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Comín J, Campos E, Gonzalo-Asensio J, Samper S. Transcriptomic profile of the most successful Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain in Aragon, the MtZ strain, during exponential and stationary growth phases. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0468522. [PMID: 37882511 PMCID: PMC10714837 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.04685-22] [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: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Aragon Community suffered, during the first years of the beginning of this century, a large outbreak caused by the MtZ strain, producing more than 240 cases to date. MtZ strain and the outbreak have been previously studied from an epidemiological and molecular point of view. In this work, we analyzed the transcriptomic profile of the strain for better understanding of its success among our population. We have discovered that MtZ has some upregulated virulence pathways, such as the ESX-1 system, the cholesterol degradation pathway or the peptidoglycan biosynthesis. Interestingly, MtZ has downregulated the uptake of iron. Another special feature of MtZ strain is the interruption of desA3 gene, essential for producing oleic acid. Although the strain takes a long time to grow in the initial culture media, eventually it is able to reach normal optical densities, suggestive of the presence of another route for obtaining oleic acid in Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Comín
- Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud, Zaragoza, Spain
| | | | - Jesús Gonzalo-Asensio
- Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
- Fundación IIS Aragón, Zaragoza, Spain
- CIBER de Enfermedades Respiratorias, Madrid, Spain
| | - Sofía Samper
- Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud, Zaragoza, Spain
- Fundación IIS Aragón, Zaragoza, Spain
- CIBER de Enfermedades Respiratorias, Madrid, Spain
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Pushparajan AR, Edison LK, Ajay Kumar R. Mycobacterium tuberculosis transcriptional regulator Rv1019 is upregulated in hypoxia, and negatively regulates Rv3230c-Rv3229c operon encoding enzymes in the oleic acid biosynthetic pathway. FEBS J 2023; 290:1583-1595. [PMID: 36209365 DOI: 10.1111/febs.16647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
The main obstacle in eradicating tuberculosis is the ability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis to remain dormant in the host, and then to get reactivated even years later under immunocompromised conditions. Transcriptional regulation in intracellular pathogens plays an important role in their adapting to the challenging environment inside the host cells. Previously, we demonstrated that Rv1019, a putative transcriptional regulator of M. tuberculosis H37Rv, is an autorepressor. We showed that Rv1019 is cotranscribed with Rv1020 (mfd) and Rv1021 (mazG) which encode DNA repair proteins and negatively regulates the expression of these genes. In the present study, we show that Rv1019 regulates the expression of the genes Rv3230c and Rv3229c (desA3) also which form a two-gene operon in M. tuberculosis. Overexpression of Rv1019 in M. tuberculosis significantly downregulated the expression of these genes. Employing Wayne's hypoxia-induced dormancy model of M. tuberculosis, we show that Rv1019 is upregulated three-fold under hypoxia. Finally, by reporter assay, using Mycobacterium smegmatis as a model, we validate that Rv1019 is recruited to the promoter of Rv3230c-Rv3229c during hypoxia, and negatively regulates this operon which is involved in the biosynthesis of oleic acid.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akhil Raj Pushparajan
- Mycobacterium Research Laboratory, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Thiruvananthapuram, India.,Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology, University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram, India
| | - Lekshmi K Edison
- Mycobacterium Research Laboratory, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Thiruvananthapuram, India
| | - Ramakrishnan Ajay Kumar
- Mycobacterium Research Laboratory, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Thiruvananthapuram, India
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Janisch N, Levendosky K, Budell WC, Quadri LEN. Genetic Underpinnings of Carotenogenesis and Light-Induced Transcriptome Remodeling in the Opportunistic Pathogen Mycobacterium kansasii. Pathogens 2023; 12:86. [PMID: 36678434 PMCID: PMC9861118 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12010086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2022] [Revised: 12/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/28/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Mycobacterium kansasii (Mk) causes opportunistic pulmonary infections with tuberculosis-like features. The bacterium is well known for its photochromogenicity, i.e., the production of carotenoid pigments in response to light. The genetics defining the photochromogenic phenotype of Mk has not been investigated and defined pigmentation mutants to facilitate studies on the role of carotenes in the bacterium's biology are not available thus far. In this study, we set out to identify genetic determinants involved in Mk photochromogenicity. We screened a library of ~150,000 transposon mutants for colonies with pigmentation abnormalities. The screen rendered a collection of ~200 mutants. Each of these mutants could be assigned to one of four distinct phenotypic groups. The insertion sites in the mutant collection clustered in three chromosomal regions. A combination of phenotypic analysis, sequence bioinformatics, and gene expression studies linked these regions to carotene biosynthesis, carotene degradation, and monounsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis. Furthermore, introduction of the identified carotenoid biosynthetic gene cluster into non-pigmented Mycobacterium smegmatis endowed the bacterium with photochromogenicity. The studies also led to identification of MarR-type and TetR/AcrR-type regulators controlling photochromogenicity and carotenoid breakdown, respectively. Lastly, the work presented also provides a first insight into the Mk transcriptome changes in response to light.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niklas Janisch
- Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USA
- Biology Program, Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Keith Levendosky
- Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USA
- Biology Program, Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - William C. Budell
- Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USA
- Biology Program, Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Luis E. N. Quadri
- Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USA
- Biology Program, Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA
- Biochemistry Program, Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA
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Dong W, Nie X, Zhu H, Liu Q, Shi K, You L, Zhang Y, Fan H, Yan B, Niu C, Lyu LD, Zhao GP, Yang C. Mycobacterial fatty acid catabolism is repressed by FdmR to sustain lipogenesis and virulence. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2019305118. [PMID: 33853942 PMCID: PMC8072231 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2019305118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Host-derived fatty acids are an important carbon source for pathogenic mycobacteria during infection. How mycobacterial cells regulate the catabolism of fatty acids to serve the pathogenicity, however, remains unknown. Here, we identified a TetR-family transcriptional factor, FdmR, as the key regulator of fatty acid catabolism in the pathogen Mycobacterium marinum by combining use of transcriptomics, chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing, dynamic 13C-based flux analysis, metabolomics, and lipidomics. An M. marinum mutant deficient in FdmR was severely attenuated in zebrafish larvae and adult zebrafish. The mutant showed defective growth but high substrate consumption on fatty acids. FdmR was identified as a long-chain acyl-coenzyme A (acyl-CoA)-responsive repressor of genes involved in fatty acid degradation and modification. We demonstrated that FdmR functions as a valve to direct the flux of exogenously derived fatty acids away from β-oxidation toward lipid biosynthesis, thereby avoiding the overactive catabolism and accumulation of biologically toxic intermediates. Moreover, we found that FdmR suppresses degradation of long-chain acyl-CoAs endogenously synthesized through the type I fatty acid synthase. By modulating the supply of long-chain acyl-CoAs for lipogenesis, FdmR controls the abundance and chain length of virulence-associated lipids and mycolates and plays an important role in the impermeability of the cell envelope. These results reveal that despite the fact that host-derived fatty acids are used as an important carbon source, overactive catabolism of fatty acids is detrimental to mycobacterial cell growth and pathogenicity. This study thus presents FdmR as a potentially attractive target for chemotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenyue Dong
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiaoqun Nie
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Hong Zhu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Qingyun Liu
- Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Kunxiong Shi
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology of the Ministry of Education/National Health Commission/Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China
| | - Linlin You
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yu Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Hongyan Fan
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology of the Ministry of Education/National Health Commission/Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China
| | - Bo Yan
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology of the Ministry of Education/National Health Commission/Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China
| | - Chen Niu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology of the Ministry of Education/National Health Commission/Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China;
| | - Liang-Dong Lyu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology of the Ministry of Education/National Health Commission/Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China;
| | - Guo-Ping Zhao
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai 200032, China
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology of the Ministry of Education/National Health Commission/Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (MOE/NHC/CAMS), School of Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China
- Bio-Med Big Data Center, CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Chen Yang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai 200032, China;
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