Project description:Profound understanding of the mechanisms foodborne pathogenic bacteria utilize in adaptation to the environmental stress they encounter during food processing and storage is of paramount importance in design of control measures. Chill temperature is a central control measure applied in minimally processed foods; however, data on the mechanisms the foodborne pathogen Clostridium botulinum activates upon cold stress are scarce. Global gene expression analysis on the C.M-BM- botulinum ATCC 3502 strain upon temperature downshift from 37 M-BM-0C to 15M-BM- M-BM-0C was performed to identify the cold-responsive gene set of this organism. Significant up- or down-regulation of 16 and 11 genes, respectively, was observed already 1 h after the cold shock. At 5 h after the temperature downshift, 199 and 210 genes were up- and down-regulated, respectively. Thus, the cold shock rapidly affected the expression of a gene set of a relatively small size, indicating a targeted acute response to cold shock, whereas extensive metabolic remodeling took place after prolonged exposure to cold. Induction of genes related to fatty acid biosynthesis, oxidative stress response, and iron uptake and storage was observed, in addition to mechanisms previously characterized as cold-tolerance related in bacteria. Furthermore, induction of several uncharacterized DNA-binding transcriptional regulator-encoding genes was observed, suggesting involvement of novel regulatory mechanisms in the cold shock response of C.M-BM- botulinum. The role of such regulatory proteins, CBO0477 and CBO0558A, in cold tolerance of C.M-BM- botulinum ATCC 3502 was demonstrated by the deteriorated growth of mutants of the respective genes at 17M-BM- M-BM-0C. C. botulinum ATCC 3502 wild type cold-shocked vs. pre-cold-shock; 3 replicates; growth at 37C in TPGY broth batch culture and subjected to cold shock to 15C; sampling at mid-log growth phase before cold shock, and 1 h and 5 h after temperature downshift to 15C (= 3 time points). Dye-swapped hybridization.

Project description:The two-component system CBO0366/CBO0365 was recently demonstrated to have a role in cold tolerance of Group I Clostridium botulinum ATCC 3502. The mechanisms under its control, ultimately resulting in increased sensitivity to low temperature, are unknown. A transcriptomic analysis with DNA microarrays was performed to identify the differences in global gene expression patterns of the wild-type ATCC 3502 and a derivative mutant with insertionally inactivated cbo0365 at 37 M-BM-0C and 15 M-BM-0C. Altogether 150 or 141 chromosomal CDSs were found to be differently expressed in the cbo0365 mutant at 37 M-BM-0C or 15 M-BM-0C, respectively, and thus considered to be under direct or indirect transcriptional control of the response regulator CBO0365. Of the differentially-expressed CDSs, expression of 141 CDSs was similarly affected at both temperatures investigated, suggesting that the putative CBO0365 regulon was practically not affected by temperature. The regulon involved genes related to acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation, motility, to arsenic resistance, and phosphate uptake and transport. Deteriorated growth at 17 M-BM-0C was observed for mutants with disrupted ABE fermentation pathway components (crt, bdh and ctfA), arsenic detoxifying machinery components (arsC and arsR), or phosphate uptake mechanism components (phoT), suggesting roles for these mechanisms in cold tolerance of Group I C. botulinum. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays showed recombinant CBO0365 to bind to the promoter regions of crt, arsR, and phoT, as well as to the promoter region of its own operon, suggesting direct DNA-binding transcriptional activation or repression as means for CBO0365 in regulating these operons. The results provide insight to the mechanisms Group I C. botulinum utilize in coping with cold. C. botulinum ATCC 3502 cbo0365 mutant vs. wild type; 3 replicates of each strain; growth at 37C in TPGY broth batch culture and subjected to cold shock to 15C; sampling at mid-log growth phase before cold shock, and 1 h after temperature downshift to 15C (= 2 time points). Dye-swapped hybridization.

Project description:The PFGRC has developed a cost effective alternative to complete genome sequencing in order to study the genetic differences between closely related species and/or strains. The comparative genomics approach combines Gene Discovery (GD) and Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH) techniques, resulting in the design and production of species microarrays that represent the diversity of a species beyond just the sequenced reference strain(s) used in the initial microarray design. These species arrays may then be used to interrogate hundreds of closely related strains in order to further unravel their evolutionary relationships. Clostridium botulinum produces botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT)and is classified as a “Category A” select agent. BoNT can be classified into seven serotypes designated A-G. There is considerable genetic variation within these serotypes, as demonstrated by the recognition of at least 47 subtypes. The most studied serotype, BoNT/A, has been found in a large and diverse group of clostridia, most of which express the subtype BoNT/A1. The BoNT/A1 producing C. botulinum strain ATCC 3502, used to obtain an initial annotated genome sequence, is not representative of the diverse clostridia group producing BoNT. Nearly 50% of C. botulinum strains producing BoNT/A1 have been shown to also encode unexpressed variants of BoNT/B with a distinct cluster arrangement. This nucleotide cluster is completely absent from the published genome sequence. In addition, a recently identified novel BoNT/A1 strain lacks the gene cluster seen in the genome sequence of ATCC 3502. Furthermore, a strain designated Hall A Hyper differs greatly from the sequenced strain as indicated by its ability to produce higher quantities of BoNT/A1. The genetic and phenotypic basis for this difference in BoNT expression is currently unknown, and the sequences of the BoNT gene and the cluster are identical in both strains. This observation supports the hypothesis that genes outside the toxin cluster are involved in the regulation and maturation of BoNT. The flow of genetic information within this group motivated us to identify novel genes for the purpose of creating a “species” DNA microarray to better understand the ancestral relationships among its members. Based on preliminary genotyping (MLST, and CGH using a single-genome-based array), 20 diverse C. botulinum strains were selected for sequencing. Sequence information obtained from this project, and from other publicly available sources, led to the development of a comprehensive species microarray for C. botulinum group members. The availability of the C. botulinum species DNA microarray has allowed us to carry out a collaborative CGH genotyping project to validate this microarray as well as understand the phylogenomic relationships among members of C. botulinum group.

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Clostridium botulinum A str. ATCC 3502

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