Regulation of Hfq mRNA and protein levels in Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa by the Burkholderia cenocepacia MtvR sRNA

Christian G Ramos; André M Grilo; Sílvia A Sousa; Joana R Feliciano; Paulo J P da Costa; Jorge H Leitão

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0098813

Regulation of Hfq mRNA and protein levels in Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa by the Burkholderia cenocepacia MtvR sRNA

PLoS One. 2014 Jun 5;9(6):e98813. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0098813. eCollection 2014.

Authors

Christian G Ramos¹, André M Grilo¹, Sílvia A Sousa¹, Joana R Feliciano¹, Paulo J P da Costa¹, Jorge H Leitão¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Bioengineering and Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.

Abstract

Small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs) are important players of gene expression regulation in bacterial pathogens. MtvR is a 136-nucleotide long sRNA previously identified in the human pathogen Burkholderia cenocepacia J2315 and with homologues restricted to bacteria of the Burkholderia cepacia complex. In this work we have investigated the effects of expressing MtvR in Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Results are presented showing that MtvR negatively regulates the hfq mRNA levels in both bacterial species. In the case of E. coli, this negative regulation is shown to involve binding of MtvR to the 5'-UTR region of the hfqEc mRNA. Results presented also show that expression of MtvR in E. coli and P. aeruginosa originates multiple phenotypes, including reduced resistance to selected stresses, biofilm formation ability, and increased susceptibility to various antibiotics.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

5' Untranslated Regions
Base Pairing
Base Sequence
Biofilms
Burkholderia cenocepacia / genetics*
Drug Resistance, Bacterial / genetics
Epistasis, Genetic
Escherichia coli / genetics*
Escherichia coli / growth & development
Escherichia coli / metabolism
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial*
Host Factor 1 Protein / genetics*
Host Factor 1 Protein / metabolism
Microbial Viability / genetics
Molecular Sequence Data
Protein Biosynthesis
Pseudomonas aeruginosa / genetics*
Pseudomonas aeruginosa / growth & development
Pseudomonas aeruginosa / metabolism
RNA Stability
RNA, Messenger / chemistry
RNA, Messenger / genetics*
RNA, Small Untranslated / chemistry
RNA, Small Untranslated / genetics*
Stress, Physiological

Substances

5' Untranslated Regions
Host Factor 1 Protein
RNA, Messenger
RNA, Small Untranslated

Grants and funding

This work was partially supported by Fundação Ciência e Tecnologia, Portugal (contracts PTDC/BIA-MIC/119091/2010 and PTDC/BBB-BIO/1958/2012), a post-Doc grant to CGR, and doctoral grants to AMG and JRF, respectively. SAS and PJPDC acknowledge research grants from projects PTDC/BBB-BIO/1958/2012 and PTDC/BIA-MIC/119091/2010, respectively. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.