Project description:Quorum sensing system-regulated protein affect the spoilage potential of co-culturing Acinetobacter johnsonii and Pseudomonas fluorescens from spoilage bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus) by proteomics
Project description:The ability of certain Pseudomonas (P.) species to grow or persist in anoxic habitats by either denitrification, acetate fermentation or arginine fermentation has been described in several studies as a special property. Previously, we had isolated strains belonging to the species P. lundensis, P. weihenstephanensis and P. fragi from anoxic MAP minced beef and further proved their anaerobic growth in vitro on agar plates. This follow-up study investigated the anaerobic growth of two strains per respective species in situ on inoculated chicken breast fillet under 100% N2 modified atmosphere. We were able to prove anaerobic growth of all six strains on chicken breast fillet with cell division rates of 0.2-0.8 /day. Furthermore, we characterized the anaerobic metabolic lifestyle of these Pseudomonas strains by comparative proteomics, upon their cultivation in meat simulation media, which were constantly gassed with either air or 100% N2 atmospheres. From these proteomic predictions, and respective complementation by physiological experiments, we conclude that the Pseudomonas strains P. fragi, P. weihenstephanensis, P. lundensis exhibit a similar anaerobic lifestyle and employ arginine fermentation via the arginine deiminase (ADI) pathway to grow anaerobically also on MAP meats. Furthermore, glucose fermentation to ethanol via the ED-pathway is predicted to enable long term survival but no true growth, while respiratory growth with nitrate as alternative electron acceptor or glucose fermentation to acetate could be excluded due to absence of essential genes. The citric acid cycle is partially bypassed by the glyoxylate shunt, functioning as the gluconeogenetic route without production of NADH2 under carbon limiting conditions as e.g. in packaged meats. Triggered by an altered redox balance, we also detected upregulation of enzymes involved in protein folding as well as disulphide bonds isomerization under anoxic conditions as a counteracting mechanism to reduce protein misfolding. Hence, this study reveals the mechanisms enabling anaerobic grow and persistence of common meat-spoiling Pseudomonas species, and further complements the hitherto limited knowledge of the anaerobic lifestyle of Pseudomonas species in general.
Project description:Background: Microorganisms are the major cause of food spoilage during storage, processing and distribution. Pseudomonas fluorescens is a typical spoilage bacterium that contributes to a large extent to the spoilage process of proteinaceous food. RpoS is considered an important global regulator involved in stress survival and virulence in many pathogens. Our previous work revealed that RpoS contributed to the spoilage activities of P. fluorescens by regulating resistance to different stress conditions, extracellular acylated homoserine lactone (AHL) levels, extracellular protease and total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) production. However, RpoS-dependent genes in P. fluorescens remained undefined. Results: RNA-seq transcriptomics analysis combined with quantitative proteomics analysis basing on multiplexed isobaric tandem mass tag (TMT) labeling was performed for the P. fluorescens wild-type strain UK4 and its derivative carrying a rpoS mutation. A total of 375 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 212 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were identified in these two backgrounds. The DGEs were further verified by qRT-PCR tests, and the genes directly regulated by RpoS were confirmed by 5’-RACE-PCR sequencing. The combining transcriptome and proteome analysis revealed a role of this regulator in several cellular processes, including polysaccharide metabolism, intracellular secretion and extracellular structures, cell well biogenesis, stress responses, ammonia and biogenic amine production, which may contribute to biofilm formation, stress resistance and spoilage activities of P. fluorescens. Moreover, in this work we indeed observed that RpoS contributed to the production of the macrocolony biofilm’s matrix.
Project description:Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the type species of the Pseudomonas genus, is an environmental Gram negative bacterium, well-known for its ability to produce toxins, resist antibiotics, and opportunistically colonize various niches, including invertebrate and vertebrate hosts. P. aeruginosa produces redox active secondary metabolites called phenazines involved in quorum sensing, biofilm formation, virulence, and iron acquisition. Moreover, these colorful pigmented virulence factors act as ligands for the highly conserved aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) thereby regulating antibacterial defenses in vertebrates. Pseudomonas spp. are some of the most frequently identified bacteria in larval and adult stages of wild mosquito populations. Here we investigated global transcriptional changes induced in A. coluzzii third instar larvae incubated with a sublethal concentration (50 µM) of 1-hydroxyphenazine (1-HP) or pyocyanin (Pyo) at 4 h and 8 h of continuous incubation by whole-genome DNA microarrays.
Project description:The GacS/GacA signal transduction system is a central regulator in Pseudomonas spp., including the biological control strain P. fluorescens Pf-5, in which GacS/GacA controls the production of secondary metabolites and exoenzymes that suppress plant pathogens. A whole genome oligonucleotide microarray was developed for Pf-5 and used to assess the global transcriptomic consequences of a gacA mutation in P. fluorescens Pf-5. In cultures at the transition from exponential to stationary growth phase, GacA significantly influenced transcript levels of 632 genes, representing more than 10% of the 6147 annotated genes in the Pf-5 genome. Transcripts of genes involved in the production of hydrogen cyanide, the antibiotic pyoluteorin, and the extracellular protease AprA were at a low level in the gacA mutant, whereas those functioning in siderophore production and other aspects of iron homeostasis were significantly higher in the gacA mutant than in wild-type Pf-5. Notable effects of gacA inactivation were also observed in the transcription of genes encoding components of a type VI secretion system and cytochrome C oxidase subunits. Two novel gene clusters expressed under the control of gacA were identified from transcriptome analysis, and we propose global-regulator-based genome mining as an approach to decipher the secondary metabolome of Pseudomonas spp.