Extracytoplasmic function sigma factors in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Publication date: Available online 2 May 2018Source: Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Gene Regulatory MechanismsAuthor(s): Sylvie Chevalier, Emeline Bouffartigues, Alexis Bazire, Ali Tahrioui, Rachel Duchesne, Damien Tortuel, Olivier Maillot, Thomas Clamens, Nicole Orange, Marc G.J. Feuilloley, Olivier Lesouhaitier, Alain Dufour, Pierre CornelisAbstractThe opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa, like all members of the genus Pseudomonas, has the capacity to thrive in very different environments, ranging from water, plant roots, to animals, including humans to whom it can cause severe infections. This remarkable adaptability is reflected in the number of transcriptional regulators, including sigma factors in this bacterium. Among those, the 19 to 21 extracytoplasmic sigma factors (ECFσ) are endowed with different regulons and functions, including the iron starvation σ (PvdS, FpvI, HasI, FecI, FecI2 and others), the cell wall stress ECFσ AlgU, SigX and SbrI, and the unorthodox σVreI involved in the expression of virulence. Recently published data show that these ECFσ have separate regulons although presenting some cross-talk. We will present evidence that these different ECFσ are involved in the expression of different phenotypes, ranging from cell-wall stress response, production of extracellular polysaccharides, formation of biofilms, to iron acquisition.Graphical abstract
Source: Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) Gene Regulatory Mechanisms - Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Source Type: research