Project description:DNA microarray analyses was carried out to identify genes which are differentially expressed in E. coli when mutant variants of pdxJ are expressed that rescue growth of auxotrophic E. coli delta serB and delta serC mutants.
Project description:In 2011, in Germany, Escherichia coli O104:H4 caused the enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) outbreak with the highest incidence rate of hemolytic uremic syndrome. This pathogen carries an exceptionally potent combination of EHEC- and enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC)-specific virulence factors. Here, we identified an E. coli O104:H4 isolate that carried a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the start codon (ATG>ATA) of rpoS, encoding the alternative sigma factor S. The rpoS ATG>ATA SNP was associated with enhanced EAEC-specific virulence gene expression. Deletion of rpoS in E. coli O104:H4 Dstx2 and typical EAEC resulted in a similar effect. Both rpoS ATG>ATA and DrpoS strains exhibited stronger virulence-related phenotypes in comparison to wild type. Using promoter-reporter gene fusions, we demonstrated that wild-type RpoS repressed aggR, encoding the main regulator of EAEC virulence. In summary, our work demonstrates that RpoS acts as a global repressor of E. coli O104:H4 virulence, primarily through an AggR-dependent mechanism.
Project description:We compared several E. coli AlkB variants for their applications in facilitating sequencing of tRNA species in total RNA. These proteins are wild type AlkB, mutant D135S and mutant D135T.
Project description:Respiratory variants of E. coli were evolved in succinate and glycerol as carbon sources, to understand their metabolic flexibility and rewiring to attain energy homeostatis.
Project description:Curli are adhesive fimbriae of Enterobactericaeae and are involved in surface attachment, cell aggregation and biofilm formation. We previously reported that natural curli variants of E. coli O157:H7 (EcO157) displayed distinct acid resistance; however, this difference was not linked to the curli fimbriae per se. Here, we investigated the underlying molecular basis of this phenotypic divergence between the curli variants. Among curli-producing (C+) variants isolated from the 1993 U.S. hamburger-associated outbreaks strains, we identified large deletions in the rcsB gene that encodes the response regulator of RcsCDB two-component signal transduction system of rcsB ,. Further comparison of stress fitness revealed that C+ variants were also significantly more sensitive to heat shock, but remained similar resistance to osmotic stress and oxidative damage as curli-deficient (C-) variants. Transcriptomics analysis uncovered a large number of differentially expressed genes between the curli variants, characterized by the enhanced expression of genes related to biofilm formation, virulence, catabolic activity and nutrients uptake, but marked decrease in transcription of genes related to various stress resistance in C+ variants. Supplying C+ variants with a functional rcsB restored cells resistance to heat shock and acid challenge, but blocked the curli production, confirming that inactivation of RcsB in C+ variants was the basis of fitness segregation within the EcO157population. This study provides an example of how genome instability of EcO157promotes the intra-population diversification, generating sub-populations carrying an array of distinct phenotypes that may confer the pathogen survival advantages in host and nonhost environments.
Project description:To understand the influence of global transcription regulators Fis and CRP on global gene expression in different growth phases of E. coli.
Project description:Comparison of Escherichia coli proteomics of different DNA sequence binding proteins and identification of heterologous expressed protein
Project description:We determined the global gene expression profiles of wildtype, dam, dam mutS, and mutS mutant E. coli strains. Keywords: Basal gene expression comparison