Transcriptional activation of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis virulence-associated small RNA MTS1338 by the response regulators DosR and PhoP

MTS1338, a distinctive small RNA in pathogenic mycobacteria, plays a crucial role in host-pathogen interactions during infection. Mycobacterial cells encounter heterogeneous stresses in macrophages, which highly upregulate MTS1338. A dormancy regulatory factor DosR regulates the intracellular abundance of MTS1338. Herein, we investigated the interplay of DosR and a low pH-inducible gene regulator PhoP binding to the MTS1338 promoter. We identified that DosR strongly binds to two regions upstream of the MTS1338 gene. The proximal region possesses a threefold higher affinity than the distal site, but the presence of both regions increased the affinity for DosR by > 10-fold. PhoP did not bind to the MTS1338 gene but binds to the DosR-bound MTS1338 gene, suggesting a concerted mechanism for MTS1338 expression.

sRNA21, a novel small RNA, protects Mycobacterium abscessus against oxidative stress

BACKGROUND

During infection, Mycobacterium abscessus encounters numerous environmental changes and adapts to them using a variety of complex mechanisms. Non-coding small RNAs (sRNAs) have been shown in other bacteria to be involved in post-transcriptional regulatory pathways, including environmental stress adaptation. However, the potential role of sRNAs in the resistance to oxidative stress in M. abscessus was not clearly described.

METHODS

In the present study, we analyzed putative sRNAs identified by RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) experiments in M. abscessus ATCC_19977 under oxidative stress, and the transcription profiles of sRNAs with differential expression were verified by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR). Six sRNA overexpression strains were constructed, and the differences in growth curves between these strains and the control strain were verified. An upregulated sRNA under oxidative stress was selected and named sRNA21. The survival ability of the sRNA21 overexpression strain was assessed, and computer-based approaches were used to predict the targets and pathways regulated by sRNA21. The total ATP production and NAD⁺ /NADH ratio of the sRNA21 overexpression strain were measured. The expression level of antioxidase-related genes and the activity of antioxidase were tested to confirm the interaction of sRNA21 with the predicted target genes in silico.

RESULTS

In total, 14 putative sRNAs were identified under oxidative stress, and the qRT-PCR analysis of six sRNAs showed comparable results to RNA-seq assays. Overexpression of sRNA21 in M. abscessus increased cell growth rate and intracellular ATP level before and after peroxide exposure. The expression of genes encoding alkyl hydroperoxidase and superoxide dismutase was significantly increased, and superoxide dismutase activity was enhanced in the sRNA21 overexpression strain. Meanwhile, after sRNA21 overexpression, the intracellular NAD⁺ /NADH ratio decreased, indicating changes in redox homeostasis.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings show that sRNA21 is an oxidative stress-induced sRNA that increases M. abscessus survival and promotes the expression of antioxidant enzymes under oxidative stress. These findings may provide new insights into the adaptive transcriptional response of M. abscessus to oxidative stress.

The Biological and Clinical Aspects of a Latent Tuberculosis Infection

Tuberculosis (TB), caused by bacilli from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, remains a serious global public health problem, representing one of the main causes of death from infectious diseases. About one quarter of the world’s population is infected with Mtb and has a latent TB infection (LTBI). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an LTBI is characterized by a lasting immune response to Mtb antigens without any TB symptoms. Current LTBI diagnoses and treatments are based on this simplified definition, although an LTBI involves a broad range of conditions, including when Mtb remains in the body in a persistent form and the immune response cannot be detected. The study of LTBIs has progressed in recent years; however, many biological and medical aspects of an LTBI are still under discussion. This review focuses on an LTBI as a broad spectrum of states, both of the human body, and of Mtb cells. The problems of phenotypic insusceptibility, diagnoses, chemoprophylaxis, and the necessity of treatment are discussed. We emphasize the complexity of an LTBI diagnosis and its treatment due to its ambiguous nature. We consider alternative ways of differentiating an LTBI from active TB, as well as predicting TB reactivation based on using mycobacterial “latency antigens” for interferon gamma release assay (IGRA) tests and the transcriptomic analysis of human blood cells.

Small Noncoding RNAs and Their Role in the Pathogenesis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection

Mycobacterium tuberculosis possesses a significant arsenal of strategies to combat immune defense of the host organism. Small noncoding RNAs, which constitute the largest group of regulatory RNAs, play an important role in the host–pathogen interactions and represent one of the levels of the regulation of interactions of microbial cells with their environment. The regulatory role of small RNAs in pathogenic bacteria is essential when rapid adaptation to the changing environmental conditions with further synchronization of metabolic reactions are required to ensure microbial survival and infection progression. During the past few years, eight small RNAs from M. tuberculosis have been functionally characterized, and targets for four of them have been identified. Small RNAs from M. tuberculosis and other pathogenic microorganisms were found to be one of the most important functional factors in the adaptive response to changing environmental conditions.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis Small RNA MTS1338 Confers Pathogenic Properties to Non-Pathogenic Mycobacterium smegmatis

Small non-coding RNAs play a key role in bacterial adaptation to various stresses. Mycobacterium tuberculosis small RNA MTS1338 is upregulated during mycobacteria infection of macrophages, suggesting its involvement in the interaction of the pathogen with the host. In this study, we explored the functional effects of MTS1338 by expressing it in non-pathogenic Mycobacterium smegmatis that lacks the MTS1338 gene. The results indicated that MTS1338 slowed the growth of the recombinant mycobacteria in culture and increased their survival in RAW 264.7 macrophages, where the MTS1338-expressing strain significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the number of mature phagolysosomes and changed the production of cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, TGF-β, and TNF-α compared to those of the control strain. Proteomic and secretomic profiling of recombinant and control strains revealed differential expression of proteins involved in the synthesis of main cell wall components and in the regulation of iron metabolism (ESX-3 secretion system) and response to hypoxia (furA, whiB4, phoP). These effects of MTS1338 expression are characteristic for M. tuberculosis during infection, suggesting that in pathogenic mycobacteria MTS1338 plays the role of a virulence factor supporting the residence of M. tuberculosis in the host.