A Salmonella locus that controls resistance to microbicidal proteins from phagocytic cells

An unusual pagC::TnphoA mutation leads to an invasion- and virulence-defective phenotype in Salmonellae

Two phenotypes believed to contribute to the pathogenesis of Salmonella infections are macrophage survival and invasion of epithelial cells. It was recently observed that the Salmonella macrophage survival factor PagC has significant amino acid similarity to the Yersinia invasion factor Ail. This observation raised the possibilities that macrophage survival is in part determined by the pathway of entry and that PagC confers an entry mechanism that does not trigger the microbicidal activities of the macrophage. Thus, we sought to investigate the role of PagC in invasion by examining (i) the invasion phenotype of pagC mutants and (ii) the invasion phenotype of Escherichia coli carrying pagC. A previously identified invasion-defective TnphoA insertion mutant of Salmonella enteritidis was found to have TnphoA inserted into the signal sequence-encoding region of pagC; the pagC allele from this mutant, SM5T, was designated pagC64. In contrast, Salmonella typhimurium carrying the pagC1 allele (a TnphoA insertion mutation, downstream of the region encoding the signal sequence) was not defective for invasion. Further analysis of these two pagC alleles suggested that the invasion-defective phenotype associated with pagC64 is not due to the loss of PagC function but rather is due to the synthesis of a hybrid PagC-alkaline phosphatase protein that is aberrantly localized, most likely to the inner membrane, and thus may prevent proper localization or function of a factor(s) required for efficient invasion. The observation that pagC did not confer an invasive phenotype to E. coli further suggests that PagC is not an invasion factor. A cloned pagC gene complemented the macrophage survival defect of S. typhimurium pagC1 mutants, but the cloned ail gene did not. Together these results suggest that the structural similarity between PagC and Ail may not extend to a similarity in function. Interestingly, S. enteritidis carrying the pagC64 allele that results in both an invasion defect and a macrophage survival defect was less virulent for mice infected intragastrically or intraperitoneally than was S. enteritidis carrying the pagC1 allele that results only in a macrophage survival defect.

A 'safe-site' for Salmonella typhimurium is within splenic polymorphonuclear cells

Following oral or systemic infection with Salmonella typhimurium, the focus of infection is in the liver and spleen. The majority of Salmonella surviving in the liver and spleen by 4 h post infection are already in an environment where they are largely protected from subsequent killing. Previous studies have shown that the majority of surviving Salmonella are intracellular. In the present study we sought to determine the cell type containing most of the cell-associated Salmonella liberated from the spleen. We enriched for Salmonella-containing cells by Ficoll-Hypaque separation followed by fluorescence-activated cell sorting. Approximately 85% of the total intracellular Salmonella were found in Mac-1+/J-11d+ cell fractions of the Ficoll-Hypaque band and pellet. By microscopic examination of stained cells from the sorted cell populations, it was evident that virtually all of the Salmonella were in polymorphonuclear cells (PMN). The numbers of Salmonella observed microscopically were similar in numbers to Salmonella colony forming units detected by plating. Salmonella containing PMN in the Ficoll band generally contained a single bacterium, while those from the probably less healthy cells in the Ficoll pellet generally contained several Salmonella.

Cryptdins: antimicrobial defensins of the murine small intestine

Paneth cells are specialized small intestine epithelial cells that contain lysozyme, possess phagocytic properties, and secrete cytoplasmic granules into the intestinal crypt lumen after the entry of bacteria. Recent studies by Ouellette and associates (A. J. Ouellette, R. M. Greco, M. James, D. Frederick, J. Naftilan, and J. T. Fallon, J. Cell Biol. 108:1687-1695, 1989) indicated that murine Paneth cells produce prodefensin mRNA, but the properties of its peptide product were not reported. We purified two closely related defensins, cryptdin 1 and cryptdin 2, from a subcellular fraction of murine small intestine cells that was enriched in Paneth cells. Both peptides contained 35 amino acid residues, including the characteristic defensin "signature" of six invariantly conserved cysteines. Cryptdins 1 and 2 were approximately 90 to 95% homologous to each other and to the carboxy-terminal domain of the 93-amino-acid defensin precursor, cryptdin A, described by Ouellette and associates (Ouellette et al., J. Cell Biol. 108:1687-1695, 1989). Both cryptdins exerted bactericidal activity against Listeria monocytogenes EGD and Escherichia coli ML-35p in vitro. Their potency exceeded that of human neutrophil defensin HNP-1 but was considerably lower than that of NP-1, a defensin produced by rabbit neutrophils and alveolar macrophages. Both cryptdins killed mouse-avirulent Salmonella typhimurium 7953S (phoP) much more effectively than its phoP+, mouse-virulent, isogenic counterpart, S. typhimurium 14028S. Our data indicate that mouse intestinal prodefensins are processed into 35-amino-acid mature defensins (cryptdins) with broad-spectrum antimicrobial properties. The production of defensins and lysozyme by Paneth cells may enable them to protect the small intestine from bacterial overgrowth by autochthonous flora and from invasion by potential pathogens that cause infection via the peroral route, such as L. monocytogenes and Salmonella species.

Mechanism of resistance to complement-mediated killing of bacteria encoded by the Salmonella typhimurium virulence plasmid gene rck

We find that pADEO16, a recombinant cosmid carrying the rck gene of the Salmonella typhimurium virulence plasmid, when cloned into either rough or smooth Escherichia coli and Salmonella strains, confers high level resistance to the bactericidal activity of pooled normal human serum. The rck gene encodes a 17-kD outer membrane protein that is homologous to a family of virulence-associated outer membrane proteins, including pagC and Ail. Complement depletion, C3 and C5 binding, and membrane-bound C3 cleavage products are similar in strains with and without rck. Although a large difference in C9 binding was not seen, trypsin cleaved 55.7% of bound 125I-C9 counts from rough S. typhimurium with pADEO16, whereas only 26.4% were released from S. typhimurium with K2011, containing a mutation in rck. The majority of C9 extracted from rck strain membranes sediments at a lower molecular weight than in strains without rck, suggesting less C9 polymerization. Furthermore, SDS-PAGE analysis of gradient peak fractions indicated that the slower sedimenting C9-containing complexes in rck strains did not contain polymerized C9 typical of the tubular membrane attack complex. These results indicate that complement resistance mediated by Rck is associated with a failure to form fully polymerized tubular membrane attack complexes.

Enteric defensins: antibiotic peptide components of intestinal host defense

Five intestinal defensins, termed cryptdins 1-5, have been purified from mouse small bowel, sequenced, and localized to the epithelium by immunohistochemistry. Although identified as members of the defensin peptide family by peptide sequencing, enteric defensins are novel in that four cryptdins have amino termini which are three to six residues longer than those of leukocyte-derived defensins. A fifth cryptdin is the first defensin to diverge from the previously invariant spacing of cysteines in the peptide structure. The most abundant enteric defensin, cryptdin-1, had antimicrobial activity against an attenuated phoP mutant of Salmonella typhimurium but was not active against the virulent wild-type parent. Immunohistochemical localization demonstrated that cryptdin-1, and probably cryptdins 2 and 3, occur exclusively in Paneth cells, where the peptides appear to be associated with cytoplasmic granules. Biochemical and immunologic analysis of the luminal contents of the small intestine suggest that cryptdin peptides are secreted into the lumen, similar to Paneth cell secretion of lysozyme. The presence of several enteric defensins in the intestinal epithelium, evidence of their presence in the lumen, and the antibacterial activity of cryptdin-1 suggest that these peptides contribute to the antimicrobial barrier function of the small bowel mucosa.

Mechanisms of antibacterial action of tachyplesins and polyphemusins, a group of antimicrobial peptides isolated from horseshoe crab hemocytes

Tachyplesins I and II and polyphemusins I and II, cationic peptides isolated from the hemocytes of horseshoe crabs, show bactericidal activities with similar efficiencies for both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Tachyplesin I inhibited bacterial growth irreversibly within 40 min. A subinhibitory concentration of tachyplesin I sensitized gram-negative bacteria to the bactericidal actions of novobiocin and nalidixic acid, although polymyxin B-resistant strains which have altered lipopolysaccharides were susceptible to tachyplesin I. This implies that tachyplesin permeabilizes the outer membrane and that the likely target of its action is outer membrane constituents other than lipopolysaccharides. On the other hand, a defensin-susceptible phoP strain of Salmonella typhimurium was also susceptible to tachyplesin I. Tachyplesin I rapidly depolarized the inverted inner-membrane vesicles of Escherichia coli. These results suggest that depolarization of the cytoplasmic membrane, preceded by the permeabilization of the outer membrane for gram-negative bacteria, is associated with tachyplesin-mediated bactericidal activity. The similarity between the actions of tachyplesin and those of defensin was discussed.

Oral immunization using live attenuated Salmonella spp. as carriers of foreign antigens

A variety of techniques, including the use of live oral vaccines, have been used to deliver antigens to the gut-associated lymphoid tissues in an attempt to initiate production of specific secretory immunoglobulin A for protection against pathogens that colonize or cross mucosal surfaces to initiate infection. A number of attenuated Salmonella mutants are able to interact with the lymphoid tissues in the Peyer's patches but are not able to cause systemic disease. Some of these mutants are effective as live vaccines (i.e., able to protect against infection with the virulent Salmonella parent) and are candidates for use as carriers for virulence determinants of other mucosal pathogens. This has been shown to be an effective means of stimulating significant levels of specific mucosal secretory immunoglobulin A directed against the carrier strains and against a variety of heterologous antigens and has been shown to stimulate production of serum antibodies and cell-mediated responses as well. This review examines the history of this mechanism of vaccine delivery and summarizes the most recent applications of this evolving technology. This is a technique for vaccine delivery with significant potential for influencing the management of infectious diseases on a large scale. It can be used not only for vaccines against enteric bacterial pathogens but also for vaccines against a variety of other bacteria, viruses, and parasites. The results obtained to date are encouraging, and there is great potential for development of safe, effective, affordable vaccines.

Molecular and functional characterization of the Salmonella invasion gene invA: homology of InvA to members of a new protein family

One of the earliest steps in the pathogenic cycle of the facultative intracellular pathogen Salmonella spp. is the invasion of the cells of the intestinal epithelium. We have previously identified a genetic locus, inv, that allows Salmonella spp. to enter cultured epithelial cells. invA is a member of this locus, and it is the first gene of an operon consisting of at least two additional invasion genes. We have constructed strains carrying nonpolar mutations in invA and examined the individual contribution of this gene to the invasion phenotype of Salmonella typhimurium. Nonpolar S. typhimurium invA mutants were deficient in invasion of cultured epithelial cells although they were fully capable of attaching to the same cells. In addition, unlike wild-type S. typhimurium, invA mutants did not alter the normal architecture of the microvilli of polarized epithelial cells nor did they cause any alterations in the distribution of actin microfilaments of infected cells. The invasion phenotype of invA mutants was readily rescued by wild-type S. typhimurium when cultured epithelial cells were simultaneously infected with both strains. On the contrary, in a similar experiment, the adherent Escherichia coli strain RDEC-1 was not internalized into cultured cells when coinfected with wild-type S. typhimurium. The invA locus was found to be located at about 59 min on the Salmonella chromosome, 7% linked to mutS. The nucleotide sequence of invA showed an open reading frame capable of encoding a polypeptide of 686 amino acids with eight possible membrane-spanning regions and a predicted molecular weight of 75,974. A protein of this size was visualized when invA was expressed in a bacteriophage T7 RNA polymerase-based expression system. The predicted sequence of InvA was found to be homologous to Caulobacter crescentus FlbF, Yersinia LcrD, Shigella flexneri VirH, and E. coli FlhA proteins. These proteins may form part of a family of proteins with a common function, quite possibly the translocation of specific proteins across the bacterial cell membrane.

Purification and primary structure of murine cryptdin-1, a Paneth cell defensin

We have purified and determined the amino acid sequence of cryptdin-1, a murine Paneth cell defensin. The peptide corresponds to a previously characterized mRNA that accumulates to high abundance during postnatal ontogeny of the small bowel. Acid-extracted intestinal protein was fractionated by cation-exchange chromatography and fractions were assayed for antimicrobial activity. One peak of anti-Salmonella activity contained a putative defensin, based on its predicted electrophoretic migration in acid-urea PAGE. The peptide was purified to homogeneity by RP-HPLC and sequenced. These studies demonstrate defensin expression in non-myeloid tissue. The N-terminal extension of cryptdin-1 is a unique structural feature of this novel epithelial defensin.

Intracellular activity of zidovudine (3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine, AZT) against Salmonella typhimurium in the macrophage cell line J774-2

The antibacterial effect of zidovudine (AZT) has been demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo with experimental models of gram-negative bacterial infections. It has been associated with the absence or low occurrence of nontyphoid Salmonella infections in AIDS patients treated with AZT. Using the macrophage cell line J774-2, we demonstrate the inhibition of intracellular growth of Salmonella typhimurium by AZT. This effect is obtained with one-half of the MIC (1 microgram/ml) of AZT for S. typhimurium. Inhibition of intracellular growth is observed after 4 h of incubation and persists at 24 h. Maximal inhibition is shown at a concentration of 128 micrograms/ml, and no further effect is observed with higher concentrations. When the inhibitory effect of AZT is compared with that of pefloxacin or that of ceftriaxone at half their MICs (0.2 and 0.02 microgram/ml, respectively), AZT and pefloxacin give better results than ceftriaxone. In this study, using an intracellular model, we show that AZT is able to inhibit the intracellular multiplication of S. typhimurium at a minimal effective concentration lower than the MIC, indicating its potential for antibacterial accumulation in the macrophages.

Evaluation of Salmonella typhimurium strains harbouring defined mutations in htrA and aroA in the murine salmonellosis model

Derivatives of the mouse-virulent Salmonella typhimurium strain SL1344 were constructed harbouring defined mutations in htrA, aroA or htrA aroA combined. When administered orally or intravenously to BALB/c mice, all the mutants were found to be highly attenuated. All mutants were able to confer significant protection against lethal challenge with SL1344 after a single oral dose of live organisms. SL1344 htrA mutants persisted in livers and spleens at a lower level than SL1344 aroA mutants after intravenous administration. SL1344 htrA aroA mutants persisted at an even lower level and were cleared from the livers and spleens of mice within 21 days of intravenous administration. Thus htrA and htrA aroA mutants can be considered as potential oral vaccines against salmonellosis.

Fatty acid-sensitive acid phosphatase activity of tubercle bacilli

In a whole cell assay system with p-nitrophenyl phosphate as substrate, strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and M. bovis were identical in the pH-activity pattern of acid phosphatase. It was a one-peak curve with a pH optimum at 6.2 and sharp symmetrical slopes. The enzymatic activity did not reflect the virulence. When the cells were subjected to mechanical fractionation, the major part of the enzymatic activity was found in a particulate fraction and a minor portion in supernatant and cell walls, suggesting the location of the enzyme in the membrane. Exposure of the cells to free long-chain fatty acids, especially unsaturated ones, reduced the enzymatic activity in a dose-response manner with concomitant decrease in the viability. However, no causal relationship between these two effects was suggested from the collateral experiments.

Molecular genetic analysis of the Escherichia coli phoP locus

We have cloned the Escherichia coli phoP gene, a member of the family of environmentally responsive two-component systems, and found its deduced amino acid sequence to be 93% identical to that of the Salmonella typhimurium homolog, which encodes a major virulence regulator necessary for intramacrophage survival and resistance to cationic peptides of phagocytic cells. The phoP gene was mapped to kilobase 1202 on the Kohara map (25-min region) of the E. coli genome (Y. Kohara, K. Akiyama, and K. Isono, Cell 50:495-508, 1987) and found to be transcribed in a counterclockwise direction. Both E. coli and S. typhimurium phoP mutants were more sensitive than their isogenic wild-type strains to the frog-derived antibacterial peptide magainin 2, suggesting a role for PhoP in the response to various stresses in both enteric species.

Molecular analysis of the Escherichia coli phoP-phoQ operon

The phoP-phoQ operon of Salmonella typhimurium is a member of the family of two-component regulatory systems and controls expression of the phoN gene that codes for nonspecific acid phosphatase and the genes involved in the pathogenicity of the bacterium. The phoP-phoQ operon of Escherichia coli was cloned on a plasmid vector by complementation of a phoP mutant, and the 4.1-kb nucleotide sequence, which includes the phoP-phoQ operon and its flanking regions, was determined. The phoP-phoQ operon was mapped at 25 min on the standard E. coli linkage map by hybridization with the Kohara mini set library of the E. coli chromosome (Y. Kohara, K. Akiyama, and K. Isono, Cell 50:495-508, 1987). The predicted phoP and phoQ gene products consist of 223 and 486 amino acids with estimated molecular masses of 25,534 and 55,297 Da, respectively, which correspond well with the sizes of the PhoP and PhoQ proteins identified by the maxicell method. The amino acid sequences of PhoP and PhoQ of E. coli were 93 and 86% identical, respectively, to those of S. typhimurium.

Intracellular replication is essential for the virulence of Salmonella typhimurium

Salmonella typhimurium is a facultative intracellular parasite, capable of penetrating, surviving, and multiplying within diverse eukaryotic cell types, including epithelial and phagocytic cells. We have been studying intracellular replication of S. typhimurium and found that it is essential in the pathogenesis of this bacterium. A total of 45,000 independent mini-Mu MudJ transposon mutants in S. typhimurium SL1344 were screened in Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) epithelial cells with a beta-lactam, cefotaxime, to enrich for mutants defective for intracellular replication. Ten different auxotrophic (purine, pyrimidine, purine/methionine, and valine/isoleucine) and three prototrophic replication-defective mutants (Rep-) were identified. All Rep- mutants showed no differences in aerobic and anaerobic growth patterns, motility, serum sensitivity, mouse macrophage survival, iron uptake, and phosphate requirements. All Rep- mutants were unable to multiply inside MDCK, HeLa, and Caco-2 epithelial cells. When required nutrients for various auxotrophs were supplemented, auxotrophs then replicated inside MDCK cells. Although the parental strain multiplies in large vacuoles inside MDCK cells that distort the host cells, MDCK cells infected with the Rep- mutants appeared relatively normal and few bacteria were seen inside vacuoles. The purine auxotrophs and the three prototrophic Rep- mutants were highly attenuated in mice, and oral and intraperitoneal LD50 levels were 3 to 4 orders of magnitude higher than the wild type level. The three prototrophs were invasive and persisted in the murine organs such as livers and spleens for at least 3 weeks. Therefore, these prototrophic genes are needed for intracellular replication and are essential to the virulence of S. typhimurium.

A novel transposon trap for mycobacteria: isolation and characterization of IS1096

In the course of developing strategies to obtain a mutation in the aspartate semialdehyde dehydrogenase (asd) gene of Mycobacterium smegmatis, an efficient transposon trap was constructed which may be generally useful for the identification of transposable elements in mycobacteria. A DNA fragment containing the asd gene was replaced with an aminoglycoside phosphotransferase gene (aph) to generate a delta asd::aph allele. Attempts to replace the wild-type asd gene with the delta asd::aph allele were unsuccessful, suggesting that this deletion was lethal to the growth of M. smegmatis. The plasmid, pYUB215, which contains beta-galactosidase expressed from a mycobacteriophage promoter and delta asd::aph, was integrated into the chromosome of M. smegmatis by a homologous, single-crossover, recombination event. Visual screening for inactivation of the beta-galactosidase gene in the resulting strain allowed the isolation of a novel mycobacterial insertion element from M. smegmatis. This insertion element, which is unique to M. smegmatis, was designated IS1096 and transposes at a frequency of 7.2 x 10(-5) per cell in an apparently random fashion. IS1096 is 2,275 bp in length and contains two open reading frames which are predicted to encode proteins involved in transposition. This insertion element exhibits several characteristics that suggest it may be a useful tool for genetic analysis of mycobacteria, possibly including the study of mechanisms of pathogenesis.

Tn1725 transposon mutagenesis of 9-18 delta 7, an EcoRI deletion derivative of Salmonella dublin lane plasmid pSDL2

A 37.5-kb derivative of the Salmonella dublin virulence plasmid pSDL2 was subjected to mutagenesis with the transposon Tn1725. Fifty-two insertions were mapped, and the mutants were tested for their ability to restore virulence to a plasmid-free strain of S. dublin. Twenty-nine of these inserts could not restore full virulence and thus define nine regions of the plasmid essential for virulence. Deletion of a 4.5-kb region by Bal31 nuclease resulted in a 33-kb derivative that maintained full virulence.

Growth regulation of a Salmonella plasmid gene essential for virulence

The Salmonella dublin plasmid gene vsdC is essential for virulence. We have constructed a vsdC-lacZ translational fusion to demonstrate that vsdC is selectively expressed during the stationary phase of bacterial cell growth. This pattern of expression has been confirmed by mRNA hybridization studies. Carbon starvation is able to induce vsdC expression by limiting bacterial growth. The expression of vsdC is dependent upon an upstream gene, vsdA, whose gene product possesses significant amino-terminus homology with the LysR family of transcriptional activator proteins. We have further demonstrated that vsdC expression is not dependent upon the known Salmonella chromosomal virulence regulatory loci ompR, phoP, and cya-crp and that vsdC can be expressed in a range of nontyphoidal Salmonella serovars, including some serovars in which introduction of the virulence plasmid does not confer mouse virulence. The vsd system provides a model for the study of transcriptional activation, a basis for the development of new expression vectors, and a novel mechanism of virulence gene regulation. Bacterial growth limitation within the phagosomes of host phagocytic cells may be the environmental signal inducing plasmid-mediated virulence gene expression in salmonellae.

Substrate response in acid phosphatase activity of Pseudomonas pseudomallei and Pseudomonas cepacia, with special reference to tyrosine phosphatase

The substrate response in acid phosphatase activity of Pseudomonas pseudomallei and Pseudomonas cepacia was examined with different phosphate esters including hexose phosphates and phosphoaminoacids in a whole cell assay system. The enzymatic activity against each substrate was evaluated in terms of percent activity to that against para-nitrophenyl phosphate set as 100. A remarkable finding was that the phosphatase reaction was the highest with phosphotyrosine or phosphoserine as substrate showing 180% activity. This tyrosine phosphatase activity was resistant to heating at 60 C for 20 min and inhibited greatly by 0.1% ZnCl2. Pseudomonas cepacia showed the same pattern of substrate response and the same characteristics of tyrosine phosphatase activity.

Distribution of the invA, -B, -C, and -D genes of Salmonella typhimurium among other Salmonella serovars: invA mutants of Salmonella typhi are deficient for entry into mammalian cells

Invasion of intestinal epithelial cells is an essential virulence factor of salmonellae. A group of genes, invABC and invD, that allow Salmonella typhimurium to penetrate cultured epithelial cells have previously been characterized (J. E. Galán and R. Curtiss III, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86:6383-6387, 1989). The distribution of these genes among Salmonella isolates belonging to 37 different species or serovars was investigated by Southern and colony blot hybridization analyses. Regions of high sequence similarity to the invABC genes were present in all Salonella isolates examined, while regions of sequence similarity to the invD gene were present in all but one (S. arizonae) of the isolates tested, with little restriction fragment length polymorphism. Sequences similar to these genes were not detected in strains of Escherichia coli, Yersinia spp., or Shigella spp. invA mutants (unable to express the invABC genes) of several Salmonella species or serovars, including S. typhi, were constructed and examined for their ability to penetrate Henle-407 cells. All mutants were deficient for entry into cultured epithelial cells, indicating that the invABC genes were not only present in these strains but also functional.

Live attenuated Salmonella vaccines and their potential as oral combined vaccines carrying heterologous antigens

Live attenuated salmonellae are protective, and are candidate vaccines against invasive salmonella infections in man and animals. Different attenuating mutations have been described, and more than one can be incorporated in a vaccine for added safety. Combined salmonella vaccines express target carbohydrate and protein antigens or epitopes from viruses, bacteria and eukaryotic parasites, either within or on the surface of the cell, as capsules, fimbriae, or in the flagellin. Humoral, secretory and cellular responses to the recombinant antigens has been demonstrated. Experimental protection against diseases including streptococcal infection, tetanus, influenza and malaria has been obtained.

Insertional mutagenesis and illegitimate recombination in mycobacteria

Mycobacteria, particularly Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium leprae, and Mycobacterium avium, are major pathogens of man. Although insertional mutagenesis has been an invaluable genetic tool for analyzing the mechanisms of microbial pathogenesis, it has not yet been possible to apply it to the mycobacteria. To overcome intrinsic difficulties in directly manipulating the genetics of slow-growing mycobacteria, including M. tuberculosis and bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine strains, we developed a system for random shuttle mutagenesis. A genomic library of Mycobacterium smegmatis was subjected to transposon mutagenesis with Tn5 seq1, a derivative of Tn5, in Escherichia coli and these transposon-containing recombinant plasmids were reintroduced into mycobacterial chromosomes by homologous recombination. This system has allowed us to isolate several random auxotrophic mutants of M. smegmatis. To extend this strategy to M. tuberculosis and BCG, targeted mutagenesis was performed using a cloned BCG methionine gene that was subjected to Tn5 seq1 mutagenesis in E. coli and reintroduced into the mycobacteria. Surprisingly for prokaryotes, both BCG and M. tuberculosis were found to incorporate linear DNA fragments into illegitimate sites throughout the mycobacterial genomes at a frequency of 10(-5) to 10(-4) relative to the number of transformants obtained with autonomously replicating vectors. Thus the efficient illegitimate recombination of linear DNA fragments provides the basis for an insertional mutagenesis system for M. tuberculosis and BCG.

Heat-stable and heat-labile components of nonspecific acid phosphatase detected in Pseudomonas pseudomallei

In a whole cell assay system with p-nitrophenyl phosphate as substrate, strains of Pseudomonas pseudomallei showed a two-peak pattern in pH activity curve of acid phosphatase, suggesting the presence of two enzyme components different in pH optimum (4.2 and 5.2). The component of 5.2 pH optimum was detected in the outer membrane fraction and the activity was resistant to heating at 70 C for 30 min. The other component of 4.2 pH optimum was heat-labile. No substantial difference was observed in the enzymatic activity between R and S type colonies.

The role of a stress-response protein in Salmonella typhimurium virulence

We recently described the use of selective transposon mutagenesis to generate a series of avirulent mutants of a pathogenic strain of Salmonella typhimurium. Cloning and sequencing of the insertion sites from two of these mutants reveals that both have identical locations within an open reading frame that is highly homologous to a gene, htrA, encoding a heat-shock protein in Escherichia coli. DNA sequence analysis of S. typhimurium htrA reveals the presence of a gene capable of encoding a protein with a calculated Mr of 49316 that has 88.7% protein:protein homology with its E. coli counterpart. In E. coli, lesions in this gene, also known as degP, reduce proteolytic degradation of aberrant periplasmic proteins. Characteristics of the S. typhimurium htrA mutants, 046 and 014, in vivo and in vitro suggested that they are avirulent because of impaired ability to survive and/or replicate in host tissues. In vitro, the S. typhimurium htrA mutants 046 and 014 are not temperature-sensitive but were found to be more susceptible to oxidative stress than the parent, suggesting that they may be less able to withstand oxidative killing within macrophages.

Adherence to HEp-2 cells and replication in macrophages of Salmonella derby of human origin

Adherence to a HEp-2 cell monolayer was tested for in four strains of Salmonella derby which were isolated from patients with diarrhea. One strain, SB1, was highly adherent and another strain, SB4, was nonadherent. The other two strains exhibited moderate adherence. Further in vitro study of invasion of HEp-2 cells by S. derby and its replication in murine peritoneal macrophages was carried out using SB1 and SB4. Thin section electron micrographs revealed that SB1 invaded HEp-2 cells but SB4 did not. The number of viable bacteria within macrophages was determined at intervals after inoculation of bacteria. The result indicates that SB1 can replicate in the macrophages but SB4 cannot. Flagella and fimbriae were compared by electron microscopy between SB1 and SB4, and their lipopolysaccharides and outer membrane proteins were also compared with each other by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The presence of a 41 kDa protein in the outer membranes of SB1 was only the difference detected, suggesting that this protein could be a factor required for adherence of this serovar to epithelial cells.

A Salmonella typhimurium virulence protein is similar to a Yersinia enterocolitica invasion protein and a bacteriophage lambda outer membrane protein

The phoP-phoQ-regulated pagC locus is essential for full virulence and survival within macrophages of Salmonella typhimurium. The protein product, DNA sequence, and transcript of pagC were determined. The pagC locus encodes a single 188-amino-acid membrane protein that is similar to the ail-encoded eucaryotic cell invasion protein of Yersinia enterocolitica and the lom-encoded protein of bacteriophage lambda. The similarity of PagC and Ail to Lom leads us to hypothesize that Lom is a virulence protein and that bacteriophage gene transfer and lysogeny could have led to the development of proteins essential to survival within macrophages and eucaryotic cell invasion.

Pathogenicity of foodborne Salmonella

Salmonella remains a leading etiological agent in bacterial foodborne diseases. Although human salmonellosis generally presents as a self-limiting episode of enterocolitis, the disease can degenerate into chronic and debilitating conditions. Antibiotic treatment of uncomplicated salmonellosis is contra-indicated because it tends to prolong the carrier state. Clinical management of systemic infections with newer drugs such as third-generation cephalosporins and quinolones is most promising, particularly in light of the increasing resistance of Salmonella to the traditional ampicillin, chloramphenicol and trimethoprim sulfamethoxazole therapeutic agents. Research into the development of effective vaccines from avirulent auxotrophic or from virulence plasmid-cured strains may ultimately facilitate the control of salmonellosis in human populations and in various agricultural sectors. Human salmonellosis reflects the outcome of a confrontation between humoral and cellular immune responses of the host, and virulence determinants of the invasive pathogen. Following an adhesion-dependent attachment of salmonellae to lumenal epithelial cells, the invasive pathogen is internalized within an epithelial cell by a receptor-mediated endocytotic process. Cytotoxin localized in the bacterial cell wall suggestively may facilitate Salmonella entry into the epithelial layer. Cytoplasmic translocation of the infected endosome to the basal epithelial membrane culminates in the release of salmonellae in the lamina propria. During this invasive process, Salmonella secretes a heat-labile enterotoxin that precipitates a net efflux of water and electrolytes into the intestinal lumen. Although non-typhoid salmonellae generally precipitate a localized inflammatory response in deeper tissues via lymphatics and capillaries, and elicit a major immune response. Current research efforts have focused on the molecular characterization and role of virulence plasmids and chromosomal genes in Salmonella pathogenicity.

Bacteria-phagocyte interactions: emerging tactics in an ancient rivalry

Although phagocytes appear to have a redundancy of both oxidative and non-oxidative killing mechanisms, nevertheless, bacterial pathogens are still able to evade these defenses in vivo and cause lethal infection. As the mechanisms by which phagocytes function have become detailed at the molecular level, both the recognition of specific bacterial virulence determinants and their effects at specific sites in the phagocyte are also being identified. Knowledge of these interactions may permit the use of immunomodulators either to neutralize these virulence determinants or to enhance the bactericidal capabilities of the phagocyte.

Polymorphic expression of defensins in neutrophils from outbred rats

We isolated and characterized a rat neutrophil defensin, RatNP-2, that differs from the previously described defensin RatNP-1 by containing Ser-7 in place of Arg-7. Although the resulting charge difference rendered RatNP-2 easily distinguishable from RatNP-1 on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis gels, the two defensins exhibited very similar antimicrobial efficacies against Salmonella typhimurium, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans. The polymorphonuclear leukocytes of Sprague-Dawley rats obtained from one of two breeders also showed a marked polymorphism for defensin RatNP-4. This defensin was absent in two of seven animals and present in 1x or 2x relative amounts in the others. These observations indicate that a striking degree of defensin polymorphism exists in the polymorphonuclear leukocytes of outbred rodents.

Biological and immunological characterization of a cloned cholera toxin-like enterotoxin from Salmonella typhimurium

A chromosomal DNA fragment, encoding an enterotoxin gene of Salmonella typhimurium Q1, was cloned into bacteriophage EMBL3 and plasmid vector pBR322. The recombinant clones lambda B8 and pC1 were identified using a synthetic oligonucleotide probe made to the B subunit region of the cholera toxin gene (ctx). Cell lysates of Escherichia coli VCS257 [lambda B8] induced fluid secretion in rabbit intestinal loops, while lysates of E. coli DH5 alpha [pC1] failed to elicit an enterotoxic response in this model. Both lysates and partially purified preparations elongated Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells, elevated cellular cAMP and PGE2, and bound to ganglioside GM1. The biological activity associated with the cloned enterotoxin was neutralized by monospecific antiserum to cholera toxin (CT). Immunoblots of pC1 and lambda B8 lysates probed with anti-CT, exhibited a 30 kDa protein similar to that of pJM17, which carried the ctx gene. Under non-dissociating conditions, anti-CT immunoblots of the same lysates revealed two proteins, one corresponding in size to the holotoxin and the other to CT-A. When analysed by DNA-directed protein synthesis in vitro, both pC1 and lambda B8 DNA expressed two unique proteins (30 and 11 kDa) similar to that of pJM17.

Characterization of defensin resistance phenotypes associated with mutations in the phoP virulence regulon of Salmonella typhimurium

The defensin sensitivities of Salmonella typhimurium strains with mutations in the phoP/phoQ two-component virulence regulon were tested by using purified defensins NP-1 and NP-2. Strains with mutations in either gene of the regulatory pair (phoP [transcriptional activator] or phoQ [membrane sensor kinase]) had increased sensitivities to defensin. The predicted periplasmic domain of the PhoQ protein contained a markedly anionic domain that could interact with cationic proteins and that could be responsible for resistance to defensin. Because insertion mutations in phoP are polar on phoQ, we constructed strains that expressed the PhoQ protein in the absence of PhoP to test whether resistance to defensin requires only the phoQ gene product. We found that resistance to defensin requires the function of both components of this regulatory system, because strains expressing PhoQ without PhoP were still markedly sensitive to defensins. This implied that a pag (phoP-activated gene) product is responsible for defensin resistance. We also tested for the ability of defensins NP-1, NP-5, and HNP-1 to activate pag expression and found that these peptides have no effect. Defensin resistance is not the only virulence characteristic controlled by the PhoP-PhoQ regulon because mutations in pagC, as well as ones in the phoP locus that resulted in constitutive pag activation (phenotype PhoPc), had no effect on defensin resistance, even though they rendered the organism avirulent and deficient in survival within macrophages. The virulence defect conferred by mutations in the phoP-phoQ two-component regulatory system is not completely explained by alterations in resistance to cationic proteins and involves the control of other proteins necessary for S. typhimurium survival within macrophages.

Effect of gamma-interferon on phagosome-lysosome fusion in Salmonella typhimurium-infected murine macrophages

Effect of recombinant gamma-interferon (rIFN-gamma) on phagosome-lysosome fusion in Salmonella typhimurium-infected murine macrophages was examined. rIFN-gamma enhanced phagosome-lysosome fusion in macrophages infected with S. typhimurium in a dose-dependent manner, and over a range of 10(2) to 10(3) U/ml of rIFN-gamma exhibited maximum phagosome-lysosome fusion, although phagocytosis was slightly decreased. The enhancement of phagosome-lysosome fusion occurred greater than 3 h post-treatment with rIFN-gamma. Furthermore, the macrophage activation for phagosome-lysosome fusion was found to persist for 4 days even when rIFN-gamma had been removed. These results demonstrate that IFN-gamma may serve as a mediator for the activation of phagosome-lysosome fusion in murine macrophages.

Clinical and field trials with attenuated Salmonella typhi as live oral vaccines and as "carrier" vaccines

In recent years there has been a resurgence of research to develop new and improved attenuated strains of Salmonella typhi to function as live oral vaccines against typhoid fever and to serve as "carrier" vaccines to express foreign antigens of other pathogens and deliver them to the immune system. Strain Ty21a has served as a prototype in clinical and field trials to identify the optimal formulations and dosage schedules for live vaccines and to quantitate the duration of protection that can be achieved. Clinical trials with three new attenuated S. typhi candidate vaccines, a Vi+ variant of Ty21a, an aroC,aroD double mutant recombinant strain and a cya,crp double mutant, are underway or will be initiated shortly.

Expression of Salmonella typhimurium genes required for invasion is regulated by changes in DNA supercoiling

The ability to enter intestinal epithelial cells is an essential virulence factor of salmonellae. We have previously cloned a group of genes (invA, B, C, and D) that allow S. typhimurium to penetrate tissue culture cells (J. E. Galán and R. Curtiss III, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86:6383-6387, 1989). Transcriptional and translational cat and phoA fusions to invA (the proximal gene in the invABC operon) were constructed, and their expression was studied by measuring the levels of alkaline phosphatase or chloramphenicol acetyltransferase activity in mutants grown under different conditions. It was found that when strains containing the fusions were grown on media with high osmolarity, a condition known to increase DNA superhelicity, the level of invA transcription was approximately eightfold higher than that in strains grown on media with low osmolarity. The osmoinducibility of invA was independent of ompR, which controls the osmoinducibility of other genes. Strains grown in high-osmolarity media in the presence of subinhibitory concentrations of gyrase inhibitors (novobiocin or coumermycin A1), which reduce the level of DNA supercoiling, showed reduced expression of invA. Nevertheless, invA was poorly expressed in topA mutants of S. typhimurium, which have increased DNA superhelicity. In all cases, the differential expression of the invasion genes was correlated with the ability of S. typhimurium to penetrate tissue culture cells. These results taken together indicate that expression of S. typhimurium invasion genes is affected by changes in DNA supercoiling and suggest that this may represent a way in which this organism regulates the expression of these genes.

Induction of Salmonella stress proteins upon infection of macrophages

Regulated expression of bacterial genes allows a pathogen to adapt to new environmental conditions within the host. The synthesis of over 30 Salmonella proteins is selectively induced during infection of macrophages. Two proteins induced by Salmonella are the heat shock proteins GroEL and DnaK. Two avirulent, macrophage-sensitive mutants of Salmonella synthesize GroEL and DnaK but fail to synthesize different subsets of proteins normally induced within the macrophage. Enhanced expression of selected Salmonella proteins contributes to bacterial survival within macrophages and may also contribute to the apparent immunodominance of heat shock proteins.

Constitutive expression of the phoP regulon attenuates Salmonella virulence and survival within macrophages

The phoP genetic locus is a two-component regulatory system (phoP-phoQ) that controls the expression of genes essential for Salmonella typhimurium virulence and survival within macrophages. Strains with a phoP constitutive mutation (phenotype PhoPC) showed up to 10-fold greater expression of phoP-activated genes (pag loci) than did strains with a wild-type phoP locus (phenotype PhoP+). While the phoP constitutive mutation resulted in increased expression of pag loci, it also dramatically reduced the expression of other protein species. Comparison of the protein content of PhoP+ and PhoPC strains by two-dimensional protein gel electrophoresis demonstrated that at least 40 separate protein species were changed in expression as a result of this mutation. The PhoPC S. typhimurium were found to be attenuated for virulence and survival within macrophages. This finding suggests that a balanced PhoP-PhoQ regulatory response, which allows expression of phoP-repressed as well as -activated genes, is required for full virulence of S. typhimurium. We have further shown that small numbers of PhoPC bacteria can be used as a live attenuated vaccine to protect against mouse typhoid. As few as 15 PhoPC bacteria protected mice against challenge with 10(5) 50% lethal doses of wild-type organisms, suggesting that important protective antigens are regulated by the PhoP-PhoQ virulence regulon.

A 59 kiloDalton outer membrane protein of Salmonella typhimurium protects against oxidative intraleukocytic killing due to human neutrophils

We have isolated a Salmonella typhimurium (ST) mutant, JKS400, deficient in the production of a surface-exposed outer membrane protein (Omp) and phenotypically hypersensitive to the oxidative antimicrobial mechanism of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs). This Omp migrated at approximately 59 kiloDaltons (kD) in sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). We found with P22 transduction that the capacities to produce the protein and to exert wild-type resistance to oxidative killing were tightly linked. Transduction of JKS400 with a P22(HT)int- bacteriophage grown on a Tn10 insertion library in LT2 yielded tetracycline-resistant isolates that had been returned to wild-type protein production. Further experiments showed that restoration of protein production was accompanied by restoration of the parental resistance phenotype to killing by PMNs and by restoration to wild-type resistance to H2O2. The map position of the Tn10 was determined to be at 96 minutes in the Salmonella chromosome. This protein appears to behave as a virulence factor, promoting the capacity of Salmonella typhimurium LT2 to survive oxygen-dependent killing mechanisms in neutrophils.

Adaptive acidification tolerance response of Salmonella typhimurium

Salmonella typhimurium can encounter a wide variety of environments during its life cycle. One component of the environment which will fluctuate widely is pH. In nature, S. typhimurium can experience and survive dramatic acid stresses that occur in diverse ecological niches ranging from pond water to phagolysosomes. However, in vitro the organism is very sensitive to acid. To provide an explanation for how this organism survives acid in natural environments, the adaptive ability of S. typhimurium to become acid tolerant was tested. Logarithmically grown cells (pH 7.6) shifted to mild acid (pH 5.8) for one doubling as an adaptive procedure were 100 to 1,000 times more resistant to subsequent strong acid challenge (pH 3.3) than were unadapted cells shifted directly from pH 7.6 to 3.3. This acidification tolerance response required protein synthesis and appears to be a specific defense mechanism for acid. No cross protection was noted for hydrogen peroxide, SOS, or heat shock. Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic analysis of acid-regulated polypeptides revealed 18 proteins with altered expression, 6 of which were repressed while 12 were induced by mild acid shifts. An avirulent phoP mutant was 1,000-fold more sensitive to acid than its virulent phoP+ parent, suggesting a correlation between acid tolerance and virulence. The Mg2(+)-dependent proton-translocating ATPase was also found to play an important role in acid tolerance. Mutants (unc) lacking this activity were unable to mount an acid tolerance response and were extremely acid sensitive. In contrast to these acid-sensitive mutants, a constitutively acid-tolerant mutant (atr) was isolated from wild-type LT2 after prolonged acid exposure. This mutant overexpressed several acidification tolerance response polypeptides. The data presented reveal an important acidification defense modulon with broad significance toward survival in biologically hostile environments.

Expression of host resistance to Salmonella typhi and Salmonella typhimurium: bacterial survival within macrophages of murine and human origin

Cell-association of various strains of Salmonella typhi and Salmonella typhimurium with different populations of macrophages was studied. Macrophages were infected, exposed to gentamicin, washed, and counts of viable bacteria protected from gentamicin killing were made. J774A.1 cells, a continuous macrophage-like cell line, were the most permissive, all strains tested achieving similar high recoveries. Virulent S. typhimurium 779C-Sms, but not avirulent S. typhimurium 779C-SmD, survived well in mouse peritoneal macrophages and human monocyte-derived macrophages. Virulent S. typhi Ty2 were killed by mouse peritoneal macrophages, but were able to survive within human monocyte-derived macrophages. Viable counts of clinical isolates of S. typhi within the human monocyte-derived phagocytes were lower as compared with those of S. typhi Ty2. Phagocytosis of opsonized and non-opsonized virulent S. typhi Ty2 and S. typhimurium 779C-SmS by mouse peritoneal macrophages failed to trigger their respiratory burst as assessed by the intracellular reduction of nitroblue tetrazolium dye (NBT). These experiments support the view that the intracellular survival of Salmonella is in part host dependent and specific in nature. They also suggest that virulence influences the survival and intracellular multiplication of Salmonella within macrophages, and that their ultimate fate within macrophages may not be related to oxygen-dependent mechanisms.