene. MS showed that in this 'rewired' strain, IhfA is produced in excess over IhfB, correlating with enhanced stability of the hybrid ihfB-ihfA mRNA that was expressed from the ihfB promoter. Nevertheless, the rewired strain grew at a similar rate to the wild-type and was similar in competitive fitness. However, compared to the wild-type, it was less motile, had growth-phase-specific reductions in SPI-1 and SPI-2 gene expression, and was engulfed at a higher rate by RAW macrophage. Our data show that while exchanging the physical locations of its ihf genes and the rewiring of their regulatory circuitry are well tolerated in Salmonella, genes involved in the production of type 3 secretion systems exhibit dysregulation accompanied by altered phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- German Pozdeev
- Department of Microbiology, Moyne Institute of Preventive Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Michael C Beckett
- Department of Microbiology, Moyne Institute of Preventive Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Aalap Mogre
- Department of Microbiology, Moyne Institute of Preventive Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | | | - Charles J Dorman
- Department of Microbiology, Moyne Institute of Preventive Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
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Reverchon S, Meyer S, Forquet R, Hommais F, Muskhelishvili G, Nasser W. The nucleoid-associated protein IHF acts as a 'transcriptional domainin' protein coordinating the bacterial virulence traits with global transcription. Nucleic Acids Res 2021; 49:776-790. [PMID: 33337488 PMCID: PMC7826290 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkaa1227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2020] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Bacterial pathogenic growth requires a swift coordination of pathogenicity function with various kinds of environmental stress encountered in the course of host infection. Among the factors critical for bacterial adaptation are changes of DNA topology and binding effects of nucleoid-associated proteins transducing the environmental signals to the chromosome and coordinating the global transcriptional response to stress. In this study, we use the model phytopathogen Dickeya dadantii to analyse the organisation of transcription by the nucleoid-associated heterodimeric protein IHF. We inactivated the IHFα subunit of IHF thus precluding the IHFαβ heterodimer formation and determined both phenotypic effects of ihfA mutation on D. dadantii virulence and the transcriptional response under various conditions of growth. We show that ihfA mutation reorganises the genomic expression by modulating the distribution of chromosomal DNA supercoils at different length scales, thus affecting many virulence genes involved in both symptomatic and asymptomatic phases of infection, including those required for pectin catabolism. Altogether, we propose that IHF heterodimer is a 'transcriptional domainin' protein, the lack of which impairs the spatiotemporal organisation of transcriptional stress-response domains harbouring various virulence traits, thus abrogating the pathogenicity of D. dadantii.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylvie Reverchon
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, INSA-Lyon, CNRS, UMR5240 MAP, F-69622, France
| | - Sam Meyer
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, INSA-Lyon, CNRS, UMR5240 MAP, F-69622, France
| | - Raphaël Forquet
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, INSA-Lyon, CNRS, UMR5240 MAP, F-69622, France
| | - Florence Hommais
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, INSA-Lyon, CNRS, UMR5240 MAP, F-69622, France
| | - Georgi Muskhelishvili
- Agricultural University of Georgia, School of Natural Sciences, 0159 Tbilisi, Georgia
| | - William Nasser
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, INSA-Lyon, CNRS, UMR5240 MAP, F-69622, France
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IHF stabilizes pathogenicity island I of uropathogenic Escherichia coli strain 536 by attenuating integrase I promoter activity. Sci Rep 2020; 10:9397. [PMID: 32523028 PMCID: PMC7286903 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-66215-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2020] [Accepted: 05/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Pathogenicity islands (PAIs) represent horizontally acquired chromosomal regions and encode their cognate integrase, which mediates chromosomal integration and excision of the island. These site-specific recombination reactions have to be tightly controlled to maintain genomic stability, and their directionality depends on accessory proteins. The integration host factor (IHF) and the factor for inversion stimulation (Fis) are often involved in recombinogenic complex formation and controlling the directionality of the recombination reaction. We investigated the role of the accessory host factors IHF and Fis in controlling the stability of six PAIs in uropathogenic Escherichia coli strain 536. By comparing the loss of individual PAIs in the presence or absence of IHF or Fis, we showed that IHF specifically stabilized PAI I536 and that in particular the IHFB subunit seems to be important for this function. We employed complex genetic studies to address the role of IHF in PAI I536-encoded integrase (IntI) expression. Based on different YFP-reporter constructs and electrophoretic mobility shift assays we demonstrated that IntI acts a strong repressor of its own synthesis, and that IHF binding to the intI promoter region reduces the probability of intI promoter activation. Our results extend the current knowledge of the role of IHF in controlling directionality of site specific recombination reactions and thus PAI stability.
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8
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Escorcia-Rodríguez JM, Tauch A, Freyre-González JA. Abasy Atlas v2.2: The most comprehensive and up-to-date inventory of meta-curated, historical, bacterial regulatory networks, their completeness and system-level characterization. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2020; 18:1228-1237. [PMID: 32542109 PMCID: PMC7283102 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2020.05.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2019] [Revised: 05/04/2020] [Accepted: 05/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Some organism-specific databases about regulation in bacteria have become larger, accelerated by high-throughput methodologies, while others are no longer updated or accessible. Each database homogenize its datasets, giving rise to heterogeneity across databases. Such heterogeneity mainly encompasses different names for a gene and different network representations, generating duplicated interactions that could bias network analyses. Abasy (Across-bacteria systems) Atlas consolidates information from different sources into meta-curated regulatory networks in bacteria. The high-quality networks in Abasy Atlas enable cross-organisms analyses, such as benchmarking studies where gold standards are required. Nevertheless, network incompleteness still casts doubts on the conclusions of network analyses, and available sampling methods cannot reflect the curation process. To tackle this problem, the updated version of Abasy Atlas presented in this work provides historical snapshots of regulatory networks. Thus, network analyses can be performed at different completeness levels, making possible to identify potential bias and to predict future results. We leverage the recently found constraint in the complexity of regulatory networks to develop a novel model to quantify the total number of regulatory interactions as a function of the genome size. This completeness estimation is a valuable insight that may aid in the daunting task of network curation, prediction, and validation. The new version of Abasy Atlas provides 76 networks (204,282 regulatory interactions) covering 42 bacteria (64% Gram-positive and 36% Gram-negative) distributed in 9 species (Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Corynebacterium glutamicum, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Streptomyces coelicolor), containing 8459 regulons and 4335 modules. Database URL: https://abasy.ccg.unam.mx/.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan M Escorcia-Rodríguez
- Regulatory Systems Biology Research Group, Laboratory of Systems and Synthetic Biology, Center for Genomic Sciences, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. Universidad s/n, Col. Chamilpa, 62210 Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
| | - Andreas Tauch
- Centrum für Biotechnologie (CeBiTec). Universität Bielefeld, Universitätsstraße 27, 33615 Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Julio A Freyre-González
- Regulatory Systems Biology Research Group, Laboratory of Systems and Synthetic Biology, Center for Genomic Sciences, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. Universidad s/n, Col. Chamilpa, 62210 Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico
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9
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Flores-Ríos R, Quatrini R, Loyola A. Endogenous and Foreign Nucleoid-Associated Proteins of Bacteria: Occurrence, Interactions and Effects on Mobile Genetic Elements and Host's Biology. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2019; 17:746-756. [PMID: 31303979 PMCID: PMC6606824 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2019.06.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2019] [Revised: 06/05/2019] [Accepted: 06/11/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Mobile Genetic Elements (MGEs) are mosaics of functional gene modules of diverse evolutionary origin and are generally divergent from the hosts´ genetic background. Existing biases in base composition and codon usage of these elements` genes impose transcription and translation limitations that may affect the physical and regulatory integration of MGEs in new hosts. Stable appropriation of the foreign DNA depends on a number of host factors among which are the Nucleoid-Associated Proteins (NAPs). These small, basic, highly abundant proteins bind and bend DNA, altering its topology and folding, thereby affecting all known essential DNA metabolism related processes. Both chromosomally- (endogenous) and MGE- (foreign) encoded NAPs have been shown to exist in bacteria. While the role of host-encoded NAPs in xenogeneic silencing of both episomal (plasmids) and integrative MGEs (pathogenicity islands and prophages) is well acknowledged, less is known about the role of MGE-encoded NAPs in the foreign elements biology or their influence on the host's chromosome expression dynamics. Here we review existing literature on the topic, present examples on the positive and negative effects that endogenous and foreign NAPs exert on global transcriptional gene expression, MGE integrative and excisive recombination dynamics, persistence and transfer to suitable hosts and discuss the nature and relevance of synergistic and antagonizing higher order interactions between diverse types of NAPs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Raquel Quatrini
- Fundación Ciencia y Vida, Avenida Zañartu 1482, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile.,Millennium Nucleus in the Biology of Intestinal Microbiota, Santiago, Chile
| | - Alejandra Loyola
- Fundación Ciencia y Vida, Avenida Zañartu 1482, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile
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10
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Effect of global transcriptional regulators on kinetic behavior of Escherichia coli under anaerobic fermentation conditions. Arch Microbiol 2018; 200:979-987. [PMID: 29748694 DOI: 10.1007/s00203-018-1518-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2017] [Revised: 02/28/2018] [Accepted: 04/24/2018] [Indexed: 10/16/2022]
Abstract
The phenotype of Escherichia coli is governed by global transcriptional regulators under variable environmental conditions. Fnr, ArcA, IhfA-B, Crp, and Fis are amongst the major global transcription regulators that change their activity across the range of aeration, hence forming the core transcriptional network responsible for survival under changing aeration conditions. Effect of deletion of these global transcription factors on the kinetics of cell growth and mixed acid production under anaerobic fermentation conditions has not been characterized. To quantify the kinetic parameters in the absence of global transcription factors, experiments were performed using single deletion mutants of the above-mentioned global transcription regulators. The absence of global transcription regulators resulted in a relatively higher glucose uptake rate than that required for the observed growth rate. This further resulted in a higher yield of mixed acids per unit biomass in mutants as compared to the parent strain (E. coli BW25113). Thus, the increased channeling of carbon towards mixed acid secretion resulted in a lower growth rate in the mutants.
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11
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Kargeti M, Venkatesh KV. The effect of global transcriptional regulators on the anaerobic fermentative metabolism of Escherichia coli. MOLECULAR BIOSYSTEMS 2018; 13:1388-1398. [PMID: 28573283 DOI: 10.1039/c6mb00721j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Global transcription factors are known to regulate the anaerobic growth of Escherichia coli on glucose. These transcription factors help the organism to sense oxygen and accordingly regulate the synthesis of mixed acid producing enzymes. Five global transcription factors, namely ArcA, Fnr, IhfA-B, Crp and Fis, are known to play an important role in the growth phenotype of the organism in the transition from anaerobic to aerobic conditions. The effect of deletion of most of these global transcription factors on the growth phenotype has not been characterized under strict anaerobic fermentation conditions. In order to enumerate the role of global transcription factors in central carbon metabolism, experiments were performed using single deletion mutants of the above mentioned global transcription regulators. The mutants demonstrated lower growth rates, ranging from 3-75% lower growth as compared to the wild-type strain along with varying glucose uptake rates. Global transcription regulators help in lowering formate and acetate synthesis, thereby effectively channeling the carbon towards redox balance (through ethanol formation) and biomass synthesis. Flux analysis of mutant strains indicated that deletion of a single transcription factor alone does not play a significant role in the normalized flux distribution of the central carbon metabolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manika Kargeti
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, Powai, Mumbai - 400076, India.
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12
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Dorman CJ, Bogue MM. The interplay between DNA topology and accessory factors in site-specific recombination in bacteria and their bacteriophages. Sci Prog 2016; 99:420-437. [PMID: 28742481 PMCID: PMC10365484 DOI: 10.3184/003685016x14811202974921] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Site-specific recombination is employed widely in bacteria and bacteriophage as a basis for genetic switching events that control phenotypic variation. It plays a vital role in the life cycles of phages and in the replication cycles of chromosomes and plasmids in bacteria. Site-specific recombinases drive these processes using very short segments of identical (or nearly identical) DNA sequences. In some cases, the efficiencies of the recombination reactions are modulated by the topological state of the participating DNA sequences and by the availability of accessory proteins that shape the DNA. These dependencies link the molecular machines that conduct the recombination reactions to the physiological state of the cell. This is because the topological state of bacterial DNA varies constantly during the growth cycle and so does the availability of the accessory factors. In addition, some accessory factors are under allosteric control by metabolic products or second messengers that report the physiological status of the cell. The interplay between DNA topology, accessory factors and site-specific recombination provides a powerful illustration of the connectedness and integration of molecular events in bacterial cells and in viruses that parasitise bacterial cells.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Marina M. Bogue
- Natural Science (Microbiology) from Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
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13
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Devaraj A, Justice SS, Bakaletz LO, Goodman SD. DNABII proteins play a central role in UPEC biofilm structure. Mol Microbiol 2015; 96:1119-35. [PMID: 25757804 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.12994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/09/2015] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Most chronic and recurrent bacterial infections involve a biofilm component, the foundation of which is the extracellular polymeric substance (EPS). Extracellular DNA (eDNA) is a conserved and key component of the EPS of pathogenic biofilms. The DNABII protein family includes integration host factor (IHF) and histone-like protein (HU); both are present in the extracellular milieu. We have shown previously that the DNABII proteins are often found in association with eDNA and are critical for the structural integrity of bacterial communities that utilize eDNA as a matrix component. Here, we demonstrate that uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) strain UTI89 incorporates eDNA within its biofilm matrix and that the DNABII proteins are not only important for biofilm growth, but are limiting; exogenous addition of these proteins promotes biofilm formation that is dependent on eDNA. In addition, we show that both subunits of IHF, yet only one subunit of HU (HupB), are critical for UPEC biofilm development. We discuss the roles of these proteins in context of the UPEC EPS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aishwarya Devaraj
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, 43205, USA
| | - Sheryl S Justice
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, 43205, USA
| | - Lauren O Bakaletz
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, 43205, USA
| | - Steven D Goodman
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, 43205, USA
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14
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Fiévet A, Cascales E, Valette O, Dolla A, Aubert C. IHF is required for the transcriptional regulation of the Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough orp operons. PLoS One 2014; 9:e86507. [PMID: 24466126 PMCID: PMC3897727 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0086507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2013] [Accepted: 12/10/2013] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Transcriptional activation of σ(54)-dependent promoters is usually tightly regulated in response to environmental cues. The high abundance of potential σ(54)-dependent promoters in the anaerobe bacteria, Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough, reflects the high versatility of this bacteria suggesting that σ(54) factor is the nexus of a large regulatory network. Understanding the key players of σ(54)-regulation in this organism is therefore essential to gain insights into the adaptation to anaerobiosis. Recently, the D. vulgaris orp genes, specifically found in anaerobe bacteria, have been shown to be transcribed by the RNA polymerase coupled to the σ(54) alternative sigma factor. In this study, using in vitro binding experiments and in vivo reporter fusion assays in the Escherichia coli heterologous host, we showed that the expression of the divergent orp promoters is strongly dependent on the integration host factor IHF. Bioinformatic and mutational analysis coupled to reporter fusion activities and mobility shift assays identified two functional IHF binding site sequences located between the orp1 and orp2 promoters. We further determined that the D. vulgaris DVU0396 (IHFα) and DVU1864 (IHFβ) subunits are required to control the expression of the orp operons suggesting that they form a functionally active IHF heterodimer. Interestingly results obtained from the in vivo inactivation of DVU0396, which is required for orp operons transcription, suggest that several functionally IHF active homodimer or heterodimer are present in D. vulgaris.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anouchka Fiévet
- Laboratoire de Chimie Bactérienne, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Eric Cascales
- Laboratoire d’Ingénierie des Systèmes Macromoléculaires, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Odile Valette
- Laboratoire de Chimie Bactérienne, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Alain Dolla
- Laboratoire de Chimie Bactérienne, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, CNRS, Marseille, France
| | - Corinne Aubert
- Laboratoire de Chimie Bactérienne, Institut de Microbiologie de la Méditerranée, CNRS, Marseille, France
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15
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Justice SS, Li B, Downey JS, Dabdoub SM, Brockson ME, Probst GD, Ray WC, Goodman SD. Aberrant community architecture and attenuated persistence of uropathogenic Escherichia coli in the absence of individual IHF subunits. PLoS One 2012; 7:e48349. [PMID: 23133584 PMCID: PMC3485042 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0048349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2012] [Accepted: 09/24/2012] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) utilizes a complex community-based developmental pathway for growth within superficial epithelial cells of the bladder during cystitis. Extracellular DNA (eDNA) is a common matrix component of organized bacterial communities. Integration host factor (IHF) is a heterodimeric protein that binds to double-stranded DNA and produces a hairpin bend. IHF-dependent DNA architectural changes act both intrabacterially and extrabacterially to regulate gene expression and community stability, respectively. We demonstrate that both IHF subunits are required for efficient colonization of the bladder, but are dispensable for early colonization of the kidney. The community architecture of the intracellular bacterial communities (IBCs) is quantitatively different in the absence of either IhfA or IhfB in the murine model for human urinary tract infection (UTI). Restoration of Type 1 pili by ectopic production does not restore colonization in the absence of IhfA, but partially compensates in the absence of IhfB. Furthermore, we describe a binding site for IHF that is upstream of the operon that encodes for the P-pilus. Taken together, these data suggest that both IHF and its constituent subunits (independent of the heterodimer), are able to participate in multiple aspects of the UPEC pathogenic lifestyle, and may have utility as a target for treatment of bacterial cystitis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheryl S. Justice
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics and Urology, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
- * E-mail: (SJ); (SDG)
| | - Birong Li
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Jennifer S. Downey
- Division of Biomedical Sciences, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Shareef M. Dabdoub
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
| | - M. Elizabeth Brockson
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
| | - G. Duane Probst
- Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
| | - William C. Ray
- Battelle Center for Mathematical Medicine, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Steven D. Goodman
- Division of Biomedical Sciences, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
- * E-mail: (SJ); (SDG)
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16
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Silva-Rocha R, Chavarría M, Kleijn RJ, Sauer U, de Lorenzo V. The IHF regulon of exponentially growing Pseudomonas putida cells. Environ Microbiol 2012; 15:49-63. [PMID: 22510163 DOI: 10.1111/j.1462-2920.2012.02750.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Integration host factor (IHF) sites are largely absent from intergenic regions of ORFs encoding central metabolic functions in Pseudomonas putida mt-2. To gain an insight into this unequal distribution of otherwise abundant IHF-binding sequences, the transcriptome of IHF-plus and IHF-minus cells growing exponentially on glucose as sole carbon source was examined. In parallel, the cognate metabolic fluxes of the wild-type P. putida strain and its ihfA derivative were determined by culturing cells to a steady-state physiological regime with (13)C-labelled glucose. While expression of many transcripts was altered by the lack of IHF, flux balance analysis revealed that the ihfA mutation did not influence central carbon metabolism. Identification of multiple IHF sites adjacent to genes responsive to the factor allowed a refinement of the consensus and the mapping of the preferred binding positions for activation or repression of associated promoters. That few (if any) of the genes affected by IHF involved core pathways suggested that the central carbon metabolism tolerates the loss of the factor. Instead, IHF controlled various cell surface-related functions and downregulated genes encoding ribosomal proteins, the alpha subunit of RNA polymerase and components of the ATP synthase. These results were confirmed with lacZ fusions to a suite of promoters detected in the transcriptome as affected by IHF. Taken together, the data suggest that IHF plays a role in the physiological shift that sets P. putida for entering stationary phase.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafael Silva-Rocha
- Systems Biology Program, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología, 28049 Cantoblanco-Madrid, Spain
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17
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Prieto AI, Kahramanoglou C, Ali RM, Fraser GM, Seshasayee ASN, Luscombe NM. Genomic analysis of DNA binding and gene regulation by homologous nucleoid-associated proteins IHF and HU in Escherichia coli K12. Nucleic Acids Res 2012; 40:3524-37. [PMID: 22180530 PMCID: PMC3333857 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkr1236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2011] [Revised: 11/24/2011] [Accepted: 11/28/2011] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
IHF and HU are two heterodimeric nucleoid-associated proteins (NAP) that belong to the same protein family but interact differently with the DNA. IHF is a sequence-specific DNA-binding protein that bends the DNA by over 160°. HU is the most conserved NAP, which binds non-specifically to duplex DNA with a particular preference for targeting nicked and bent DNA. Despite their importance, the in vivo interactions of the two proteins to the DNA remain to be described at a high resolution and on a genome-wide scale. Further, the effects of these proteins on gene expression on a global scale remain contentious. Finally, the contrast between the functions of the homo- and heterodimeric forms of proteins deserves the attention of further study. Here we present a genome-scale study of HU- and IHF binding to the Escherichia coli K12 chromosome using ChIP-seq. We also perform microarray analysis of gene expression in single- and double-deletion mutants of each protein to identify their regulons. The sequence-specific binding profile of IHF encompasses ∼30% of all operons, though the expression of <10% of these is affected by its deletion suggesting combinatorial control or a molecular backup. The binding profile for HU is reflective of relatively non-specific binding to the chromosome, however, with a preference for A/T-rich DNA. The HU regulon comprises highly conserved genes including those that are essential and possibly supercoiling sensitive. Finally, by performing ChIP-seq experiments, where possible, of each subunit of IHF and HU in the absence of the other subunit, we define genome-wide maps of DNA binding of the proteins in their hetero- and homodimeric forms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana I. Prieto
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QP, EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, MRC-National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai 600 035, National Centre for Biological Sciences, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560 065, India and Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Tancha, Onna-son, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Christina Kahramanoglou
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QP, EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, MRC-National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai 600 035, National Centre for Biological Sciences, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560 065, India and Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Tancha, Onna-son, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Ruhi M. Ali
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QP, EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, MRC-National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai 600 035, National Centre for Biological Sciences, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560 065, India and Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Tancha, Onna-son, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Gillian M. Fraser
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QP, EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, MRC-National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai 600 035, National Centre for Biological Sciences, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560 065, India and Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Tancha, Onna-son, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Aswin S. N. Seshasayee
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QP, EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, MRC-National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai 600 035, National Centre for Biological Sciences, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560 065, India and Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Tancha, Onna-son, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
| | - Nicholas M. Luscombe
- Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QP, EMBL-European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, MRC-National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai 600 035, National Centre for Biological Sciences, GKVK, Bellary Road, Bangalore 560 065, India and Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Tancha, Onna-son, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa 904-0495, Japan
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Haverkorn van Rijsewijk BRB, Nanchen A, Nallet S, Kleijn RJ, Sauer U. Large-scale 13C-flux analysis reveals distinct transcriptional control of respiratory and fermentative metabolism in Escherichia coli. Mol Syst Biol 2011; 7:477. [PMID: 21451587 PMCID: PMC3094070 DOI: 10.1038/msb.2011.9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 127] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2010] [Accepted: 02/04/2011] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The authors analyze the role transcription plays in regulating bacterial metabolic flux. Of 91 transcriptional regulators studied, 2/3 affect absolute fluxes, but only a small number of regulators control the partitioning of flux between different metabolic pathways. In contrast to the canonical respiro-fermentative glucose metabolism, fully respiratory galactose metabolism depends exclusively on the PEP-glyoxylate cycle. Of 91 transcription factors, 2/3 affect absolute fluxes, but only one controls the distribution of fluxes on galactose and nine on glucose. Transcriptional control of hexose flux distributions is confined to the acetyl-CoA branch point. The PEP-glyoxylate cycle is controlled by cAMP-Crp in a hexose uptake rate-dependent manner.
Focusing on central carbon metabolism of Escherichia coli, we aim here to systematically identify transcriptional regulators that control the distribution of metabolic fluxes during aerobic growth on hexoses. To assess the condition dependence of transcriptional control of flux, we selected glucose and galactose as two substrates that are highly similar, yet lead to distinct growth rates (Soupene et al, 2003), overall metabolic rates (De Anda et al, 2006; Samir El et al, 2009) and levels of catabolite repression (Hogema et al, 1998; Bettenbrock et al, 2007). Experimentally determined fluxes (Fischer and Sauer, 2003a) during growth on glucose and galactose reveal two distinct metabolic states. On glucose, high metabolic rates lead to high overflow metabolism and respiratory fluxes through the TCA cycle. On galactose, in contrast, metabolism was much slower without overflow metabolism and respiratory fluxes exclusively through the PEP-glyoxylate cycle (Fischer and Sauer, 2003b). To determine which transcriptional events controlled these two distinct metabolic states, we determined intracellular fluxes in 91 transcription factor mutants. These genetic perturbations primarily affected absolute fluxes but not the distribution of fluxes. The distribution of flux between glycolysis and pentose–phosphate pathway in upper metabolism, e.g., remained constant in all mutants under all conditions. Transcriptional control of the flux distribution was exclusively seen at the acetyl-CoA branch point. On glucose, nine transcription factors controlled the distribution of fluxes at this branch point, five of which (ArcA, IHFA, IHFB, PdhR, Fur) did so presumably directly through their known targets in TCA cycle and/or respiration. Without known targets in the relevant pathways, the remaining four transcription factors (GlpR, QseB, HdfR, GlcC) may act either indirectly or directly through unknown targets. On galactose, transcriptional control focused exclusively on the PEP-glyoxylate cycle. While deletion of six transcription factors (Cra, Crp, IHFA, IHFB, Mlc, NagC) abolished or reduced the PEP-glyoxylate cycle flux, we demonstrate by substrate-limited chemostat experiments, derepression of galactose uptake and show by metabolomics that five of these transcription factors act indirectly through increased cAMP concentrations that allosterically activate Crp, the only direct transcription factors that controls the PEP-glyoxylate cycle (Nanchen et al, 2008). Overall, our absolute flux data demonstrate that control of flux splitting during growth on hexoses was confined to the acetyl-CoA branch point in E. coli. Of the 36 transcription factors known to target genes in pathways that diverge from the acetyl-CoA branch point, only one transcription factor on galactose and five plus potentially four others on glucose showed altered flux splitting. The primary focus of steady state transcriptional control on the acetyl-CoA branch point, and thus the metabolic decision between the energetically efficient respiration and the less efficient but more rapid fermentation, was recently also demonstrated with only relative flux data for Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Fendt et al, 2010). In contrast to glucose-grown Bacillus subtilis (Fischer et al, 2005), for batch glucose-grown E. coli, none of the investigated transcription factor mutants exhibited improved biomass productivity. However, the mutants Cra, IHF A, IHF B and NagC with increased uptake rates grew much faster at almost unaltered biomass yields. As the removal of the glucose PTS-based repression with a Crr mutant also resulted in increased galactose uptake, we provide evidence that E. coli actively represses its galactose uptake at the expense of otherwise possible rapid growth. Despite our increasing topological knowledge on regulation networks in model bacteria, it is largely unknown which of the many co-occurring regulatory events actually control metabolic function and the distribution of intracellular fluxes. Here, we unravel condition-dependent transcriptional control of Escherichia coli metabolism by large-scale 13C-flux analysis in 91 transcriptional regulator mutants on glucose and galactose. In contrast to the canonical respiro-fermentative glucose metabolism, fully respiratory galactose metabolism depends exclusively on the phosphoenol-pyruvate (PEP)-glyoxylate cycle. While 2/3 of the regulators directly or indirectly affected absolute flux rates, the partitioning between different pathways remained largely stable with transcriptional control focusing primarily on the acetyl-CoA branch point. Flux distribution control was achieved by nine transcription factors on glucose, including ArcA, Fur, PdhR, IHF A and IHF B, but was exclusively mediated by the cAMP-dependent Crp regulation of the PEP-glyoxylate cycle flux on galactose. Five further transcription factors affected this flux only indirectly through cAMP and Crp by increasing the galactose uptake rate. Thus, E. coli actively limits its galactose catabolism at the expense of otherwise possible faster growth.
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Reciprocal expression of integration host factor and HU in the developmental cycle and infectivity of Legionella pneumophila. Appl Environ Microbiol 2009; 75:1826-37. [PMID: 19201975 DOI: 10.1128/aem.02756-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Legionella pneumophila is an intracellular parasite of protozoa that differentiates late in infection into metabolically dormant cysts that are highly infectious. Regulation of this process is poorly understood. Here we report that the small DNA binding regulatory proteins integration host factor (IHF) and HU are reciprocally expressed over the developmental cycle, with HU expressed during exponential phase and IHF expressed postexponentially. To assess the role of these regulatory proteins in development, chromosomal deletions were constructed. Single (ihfA or ihfB) and double deletion (Deltaihf) IHF mutants failed to grow in Acanthamoeba castellanii unless complemented in trans when expressed temporally from the ihfA promoter but not under P(tac) (isopropyl-beta-d-thiogalactopyranoside). In contrast, IHF mutants were infectious for HeLa cells, though electron microscopic examination revealed defects in late-stage cyst morphogenesis (thickened cell wall, intracytoplasmic membranes, and inclusions of poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate), and were depressed for the developmental marker MagA. Green fluorescent protein promoter fusion assays indicated that IHF and the stationary-phase sigma factor RpoS were required for full postexponential expression of magA. Finally, defects in cyst morphogenesis noted for Deltaihf mutants in HeLa cells correlated with a loss of both detergent resistance and hyperinfectivity compared with results for wild-type cysts. These studies establish IHF and HU as markers of developmental stages and show that IHF function is required for both differentiation and full virulence of L. pneumophila in natural amoebic hosts.
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20
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Role of global regulators and nucleotide metabolism in antibiotic tolerance in Escherichia coli. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2008; 52:2718-26. [PMID: 18519731 DOI: 10.1128/aac.00144-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 214] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Bacterial populations produce a small number of persister cells that exhibit multidrug tolerance. Persister cells are largely responsible for the antibiotic recalcitrance of biofilm infections. The mechanism of persister cell formation largely remains unknown due to the challenges in identifying persister genes. We screened an ordered comprehensive library of 3,985 Escherichia coli knockout strains to identify mutants with altered antibiotic tolerance. Stationary-state cultures in 96-well plates were exposed to ofloxacin at a concentration which allows only tolerant persister cells to survive. The persister cell level of each culture was determined. A total of 150 mutants with decreased persistence were identified in the initial screen, and subsequent validation confirmed that neither the growth rate nor the ofloxacin MIC was affected for 10 of them. The genes affected in these strains were dnaJ and dnaK (chaperones), apaH (diadenosine tetraphosphatase), surA (peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase), fis and hns (global regulators), hnr (response regulator of RpoS), dksA (transcriptional regulator of rRNA transcription), ygfA (5-formyl-tetrahydrofolate cyclo-ligase), and yigB (flavin mononucleotide [FMN] phosphatase). The prominent presence of global regulators among these strains pointed to the likely redundancy of persister cell formation mechanisms: the elimination of a regulator controlling several redundant persister genes would be expected to produce a phenotype. This observation is consistent with previous findings for a possible role of redundant genes such as toxin/antitoxin modules in persister cell formation. ygfA and yigB were of special interest. The mammalian homolog of YgfA (methenyltetrahydrofolate synthetase) catalyzes the conversion of 5-formyl-tetrahydrofolate (THF) into the rapidly degraded 5,10-methenyl-THF, depleting the folate pool. The YigB protein is a phosphatase of FMN which would deplete the pool of this cofactor. Stochastic overexpression of these genes could lead to dormancy and, hence, tolerance by depleting the folate and FMN pools, respectively. Consistent with this scenario, the overexpression of both genes produced increased tolerance to ofloxacin.
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21
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Becker NA, Kahn JD, Maher LJ. Effects of nucleoid proteins on DNA repression loop formation in Escherichia coli. Nucleic Acids Res 2007; 35:3988-4000. [PMID: 17553830 PMCID: PMC1919473 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkm419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The intrinsic stiffness of DNA limits its ability to be bent and twisted over short lengths, but such deformations are required for gene regulation. One classic paradigm is DNA looping in the regulation of the Escherichia coli lac operon. Lac repressor protein binds simultaneously to two operator sequences flanking the lac promoter. Analysis of the length dependence of looping-dependent repression of the lac operon provides insight into DNA deformation energetics within cells. The apparent flexibility of DNA is greater in vivo than in vitro, possibly because of host proteins that bind DNA and induce sites of flexure. Here we test DNA looping in bacterial strains lacking the nucleoid proteins HU, IHF or H-NS. We confirm that deletion of HU inhibits looping and that quantitative modeling suggests residual looping in the induced operon. Deletion of IHF has little effect. Remarkably, DNA looping is strongly enhanced in the absence of H-NS, and an explanatory model is proposed. Chloroquine titration, psoralen crosslinking and supercoiling-sensitive reporter assays show that the effects of nucleoid proteins on looping are not correlated with their effects on either total or unrestrained supercoiling. These results suggest that host nucleoid proteins can directly facilitate or inhibit DNA looping in bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole A. Becker
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, 200 First St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-2021, USA
| | - Jason D. Kahn
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, 200 First St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-2021, USA
| | - L. James Maher
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, 200 First St SW, Rochester, MN 55905 and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742-2021, USA
- *To whom correspondence should be addressed. 507 284 9041507 284 2053
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Mangan MW, Lucchini S, Danino V, Cróinín TO, Hinton JCD, Dorman CJ. The integration host factor (IHF) integrates stationary-phase and virulence gene expression in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium. Mol Microbiol 2006; 59:1831-47. [PMID: 16553887 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2006.05062.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 110] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
The integration host factor (IHF) is a DNA-binding and -bending protein with roles in local DNA structural organization and transcriptional regulation in Gram-negative bacteria. This heterodimeric protein is composed of the two highly homologous subunits IHFalpha and IHFbeta. DNA microarray analysis was used to define the regulon of genes subject to IHF control in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium). The transcription profile of the wild type was compared with those of mutants deficient in IHFalpha, IHFbeta, or both IHFalpha and IHFbeta. Our data reveal a new connection between IHF and the expression of genes required by the bacterium to undergo the physiological changes associated with the transition from exponential growth to stationary phase. When a mutant lacking IHF entered stationary phase, it displayed downregulated expression of classic stationary-phase genes in the absence of any concomitant change in expression of the RpoS sigma factor. Purified IHF was found to bind to the regulatory regions of stationary-phase genes indicating an auxiliary and direct role for IHF in RpoS-dependent gene activation. Loss of IHF also had a profound influence on expression of the major virulence genes and epithelial cell invasion, indicating a role in co-ordinating regulation of the pathogenic traits with adaptation to stationary phase. Although the three mutants showed considerable overlaps in the genes affected by the ihf lesions, the observed patterns were not identical, showing that S. Typhimurium has not one but three overlapping IHF regulons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael W Mangan
- Department of Microbiology, Moyne Institute of Preventive Medicine, University of Dublin, Trinity College, Ireland
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23
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Ramstein J, Hervouet N, Coste F, Zelwer C, Oberto J, Castaing B. Evidence of a thermal unfolding dimeric intermediate for the Escherichia coli histone-like HU proteins: thermodynamics and structure. J Mol Biol 2003; 331:101-21. [PMID: 12875839 DOI: 10.1016/s0022-2836(03)00725-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The Escherichia coli histone-like HU protein pool is composed of three dimeric forms: two homodimers, EcHUalpha(2) and EcHUbeta(2), and a heterodimer, EcHUalphabeta. The relative abundance of these dimeric forms varies during cell growth and in response to environmental changes, suggesting that each dimer plays different physiological roles. Here, differential scanning calorimetry and circular dichroism (CD) were used to study the thermal stability of the three E.coli HU dimers and show that each of them has its own thermodynamic signature. Unlike the other HU proteins studied so far, which melt through a single step (N(2)<-->2D), this present thermodynamic study shows that the three E.coli dimers melt according to a two-step mechanism (N(2)<-->I(2)<-->2D). The native dimer, N(2), melts partially into a dimeric intermediate, I(2), which in turn yields the unfolded monomers, D. In addition, the crystal structure of the EcHUalpha(2) dimer has been solved. Comparative thermodynamic and structural analysis between EcHUalpha(2) and the HU homodimer from Bacillus stearothermophilus suggests that the E.coli dimer is constituted by two subdomains of different energetic properties. The CD study indicates that the intermediate, I(2), corresponds to an HU dimer having partly lost its alpha-helices. The partially unfolded dimer I(2) is unable to complex with high-affinity, single-stranded break-containing DNA. These structural, thermodynamic and functional results suggest that the N(2)<-->I(2) equilibrium plays a central role in the physiology of E.coli HU. The I(2) molecular species seems to be the EcHUbeta(2) preferential conformation, possibly related to its role in the E.coli cold-shock adaptation. Besides, I(2) might be required in E.coli for the HU chain exchange, which allows the heterodimer formation from homodimers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean Ramstein
- Centre de Biophysique Moléculaire, CNRS, affiliated to the University of Orléans, rue Charles Sadron, 45071 Orléans cedex 02, France
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24
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Paul L, Blumenthal RM, Matthews RG. Activation from a distance: roles of Lrp and integration host factor in transcriptional activation of gltBDF. J Bacteriol 2001; 183:3910-8. [PMID: 11395454 PMCID: PMC95273 DOI: 10.1128/jb.183.13.3910-3918.2001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The leucine-responsive regulatory protein (Lrp) binds to three sites centered 252, 216, and 152 bp upstream of the transcription start site of the Escherichia coli glutamate synthase operon (gltBDF) and activates transcription. Activators of sigma(70)-dependent promoters usually bind closer to the -35 hexamer of the core promoter sequence. To study the mechanism by which Lrp-dependent activation occurs over this relatively large distance, the gltBDF upstream region was sequentially replaced with corresponding portions from the well-characterized sigma(70)-dependent promoter lacZYAp. The glt-lac promoter hybrids were placed upstream of lacZ, allowing transcriptional activity to be monitored via beta-galactosidase assays. Even replacing all gltBDF sequences downstream of and including the -35 hexamer did not eliminate Lrp-dependent activation of transcription. When a 91-bp region between the -35 hexamer and the proximal Lrp binding site (-48 to -128) was replaced with heterologous DNA of the same length, transcription was reduced nearly 40-fold. Based on the presence of a consensus binding sequence, this region seemed likely to be a binding site for integration host factor (IHF). Experiments to study the effects of a himD mutant on expression of a gltB::lacZ transcriptional fusion, gel mobility shift analyses, and DNA footprinting assays were used to confirm the direct participation of IHF in gltBDF promoter regulation. Based on these results, we suggest that IHF plays a crucial architectural role, bringing the distant Lrp complex in close proximity to the promoter-bound RNA polymerase.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Paul
- Biophysics Research Division, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA
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25
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Zhong J, Douglas AL, Hatch TP. Characterization of integration host factor (IHF) binding upstream of the cysteine-rich protein operon (omcAB) promoter of Chlamydia trachomatis LGV serovar L2. Mol Microbiol 2001; 41:451-62. [PMID: 11489130 DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2958.2001.02531.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Chlamydiae are bacterial parasites that carry out a distinct developmental cycle within host cells; however, the mechanisms by which these organisms regulate stage-specific gene expression are not known. We identified a DNA element located between nucleotide (nt) -135 and -90 upstream from the transcription start point of the late stage-specific CRP operon (omcAB) of Chlamydia trachomatis, to which a protein in extracts of chlamydiae harvested at 23 h after infection binds. A recombinant protein of C. trachomatis open reading frame (ORF) CT267, which is homologous to bacterial integration host factor (IHF) and the heat-unstable nucleoid protein (HU), bound to the same element and produced the same DNase I footprint as the protein in chlamydial extracts. Recombinant ORF CT267 protein bound with high affinity to the DNA element and induced a sharp bend in a DNA fragment containing the binding site, suggesting that ORF CT267 encodes a protein with IHF-like activity, and recombinant protein had a positive effect on in vitro transcription of the CRP operon. IHF-binding activity and IHF protein were detected in extracts of C. trachomatis during the early to intermediate phases of the late stage of the developmental cycle (between 17 and 30 h after infection), but were absent in the extreme late phase of the cycle and in the infectious form of chlamydiae. The presence of an IHF binding site upstream of the CRP operon and the presence of chlamydial IHF-like protein when late stage genes are transcribed suggests that the chlamydial IHF may play a role in stage-specific gene expression.
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MESH Headings
- Amino Acid Sequence
- Bacterial Proteins/genetics
- Bacterial Proteins/metabolism
- Base Sequence
- Chlamydia trachomatis/classification
- Chlamydia trachomatis/genetics
- DNA Footprinting
- DNA, Bacterial/chemistry
- DNA, Bacterial/genetics
- DNA, Bacterial/metabolism
- DNA-Binding Proteins/genetics
- DNA-Binding Proteins/metabolism
- Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay
- Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
- Integration Host Factors
- Molecular Sequence Data
- Nucleic Acid Conformation
- Open Reading Frames/genetics
- Operon/genetics
- Promoter Regions, Genetic/genetics
- RNA, Bacterial/genetics
- RNA, Bacterial/metabolism
- RNA, Messenger/genetics
- RNA, Messenger/metabolism
- Response Elements/genetics
- Sequence Analysis, DNA
- Transcription, Genetic
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Affiliation(s)
- J Zhong
- Department of Molecular Sciences, University of Tennessee, Memphis, TN 38163, USA
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26
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Arfin SM, Long AD, Ito ET, Tolleri L, Riehle MM, Paegle ES, Hatfield GW. Global gene expression profiling in Escherichia coli K12. The effects of integration host factor. J Biol Chem 2000; 275:29672-84. [PMID: 10871608 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m002247200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 190] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
We have used nylon membranes spotted in duplicate with full-length polymerase chain reaction-generated products of each of the 4,290 predicted Escherichia coli K12 open reading frames (ORFs) to measure the gene expression profiles in otherwise isogenic integration host factor IHF(+) and IHF(-) strains. Our results demonstrate that random hexamer rather than 3' ORF-specific priming of cDNA probe synthesis is required for accurate measurement of gene expression levels in bacteria. This is explained by the fact that the currently available set of 4,290 unique 3' ORF-specific primers do not hybridize to each ORF with equal efficiency and by the fact that widely differing degradation rates (steady-state levels) are observed for the 25-base pair region of each message complementary to each ORF-specific primer. To evaluate the DNA microarray data reported here, we used a linear analysis of variance (ANOVA) model appropriate for our experimental design. These statistical methods allowed us to identify and appropriately correct for experimental variables that affect the reproducibility and accuracy of DNA microarray measurements and allowed us to determine the statistical significance of gene expression differences between our IHF(+) and IHF(-) strains. Our results demonstrate that small differences in gene expression levels can be accurately measured and that the significance of differential gene expression measurements cannot be assessed simply by the magnitude of the fold difference. Our statistical criteria, supported by excellent agreement between previously determined effects of IHF on gene expression and the results reported here, have allowed us to identify new genes regulated by IHF with a high degree of confidence.
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Affiliation(s)
- S M Arfin
- Department of Biological Chemistry, College of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, 92697, USA
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27
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Abstract
In attempts to identify subunit-specific phenotypes of ihf mutants we analyzed viability, thermoresistance and protein synthesis patterns in ihfA and ihfB mutants and their respective parental strains. Despite some detected differences in the two-dimensional protein patterns, no significant subunit-specific, physiological effects could be observed. Each mutant was less viable and less thermoresistant than the wild type strain. Moreover, in contrast to the wild type the mutants did not reduce global protein synthesis after prolonged culturing. Examination of expression of transcriptional fusions allowed us to demonstrate autoregulation of both genes by IHF. Additional IHF binding sites in the regulatory region of both ihf genes were footprinted.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Bykowski
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw
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28
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Hiszczyńska-Sawicka E, Kur J. Effect of integration host factor of RNA II synthesis in replication of plasmid containing orip 15A. Plasmid 1998; 40:150-7. [PMID: 9735316 DOI: 10.1006/plas.1998.1361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The synthesis rates of the replication control RNAs of plasmid orip15A. RNA I, an inhibitor of replication, and RNA II, the primer, have been determined using lacZ fusion plasmids, hybridization assay, and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in Escherichia coli integration host factor-positive (IHF+) and -negative (IHF-) strains containing pACYC184 plasmid (orip15A). In the absence of IHF (E. coli IHF-), expression of the lacZ gene from the PRNAII promoter increased by a factor of 4 compared with the E. coli wild type (IHF+). Also, the increase in expression was more pronounced when the IHF protein was mutated in the ihfB gene than in the ihfA gene. For the PRNAII promoter of oripMB1 (pBR322), no significant differences were found in expression of the lacZ gene in he E. coli strains examined. The level of beta-galactosidase expression from the PRNA promoter of orip 15A shows that the absence of functional IHF in the transformed strains has no effect on expression of the lacZ gene. The synthesis RNA II:RNA I ratio obtained in hybridization assays was 2.4 for E. coli IHF+ and 4.4 for E. coli IHF-. Densitometric analysis of RT-PCR products indicates that the relative levels of RNA I in E. coli IHF+ and IHF-, are equal, but the relative level of RNA II in E. coli IHF is about four times higher than in E. coli IHF+. These results indicate that the IHF protein inhibits transcription from the PRNAII promoter of orip15A plasmid.
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29
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Abstract
Four isogenic strains (himAhimD double mutant, himA and himD single mutants, and their wild type counterpart) harboring orip15A plasmid (pACYC184 or pACYC184Amp or pACYC177) show different copy numbers of that plasmid in the early stationary phase of cultivation. The copy number of orip15A plasmid increases about four times in the himAhimD double (65-70 copies per cell) and himD single mutant cells (50-56 copies per cell) and was almost the same in himA mutant (17-18 copies per cell) and wild type cells (14-16 copies per cell). The results suggest that HimD can form homodimers, which are functionally competent for the regulation of orip15A plasmid copy number. Complementation experiments of himAhimD double mutant cells using plasmid carrying himA and himD genes (pPLhiphimA-5) confirm the effect of integration host factor (IHF) absence on increasing the copy number of orip15A plasmid (plasmid producing IHF complemented the defect of IHF mutant). The absence of IHF (using himAhimD double mutant as host) had no effect on the copy number of the pBR322 (oripMB1) plasmid.
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30
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van Ulsen P, Hillebrand M, Zulianello L, van de Putte P, Goosen N. The integration host factor-DNA complex upstream of the early promoter of bacteriophage Mu is functionally symmetric. J Bacteriol 1997; 179:3073-5. [PMID: 9139933 PMCID: PMC179079 DOI: 10.1128/jb.179.9.3073-3075.1997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Inversion of the ihf site in the promoter region of the early promoter of bacteriophage Mu did not influence the integration host factor (IHF)-mediated functions. IHF bound to this inverted site could counteract H-NS-mediated repression, directly activate transcription, and support lytic growth of bacteriophage Mu. This implies that the IHF heterodimer and its asymmetrical binding site form a functionally symmetrical complex.
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Affiliation(s)
- P van Ulsen
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Leiden University, The Netherlands
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31
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van Ulsen P, Hillebrand M, Kainz M, Collard R, Zulianello L, van de Putte P, Gourse RL, Goosen N. Function of the C-terminal domain of the alpha subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase in basal expression and integration host factor-mediated activation of the early promoter of bacteriophage Mu. J Bacteriol 1997; 179:530-7. [PMID: 8990307 PMCID: PMC178725 DOI: 10.1128/jb.179.2.530-537.1997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Integration host factor (IHF) can activate transcription from the early promoter (Pe) of bacteriophage Mu both directly and indirectly. Indirect activation occurs through alleviation of H-NS-mediated repression of the Pe promoter (P. Van Ulsen, M. Hillebrand, L. Zulianello, P. Van de Putte, and N. Goosen, Mol. Microbiol. 21:567-578, 1996). The direct activation involves the C-terminal domain of the alpha subunit (alphaCTD) of RNA polymerase. We investigated which residues in the alphaCTD are important for IHF-mediated activation of the Pe promoter. Initial in vivo screening, using a set of substitution mutants derived from an alanine scan (T. Gaal, W. Ross, E. E. Blatter, T. Tang, X. Jia, V. V. Krishnan, N. Assa-Munt, R. Ebright, and R. L. Gourse, Genes Dev. 10:16-26, 1996; H. Tang, K. Severinov, A. Goldfarb, D. Fenyo, B. Chait, and R. H. Ebright, Genes Dev. 8:3058-3067, 1994), indicated that the residues, which are required for transcription activation by the UP element of the rrnB P1 promoter (T. Gaal, W. Ross, E. E. Blatter, T. Tang, X. Jia, V. V. Krishnan, N. Assa-Munt, R. Ebright, and R. L. Gourse, Genes Dev. 10:16-26, 1996), are also important for Pe expression in the presence of IHF. Two of the RNA polymerase mutants, alphaR265A and alphaG296A, that affected Pe expression most in vivo were subsequently tested in in vitro transcription experiments. Mutant RNA polymerase with alphaR265A showed no IHF-mediated activation and a severely reduced basal level of transcription from the Pe promoter. Mutant RNA polymerase with alphaG296A resulted in a slightly reduced transcription from the Pe promoter in the absence of IHF but could still be activated by IHF. These results indicate that interaction of the alphaCTD with DNA is involved not only in the IHF-mediated activation of Pe transcription but also in maintaining the basal level of transcription from this promoter. Mutational analysis of the upstream region of the Pe promoter identified a sequence, positioned from -39 to -51 with respect to the transcription start site, that is important for basal Pe expression, presumably through binding of the alphaCTD. The role of the alphaCTD in IHF-mediated stimulation of transcription from the Pe promoter is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- P van Ulsen
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Gorlaeus Laboratories, Leiden University, The Netherlands
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32
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Calb R, Davidovitch A, Koby S, Giladi H, Goldenberg D, Margalit H, Holtel A, Timmis K, Sanchez-Romero JM, de Lorenzo V, Oppenheim AB. Structure and function of the Pseudomonas putida integration host factor. J Bacteriol 1996; 178:6319-26. [PMID: 8892836 PMCID: PMC178507 DOI: 10.1128/jb.178.21.6319-6326.1996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Integration host factor (IHF) is a DNA-binding and -bending protein that has been found in a number of gram-negative bacteria. Here we describe the cloning, sequencing, and functional analysis of the genes coding for the two subunits of IHF from Pseudomonas putida. Both the ihfA and ihfB genes of P. putida code for 100-amino-acid-residue polypeptides that are 1 and 6 residues longer than the Escherichia coli IHF subunits, respectively. The P. putida ihfA and ihfB genes can effectively complement E. coli ihf mutants, suggesting that the P. putida IHF subunits can form functional heterodimers with the IHF subunits of E. coli. Analysis of the amino acid differences between the E. coli and P. putida protein sequences suggests that in the evolution of IHF, amino acid changes were mainly restricted to the N-terminal domains and to the extreme C termini. These changes do not interfere with dimer formation or with DNA recognition. We constructed a P. putida mutant strain carrying an ihfA gene knockout and demonstrated that IHF is essential for the expression of the P(U) promoter of the xyl operon of the upper pathway of toluene degradation. It was further shown that the ihfA P. putida mutant strain carrying the TOL plasmid was defective in the degradation of the aromatic model compound benzyl alcohol, proving the unique role of IHF in xyl operon promoter regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Calb
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology, Hadassah Medical School, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
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33
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van Ulsen P, Hillebrand M, Zulianello L, van de Putte P, Goosen N. Integration host factor alleviates the H-NS-mediated repression of the early promoter of bacteriophage Mu. Mol Microbiol 1996; 21:567-78. [PMID: 9082117 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.1996.tb02565.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Integration host factor (IHF), which is a histone-like protein, has been shown to positively regulate transcription in two different ways. It can either help the formation of a complex between a transcription factor and RNA polymerase or it can itself activate RNA polymerase without the involvement of other transcription factors. In this study, we present a third mechanism for IHF-stimulated gene expression, by counteracting the repression by another histone-like protein, H-NS. The early (Pe) promoter of bacteriophage Mu is specifically inhibited by H-NS, both in vivo and in vitro. For this inhibition, H-NS binds to a large DNA region overlapping the Pe promoter. Binding of IHF to a binding site just upstream of Pe alleviates the H-NS-mediated repression of transcription. This same ihf site is also involved in the direct activation of Pe by IHF. In contrast to the direct activation by IHF, however, the alleviating effect of IHF appears not to be dependent on the relevant position of the ihf site on the DNA helix, and it also does not require the presence of the C-terminal domain of the alpha subunit of RNA polymerase. Footprint analysis shows that binding of IHF to the ihf site destabilizes the interaction of H-NS with the DNA, not only in the IHF-binding region but also in the DNA regions flanking the ihf site. These results suggest that IHF disrupts a higher-order nucleoprotein complex that is formed by H-NS and the DNA.
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Affiliation(s)
- P van Ulsen
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Gorlaeus Laboratories, Leiden University, The Netherlands
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34
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Goosen N, van Ulsen P, Zulianello L, van de Putte P. Transcription activation by histone-like protein integration host factor. Methods Enzymol 1996; 274:32-43. [PMID: 8902794 DOI: 10.1016/s0076-6879(96)74006-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- N Goosen
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Leiden University, Gorlaeus Laboratories, The Netherlands
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35
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Zulianello L, van Ulsen P, van de Putte P, Goosen N. Participation of the flank regions of the integration host factor protein in the specificity and stability of DNA binding. J Biol Chem 1995; 270:17902-7. [PMID: 7629095 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.270.30.17902] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The heterodimeric integration host factor (IHF) protein is a site-specific DNA-binding protein from Escherichia coli that strongly bends the DNA. It has been proposed (Yang, C., and Nash, H.A. (1989) Cell 57, 869-880; Granston, A. E., and Nash, H. A. (1993) J. Mol. Biol 234, 45-59; Lee, E. C., Hales, L. M., Gumport, R. I., and Gardner, J. F. (1992) EMBO J. 11, 305-313) that the wrapping of the DNA around the protein is stabilized through interactions between the flanks of the protein and the DNA. In order to elucidate which domains of the IHF protein are involved in these interactions, we have constructed mutant proteins in which the C-terminal part of one of the subunits has been deleted. We observed that the C-terminal alpha 3 helix of HimD is involved in the stability of DNA binding, but not in the specificity. In contrast the corresponding alpha 3 helix of HimA is essential for the sequence specificity, since an IHF mutant lacking this domain only binds to the DNA in a non-specific way. The possible role of the two C-terminal alpha-helical structures in complex formation will be discussed. We also examined the properties of an IHF mutant that has an amino acid substitution between beta sheets beta 1 and beta 2 of the HimD subunit (R46H). The occupancy of the ihf site by the mutant and wild type proteins differ in the 3' part of the ihf site and as a result the bend introduced in the DNA by the mutant protein is less pronounced. We propose that the arginine 46 in the HimD subunit is in vicinity of the TTR region of the consensus and that through contacts within the minor groove the DNA bend introduced by IHF is stabilized.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Zulianello
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Gorlaeus Laboratories, Leiden University, The Netherlands
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36
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Zablewska B, Kur J. Mutations in HU and IHF affect bacteriophage T4 growth: HimD subunits of IHF appear to function as homodimers. Gene 1995; 160:131-2. [PMID: 7628707 DOI: 10.1016/0378-1119(95)00252-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
The Escherichia coli nucleoid-associated DNA-binding proteins HU and IHF are required for numerous biological processes, including phage growth (e.g., lambda, phi 80, Mu and f1) and DNA replication. Here, we show that growth of T4 phage is inhibited both in hupA hupB and himA himD double mutants. The growth profile of triple mutants (hupA hupB himA and hupA hupB himD) suggests that HimD subunits can form homodimers, which are functionally competent for supporting in vivo growth of phage T4.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Zablewska
- Department of Microbiology, Technical University of Gdańsk, Poland
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37
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Abstract
Integration host factor (IHF) of Escherichia coli is an asymmetric histone-like protein that binds and bends the DNA at specific sequences. IHF functions as an accessory factor in a wide variety of processes including replication, site-specific recombination and transcription. In many of these processes IHF was shown to act as an architectural element which helps the formation of nucleo-protein complexes by bending of the DNA at specific sites. This MicroReview shows how such a structural role of IHF can influence the initiation of transcription. In addition, it summarizes the evidence indicating that IHF can stimulate transcription via a direct interaction with RNA polymerase and explores the possibility that the asymmetry of the IHF protein might reflect such an interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- N Goosen
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Leiden Institute of Chemistry, Gorlaeus Laboratories, Leiden University, The Netherlands
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38
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Aviv M, Giladi H, Schreiber G, Oppenheim AB, Glaser G. Expression of the genes coding for the Escherichia coli integration host factor are controlled by growth phase, rpoS, ppGpp and by autoregulation. Mol Microbiol 1994; 14:1021-31. [PMID: 7715442 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.1994.tb01336.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Transcriptional control of the himA and the himD/hip genes coding for the two subunits of the integration host factor (IHF) was investigated. The promoters for the two genes were identified by the use of primer extension and S1 analysis. Expression from both promoters was found to increase as the cells enter stationary phase. Mutation in rpoS, known to be induced upon entry to stationary phase, dramatically reduced the growth-phase response of the himA P4 promoter but had only a small effect on the induction of the himD/hip promoter. The increased activity of both promoters required the presence of the relA and spoT genes, suggesting that ppGpp plays a major role in the response to stationary phase. An artificial increase in ppGpp in exponentially growing cells induced a rapid increase in himA P4 and himD/hip mRNA levels. Experiments with a mutant defective in rpoS showed that the response of the himA P4 promoter to high ppGpp levels was greatly reduced while that of himD/hip was only slightly affected. Therefore, it seems that different mechanisms involving RpoS and ppGpp regulate the growth-phase response of the two promoters. We propose that the effect of ppGpp on himA P4 is mediated via RpoS whereas the himD/hip promoter is affected by ppGpp independently of RpoS. Expression of the himD/hip and himA genes was found to be subject to negative autoregulation. IHF-binding sites, implicated in autoregulation, were found to overlap both the himD/hip and himA P4 promoters. An additional IHF-binding site was found upstream of the himD/hip promoter. All three sites show low binding affinity to IHF suggesting that autoregulation can take place only after sufficiently high levels of IHF accumulate in the cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Aviv
- Department of Cellular Biochemistry, Hebrew University--Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem, Israel
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Werner MH, Clore GM, Gronenborn AM, Nash HA. Symmetry and asymmetry in the function of Escherichia coli integration host factor: implications for target identification by DNA-binding proteins. Curr Biol 1994; 4:477-87. [PMID: 7922368 DOI: 10.1016/s0960-9822(00)00108-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Escherichia coli integration host factor (IHF) is a DNA-binding protein that participates in a wide variety of biochemical functions. In many of its activities, IHF appears to act as an architectural element, dramatically distorting the conformation of bound DNA. IHF is a dimer of non-identical subunits, each about 90 amino acids long. One dimer interacts specifically with a 30 base pair (bp) target, but well-conserved sequences are found in only half of this binding site. Thus, the IHF-DNA system has long been viewed as a paradigm of asymmetry in a protein-DNA interaction. RESULTS We have isolated the subunits of IHF and show that either subunit is capable of specifically recognizing natural IHF-binding sites and supporting lambda site-specific recombination in vitro. Mobility shift and footprinting data indicate that the isolated subunits interact with DNA as homodimers. We also describe the design of symmetric duplexes to which heterodimeric and homodimeric IHFs can bind by recognizing specific sequences. CONCLUSIONS Our in vitro manipulation of the IHF system demonstrates that binding and bending of target DNA can be accomplished symmetrically. The prevalence of asymmetry found for this system in nature suggests that additional selective forces may operate. We suggest that these follow from the disparity between the size of the DNA that IHF protects (30 bp) and the length of DNA that the protein can initially contact (10 bp). This disparity implies that an IHF target is recognized in stages and may dispose the part of the protein-DNA system used for initial recognition to evolve distinctly from the remainder of the interaction surface. We suggest that a limitation in the length of DNA that can be initially contacted is a general property of DNA-binding proteins. In that case, many proteins can be expected to identify complex targets by step-wise, rather than simultaneous, contact between sequence elements and DNA-binding domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- M H Werner
- Laboratory of Chemical Physics, National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
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Ditto MD, Roberts D, Weisberg RA. Growth phase variation of integration host factor level in Escherichia coli. J Bacteriol 1994; 176:3738-48. [PMID: 8206852 PMCID: PMC205563 DOI: 10.1128/jb.176.12.3738-3748.1994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
We have measured the intracellular abundance of integration host factor (IHF), a site-specific, heterodimeric DNA-binding protein, in exponential- and stationary-phase cultures of Escherichia coli K-12. Western immunoblot analysis showed that cultures that had been growing exponentially for several generations contained 0.5 to 1.0 ng of IHF subunits per microgram of total protein and that this increased to 5 to 6 ng/microgram in late-stationary-phase cultures. IHF is about one-third to one-half as abundant in exponentially growing cells as HU, a structurally related protein that binds DNA with little or no site specificity. Wild-type IHF is metabolically stable, but deletion mutations that eliminated one subunit reduced the abundance of the other when cells enter stationary phase. We attribute this reduction to the loss of stabilizing interactions between subunits. A mutation that inactivates IHF function but not subunit interaction increased IHF abundance, consistent with results of previous work showing that IHF synthesis is negatively autoregulated. We estimate that steady-state exponential-phase cultures contain about 8,500 to 17,000 IHF dimers per cell, a surprisingly large number for a site-specific DNA-binding protein with a limited number of specific sites. Nevertheless, small reductions in IHF abundance had significant effects on several IHF-dependent functions, suggesting that the wild-type exponential phase level is not in large excess of the minimum required for occupancy of physiologically important IHF-binding sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- M D Ditto
- Section on Microbial Genetics, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
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