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Cui L, Yang R, Huo D, Li L, Qu X, Wang J, Wang X, Liu H, Chen H, Wang X. Streptococcus pneumoniae extracellular vesicles aggravate alveolar epithelial barrier disruption via autophagic degradation of OCLN (occludin). Autophagy 2024; 20:1577-1596. [PMID: 38497494 PMCID: PMC11210924 DOI: 10.1080/15548627.2024.2330043] [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: 12/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) represents a major human bacterial pathogen leading to high morbidity and mortality in children and the elderly. Recent research emphasizes the role of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in bacterial pathogenicity. However, the contribution of S. pneumoniae EVs (pEVs) to host-microbe interactions has remained unclear. Here, we observed that S. pneumoniae infections in mice led to severe lung injuries and alveolar epithelial barrier (AEB) dysfunction. Infections of S. pneumoniae reduced the protein expression of tight junction protein OCLN (occludin) and activated macroautophagy/autophagy in lung tissues of mice and A549 cells. Mechanically, S. pneumoniae induced autophagosomal degradation of OCLN leading to AEB impairment in the A549 monolayer. S. pneumoniae released the pEVs that could be internalized by alveolar epithelial cells. Through proteomics, we profiled the cargo proteins inside pEVs and found that these pEVs contained many virulence factors, among which we identified a eukaryotic-like serine-threonine kinase protein StkP. The internalized StkP could induce the phosphorylation of BECN1 (beclin 1) at Ser93 and Ser96 sites, initiating autophagy and resulting in autophagy-dependent OCLN degradation and AEB dysfunction. Finally, the deletion of stkP in S. pneumoniae completely protected infected mice from death, significantly alleviated OCLN degradation in vivo, and largely abolished the AEB disruption caused by pEVs in vitro. Overall, our results suggested that pEVs played a crucial role in the spread of S. pneumoniae virulence factors. The cargo protein StkP in pEVs could communicate with host target proteins and even hijack the BECN1 autophagy initiation pathway, contributing to AEB disruption and bacterial pathogenicity.Abbreviations: AEB: alveolarepithelial barrier; AECs: alveolar epithelial cells; ATG16L1: autophagy related 16 like 1; ATP:adenosine 5'-triphosphate; BafA1: bafilomycin A1; BBB: blood-brain barrier; CFU: colony-forming unit; co-IP: co-immunoprecipitation; CQ:chloroquine; CTRL: control; DiO: 3,3'-dioctadecylox-acarbocyanineperchlorate; DOX: doxycycline; DTT: dithiothreitol; ECIS: electricalcell-substrate impedance sensing; eGFP: enhanced green fluorescentprotein; ermR: erythromycin-resistance expression cassette; Ery: erythromycin; eSTKs: eukaryotic-like serine-threoninekinases; EVs: extracellular vesicles; HA: hemagglutinin; H&E: hematoxylin and eosin; HsLC3B: human LC3B; hpi: hours post-infection; IP: immunoprecipitation; KD: knockdown; KO: knockout; LAMP1: lysosomal associated membrane protein 1; LC/MS: liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry; MAP1LC3/LC3: microtubule associated protein 1 light chain 3; MVs: membranevesicles; NC:negative control; NETs:neutrophil extracellular traps; OD: optical density; OMVs: outer membrane vesicles; PBS: phosphate-buffered saline; pEVs: S.pneumoniaeextracellular vesicles; protK: proteinase K; Rapa: rapamycin; RNAi: RNA interference; S.aureus: Staphylococcusaureus; SNF:supernatant fluid; sgRNA: single guide RNA; S.pneumoniae: Streptococcuspneumoniae; S.suis: Streptococcussuis; TEER: trans-epithelium electrical resistance; moi: multiplicity ofinfection; TEM:transmission electron microscope; TJproteins: tight junction proteins; TJP1/ZO-1: tight junction protein1; TSA: tryptic soy agar; WB: western blot; WT: wild-type.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luqing Cui
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Ruicheng Yang
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Animal Breeding and Sustainable Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Dong Huo
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Liang Li
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Xinyi Qu
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Jundan Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Xinyi Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Hulin Liu
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Huanchun Chen
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Animal Breeding and Sustainable Production, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiangru Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
- Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine in Hubei Province, the Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Animal Breeding and Sustainable Production, Wuhan, China
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Tsui HCT, Joseph M, Zheng JJ, Perez AJ, Manzoor I, Rued BE, Richardson JD, Branny P, Doubravová L, Massidda O, Winkler ME. Negative regulation of MurZ and MurA underlies the essentiality of GpsB- and StkP-mediated protein phosphorylation in Streptococcus pneumoniae D39. Mol Microbiol 2023; 120:351-383. [PMID: 37452010 PMCID: PMC10530524 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.15122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2023] [Revised: 06/27/2023] [Accepted: 06/28/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
GpsB links peptidoglycan synthases to other proteins that determine the shape of the respiratory pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus; Spn) and other low-GC Gram-positive bacteria. GpsB is also required for phosphorylation of proteins by the essential StkP(Spn) Ser/Thr protein kinase. Here we report three classes of frequently arising chromosomal duplications (≈21-176 genes) containing murZ (MurZ-family homolog of MurA) or murA that suppress ΔgpsB or ΔstkP. These duplications arose from three different repeated sequences and demonstrate the facility of pneumococcus to modulate gene dosage of numerous genes. Overproduction of MurZ or MurA alone or overproduction of MurZ caused by ΔkhpAB mutations suppressed ΔgpsB or ΔstkP phenotypes to varying extents. ΔgpsB and ΔstkP were also suppressed by MurZ amino-acid changes distant from the active site, including one in commonly studied laboratory strains, and by truncation or deletion of the homolog of IreB(ReoM). Unlike in other Gram-positive bacteria, MurZ is predominant to MurA in pneumococcal cells. However, ΔgpsB and ΔstkP were not suppressed by ΔclpCP, which did not alter MurZ or MurA amounts. These results support a model in which regulation of MurZ and MurA activity, likely by IreB(Spn), is the only essential requirement for StkP-mediated protein phosphorylation in exponentially growing D39 pneumococcal cells.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Merrin Joseph
- Department of Biology, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Jiaqi J. Zheng
- Department of Biology, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Amilcar J. Perez
- Department of Biology, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Irfan Manzoor
- Department of Biology, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Britta E. Rued
- Department of Biology, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - John D. Richardson
- Department of Biology, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Pavel Branny
- Institute of Microbiology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Linda Doubravová
- Institute of Microbiology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Orietta Massidda
- Department of Cellular, Computational, and Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Italy
| | - Malcolm E. Winkler
- Department of Biology, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA
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Kant S, Sun Y, Pancholi V. StkP- and PhpP-Mediated Posttranslational Modifications Modulate the S. pneumoniae Metabolism, Polysaccharide Capsule, and Virulence. Infect Immun 2023; 91:e0029622. [PMID: 36877045 PMCID: PMC10112228 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00296-22] [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: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Pneumococcal Ser/Thr kinase (StkP) and its cognate phosphatase (PhpP) play a crucial role in bacterial cytokinesis. However, their individual and reciprocal metabolic and virulence regulation-related functions have yet to be adequately investigated in encapsulated pneumococci. Here, we demonstrate that the encapsulated pneumococcal strain D39-derived D39ΔPhpP and D39ΔStkP mutants displayed differential cell division defects and growth patterns when grown in chemically defined media supplemented with glucose or nonglucose sugars as the sole carbon source. Microscopic and biochemical analyses supported by RNA-seq-based global transcriptomic analyses of these mutants revealed significantly down- and upregulated polysaccharide capsule formation and cps2 genes in D39ΔPhpP and D39ΔStkP mutants, respectively. While StkP and PhpP individually regulated several unique genes, they also participated in sharing the regulation of the same set of differentially regulated genes. Cps2 genes were reciprocally regulated in part by the StkP/PhpP-mediated reversible phosphorylation but independent of the MapZ-regulated cell division process. StkP-mediated dose-dependent phosphorylation of CcpA proportionately inhibited CcpA-binding to Pcps2A, supporting increased cps2 gene expression and capsule formation in D39ΔStkP. While the attenuation of the D39ΔPhpP mutant in two mouse infection models corroborated with several downregulated capsules-, virulence-, and phosphotransferase systems (PTS)-related genes, the D39ΔStkP mutant with increased amounts of polysaccharide capsules displayed significantly decreased virulence in mice compared to the D39 wild-type, but more virulence compared to D39ΔPhpP. NanoString technology-based inflammation-related gene expression and Meso Scale Discovery-based multiplex chemokine analysis of human lung cells cocultured with these mutants confirmed their distinct virulence phenotypes. StkP and PhpP may, therefore, serve as critical therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sashi Kant
- Department of Pathology, Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Youcheng Sun
- Department of Pathology, Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Vijay Pancholi
- Department of Pathology, Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, Ohio, USA
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Tsui HCT, Joseph M, Zheng JJ, Perez AJ, Manzoor I, Rued BE, Richardson JD, Branny P, Doubravová L, Massidda O, Winkler ME. Chromosomal Duplications of MurZ (MurA2) or MurA (MurA1), Amino Acid Substitutions in MurZ (MurA2), and Absence of KhpAB Obviate the Requirement for Protein Phosphorylation in Streptococcus pneumoniae D39. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.26.534294. [PMID: 37034771 PMCID: PMC10081211 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.26.534294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/26/2023]
Abstract
GpsB links peptidoglycan synthases to other proteins that determine the shape of the respiratory pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus; Spn ) and other low-GC Gram-positive bacteria. GpsB is also required for phosphorylation of proteins by the essential StkP( Spn ) Ser/Thr protein kinase. Here we report three classes of frequently arising chromosomal duplications (≈21-176 genes) containing murZ (MurZ-family homolog of MurA) or murA that suppress Δ gpsB or Δ stkP . These duplications arose from three different repeated sequences and demonstrate the facility of pneumococcus to modulate gene dosage of numerous genes. Overproduction of MurZ or MurA alone or overexpression of MurZ caused by Δ khpAB mutations suppressed Δ gpsB or Δ stkP phenotypes to varying extents. Δ gpsB and Δ stkP were also suppressed by MurZ amino-acid changes distant from the active site, including one in commonly studied laboratory strains, and by truncation or deletion of the homolog of IreB(ReoM). Unlike in other Gram-positive bacteria, MurZ is predominant to MurA in pneumococcal cells. However, Δ gpsB and Δ stkP were not suppressed by Δ clpCP , which did not alter MurZ or MurA amounts. These results support a model in which regulation of MurZ and MurA activity, likely by IreB( Spn ), is the only essential requirement for protein phosphorylation in exponentially growing D39 pneumococcal cells.
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Hu Q, Yao L, Liao X, Zhang LS, Li HT, Li TT, Jiang QG, Tan MF, Li L, Draheim RR, Huang Q, Zhou R. Comparative Phenotypic, Proteomic, and Phosphoproteomic Analysis Reveals Different Roles of Serine/Threonine Phosphatase and Kinase in the Growth, Cell Division, and Pathogenicity of Streptococcus suis. Microorganisms 2021; 9:microorganisms9122442. [PMID: 34946045 PMCID: PMC8707513 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9122442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Revised: 11/22/2021] [Accepted: 11/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Eukaryote-like serine/threonine kinases (STKs) and cognate phosphatases (STPs) comprise an important regulatory system in many bacterial pathogens. The complexity of this regulatory system has not been fully understood due to the presence of multiple STKs/STPs in many bacteria and their multiple substrates involved in many different physiological and pathogenetic processes. Streptococci are the best materials for the study due to a single copy of the gene encoding STK and its cognate STP. Although several studies have been done to investigate the roles of STK and STP in zoonotic Streptococcus suis, respectively, few studies were performed on the coordinated regulatory roles of this system. In this study, we carried out a systemic study on STK/STP in S. suis by using a comparative phenotypic, proteomic, and phosphoproteomic analysis. Mouse infection assays revealed that STK played a much more important role in S. suis pathogenesis than STP. The ∆stk and ∆stp∆stk strains, but not ∆stp, showed severe growth retardation. Moreover, both ∆stp and ∆stk strains displayed defects in cell division, but they were abnormal in different ways. The comparative proteomics and phosphoproteomics revealed that deletion of stk or stp had a significant influence on protein expression. Interestingly, more virulence factors were found to be downregulated in ∆stk than ∆stp. In ∆stk strain, a substantial number of the proteins with a reduced phosphorylation level were involved in cell division, energy metabolism, and protein translation. However, only a few proteins showed increased phosphorylation in ∆stp, which also included some proteins related to cell division. Collectively, our results show that both STP and STK are critical regulatory proteins for S. suis and that STK seems to play more important roles in growth, cell division, and pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiao Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
| | - Lun Yao
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
| | - Xia Liao
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
| | - Liang-Sheng Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
| | - Hao-Tian Li
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
| | - Ting-Ting Li
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
| | - Qing-Gen Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
| | - Mei-Fang Tan
- Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science, Jiangxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanchang 330200, China;
| | - Lu Li
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
- Cooperative Innovation Center of Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan 430070, China
- International Research Center for Animal Disease, Ministry of Science and Technology of China, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Roger R. Draheim
- School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth PO1 2UP, UK;
| | - Qi Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
- Cooperative Innovation Center of Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan 430070, China
- International Research Center for Animal Disease, Ministry of Science and Technology of China, Wuhan 430070, China
- Correspondence: (Q.H.); (R.Z.)
| | - Rui Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Agricultural Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China; (Q.H.); (L.Y.); (X.L.); (L.-S.Z.); (H.-T.L.); (T.-T.L.); (Q.-G.J.); (L.L.)
- Cooperative Innovation Center of Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan 430070, China
- International Research Center for Animal Disease, Ministry of Science and Technology of China, Wuhan 430070, China
- Correspondence: (Q.H.); (R.Z.)
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Acebo P, Herranz C, Espenberger LB, Gómez-Sanz A, Terrón MC, Luque D, Amblar M. A Small Non-Coding RNA Modulates Expression of Pilus-1 Type in Streptococcus pneumoniae. Microorganisms 2021; 9:microorganisms9091883. [PMID: 34576778 PMCID: PMC8465756 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9091883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2021] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus pneumoniae is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, and about 30% of the pneumococcal clinical isolates show type I pili-like structures. These long proteinaceous polymers extending from the bacterial surface are encoded by pilus islet 1 and play major roles in adhesion and host colonization. Pili expression is bistable and is controlled by the transcriptional activator RlrA. In this work, we demonstrate that the previously identified small noncoding RNA srn135 also participates in pilus regulation. Our findings show that srn135 is generated upon processing of the 5′-UTR region of rrgA messenger and its deletion prevents the synthesis of RrgA, the main pili adhesin. Moreover, overexpression of srn135 increases the expression of all pili genes and rises the percentage of piliated bacteria within a clonal population. This regulation is mediated by the stabilization of rlrA mRNA since higher levels of srn135 increase its half-life to 165%. Our findings suggest that srn135 has a dual role in pilus expression acting both in cis- (on the RrgA levels) and in trans- (modulating the levels of RlrA) and contributes to the delicate balance between pili expressing and non-expressing bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paloma Acebo
- Unidad de Patología Molecular del Neumococo, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid, Spain; (P.A.); (C.H.); (L.B.E.); (A.G.-S.)
| | - Cristina Herranz
- Unidad de Patología Molecular del Neumococo, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid, Spain; (P.A.); (C.H.); (L.B.E.); (A.G.-S.)
| | - Lucas Bernal Espenberger
- Unidad de Patología Molecular del Neumococo, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid, Spain; (P.A.); (C.H.); (L.B.E.); (A.G.-S.)
| | - Alicia Gómez-Sanz
- Unidad de Patología Molecular del Neumococo, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid, Spain; (P.A.); (C.H.); (L.B.E.); (A.G.-S.)
| | - María Carmen Terrón
- Unidad de Microscopia Electrónica y Confocal, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid, Spain; (M.C.T.); (D.L.)
| | - Daniel Luque
- Unidad de Microscopia Electrónica y Confocal, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid, Spain; (M.C.T.); (D.L.)
| | - Mónica Amblar
- Unidad de Patología Molecular del Neumococo, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid, Spain; (P.A.); (C.H.); (L.B.E.); (A.G.-S.)
- Correspondence:
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Ness S, Hilleringmann M. Streptococcus pneumoniae Type 1 Pilus - A Multifunctional Tool for Optimized Host Interaction. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:615924. [PMID: 33633703 PMCID: PMC7899983 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.615924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2020] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus pneumoniae represents a major Gram-positive human pathogen causing bacterial pneumonia, otitis media, meningitis, and other invasive diseases. Several pneumococcal isolates show increasing resistance rates against antibacterial agents. A variety of virulence factors promote pneumococcal pathogenicity with varying importance in different stages of host infection. Virulence related hair-like structures ("pili") are complex, surface located protein arrays supporting proper host interaction. In the last two decades different types of pneumococcal pili have been identified: pilus-1 (P1) and pilus-2 (P2) are formed by the catalytic activity of sortases that covalently assemble secreted polypeptide pilin subunits in a defined order and finally anchor the resulting pilus in the peptidoglycan. Within the long pilus fiber the presence of intramolecular isopeptide bonds confer high stability to the sequentially arranged individual pilins. This mini review will focus on S. pneumoniae TIGR4 P1 molecular architecture, the subunits it builds and provides insights into P1 sortase-mediated assembly. The complex P1 architecture (anchor-/backbone-/tip-subunits) allows the specific interaction with various target structures facilitating different steps of colonization, invasion and spreading within the host. Optimized pilin subunit confirmation supports P1 function under physiological conditions. Finally, aspects of P1- host interplay are summarized, including recent insights into P1 mechanobiology, which have important implications for P1 mediated pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Markus Hilleringmann
- FG Protein Biochemistry & Cellular Microbiology, Department of Applied Sciences and Mechatronics, Munich University of Applied Sciences, Munich, Germany
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Liu H, Ye C, Fu H, Yue M, Li X, Fang W. Stk and Stp1 participate in Streptococcus suis serotype 2 pathogenesis by regulating capsule thickness and translocation of certain virulence factors. Microb Pathog 2020; 152:104607. [PMID: 33161059 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2020.104607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2020] [Revised: 10/30/2020] [Accepted: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Eukaryotic-like serine/threonine protein kinase (eSTK) and phosphatase (eSTP) play multiple roles in pathogenesis of many Gram-positive bacteria. eSTK (Stk) and eSTP (Stp1) of Streptococcus suis serotype 2 (S. suis 2) have also been reported to be virulence-associated, but their roles and underlying mechanisms in S. suis 2 pathogenesis require further investigation. We constructed mutants of stk or stp1 deletion using the virulent S. suis 2 isolate 05ZYH33 as the parental strain. Both Δstk and Δstp1 mutants showed abnormal cell division shown as increased chain length. This might be due to regulation by Stk and Stp1 of the phosphorylation status of the bacterial division protein DivIVA. Both mutants showed increased adhesion but reduced invasion to epithelial and endothelial cells. The two mutants were more readily phagocytosed by murine RAW264.7 macrophages. Western blotting revealed that GAPDH (glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase), an important adhesin of S. suis, was significantly increased in the surface-associated and secreted fractions of the two mutant strains. Because increased adhesion of the mutant strains Δstk and Δstp1 to endothelial cells could be significantly inhibited by anti-GAPDH serum, we suppose that aberrant translocation of GAPDH due to deletion of the stk or stp1 gene contributed to increased interaction with host cells. The Δstk mutant showed reduced survival in macrophages, while the Δstp1 mutant showed increased survival probably as a result of increased capsule thickness. Enhanced hemolytic activity of the Δstk mutant could be due to increased secretion of suilysin. Both mutants exhibited reduced survival in pig whole blood and attenuated virulence to mice. Taken together, these results suggest that Stk and Stp1 can modulate S. suis cell division by post-translational modification of DivIVA, and regulate translocation of certain virulence factors, thereby benefiting its pathogenicity by compromising its interactions with the host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanze Liu
- Zhejiang University Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China.
| | - Chaofeng Ye
- Zhejiang University Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China.
| | - Hao Fu
- Zhejiang University Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China.
| | - Min Yue
- Zhejiang University Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China.
| | - Xiaoliang Li
- Zhejiang University Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China.
| | - Weihuan Fang
- Zhejiang University Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, and Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China.
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9
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Vorobieva S Jensen V, Furberg AS, Slotved HC, Bazhukova T, Haldorsen B, Caugant DA, Sundsfjord A, Valentiner-Branth P, Simonsen GS. Epidemiological and molecular characterization of Streptococcus pneumoniae carriage strains in pre-school children in Arkhangelsk, northern European Russia, prior to the introduction of conjugate pneumococcal vaccines. BMC Infect Dis 2020; 20:279. [PMID: 32293324 PMCID: PMC7161136 DOI: 10.1186/s12879-020-04998-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Accepted: 03/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The 13-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV-13) was introduced in the National Immunization Programme (NIP) schedule in Russia in March 2014. Previously, the 7-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV-7) was marketed in Russia in 2009 but has never been offered for mass vaccination. A carriage study was performed among children in Arkhangelsk in 2006. The objective was to determine the prevalence of carriage, serotype distribution, antimicrobial susceptibility and the molecular structure of Streptococcus pneumoniae strains before marketing and introduction of PCV-13. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted on a cluster-randomized sample of children and a self-administrated questionnaire for parents/guardians. Nasopharyngeal samples were collected from 438 children younger than 7 years attending nurseries and kindergartens in the Arkhangelsk region, Russia. Detailed demographic data, as well as information about the child's health, traveling, exposure to antimicrobials within the last 3 months and anthropometric measurements were collected for all study subjects. Variables extracted from the questionnaire were analysed using statistic regression models to estimate the risk of carriage. All pneumococcal isolates were examined with susceptibility testing, serotyping and multilocus sequence typing. RESULTS The overall prevalence of asymptomatic carriage was high and peaking at 36 months with a rate of 57%. PCV-13 covered 67.3% of the detected strains. High rates of non-susceptibility to penicillin, macrolides and multidrug resistance were associated with specific vaccine serotypes, pandemic clones, and local sequence types. Nine percent of isolates represented three globally disseminated disease-associated pandemic clones; penicillin- and macrolide-resistant clones NorwayNT-42 and Poland6B-20, as well as penicillin- and macrolide-susceptible clone Netherlands3-31. A high level of antimicrobial consumption was noted by the study. According to the parent's reports, 89.5% of the children used at least one antimicrobial regime since birth. None of the hypothesised predictors of S. pneumoniae carriage were statistically significant in univariable and multivariable logistic models. CONCLUSIONS The study identified a high coverage of the PCV-13-vaccine, but serotype replacement and expansion of globally disseminated disease-associated clones with non-vaccine serotypes may be expected. Further surveillance of antimicrobial resistance and serotype distribution is therefore required.
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Affiliation(s)
- V Vorobieva S Jensen
- Research Group for Host-Microbe Interaction, Department of Medical Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway. .,Department of Virus and Microbiological Special Diagnostics, Division of Infectious Disease Preparedness, Statens Serum Institut, Artillerivej 5, DK-2300, Copenhagen S, Denmark.
| | - A-S Furberg
- Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Molde University College, Molde, Norway.,Department of Microbiology and Infection Control, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - H-C Slotved
- Department of Bacteria, Parasites and Fungi, Division of Infectious Disease Preparedness, Statens Serum Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - T Bazhukova
- Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Microbiology and Laboratory Diagnostics, Northern State Medical University, Arkhangelsk, Russia
| | - B Haldorsen
- Norwegian national advisory unit on detection of antimicrobial resistance, Department of Microbiology and Infection Control, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - D A Caugant
- Division of Infection Control and Environmental Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway
| | - A Sundsfjord
- Research Group for Host-Microbe Interaction, Department of Medical Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.,Department of Microbiology and Infection Control, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, Norway.,Norwegian national advisory unit on detection of antimicrobial resistance, Department of Microbiology and Infection Control, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - P Valentiner-Branth
- Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Prevention, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - G S Simonsen
- Research Group for Host-Microbe Interaction, Department of Medical Biology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.,Department of Microbiology and Infection Control, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, Norway.,Norwegian national advisory unit on detection of antimicrobial resistance, Department of Microbiology and Infection Control, University Hospital of North Norway, Tromsø, Norway
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10
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Hirschfeld C, Gómez-Mejia A, Bartel J, Hentschker C, Rohde M, Maaß S, Hammerschmidt S, Becher D. Proteomic Investigation Uncovers Potential Targets and Target Sites of Pneumococcal Serine-Threonine Kinase StkP and Phosphatase PhpP. Front Microbiol 2020; 10:3101. [PMID: 32117081 PMCID: PMC7011611 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.03101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2019] [Accepted: 12/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Like eukaryotes, different bacterial species express one or more Ser/Thr kinases and phosphatases that operate in various signaling networks by catalyzing phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of proteins that can immediately regulate biochemical pathways by altering protein function. The human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae encodes a single Ser/Thr kinase-phosphatase couple known as StkP-PhpP, which has shown to be crucial in the regulation of cell wall synthesis and cell division. In this study, we applied proteomics to further understand the physiological role of pneumococcal PhpP and StkP with an emphasis on phosphorylation events on Ser and Thr residues. Therefore, the proteome of the non-encapsulated D39 strain (WT), a kinase (ΔstkP), and phosphatase mutant (ΔphpP) were compared in a mass spectrometry based label-free quantification experiment. Results show that a loss of function of PhpP causes an increased abundance of proteins in the phosphate uptake system Pst. Quantitative proteomic data demonstrated an effect of StkP and PhpP on the two-component systems ComDE, LiaRS, CiaRH, and VicRK. To obtain further information on the function, targets and target sites of PhpP and StkP we combined the advantages of phosphopeptide enrichment using titanium dioxide and spectral library based data evaluation for sensitive detection of changes in the phosphoproteome of the wild type and the mutant strains. According to the role of StkP in cell division we identified several proteins involved in cell wall synthesis and cell division that are apparently phosphorylated by StkP. Unlike StkP, the physiological function of the co-expressed PhpP is poorly understood. For the first time we were able to provide a list of previously unknown putative targets of PhpP. Under these new putative targets of PhpP are, among others, five proteins with direct involvement in cell division (DivIVA, GpsB) and peptidoglycan biosynthesis (MltG, MreC, MacP).
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Hirschfeld
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Alejandro Gómez-Mejia
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Infection Biology, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Jürgen Bartel
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Christian Hentschker
- Department of Functional Genomics, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Manfred Rohde
- Central Facility for Microscopy, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Sandra Maaß
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Sven Hammerschmidt
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Infection Biology, Interfaculty Institute for Genetics and Functional Genomics, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Dörte Becher
- Department of Microbial Proteomics, Institute of Microbiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
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11
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Ojal J, Goldblatt D, Tigoi C, Scott JAG. Effect of Maternally Derived Anti-protein and Anticapsular IgG Antibodies on the Rate of Acquisition of Nasopharyngeal Carriage of Pneumococcus in Newborns. Clin Infect Dis 2019; 66:121-130. [PMID: 29020230 PMCID: PMC5850545 DOI: 10.1093/cid/cix742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 08/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background In developing countries, introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine has not eliminated circulation of vaccine serotypes. Vaccinating pregnant mothers to increase antibody concentrations in their newborn infants may reduce the acquisition of pneumococcal carriage and subsequent risk of disease. We explored the efficacy of passive immunity, attributable to anti-protein and anticapsular pneumococcal antibodies, against acquisition of carriage. Methods We examined the rate of nasopharyngeal acquisition of pneumococci in the first 90 days of life associated with varying anticapsular and anti-protein antibody concentrations in infant cord/maternal venous blood in Kilifi, Kenya. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazard models to estimate continuous functions relating acquisition of nasopharyngeal carriage to the concentration of maternally derived antibody. Results Cord blood or maternal venous samples were collected from 976 mother-infant pairs. Pneumococci were acquired 561 times during 33,905 person-days of follow-up. Increasing concentrations of anti-protein antibodies were associated with either a reduction (PhtD1, PspAFam2, Spr0096, StkP) or, paradoxically, an increase (CbpA, LytC, PcpA, PiaA, PspAFam1, RrgBT4) in acquisition rate. We observed a nonsignificant reduction in the incidence of homologous carriage acquisition with high concentrations of maternally derived anticapsular antibodies to 5 serotypes (6A, 6B, 14, 19F, and 23F). Conclusion The protective efficacy of several anti-protein antibodies supports the strategy of maternal vaccination to protect young infants from carriage and invasive disease. We were not able to demonstrate that passive anticapsular antibodies were protective against carriage acquisition at naturally occurring concentrations though it remains possible they may do so at the higher concentrations elicited by vaccination.
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Affiliation(s)
- John Ojal
- KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Centre for Geographic Medicine-Coast, Kilifi, Kenya.,Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - David Goldblatt
- Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College, London, United Kingdom
| | - Caroline Tigoi
- KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Centre for Geographic Medicine-Coast, Kilifi, Kenya
| | - J Anthony G Scott
- KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Centre for Geographic Medicine-Coast, Kilifi, Kenya.,Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
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12
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Piñas GE, Reinoso-Vizcaino NM, Yandar Barahona NY, Cortes PR, Duran R, Badapanda C, Rathore A, Bichara DR, Cian MB, Olivero NB, Perez DR, Echenique J. Crosstalk between the serine/threonine kinase StkP and the response regulator ComE controls the stress response and intracellular survival of Streptococcus pneumoniae. PLoS Pathog 2018; 14:e1007118. [PMID: 29883472 PMCID: PMC6010298 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1007118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2017] [Revised: 06/20/2018] [Accepted: 05/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Streptococcus pneumoniae is an opportunistic human bacterial pathogen that usually colonizes the upper respiratory tract, but the invasion and survival mechanism in respiratory epithelial cells remains elusive. Previously, we described that acidic stress-induced lysis (ASIL) and intracellular survival are controlled by ComE through a yet unknown activation mechanism under acidic conditions, which is independent of the ComD histidine kinase that activates this response regulator for competence development at pH 7.8. Here, we demonstrate that the serine/threonine kinase StkP is essential for ASIL, and show that StkP phosphorylates ComE at Thr128. Molecular dynamic simulations predicted that Thr128-phosphorylation induces conformational changes on ComE’s DNA-binding domain. Using nonphosphorylatable (ComET128A) and phosphomimetic (ComET128E) proteins, we confirmed that Thr128-phosphorylation increased the DNA-binding affinity of ComE. The non-phosphorylated form of ComE interacted more strongly with StkP than the phosphomimetic form at acidic pH, suggesting that pH facilitated crosstalk. To identify the ComE-regulated genes under acidic conditions, a comparative transcriptomic analysis was performed between the comET128A and wt strains, and differential expression of 104 genes involved in different cellular processes was detected, suggesting that the StkP/ComE pathway induced global changes in response to acidic stress. In the comET128A mutant, the repression of spxB and sodA correlated with decreased H2O2 production, whereas the reduced expression of murN correlated with an increased resistance to cell wall antibiotic-induced lysis, compatible with cell wall alterations. In the comET128A mutant, ASIL was blocked and acid tolerance response was higher compared to the wt strain. These phenotypes, accompanied with low H2O2 production, are likely responsible for the increased survival in pneumocytes of the comET128A mutant. We propose that the StkP/ComE pathway controls the stress response, thus affecting the intracellular survival of S. pneumoniae in pneumocytes, one of the first barriers that this pathogen must cross to establish an infection. Streptococcus pneumoniae is a major human pathogen and is the causal agent of otitis (media) and sinusitis. It is also responsible for severe infections such as bacteremia, pneumonia, and meningitis, associated with 2 million annual deaths. Although this bacterium is part of the human nasopharynx commensal microbiota, it can become a pathogen and cross the epithelial cell barrier to establishing infections of varying intensity. Although S. pneumoniae is considered to be a typical extracellular pathogen, transient intracellular life forms have been found in eukaryotic cells, suggesting a putative survival mechanism. Here, we report that the serine-threonine kinase StkP was able to phosphorylate the response regulator ComE to control different cellular processes in response to environmental stress. Moreover, the phosphorylation of ComE on Thr128, and the consequent conformational and functional changes resulting from this event, extended the current knowledge of molecular activation mechanisms of response regulators. In this report, we provide evidence for the regulatory control exerted by the StkP/ComE pathway on acid-induced autolysis (associated with pneumolysin release), the acid tolerance response, and H2O2 production to modulate tissue damage and intracellular survival, which are ultimately linked to pneumococcal pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Germán E. Piñas
- Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica—CIBICI (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Nicolás M. Reinoso-Vizcaino
- Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica—CIBICI (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Nubia Y. Yandar Barahona
- Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica—CIBICI (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Paulo R. Cortes
- Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica—CIBICI (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Rosario Duran
- Instituto Pasteur de Montevideo and Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Unidad de Bioquímica y Proteómica Analíticas, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | | | - Ankita Rathore
- Bioinformatics Division, Xcelris Lab Limited, Ahmedabad, India
| | | | - Melina B. Cian
- Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica—CIBICI (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Nadia B. Olivero
- Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica—CIBICI (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Daniel R. Perez
- Department of Population Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America
| | - José Echenique
- Departamento de Bioquímica Clínica—CIBICI (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
- * E-mail:
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13
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Herbert JA, Mitchell AM, Ritchie R, Ma J, Ross-Hutchinson K, Mitchell TJ. Expression of the lux genes in Streptococcus pneumoniae modulates pilus expression and virulence. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0189426. [PMID: 29342160 PMCID: PMC5771582 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0189426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2017] [Accepted: 11/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Bioluminescence has been harnessed for use in bacterial reporter systems and for in vivo imaging of infection in animal models. Strain Xen35, a bioluminescent derivative of Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 4 strain TIGR4 was previously constructed for use for in vivo imaging of infections in animal models. We have shown that strain Xen35 is less virulent than its parent TIGR4 and that this is associated with the expression of the genes for bioluminescence. The expression of the luxA-E genes in the pneumococcus reduces virulence and down regulates the expression of the pneumococcal pilus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny A. Herbert
- Institute of Microbiology and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Andrea M. Mitchell
- Institute of Microbiology and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
- Technology Hub Manager, Infrastructure and Facilities, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Ryan Ritchie
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Jiangtao Ma
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Kirsty Ross-Hutchinson
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Timothy J. Mitchell
- Institute of Microbiology and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
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14
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The Pneumococcal Type 1 Pilus Genes Are Thermoregulated and Are Repressed by a Member of the Snf2 Protein Family. J Bacteriol 2017; 199:JB.00078-17. [PMID: 28507246 DOI: 10.1128/jb.00078-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2017] [Accepted: 05/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
In Streptococcus pneumoniae, the type 1 pilus is involved in many steps of pathogenesis, including adherence to epithelial cells, mediation of inflammation, escape from macrophages, and the formation of biofilms. The type 1 pilus genes are expressed in a bistable fashion with cells switching between "on" and "off" expression states. Bistable expression of these genes is due to their control by RlrA, a positive regulator subject to control by a positive-feedback loop. The type 1 pilus genes are also thought to be negatively regulated by a large number of repressors. Here we show that expression of the type 1 pilus genes is thermosensitive and switched off at growth temperatures below 31°C. We also report that the on expression state of the type 1 pilus genes is highly stable, a phenomenon which we show likely contributed to the erroneous identification of many proteins as negative regulators of these genes. Finally, we exploited the effect of low temperature on pilus gene expression to help identify SP_1523, an Snf2-type protein, as a novel negative regulator of the pilus genes. Our findings establish that the type 1 pilus genes are thermoregulated and are repressed by a member of the Snf2 protein family. They also refute the notion that these genes are controlled by 8 previously described negative regulators.IMPORTANCEStreptococcus pneumoniae is the leading cause of death from respiratory infections in children. Many bacterial factors contribute to pneumococcal virulence and nasopharyngeal colonization. The type 1 pneumococcal pilus plays an important role in mouse models and in epithelial adherence and is expressed in a bistable fashion. Here we show that the "on" state is highly stable, which may explain the prior misidentification of negative regulators of pilus expression. We also show that expression of pilus genes is thermosensitive: virtually no expression can be detected at temperatures found in the anterior nares of humans. We took advantage of this property to identify a negative regulator of pilus expression, a member of a family of proteins widely conserved across Gram-positive bacteria.
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15
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Ulrych A, Holečková N, Goldová J, Doubravová L, Benada O, Kofroňová O, Halada P, Branny P. Characterization of pneumococcal Ser/Thr protein phosphatase phpP mutant and identification of a novel PhpP substrate, putative RNA binding protein Jag. BMC Microbiol 2016; 16:247. [PMID: 27776484 PMCID: PMC5078927 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-016-0865-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2016] [Accepted: 10/14/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Reversible protein phosphorylation catalyzed by protein kinases and phosphatases is the primary mechanism for signal transduction in all living organisms. Streptococcus pneumoniae encodes a single Ser/Thr protein kinase, StkP, which plays a role in virulence, stress resistance and the regulation of cell wall synthesis and cell division. However, the role of its cognate phosphatase, PhpP, is not well defined. RESULTS Here, we report the successful construction of a ΔphpP mutant in the unencapsulated S. pneumoniae Rx1 strain and the characterization of its phenotype. We demonstrate that PhpP negatively controls the level of protein phosphorylation in S. pneumoniae both by direct dephosphorylation of target proteins and by dephosphorylation of its cognate kinase, StkP. Catalytic inactivation or absence of PhpP resulted in the hyperphosphorylation of StkP substrates and specific phenotypic changes, including sensitivity to environmental stresses and competence deficiency. The morphology of the ΔphpP cells resembled the StkP overexpression phenotype and conversely, overexpression of PhpP resulted in cell elongation mimicking the stkP null phenotype. Proteomic analysis of the phpP knock-out strain permitted identification of a novel StkP/PhpP substrate, Spr1851, a putative RNA-binding protein homologous to Jag. Here, we show that pneumococcal Jag is phosphorylated on Thr89. Inactivation of jag confers a phenotype similar to the phpP mutant strain. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that PhpP and StkP cooperatively regulate cell division of S. pneumoniae and phosphorylate putative RNA binding protein Jag.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleš Ulrych
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Nela Holečková
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Goldová
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Linda Doubravová
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Oldřich Benada
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Olga Kofroňová
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Halada
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Pavel Branny
- Institute of Microbiology, v.v.i., Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Vídeňská 1083, 142 20, Prague, Czech Republic.
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16
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Grangeasse C. Rewiring the Pneumococcal Cell Cycle with Serine/Threonine- and Tyrosine-kinases. Trends Microbiol 2016; 24:713-724. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2016.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2015] [Revised: 03/23/2016] [Accepted: 04/07/2016] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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