Individual and Combined Roles of the Master Regulators AphA and LuxR in Control of the Vibrio harveyi Quorum-Sensing Regulon

Julia C. van Kessel; Steven T. Rutherford; Yi Shao; Alan F. Utria; Bonnie L. Bassler

doi:10.1128/JB.01998-12

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Individual and Combined Roles of the Master Regulators AphA and LuxR in Control of the Vibrio harveyi Quorum-Sensing Regulon

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Individual and Combined Roles of the Master Regulators AphA and LuxR in Control of the Vibrio harveyi Quorum-Sensing Regulon

Julia C. van Kessel, Steven T. Rutherford, Yi Shao, Alan F. Utria and Bonnie L. Bassler

Journal of bacteriology, Vol.195(3), pp.436-443

02/01/2013

DOI: 10.1128/JB.01998-12

PMCID: PMC3554009

PMID: 23204455

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Abstract

Bacteria use a chemical communication process called quorum sensing to control transitions between individual and group behaviors. In the Vibrio harveyi quorum-sensing circuit, two master transcription factors, AphA and LuxR, coordinate the quorum-sensing response. Here we show that AphA regulates 167 genes, LuxR regulates 625 genes, and they coregulate 77 genes. LuxR strongly controls genes at both low cell density and high cell density, suggesting that it is the major quorum-sensing regulator. In contrast, AphA is absent at high cell density and acts to fine-tune quorum-sensing gene expression at low cell density. We examined two loci as case studies of coregulation by AphA and LuxR. First, AphA and LuxR directly regulate expression of the genes encoding the quorum-regulatory small RNAs Qrr2, Qrr3, and Qrr4, the consequence of which is a specifically timed transition between the individual and the group life-styles. Second, AphA and LuxR repress type III secretion system genes but at different times and to different extents. The consequence of this regulation is that type III secretion is restricted to a peak at mid-cell density. Thus, the asymmetric production of AphA and LuxR coupled with differences in their strengths and timing of target gene regulation generate a precise temporal pattern of gene expression.

Life Sciences & Biomedicine

Microbiology

Science & Technology

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Title: Subtitle: Individual and Combined Roles of the Master Regulators AphA and LuxR in Control of the Vibrio harveyi Quorum-Sensing Regulon
Creators: Julia C. van Kessel - Princeton University
Steven T. Rutherford - Princeton University
Yi Shao - Princeton University
Alan F. Utria - Princeton University
Bonnie L. Bassler - Princeton University
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Journal of bacteriology, Vol.195(3), pp.436-443
DOI: 10.1128/JB.01998-12
PMID: 23204455
PMCID: PMC3554009
NLM abbreviation: J Bacteriol
ISSN: 0021-9193
eISSN: 1067-8832
Publisher: Amer Soc Microbiology
Number of pages: 8
Grant note: 5R01GM065859 / Howard Hughes Medical Institute, National Institutes of Health (NIH); Howard Hughes Medical Institute; United States Department of Health & Human Services; National Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA R01AI054442 / NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES; United States Department of Health & Human Services; National Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA; NIH National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases (NIAID) F32AI085922; F32GM089019 / NIH fellowship; United States Department of Health & Human Services; National Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA P50 GM071508; 5R01AI054442 / NIH grant; United States Department of Health & Human Services; National Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA MCB-0343821 / National Science Foundation (NSF) P50GM071508 / NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF GENERAL MEDICAL SCIENCES; United States Department of Health & Human Services; National Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA; NIH National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Language: English
Date published: 02/01/2013
Academic Unit: Surgery
Record Identifier: 9985014846402771

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