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RpoN, an alternative sigma factor commonly known as σ54, is implicated in persistent stages of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis infections in which genes associated with this regulator are upregulated. We here combined phenotypic and genomic assays to provide insight into its role and function in this pathogen. RpoN was found essential for Y. pseudotuberculosis virulence in mice, and in vitro functional assays showed that it controls biofilm formation and motility. Mapping genome-wide associations of Y. pseudotuberculosis RpoN using chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled with next-generation sequencing identified an RpoN binding motif located at 103 inter- and intragenic sites on both sense and antisense strands. Deletion of rpoN had a large impact on gene expression, including downregulation of genes encoding proteins involved in flagellar assembly, chemotaxis, and quorum sensing. There were also clear indications of cross talk with other sigma factors, together with indirect effects due to altered expression of other regulators. Matching differential gene expression with locations of the binding sites implicated around 130 genes or operons potentially activated or repressed by RpoN. Mutagenesis of selected intergenic binding sites confirmed both positive and negative regulatory effects of RpoN binding. Corresponding mutations of intragenic sense sites had less impact on associated gene expression. Surprisingly, mutating intragenic sites on the antisense strand commonly reduced expression of genes carried by the corresponding sense strand.

Enterococcus faecalis are a major cause of nosocomial infection worldwide, and the spread of vancomycin resistant strains (VRE) limits treatment options. Tigecycline-resistant VRE began to be isolated from inpatients at a Brazilian hospital within months following the addition of tigecycline to the hospital formulary. This was found to be the result of a spread of an ST103 E. faecalis clone. Our objective was to identify the basis for tigecycline resistance in this lineage. The genomes of two closely related tigecycline-susceptible (MIC = 0.06 mg/L), and three representative tigecycline-resistant (MIC = 1 mg/L) ST103 isolates were sequenced and compared. Further, efforts were undertaken to recapitulate the emergence of resistant strains in vitro. The specific mutations identified in clinical isolates in several cases were within the same genes identified in laboratory-evolved strains. The contribution of various polymorphisms to the resistance phenotype was assessed by trans-complementation of the wild type or mutant alleles, by testing for differences in mRNA abundance, and/or by examining the phenotype of transposon insertion mutants. Among tigecycline-resistant clinical isolates, five genes contained non-synonymous mutations, including two genes known to be related to enterococcal tigecycline resistance (tetM and rpsJ). Finally, within the in vitro-selected resistant variants, mutation in the gene for a MarR-family response regulator was associated with tigecycline resistance. This study shows that E. faecalis mutates to attain tigecycline resistance through the complex interplay of multiple mechanisms, along multiple evolutionary trajectories.

Colonies of the fish pathogen Flavobacterium psychrophilum have gliding motility in media with low agar concentrations. Although gliding motility, particularly in Flavobacterium johnsoniae, has been well-studied, little is known about its regulation by environmental factors. The work described here shows that the ability of F. psychrophilum to spread over surfaces depends on nutrient availability. In fact, as the nutrient contents of the medium decreased, spreading was favored and the diameter of the colonies increased. Macroscopy examination revealed modifications in colony morphology as nutrient depletion increased: from a dense and defined colony to the formation of microcolonies inside a general colony structure. Additionally, colony expansion dynamics and population density across the colony radius varied inversely with bacterial biomass production. Motility was an immediate response when bacteria were transferred from a rich to a more diluted medium. Our results suggest that, when nutrients are limiting, F. psychrophilum activates a specific growth mode that enables it to colonize surfaces by means of gliding motility. The use of diluted media allowed the differentiation, among previously isolated F. psychrophilum non-gliding mutants, of those completely unable to glide and those with only partially impaired gliding ability. [Int Microbiol 2009; 12(4):207-214]