Acetylation of NarL K188 and K192 is involved in regulating Escherichia coli anaerobic nitrate respiration

Influence of Nε-Lysine Acetylation on the Formation of Protein Aggregates and Antibiotic Persistence in E. coli

Numerous studies indicate that reversible Nε-lysine acetylation in bacteria may play a key role in the regulation of metabolic processes, transcription and translation, biofilm formation, virulence, and drug resistance. Using appropriate mutant strains deficient in non-enzymatic acetylation and enzymatic acetylation or deacetylation pathways, we investigated the influence of protein acetylation on cell viability, protein aggregation, and persister formation in Escherichia coli. Lysine acetylation was found to increase protein aggregation and cell viability under the late stationary phase. Moreover, increased lysine acetylation stimulated the formation of persisters. These results suggest that acetylation-dependent aggregation may improve the survival of bacteria under adverse conditions (such as the late stationary phase) and during antibiotic treatment. Further experiments revealed that acetylation-favorable conditions may increase persister formation in Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolate. However, the exact mechanisms underlying the relationship between acetylation and persistence in this pathogen remain to be elucidated.

Acetylation of K188 and K192 inhibits the DNA-binding ability of NarL to regulate Salmonella virulence

Salmonella infection significantly increases nitrate levels in the intestine, immune cells, and immune organs of the host, and it can exploit nitrate as an electron acceptor to enhance its growth. In the presence of nitrate or nitrite, NarL, a regulatory protein of the Nar two-component system, is activated and regulates a number of genes involved in nitrate metabolism. However, research on NarL at the post-translational level is limited. In this study, we demonstrate that the DNA-binding sites K188 and 192 of NarL can be acetylated by bacterial metabolite acetyl phosphate and that the degree of acetylation has a considerable influence on the regulatory function of NarL. Specifically, acetylation of NarL negatively regulates the transcription of narG, narK, and napF, which affects the utilization of nitrate in Salmonella. Besides, both cell and mouse models show that acetylated K188 and K192 result in attenuated replication in RAW 264.7 cells, as well as impaired virulence in mouse model. Together, this research identifies a novel NarL acetylation mechanism that regulates Salmonella virulence, providing a new insight and target for salmonellosis treatment.IMPORTANCESalmonella is an important intracellular pathogen that can cause limited gastroenteritis and self-limiting gastroenteritis in immunocompetent humans. Nitrate, the highest oxidation state form of nitrogen, is critical in the formation of systemic infection in Salmonella. It functions as a signaling molecule that influences Salmonella chemotaxis, in addition to acting as a reduced external electron acceptor for Salmonella anaerobic respiration. NarL is an essential regulatory protein involved in nitrate metabolism in Salmonella, and comprehending its regulatory mechanism is necessary. Previous research has linked NarL phosphorylation to the formation of its dimer, which is required for NarL to perform its regulatory functions. Our research demonstrated that acetylation also affects the regulatory function of NarL. We found that acetylation affects Salmonella pathogenicity by weakening the ability of NarL to bind to the target sequence, further refining the mechanism of the anaerobic nitrate respiration pathway.