1
|
Jakob S, Steinchen W, Hanßmann J, Rosum J, Langenfeld K, Osorio-Valeriano M, Steube N, Giammarinaro PI, Hochberg GKA, Glatter T, Bange G, Diepold A, Thanbichler M. The virulence regulator VirB from Shigella flexneri uses a CTP-dependent switch mechanism to activate gene expression. Nat Commun 2024; 15:318. [PMID: 38182620 PMCID: PMC10770331 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44509-z] [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: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/07/2024] Open
Abstract
The transcriptional antisilencer VirB acts as a master regulator of virulence gene expression in the human pathogen Shigella flexneri. It binds DNA sequences (virS) upstream of VirB-dependent promoters and counteracts their silencing by the nucleoid-organizing protein H-NS. However, its precise mode of action remains unclear. Notably, VirB is not a classical transcription factor but related to ParB-type DNA-partitioning proteins, which have recently been recognized as DNA-sliding clamps using CTP binding and hydrolysis to control their DNA entry gate. Here, we show that VirB binds CTP, embraces DNA in a clamp-like fashion upon its CTP-dependent loading at virS sites and slides laterally on DNA after clamp closure. Mutations that prevent CTP-binding block VirB loading in vitro and abolish the formation of VirB nucleoprotein complexes as well as virulence gene expression in vivo. Thus, VirB represents a CTP-dependent molecular switch that uses a loading-and-sliding mechanism to control transcription during bacterial pathogenesis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sara Jakob
- Department of Biology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Wieland Steinchen
- Department of Chemistry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
- Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Marburg, Germany
| | - Juri Hanßmann
- Department of Biology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
- Max Planck Fellow Group Bacterial Cell Biology, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Julia Rosum
- Department of Biology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Katja Langenfeld
- Department of Ecophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Manuel Osorio-Valeriano
- Department of Biology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
- Department of Cell Biology, Blavatnik Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Niklas Steube
- Evolutionary Biochemistry Group, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Pietro I Giammarinaro
- Department of Chemistry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
- Heidelberg University Biochemistry Center (BZH), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Georg K A Hochberg
- Department of Chemistry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
- Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Marburg, Germany
- Evolutionary Biochemistry Group, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Timo Glatter
- Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Facility, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Gert Bange
- Department of Chemistry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
- Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Marburg, Germany
- Max Planck Fellow Group Molecular Physiology of Microbes, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Andreas Diepold
- Department of Ecophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
| | - Martin Thanbichler
- Department of Biology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany.
- Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Marburg, Germany.
- Max Planck Fellow Group Bacterial Cell Biology, Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Gabor CE, Hazen TH, Delaine-Elias BC, Rasko DA, Barry EM. Genomic, transcriptomic, and phenotypic differences among archetype Shigella flexneri strains of serotypes 2a, 3a, and 6. mSphere 2023; 8:e0040823. [PMID: 37830809 PMCID: PMC10732043 DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00408-23] [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: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Given the genomic diversity between S. flexneri serotypes and the paucity of data to support serotype-specific phenotypic differences, we applied in silico and in vitro functional analyses of archetype strains of 2457T (Sf2a), J17B (Sf3a), and CH060 (Sf6). These archetype strains represent the three leading S. flexneri serotypes recommended for inclusion in multivalent vaccines. Characterizing the genomic and phenotypic variation among these clinically prevalent serotypes is an important step toward understanding serotype-specific host-pathogen interactions to optimize the efficacy of multivalent vaccines and therapeutics. This study underpins the importance for further large-scale serotype-targeted analyses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin E. Gabor
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Tracy H. Hazen
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - BreOnna C. Delaine-Elias
- Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - David A. Rasko
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Center for Pathogen Research, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Eileen M. Barry
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| |
Collapse
|