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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Michail Karavolos, Hannah Spencer, Dr David Bulmer, Dr Anjam Khan
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Bacterial species can communicate by producing and sensing small autoinducer molecules by a process known as quorum sensing. Salmonella enterica produces autoinducer 2 (AI-2) via the luxS synthase gene, which is used by some bacterial pathogens to coordinate virulence gene expression with population density. We investigated whether the luxS gene might affect the ability of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium to invade epithelial cells. No differences were found between the wild-type strain of S. Typhimurium, SL1344, and its isogenic luxS mutant with respect to the number and morphology of the membrane ruffles induced or their ability to invade epithelial cells. The dynamics of the ruffling process were also similar in the wild-type strain (SL1344) and the luxS mutant. Furthermore, comparing the Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 (SPI-1) type 3 secretion profiles of wild-type SL1344 and the luxS mutant by Western blotting and measuring the expression of a single-copy green fluorescent protein fusion to the prgH (an essential SPI-1 gene) promoter indicated that SPI-1 expression and activity are similar in the wild-type SL1344 and luxS mutant. Genetic deletion of luxS did not alter the virulence of S. Typhimurium in the mouse model, and therefore, it appears that luxS does not play a significant role in regulating invasion of Salmonella in vitro or in vivo.
Author(s): Perrett CA, Karavolos MH, Humphrey S, Mastroeni P, Martinez-Argudo I, Spencer H, Bulmer D, Winzer K, McGhie E, Koronakis V, Williams P, Khan CMA, Jepson MA
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Journal of Bacteriology
Year: 2009
Volume: 191
Issue: 23
Pages: 7253-7259
ISSN (print): 0021-9193
ISSN (electronic): 1067-8832
Publisher: American Society for Microbiology
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/JB.00727-09
DOI: 10.1128/JB.00727-09
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