Conditional Function of Autoaggregative Protein Cah and Common cah Mutations in Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli.

ABSTRACT: Cah is a calcium-binding autotransporter protein involved in autoaggregation and biofilm formation. Although cah is widespread in Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), we detected mutations in cah at a frequency of 31.3% in this pathogen. In STEC O157:H7 supershedder strain SS17, a large deletion results in a smaller coding sequence, encoding a protein lacking the C-terminal 71 amino acids compared with Cah in STEC O157:H7 strain EDL933. We examined the function of Cah in biofilm formation and host colonization to better understand the selective pressures for cah mutations. EDL933-Cah played a conditional role in biofilm formation in vitro: it enhanced E. coli DH5α biofilm formation on glass surfaces under agitated culture conditions that

SUBMITTER: Carter MQ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5734025 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature