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The Staphylococcus aureus KdpDE two-component system couples extracellular K+ sensing and Agr signaling to infection programming.
- Source :
-
Infection and immunity [Infect Immun] 2011 Jun; Vol. 79 (6), pp. 2154-67. Date of Electronic Publication: 2011 Mar 21. - Publication Year :
- 2011
-
Abstract
- The Kdp system is widely distributed among bacteria. In Escherichia coli, the Kdp-ATPase is a high-affinity K+ uptake system and its expression is activated by the KdpDE two-component system in response to K+ limitation or salt stress. However, information about the role of this system in many bacteria still remains obscure. Here we demonstrate that KdpFABC in Staphylococcus aureus is not a major K+ transporter and that the main function of KdpDE is not associated with K+ transport but that instead it regulates transcription for a series of virulence factors through sensing external K+ concentrations, indicating that this bacterium might modulate its infectious status through sensing specific external K+ stimuli in different environments. Our results further reveal that S. aureus KdpDE is upregulated by the Agr/RNAIII system, which suggests that KdpDE may be an important virulence regulator coordinating the external K+ sensing and Agr signaling during pathogenesis in this bacterium.
- Subjects :
- Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial physiology
Genes, Bacterial physiology
Humans
Promoter Regions, Genetic physiology
RNA, Bacterial physiology
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
Signal Transduction physiology
Transcription, Genetic genetics
Transcription, Genetic physiology
Virulence Factors physiology
Bacterial Proteins physiology
Potassium physiology
Staphylococcal Infections microbiology
Staphylococcus aureus physiology
Trans-Activators physiology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1098-5522
- Volume :
- 79
- Issue :
- 6
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Infection and immunity
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 21422185
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1128/IAI.01180-10