ePrints

A Superoxide Dismutase Capable of Functioning with Iron or Manganese Promotes the Resistance of Staphylococcus aureus to Calprotectin and Nutritional Immunity

Lookup NU author(s): Dr Anna Barwinska-SendraORCiD, Dr Emma Tarrant, Dr Kevin WaldronORCiD

Downloads

• Published version [.pdf]

Licence

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

Abstract

© 2017 Garcia et al. Staphylococcus aureus is a devastating mammalian pathogen for which the development of new therapeutic approaches is urgently needed due to the prevalence of antibiotic resistance. During infection pathogens must overcome the dual threats of host-imposed manganese starvation, termed nutritional immunity, and the oxidative burst of immune cells. These defenses function synergistically, as host-imposed manganese starvation reduces activity of the manganese-dependent enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD). S. aureus expresses two SODs, denoted SodA and SodM. While all staphylococci possess SodA, SodM is unique to S. aureus, but the advantage that S. aureus gains by expressing two apparently manganese-dependent SODs is unknown. Surprisingly, loss of both SODs renders S. aureus more sensitive to host-imposed manganese starvation, suggesting a role for these proteins in overcoming nutritional immunity. In this study, we have elucidated the respective contributions of SodA and SodM to resisting oxidative stress and nutritional immunity. These analyses revealed that SodA is important for resisting oxidative stress and for disease development when manganese is abundant, while SodM is important under manganese-deplete conditions. In vitro analysis demonstrated that SodA is strictly manganese-dependent whereas SodM is in fact cambialistic, possessing equal enzymatic activity when loaded with manganese or iron. Cumulatively, these studies provide a mechanistic rationale for the acquisition of a second superoxide dismutase by S. aureus and demonstrate an important contribution of cambialistic SODs to bacterial pathogenesis. Furthermore, they also suggest a new mechanism for resisting manganese starvation, namely populating manganese-utilizing enzymes with iron.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Garcia YM, Barwinska-Sendra A, Tarrant E, Skaar EP, Waldron KJ, Kehl-Fie TE

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: PLoS Pathogens

Year: 2017

Volume: 13

Issue: 1

Online publication date: 19/01/2017

Acceptance date: 14/12/2016

Date deposited: 06/04/2017

ISSN (print): 1553-7366

ISSN (electronic): 1553-7374

Publisher: Public Library of Science

URL: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1006125

DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006125

Altmetrics

Share