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Identification of sigB inhibitors in L. monocytogenes

ABSTRACT: The extensively studied intracellular pathogen, L. monocytogenes, is an ideal model for identifying small-molecule agents for treating bacterial infections. By selecting specific biological targets in L. monocytogenes, which are common to Gram-positive pathogens, we could extrapolate drug discovery information derived from this well-studied bacterium. Attenuating the pathogen’s virulence and stress response attributes without killing it, eliminates selective pressure caused by disruption of essential gene functions (as done by current antibiotics) and reduces the likelihood of developing microbes that are impervious to the effects of antibiotics. To this end, we have assessed multiple libraries of small organic compounds to identify inhibitors of L. monocytogenes σB, the alternative sigma factor common to several clinically relevant Gram-positive pathogens, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, and Bacillus anthracis. The role of σB as a transcriptional regulator of stress response and virulence makes it an ideal, well conserved target for chemotherapeutic development.

ORGANISM(S): Listeria innocua Listeria monocytogenes Listeria monocytogenes 10403S

PROVIDER: GSE16887 | GEO | 2011/12/06

SECONDARY ACCESSION(S): PRJNA117719

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:In several gram-positive bacterial genera including Bacillus, Staphylococcus, and Listeria, sigma B (σB) has been identified as a stress-responsive alternative sigma factor responsible for initiating transcription of genes (the σB regulon) involved in response to stress-inducing environmental conditions. In L. monocytogenes, a foodborne pathogen of considerable threat to public health and the food industry, σB is involved in regulation of stress response and virulence gene expression. We have defined the σB regulon in L. monocytogenes during early stationary phase and under salt stress (0.3M NaCl) conditions using whole-genome microarrays, identifying 168 genes that generated ≥2.0-fold higher signals in the parental strain 10403S than in an isogenic sigB null mutant (ΔsigB), categorized into nine functional groups including stress-response genes (12), virulence genes (5), and genes related to transport (26) and metabolism (45). To gain a broader biological perspective of the σB stress response system, we applied these microarrays to Listeria innocua under the same environmental conditions. Our studies revealed 64 candidates in the L. innocua σB regulon with ≥2.0-fold higher signals in the parent than in a ΔsigB mutant; 49 of the 64 genes overlap with the L. monocytogenes σB regulon, indicating extensive overlap in σB-controlled genes between the two species. Further transcriptional analysis using TaqMan quantitative real time RT-PCR was performed for selected genes that displayed contrasting fold changes among the four microarray data sets (two stress conditions per species). We report novel members of the L. monocytogenes σB regulon, as well as the initial definition of the L. innocua σB regulon. Our comparative studies of the σB stress response systems in L. monocytogenes and L. innocua revealed features of the σB regulon that are conserved and unique to the two species. Keywords: Listeria monocytogenes, Listeria innocua, SigB regulon, salt stress, stationary phase

Project description:Listeria monocytogenes is well known to have the ability to survive and grow under a variety of stress conditions. The ability to survive and grow under osmotic stress conditions in particular appears to be important for both growth in certain foods and food associated environments as well as for host infection. To characterize the contributions of transcriptional regulators important for stress response and virulence (i.e., Sigma B - σB and PrfA), we initially analyzed three L. monocytogenes parent strains and isogenic mutants ( delta sigB, delta prfA, and delta sigB delta prfA), representing different serotypes and lineages, for their ability to grow in BHI with 11% NaCl (1.9M) at 25°C. No significant differences were observed in terms of growth between the parent strains and their respective mutants lacking prfA (i.e. delta prfA, and delta sigB delta prfA mutant strains). While for all strains, the delta sigB mutant showed a prolonged lag phase as compared to the parent strains, maximum growth rates were only reduced for the delta sigB mutant of lineage I and IV strains. Interestingly, for the serotype 1/2b strain, the delta sigB mutant reached a higher maximum cell density than the parent strain or the delta prfA mutant. Caco-2 intestinal epithelial cells invasion assays and hemolytic activity assays showed a significant role for σB in the former and for PrfA in the latter. To initially explore the mechanism that may contribute to the extended lag phase in the delta sigB mutant, microarray was performed to compare transcript levels between the lineage I, serotype 1/2b, parent strain and its isogenic delta sigB mutant in lag phase at 25°C in the presence of 11% NaCl. Microarray data showed significant lower and higher transcript levels for 135 and 173 genes, respectively, in the parent strain as compared to the delta sigB strains. Overall, 51 of the 173 σB up-regulated genes had previously been found among the 249 σB-dependent genes identified in a microarray study conducted in stationary phase cells, indicating that up to 122 genes may be transcribed in a σB-dependent manner during lag phase under salt stress. Notable genes that showed higher transcript levels in the parent strain include inlD (encoding an internalin protein that may be involved in virulence), sigH (encoding an alternative σ factor), glpK (encoding a glycerol kinase) and resD (encoding a two-component response regulator ResD); while, genes that showed lower transcript levels in the parent strain include dnaK (encoding a dihydroxyacetone kinase), groES (encoding a class I heat-shock protein GroES), grpE (encoding a co-chaperone GrpE) and fri (encoding a non-heme iron-binding ferritin). These data showed that although PrfA does not contribute to growth under osmotic stress at 25°C, σB does contribute to survival of L. monocytogenes under high salt conditions. Moreover, the σB-dependent transcriptome of L. monocytogenes lag phase cells under salt stress was characterized and includes previously identified as well as novel σB-dependent genes, including a number of stress response and virulence-associated genes.

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Identification of sigB inhibitors in L. monocytogenes

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