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Hart MT, Rom JS, Le Breton Y, Hause LL, Belew AT, El-Sayed NM, McIver KS. The Streptococcus pyogenes stand-alone regulator RofA exhibits characteristics of a PRD-containing virulence regulator. Infect Immun 2024; 92:e0008324. [PMID: 38712951 PMCID: PMC11237776 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00083-24] [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: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 04/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus pyogenes [group A streptococcus (GAS)] is a human pathogen capable of infecting diverse tissues. To successfully infect these sites, GAS must detect available nutrients and adapt accordingly. The phosphoenolpyruvate transferase system (PTS) mediates carbohydrate uptake and metabolic gene regulation to adapt to the nutritional environment. Regulation by the PTS can occur through phosphorylation of transcriptional regulators at conserved PTS-regulatory domains (PRDs). GAS has several PRD-containing stand-alone regulators with regulons encoding both metabolic genes and virulence factors [PRD-containing virulence regulators (PCVRs)]. One is RofA, which regulates the expression of virulence genes in multiple GAS serotypes. It was hypothesized that RofA is phosphorylated by the PTS in response to carbohydrate levels to coordinate virulence gene expression. In this study, the RofA regulon of M1T1 strain 5448 was determined using RNA sequencing. Two operons were consistently differentially expressed across growth in the absence of RofA; the pilus operon was downregulated, and the capsule operon was upregulated. This correlated with increased capsule production and decreased adherence to keratinocytes. Purified RofA-His was phosphorylated in vitro by PTS proteins EI and HPr, and phosphorylated RofA-FLAG was detected in vivo when GAS was grown in low-glucose C medium. Phosphorylated RofA was not observed when C medium was supplemented 10-fold with glucose. Mutations of select histidine residues within the putative PRDs contributed to the in vivo phosphorylation of RofA, although phosphorylation of RofA was still observed, suggesting other phosphorylation sites exist in the protein. Together, these findings support the hypothesis that RofA is a PCVR that may couple sugar metabolism with virulence regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meaghan T Hart
- Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - Joseph S Rom
- Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - Yoann Le Breton
- Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - Lara L Hause
- Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - Ashton T Belew
- Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, College Park, Maryland, USA
- Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - Najib M El-Sayed
- Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, College Park, Maryland, USA
- Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - Kevin S McIver
- Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, College Park, Maryland, USA
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Combret V, Rincé I, Budin-Verneuil A, Muller C, Deutscher J, Hartke A, Sauvageot N. Utilization of glycoprotein-derived N-acetylglucosamine-L-asparagine during Enterococcus faecalis infection depends on catabolic and transport enzymes of the glycosylasparaginase locus. Res Microbiol 2024; 175:104169. [PMID: 37977353 DOI: 10.1016/j.resmic.2023.104169] [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: 06/20/2023] [Revised: 10/30/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Enterococcus faecalis is a Gram-positive clinical pathogen causing severe infections. Its survival during infection depends on its ability to utilize host-derived metabolites, such as protein-deglycosylation products. We have identified in E. faecalis OG1RF a locus (ega) involved in the catabolism of the glycoamino acid N-acetylglucosamine-L-asparagine. This locus is separated into two transcription units, genes egaRP and egaGBCD1D2, respectively. RT-qPCR experiments revealed that the expression of the ega locus is regulated by the transcriptional repressor EgaR. Electromobility shift assays evidenced that N-acetylglucosamine-L-asparagine interacts directly with the EgaR protein, which leads to the transcription of the ega genes. Growth studies with egaG, egaB and egaC mutants confirmed that the encoded proteins are necessary for N-acetylglucosamine-L-asparagine catabolism. This glycoamino acid is transported and phosphorylated by a specific phosphotransferase system EIIABC components (OG1RF_10751, EgaB, EgaC) and subsequently hydrolyzed by the glycosylasparaginase EgaG, which generates aspartate and 6-P-N-acetyl-β-d-glucosaminylamine. The latter can be used as a fermentable carbon source by E. faecalis. Moreover, Galleria mellonella larvae had a significantly higher survival rate when infected with ega mutants compared to the wild-type strain, suggesting that the loss of N-acetylglucosamine-L-asparagine utilization affects enterococcal virulence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor Combret
- Normandie Université, UNICAEN, CBSA, F-14000 Caen, France
| | - Isabelle Rincé
- Normandie Université, UNICAEN, CBSA, F-14000 Caen, France
| | | | - Cécile Muller
- Normandie Université, UNICAEN, CBSA, F-14000 Caen, France
| | - Josef Deutscher
- Université Paris Saclay, INRAE, Micalis Institute, 78350 Jouy en Josas, France; CNRS, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique UMR8261, Expression Génétique Microbienne, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Axel Hartke
- Normandie Université, UNICAEN, CBSA, F-14000 Caen, France
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Robertsson C, Svensäter G, Blum Z, Jakobsson ME, Wickström C. Proteomic response in Streptococcus gordonii DL1 biofilm cells during attachment to salivary MUC5B. J Oral Microbiol 2021; 13:1967636. [PMID: 34447490 PMCID: PMC8386731 DOI: 10.1080/20002297.2021.1967636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Salivary mucin MUC5B seems to promote biodiversity in dental biofilms, and thereby oral health, for example, by inducing synergistic ‘mucolytic’ activities in a variety of microbial species that need to cooperate for the release of nutrients from the complex glycoprotein. Knowledge of how early colonizers interact with host salivary proteins is integral to better understand the maturation of putatively harmful oral biofilms and could provide key insights into biofilm physiology. Methods The early oral colonizer Streptococcus gordonii DL1 was grown planktonically and in biofilm flow cell systems with uncoated, MUC5B or low-density salivary protein (LDP) coated surfaces. Bacterial cell proteins were extracted and analyzed using a quantitative mass spectrometry-based workflow, and differentially expressed proteins were identified. Results and conclusions Overall, the proteomic profiles of S. gordonii DL1 were similar across conditions. Six novel biofilm cell proteins and three planktonic proteins absent in all biofilm cultures were identified. These differences may provide insights into mechanisms for adaptation to biofilm growth in this species. Salivary MUC5B also elicited specific responses in the biofilm cell proteome. These regulations may represent mechanisms by which this mucin could promote colonization of the commensal S. gordonii in oral biofilms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina Robertsson
- Department of Oral Biology and Pathology, Faculty of Odontology, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden
| | - Gunnel Svensäter
- Department of Oral Biology and Pathology, Faculty of Odontology, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden
| | - Zoltan Blum
- Department of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Health and Society, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden
| | | | - Claes Wickström
- Department of Oral Biology and Pathology, Faculty of Odontology, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden
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DebRoy S, Aliaga-Tobar V, Galvez G, Arora S, Liang X, Horstmann N, Maracaja-Coutinho V, Latorre M, Hook M, Flores AR, Shelburne SA. Genome-wide analysis of in vivo CcpA binding with and without its key co-factor HPr in the major human pathogen group A Streptococcus. Mol Microbiol 2020; 115:1207-1228. [PMID: 33325565 PMCID: PMC8359418 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.14667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2020] [Revised: 12/02/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Catabolite control protein A (CcpA) is a master regulator of carbon source utilization and contributes to the virulence of numerous medically important Gram‐positive bacteria. Most functional assessments of CcpA, including interaction with its key co‐factor HPr, have been performed in nonpathogenic bacteria. In this study we aimed to identify the in vivo DNA binding profile of CcpA and assess the extent to which HPr is required for CcpA‐mediated regulation and DNA binding in the major human pathogen group A Streptococcus (GAS). Using a combination RNAseq/ChIP‐seq approach, we found that CcpA affects transcript levels of 514 of 1667 GAS genes (31%) whereas direct DNA binding was identified for 105 GAS genes. Three of the directly regulated genes encode the key GAS virulence factors Streptolysin S, PrtS (IL‐8 degrading proteinase), and SpeB (cysteine protease). Mutating CcpA Val301 to Ala (strain 2221‐CcpA‐V301A) abolished interaction between CcpA and HPr and impacted the transcript levels of 205 genes (40%) in the total CcpA regulon. By ChIP‐seq analysis, CcpAV301A bound to DNA from 74% of genes bound by wild‐type CcpA, but generally with lower affinity. These data delineate the direct CcpA regulon and clarify the HPr‐dependent and independent activities of CcpA in a key pathogenic bacterium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sruti DebRoy
- Department of Infectious Diseases Infection Control and Employee Health, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Victor Aliaga-Tobar
- Facultad de Ciencias Químicas y Farmacéuticas, Advanced Center for Chronic Diseases-ACCDiS, Universidad de Chile, Independencia, Chile.,Laboratorio de Bioingeniería, Instituto de Ciencias de la Ingeniería, Universidad de O'Higgins, Rancagua, Chile
| | - Gabriel Galvez
- Laboratorio de Bioingeniería, Instituto de Ciencias de la Ingeniería, Universidad de O'Higgins, Rancagua, Chile
| | - Srishtee Arora
- Center for Infectious and Inflammatory Diseases, Institute of Biosciences and Technology, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Xiaowen Liang
- Center for Infectious and Inflammatory Diseases, Institute of Biosciences and Technology, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Nicola Horstmann
- Department of Infectious Diseases Infection Control and Employee Health, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Vinicius Maracaja-Coutinho
- Facultad de Ciencias Químicas y Farmacéuticas, Advanced Center for Chronic Diseases-ACCDiS, Universidad de Chile, Independencia, Chile.,Centro de Modelamiento Molecular, Biofísica y Bioinformática (CM2B2), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas y Farmacéuticas, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Mauricio Latorre
- Laboratorio de Bioingeniería, Instituto de Ciencias de la Ingeniería, Universidad de O'Higgins, Rancagua, Chile.,Laboratorio de Bioinformática y Expresión Génica, INTA, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile.,Mathomics, Center for Mathematical Modeling, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile.,Center for Genome Regulation (Fondap 15090007), Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Magnus Hook
- Center for Infectious and Inflammatory Diseases, Institute of Biosciences and Technology, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Anthony R Flores
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, University of Texas Health Science Center McGovern Medical School, Houston, TX, USA.,Center for Antimicrobial Resistance and Microbial Genomics, University of Texas Health Science Center McGovern Medical School, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Samuel A Shelburne
- Department of Infectious Diseases Infection Control and Employee Health, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.,Center for Antimicrobial Resistance and Microbial Genomics, University of Texas Health Science Center McGovern Medical School, Houston, TX, USA.,Department of Genomic Medicine, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston TX, USA
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