RRNPP-type quorum sensing affects solvent formation and sporulation in Clostridium acetobutylicum.

RRNPP-type quorum sensing affects solvent formation and sporulation in Clostridium acetobutylicum. Microbiology. 2020 Apr 28;: Authors: Kotte AK, Severn O, Bean Z, Schwarz K, Minton NP, Winzer K Abstract The strictly anaerobic bacterium Clostridium acetobutylicum is well known for its ability to convert sugars into organic acids and solvents, most notably the potential biofuel butanol. However, the regulation of its fermentation metabolism, in particular the shift from acid to solvent production, remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate whether cell-cell communication plays a role in controlling the timing of this shift or the extent of solvent formation. Analysis of the available C. acetobutylicum genome sequences revealed the presence of eight putative RRNPP-type quorum-sensing systems, here designated qssA to qssH, each consisting of an RRNPP-type regulator gene followed by a small open reading frame encoding a putative signalling peptide precursor. The identified regulator and signal peptide precursor genes were designated qsrA to qsrH and qspA to qspH, respectively. Triplicate regulator mutants were generated in strain ATCC 824 for each of the eight systems and screened for phenotypic changes. The qsrB mutants showed increased solvent formation during early solventogenesis and hence the QssB system was selected for further characterization. Overexpression of qsrB severely reduced solvent and endospore ...
Source: Microbiology - Category: Microbiology Authors: Tags: Microbiology Source Type: research