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Quorum sensing has an unexpected role in virulence in the model pathogen Citrobacter rodentium
Author(s) -
Coulthurst Sarah J,
Clare Simon,
Evans Terry J,
Foulds Ian J,
Roberts Kevin J,
Welch Martin,
Dougan Gordon,
Salmond George P C
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
embo reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.584
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1469-3178
pISSN - 1469-221X
DOI - 10.1038/sj.embor.7400984
Subject(s) - citrobacter rodentium , quorum sensing , virulence , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , citrobacter , mutant , pathogen , type three secretion system , escherichia coli , effector , secretion , human pathogen , enterobacteriaceae , bacteria , gene , genetics , biochemistry
The bacterial mouse pathogen Citrobacter rodentium causes attaching and effacing (AE) lesions in the same manner as pathogenic Escherichia coli , and is an important model for this mode of pathogenesis. Quorum sensing (QS) involves chemical signalling by bacteria to regulate gene expression in response to cell density. E. coli has never been reported to have N ‐acylhomoserine lactone (AHL) QS, but it does utilize luxS ‐dependent signalling. We found production of AHL QS signalling molecules by an AE pathogen, C. rodentium . AHL QS is directed by the croIR locus and a croI mutant is affected in its surface attachment, although not in Type III secretion. AHL QS has an important role in virulence in the mouse as, unexpectedly, the QS mutant is hypervirulent; by contrast, we detected no impact of luxS inactivation. Further study of QS in Citrobacter should provide new insights into AE pathogenesis. As the croIR locus might have been horizontally acquired, AHL QS might exist in some strains of pathogenic E. coli .