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The 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif of the RNA polymerase regulator DksA serves as a thiol switch for sensing oxidative and nitrosative stress.

ABSTRACT: We show that thiols in the 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif of DksA, an RNA polymerase accessory protein known to regulate the stringent response, sense oxidative and nitrosative stress. Hydrogen peroxide- or nitric oxide (NO)-mediated modifications of thiols in the DksA 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif release the metal cofactor and drive reversible changes in the ?-helicity of the protein. Wild-type and relA spoT mutant Salmonella, but not isogenic dksA-deficient bacteria, experience the downregulation of r-protein and amino acid transport expression after NO treatment, suggesting that DksA can regulate gene expression in response to NO congeners independently of the ppGpp alarmone. Oxidative stress enhances the DksA-dependent repression of rpsM, while preventing the activation of livJ and hisG gene transcription that is supported by reduced, zinc-bound DksA. The inhibitory effects of oxidized DksA on transcription are reversible with dithiothreitol. Our investigations indicate that sensing of reactive species by DksA redox active thiols fine-tunes the expression of translational machinery and amino acid assimilation and biosynthesis in accord with the metabolic stress imposed by oxidative and nitrosative stress. Given the conservation of Cys(114) , and neighbouring hydrophobic and charged amino acids in DksA orthologues, phylogenetically diverse microorganisms may use the DksA thiol switch to regulate transcriptional responses to oxidative and nitrosative stress.

SUBMITTER: Henard CA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4053250 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif of the RNA polymerase regulator DksA serves as a thiol switch for sensing oxidative and nitrosative stress.

Henard Calvin A CA Tapscott Timothy T Crawford Matthew A MA Husain Maroof M Doulias Paschalis-Thomas PT Porwollik Steffen S Liu Lin L McClelland Michael M Ischiropoulos Harry H Vázquez-Torres Andrés A

Molecular microbiology 20140107 4

We show that thiols in the 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif of DksA, an RNA polymerase accessory protein known to regulate the stringent response, sense oxidative and nitrosative stress. Hydrogen peroxide- or nitric oxide (NO)-mediated modifications of thiols in the DksA 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif release the metal cofactor and drive reversible changes in the α-helicity of the protein. Wild-type and relA spoT mutant Salmonella, but not isogenic dksA-deficient bacteria, experience the downregulatio ...[more]

PMID: 24354846

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Project description:Redox-based signaling is fundamental to the capacity of bacteria to sense, and respond to, nitrosative and oxidative stress encountered in natural and host environments. The conserved RNA polymerase regulatory protein DksA is a thiol-based sensor of reactive nitrogen and oxygen species. DksA-dependent transcriptional control promotes antinitrosative and antioxidative defenses that contribute to Salmonella pathogenesis. The specific adaptive changes mediated by DksA in response to reactive species, however, have not been elucidated. Herein, we characterize DksA-dependent changes in gene expression in Salmonella enterica experiencing nitrosative stress. Genome-wide expression analysis of wild-type and ?dksA Salmonella exposed to the nitric oxide ((•)NO) donor DETA NONOate demonstrated (•)NO- and DksA-dependent regulatory control of 427 target genes. Transcriptional changes centered primarily on genes encoding aspects of cellular metabolism. Several antioxidants and oxidoreductases important in redox buffering, (•)NO detoxification, and damage repair were also observed to be up-regulated in an (•)NO- and DksA-dependent manner. Compared to wild-type bacteria, (•)NO-treated ?dksA Salmonella exhibited a de-repression of genes encoding components of iron homeostasis and failed to activate sulfur assimilation and cysteine biosynthetic operons. As cysteine is integral to efficient antinitrosative and antioxidative defense and repair programs, we further examined the redox-responsive transcriptional control of cysteine biosynthesis by DksA. These investigations revealed that the activation of genes comprising cysteine biosynthesis also occurs in response to hydrogen peroxide, is dependent upon the redox-sensing zinc finger motif of DksA, and requires the transcriptional regulator CysB. Our observations demonstrate that DksA mediates global adaptation to nitrosative stress in Salmonella and provide unique insight into a novel regulatory mechanism by which cysteine biosynthesis is controlled in response to reactive oxygen and nitrogen species.

Project description:UnlabelledThe four-cysteine zinc finger motif of the bacterial RNA polymerase regulator DksA is essential for protein structure, canonical control of the stringent response to nutritional limitation, and thiol-based sensing of oxidative and nitrosative stress. This interdependent relationship has limited our understanding of DksA-mediated functions in bacterial pathogenesis. Here, we have addressed this challenge by complementing ΔdksA Salmonella with Pseudomonas aeruginosa dksA paralogues that encode proteins differing in cysteine and zinc content. We find that four-cysteine, zinc-bound (C4) and two-cysteine, zinc-free (C2) DksA proteins are able to mediate appropriate stringent control in Salmonella and that thiol-based sensing of reactive species is conserved among C2 and C4 orthologues. However, variations in cysteine and zinc content determine the threshold at which individual DksA proteins sense and respond to reactive species. In particular, zinc acts as an antioxidant, dampening cysteine reactivity and raising the threshold of posttranslational thiol modification with reactive species. Consequently, C2 DksA triggers transcriptional responses in Salmonella at levels of oxidative or nitrosative stress normally tolerated by Salmonella expressing C4 orthologues. Inappropriate transcriptional regulation by C2 DksA increases the susceptibility of Salmonella to the antimicrobial effects of hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide, and attenuates virulence in macrophages and mice. Our findings suggest that the redox-active sensory function of DksA proteins is finely tuned to optimize bacterial fitness according to the levels of oxidative and nitrosative stress encountered by bacterial species in their natural and host environments.ImportanceIn order to cause disease, pathogenic bacteria must rapidly sense and respond to antimicrobial pressures encountered within the host. Prominent among these stresses, and of particular relevance to intracellular pathogens such as Salmonella, are nutritional restriction and the enzymatic generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. The conserved transcriptional regulator DksA controls adaptive responses to nutritional limitation, as well as to oxidative and nitrosative stress. Here, we demonstrate that each of these functions contributes to bacterial pathogenesis. Our observations highlight the importance of metabolic adaptation in bacterial pathogenesis and show the mechanism by which DksA orthologues are optimized to sense the levels of oxidative and nitrosative stress encountered in their natural habitats. An improved understanding of the conserved processes used by bacteria to sense, respond to, and limit host defense will inform the development of novel strategies to treat infections caused by pathogenic, potentially multidrug-resistant bacteria.

Dataset Information

The 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif of the RNA polymerase regulator DksA serves as a thiol switch for sensing oxidative and nitrosative stress.

Publications

The 4-cysteine zinc-finger motif of the RNA polymerase regulator DksA serves as a thiol switch for sensing oxidative and nitrosative stress.

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