# | Rank | Similarity | Title + Abs. | Year | PMID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 684 | 0 | 1.0000 | Transcriptome analysis reveals mechanisms by which Lactococcus lactis acquires nisin resistance. Nisin, a posttranslationally modified antimicrobial peptide produced by Lactococcus lactis, is widely used as a food preservative. Yet, the mechanisms leading to the development of nisin resistance in bacteria are poorly understood. We used whole-genome DNA microarrays of L. lactis IL1403 to identify the factors underlying acquired nisin resistance mechanisms. The transcriptomes of L. lactis IL1403 and L. lactis IL1403 Nis(r), which reached a 75-fold higher nisin resistance level, were compared. Differential expression was observed in genes encoding proteins that are involved in cell wall biosynthesis, energy metabolism, fatty acid and phospholipid metabolism, regulatory functions, and metal and/or peptide transport and binding. These results were further substantiated by showing that several knockout and overexpression mutants of these genes had strongly altered nisin resistance levels and that some knockout strains could no longer become resistant to the same level of nisin as that of the wild-type strain. The acquired nisin resistance mechanism in L. lactis is complex, involving various different mechanisms. The four major mechanisms are (i) preventing nisin from reaching the cytoplasmic membrane, (ii) reducing the acidity of the extracellular medium, thereby stimulating the binding of nisin to the cell wall, (iii) preventing the insertion of nisin into the membrane, and (iv) possibly transporting nisin across the membrane or extruding nisin out of the membrane. | 2006 | 16641446 |
| 686 | 1 | 0.9997 | SigB-dependent general stress response in Bacillus subtilis and related gram-positive bacteria. One of the strongest and most noticeable responses of Bacillus subtilis cells to a range of stress and starvation stimuli is the dramatic induction of about 150 SigB-dependent general stress genes. The activity of SigB itself is tightly regulated by a complex signal transduction cascade with at least three main signaling pathways that respond to environmental stress, energy depletion, or low temperature. The SigB-dependent response is conserved in related gram-positive bacteria but is missing in strictly anaerobic or in some facultatively anaerobic gram-positive bacteria. It covers functions from nonspecific and multiple stress resistance to the control of virulence in pathogenic bacteria. A comprehensive understanding of this crucial stress response is essential not only for bacterial physiology but also for applied microbiology, including pathogenicity and pathogen control. | 2007 | 18035607 |
| 681 | 2 | 0.9996 | Global transcriptional response to vancomycin in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In order to gain additional understanding of the physiological mechanisms used by bacteria to maintain surface homeostasis and to identify potential targets for new antibacterial drugs, we analysed the variation of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis transcriptional profile in response to inhibitory and subinhibitory concentrations of vancomycin. Our analysis identified 153 genes differentially regulated after exposing bacteria to a concentration of the drug ten times higher than the MIC, and 141 genes differentially expressed when bacteria were growing in a concentration of the drug eightfold lower than the MIC. Hierarchical clustering analysis indicated that the response to these different conditions is different, although with some overlap. This approach allowed us to identify several genes whose products could be involved in the protection from antibiotic stress targeting the envelope and help to confer the basal level of M. tuberculosis resistance to antibacterial drugs, such as Rv2623 (UspA-like), Rv0116c, PE20-PPE31, PspA and proteins related to toxin-antitoxin systems. Moreover, we also demonstrated that the alternative sigma factor sigma(E) confers basal resistance to vancomycin, once again underlining its importance in the physiology of the mycobacterial surface stress response. | 2009 | 19332811 |
| 6327 | 3 | 0.9996 | The Response of Enterococcus faecalis V583 to Chloramphenicol Treatment. Many Enterococcus faecalis strains display tolerance or resistance to many antibiotics, but genes that contribute to the resistance cannot be specified. The multiresistant E. faecalis V583, for which the complete genome sequence is available, survives and grows in media containing relatively high levels of chloramphenicol. No specific genes coding for chloramphenicol resistance has been recognized in V583. We used microarrays to identify genes and mechanisms behind the tolerance to chloramphenicol in V583, by comparison of cells treated with subinhibitory concentrations of chloramphenicol and untreated V583 cells. During a time course experiment, more than 600 genes were significantly differentially transcribed. Since chloramphenicol affects protein synthesis in bacteria, many genes involved in protein synthesis, for example, genes for ribosomal proteins, were induced. Genes involved in amino acid biosynthesis, for example, genes for tRNA synthetases and energy metabolism were downregulated, mainly. Among the upregulated genes were EF1732 and EF1733, which code for potential chloramphenicol transporters. Efflux of drug out of the cells may be one mechanism used by V583 to overcome the effect of chloramphenicol. | 2010 | 20628561 |
| 8215 | 4 | 0.9996 | Insight into Two ABC Transporter Families Involved in Lantibiotic Resistance. Antimicrobial peptides, which contain (methyl)-lanthionine-rings are called lantibiotics. They are produced by several Gram-positive bacteria and are mainly active against these bacteria. Although these are highly potent antimicrobials, some human pathogenic bacteria express specific ABC transporters that confer resistance and counteract their antimicrobial activity. Two distinct ABC transporter families are known to be involved in this process. These are the Cpr- and Bce-type ABC transporter families, named after their involvement in cationic peptide resistance in Clostridium difficile, and bacitracin efflux in Bacillus subtilis, respectively. Both resistance systems differentiate to each other in terms of the proteins involved. Here, we summarize the current knowledge and describe the divergence as well as the common features present in both the systems to confer lantibiotic resistance. | 2017 | 29404338 |
| 685 | 5 | 0.9996 | Implication of a Key Region of Six Bacillus cereus Genes Involved in Siroheme Synthesis, Nitrite Reductase Production and Iron Cluster Repair in the Bacterial Response to Nitric Oxide Stress. Bacterial response to nitric oxide (NO) is of major importance for bacterial survival. NO stress is a main actor of the eukaryotic immune response and several pathogenic bacteria have developed means for detoxification and repair of the damages caused by NO. However, bacterial mechanisms of NO resistance by Gram-positive bacteria are poorly described. In the opportunistic foodborne pathogen Bacillus cereus, genome sequence analyses did not identify homologs to known NO reductases and transcriptional regulators, such as NsrR, which orchestrate the response to NO of other pathogenic or non-pathogenic bacteria. Using a transcriptomic approach, we investigated the adaptation of B. cereus to NO stress. A cluster of 6 genes was identified to be strongly up-regulated in the early phase of the response. This cluster contains an iron-sulfur cluster repair enzyme, a nitrite reductase and three enzymes involved in siroheme biosynthesis. The expression pattern and close genetic localization suggest a functional link between these genes, which may play a pivotal role in the resistance of B. cereus to NO stress during infection. | 2021 | 34064887 |
| 683 | 6 | 0.9996 | Integrative Multiomics Analysis of the Heat Stress Response of Enterococcus faecium. A continuous heat-adaptation test was conducted for one Enterococcus faecium (E. faecium) strain wild-type (WT) RS047 to obtain a high-temperature-resistant strain. After domestication, the strain was screened with a significantly higher ability of heat resistance. which is named RS047-wl. Then a multi-omics analysis of transcriptomics and metabolomics was used to analyze the mechanism of the heat resistance of the mutant. A total of 98 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 115 differential metabolites covering multiple metabolic processes were detected in the mutant, which indicated that the tolerance of heat resistance was regulated by multiple mechanisms. The changes in AgrB, AgrC, and AgrA gene expressions were involved in quorum-sensing (QS) system pathways, which regulate biofilm formation. Second, highly soluble osmotic substances such as putrescine, spermidine, glycine betaine (GB), and trehalose-6P were accumulated for the membrane transport system. Third, organic acids metabolism and purine metabolism were down-regulated. The findings can provide target genes for subsequent genetic modification of E. faecium, and provide indications for screening heat-resistant bacteria, so as to improve the heat-resistant ability of E. faecium for production. | 2023 | 36979372 |
| 698 | 7 | 0.9996 | Genome-wide transcriptional changes induced by phagocytosis or growth on bacteria in Dictyostelium. BACKGROUND: Phagocytosis plays a major role in the defense of higher organisms against microbial infection and provides also the basis for antigen processing in the immune response. Cells of the model organism Dictyostelium are professional phagocytes that exploit phagocytosis of bacteria as the preferred way to ingest food, besides killing pathogens. We have investigated Dictyostelium differential gene expression during phagocytosis of non-pathogenic bacteria, using DNA microarrays, in order to identify molecular functions and novel genes involved in phagocytosis. RESULTS: The gene expression profiles of cells incubated for a brief time with bacteria were compared with cells either incubated in axenic medium or growing on bacteria. Transcriptional changes during exponential growth in axenic medium or on bacteria were also compared. We recognized 443 and 59 genes that are differentially regulated by phagocytosis or by the different growth conditions (growth on bacteria vs. axenic medium), respectively, and 102 genes regulated by both processes. Roughly one third of the genes are up-regulated compared to macropinocytosis and axenic growth. Functional annotation of differentially regulated genes with different tools revealed that phagocytosis induces profound changes in carbohydrate, amino acid and lipid metabolism, and in cytoskeletal components. Genes regulating translation and mitochondrial biogenesis are mostly up-regulated. Genes involved in sterol biosynthesis are selectively up-regulated, suggesting a shift in membrane lipid composition linked to phagocytosis. Very few changes were detected in genes required for vesicle fission/fusion, indicating that the intracellular traffic machinery is mostly in common between phagocytosis and macropinocytosis. A few putative receptors, including GPCR family 3 proteins, scaffolding and adhesion proteins, components of signal transduction and transcription factors have been identified, which could be part of a signalling complex regulating phagocytosis and adaptational downstream responses. CONCLUSION: The results highlight differences between phagocytosis and macropinocytosis, and provide the basis for targeted functional analysis of new candidate genes and for comparison studies with transcriptomes during infection with pathogenic bacteria. | 2008 | 18559084 |
| 682 | 8 | 0.9996 | Comparative transcriptome analysis of Brucella melitensis in an acidic environment: Identification of the two-component response regulator involved in the acid resistance and virulence of Brucella. Brucella melitensis, encounters a very stressful environment in phagosomes, especially low pH levels. So identifying the genes that contribute to the replication and survival within an acidic environment is critical in understanding the pathogenesis of the Brucella bacteria. In our research, comparative transcriptome with RNA-seq were used to analyze the changes of genes in normal-medium culture and in pH4.4-medium culture. The results reveal that 113 genes expressed with significant differences (|log2Ratio| ≥ 3); about 44% genes expressed as up-regulated. With GO term analysis, structural constituent of the ribosome, rRNA binding, structural molecule activity, and cation-transporting ATPase activity were significantly enriched (p-value ≤ 0.05). These genes distributed in 51 pathways, in which ribosome and photosynthesis pathways were significantly enriched. Six pathways (oxidative phosphorylation, iron-transporting, bacterial secretion system, transcriptional regulation, two-component system, and ABC transporters pathways) tightly related to the intracellular survival and virulence of Brucella were analyzed. A two-component response regulator gene in the transcriptional regulation pathway, identified through gene deletion and complementary technologies, played an important role in the resistance to the acid-resistance and virulence of Brucella. | 2016 | 26691825 |
| 6217 | 9 | 0.9996 | Identification of the sigmaB regulon of Bacillus cereus and conservation of sigmaB-regulated genes in low-GC-content gram-positive bacteria. The alternative sigma factor sigma(B) has an important role in the acquisition of stress resistance in many gram-positive bacteria, including the food-borne pathogen Bacillus cereus. Here, we describe the identification of the set of sigma(B)-regulated genes in B. cereus by DNA microarray analysis of the transcriptome upon a mild heat shock. Twenty-four genes could be identified as being sigma(B) dependent as witnessed by (i) significantly lower expression levels of these genes in mutants with a deletion of sigB and rsbY (which encode the alternative sigma factor sigma(B) and a crucial positive regulator of sigma(B) activity, respectively) than in the parental strain B. cereus ATCC 14579 and (ii) increased expression of these genes upon a heat shock. Newly identified sigma(B)-dependent genes in B. cereus include a histidine kinase and two genes that have predicted functions in spore germination. This study shows that the sigma(B) regulon of B. cereus is considerably smaller than that of other gram-positive bacteria. This appears to be in line with phylogenetic analyses where sigma(B) of the B. cereus group was placed close to the ancestral form of sigma(B) in gram-positive bacteria. The data described in this study and previous studies in which the complete sigma(B) regulon of the gram-positive bacteria Bacillus subtilis, Listeria monocytogenes, and Staphylococcus aureus were determined enabled a comparison of the sets of sigma(B)-regulated genes in the different gram-positive bacteria. This showed that only three genes (rsbV, rsbW, and sigB) are conserved in their sigma(B) dependency in all four bacteria, suggesting that the sigma(B) regulon of the different gram-positive bacteria has evolved to perform niche-specific functions. | 2007 | 17416654 |
| 706 | 10 | 0.9996 | Effect of PhoP-PhoQ activation by broad repertoire of antimicrobial peptides on bacterial resistance. Pathogenic bacteria can resist their microenvironment by changing the expression of virulence genes. In Salmonella typhimurium, some of these genes are controlled by the two-component system PhoP-PhoQ. Studies have shown that activation of the system by cationic antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) results, among other changes, in outer membrane remodeling. However, it is not fully clear what characteristics of AMPs are required to activate the PhoP-PhoQ system and whether activation can induce resistance to the various AMPs. For that purpose, we investigated the ability of a broad repertoire of AMPs to traverse the inner membrane, to activate the PhoP-PhoQ system, and to induce bacterial resistance. The AMPs differ in length, composition, and net positive charge, and the tested bacteria include two wild-type (WT) Salmonella strains and their corresponding PhoP-PhoQ knock-out mutants. A lacZ-reporting system was adapted to follow PhoP-PhoQ activation. The data revealed that: (i) a good correlation exists among the extent of the positive charge, hydrophobicity, and amphipathicity of an AMP and its potency to activate PhoP-PhoQ; (ii) a +1 charged peptide containing histidines was highly potent, suggesting the existence of an additional mechanism independent of the peptide charge; (iii) the WT bacteria are more resistant to AMPs that are potent activators of PhoP-PhoQ; (iv) only a subset of AMPs, independent of their potency to activate the system, is more toxic to the mutated bacteria compared with the WT strains; and (v) short term exposure of WT bacteria to these AMPs does not enhance resistance. Overall, this study advances our understanding of the molecular mechanism by which AMPs activate PhoP-PhoQ and induce bacterial resistance. It also reveals that some AMPs can overcome such a resistance mechanism. | 2012 | 22158870 |
| 8967 | 11 | 0.9996 | Distinct transcriptomic response of S. coelicolor to ciprofloxacin in a nutrient-rich environment. With the rising threat of anti-microbial resistance (AMR), there is an urgent need to enhance efficacy of existing antibiotics. Understanding the myriad mechanisms through which bacteria evade these drugs would be of immense value to designing novel strategies against them. Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) M145 belongs to the actinomyctes species that are responsible for more than two-thirds of antibiotics. This group of bacteria therefore encodes for various mechanisms that can resist both endogenous and non-endogenous antibiotics. In an earlier study, we had studied the transcriptomic response of these bacteria to ciprofloxacin, when cultured in a minimal media. In this work, we investigate why the minimum inhibitory concentration of the drug increases by fourfold when the bacteria are grown in a nutrient-rich media. Through transcriptomic, biochemical, and microscopic studies, we show that S. coelicolor responds to ciprofloxacin in a concentration-dependent manner. While, sub-inhibitory concentration of the drug primarily causes oxidative stress, the inhibitory concentration of ciprofloxacin evokes a more severe genome-wide response in the cell, which ranges from the familiar upregulation of the SOS response and DNA repair pathways to the widespread alterations in the central metabolism pathway to accommodate the increased needs of nucleotides and other precursors. Further, the upregulation of peptidoglycan synthesis genes, along with microscopy images, suggest alterations in the cell morphology to increase fitness of the bacteria during the antibiotic stress. The data also points to the enhanced efflux activity in cells cultured in rich media that contributes significantly towards reducing intracellular drug concentration and thus promotes survival. | 2018 | 30327831 |
| 291 | 12 | 0.9996 | Deregulation of translation due to post-transcriptional modification of rRNA explains why erm genes are inducible. A key mechanism of bacterial resistance to macrolide antibiotics is the dimethylation of a nucleotide in the large ribosomal subunit by erythromycin resistance methyltransferases. The majority of erm genes are expressed only when the antibiotic is present and the erythromycin resistance methyltransferase activity is critical for the survival of bacteria. Although these genes were among the first discovered inducible resistance genes, the molecular basis for their inducibility has remained unknown. Here we show that erythromycin resistance methyltransferase expression reduces cell fitness. Modification of the nucleotide in the ribosomal tunnel skews the cellular proteome by deregulating the expression of a set of proteins. We further demonstrate that aberrant translation of specific proteins results from abnormal interactions of the nascent peptide with the erythromycin resistance methyltransferase-modified ribosomal tunnel. Our findings provide a plausible explanation why erm genes have evolved to be inducible and underscore the importance of nascent peptide recognition by the ribosome for generating a balanced cellular proteome. | 2013 | 23749080 |
| 694 | 13 | 0.9996 | The role of sigmaB in the stress response of Gram-positive bacteria -- targets for food preservation and safety. The alternative sigma factor sigmaB modulates the stress response of several Gram-positive bacteria, including Bacillus subtilis and the food-borne human pathogens Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. In all these bacteria, sigmaB is responsible for the transcription of genes that can confer stress resistance to the vegetative cell. Recent findings indicate that sigmaB also plays an important role in antibiotic resistance, pathogenesis and cellular differentiation processes such as biofilm formation and sporulation. Although there are important differences in the regulation of sigmaB and in the set of genes regulated by sigmaB in B. subtilis, B. cereus, L. monocytogenes and S. aureus, there are also some conserved themes. A mechanistic understanding of the sigmaB activation processes and assessment of its regulon could provide tools for pathogen control and inactivation both in the food industry and clinical settings. | 2005 | 15831390 |
| 6218 | 14 | 0.9996 | An allele of an ancestral transcription factor dependent on a horizontally acquired gene product. Changes in gene regulatory circuits often give rise to phenotypic differences among closely related organisms. In bacteria, these changes can result from alterations in the ancestral genome and/or be brought about by genes acquired by horizontal transfer. Here, we identify an allele of the ancestral transcription factor PmrA that requires the horizontally acquired pmrD gene product to promote gene expression. We determined that a single amino acid difference between the PmrA proteins from the human adapted Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi B and the broad host range S. enterica serovar Typhimurium rendered transcription of PmrA-activated genes dependent on the PmrD protein in the former but not the latter serovar. Bacteria harboring the serovar Typhimurium allele exhibited polymyxin B resistance under PmrA- or under PmrA- and PmrD-inducing conditions. By contrast, isogenic strains with the serovar Paratyphi B allele displayed PmrA-regulated polymyxin B resistance only when experiencing activating conditions for both PmrA and PmrD. We establish that the two PmrA orthologs display quantitative differences in several biochemical properties. Strains harboring the serovar Paratyphi B allele showed enhanced biofilm formation, a property that might promote serovar Paratyphi B's chronic infection of the gallbladder. Our findings illustrate how subtle differences in ancestral genes can impact the ability of horizontally acquired genes to confer new properties. | 2012 | 23300460 |
| 8214 | 15 | 0.9996 | The dlt operon confers resistance to cationic antimicrobial peptides in Clostridium difficile. The dlt operon in Gram-positive bacteria encodes proteins that are necessary for the addition of d-alanine to teichoic acids of the cell wall. The addition of d-alanine to the cell wall results in a net positive charge on the bacterial cell surface and, as a consequence, can decrease the effectiveness of antimicrobials, such as cationic antimicrobial peptides (CAMPs). Although the roles of the dlt genes have been studied for some Gram-positive organisms, the arrangement of these genes in Clostridium difficile and the life cycle of the bacterium in the host are markedly different from those of other pathogens. In the current work, we determined the contribution of the putative C. difficile dlt operon to CAMP resistance. Our data indicate that the dlt operon is necessary for full resistance of C. difficile to nisin, gallidermin, polymyxin B and vancomycin. We propose that the d-alanylation of teichoic acids provides protection against antimicrobial peptides that may be essential for growth of C. difficile in the host. | 2011 | 21330441 |
| 6342 | 16 | 0.9996 | Determinants of Extreme β-Lactam Tolerance in the Burkholderia pseudomallei Complex. Slow-growing bacteria are insensitive to killing by antibiotics, a trait known as antibiotic tolerance. In this study, we characterized the genetic basis of an unusually robust β-lactam (meropenem) tolerance seen in Burkholderia species. We identified tolerance genes under three different slow-growth conditions by extensive transposon mutant sequencing (Tn-seq), followed by single mutant validation. There were three principal findings. First, mutations in a small number of genes reduced tolerance under multiple conditions. Most of the functions appeared to be specific to peptidoglycan synthesis and the response to its disruption by meropenem action rather than being associated with more general physiological processes. The top tolerance genes are involved in immunity toward a type VI toxin targeting peptidoglycan (BTH_I0069), peptidoglycan recycling (ldcA), periplasmic regulation by proteolysis (prc), and an envelope stress response (rpoE and degS). Second, most of the tolerance functions did not contribute to growth in the presence of meropenem (intrinsic resistance), indicating that the two traits are largely distinct. Third, orthologues of many of the top Burkholderia thailandensis tolerance genes were also important in Burkholderia pseudomallei Overall, these studies show that the determinants of meropenem tolerance differ considerably depending on cultivation conditions, but that there are a few shared functions with strong mutant phenotypes that are important in multiple Burkholderia species. | 2018 | 29439964 |
| 696 | 17 | 0.9995 | Identification of a two-component regulatory system involved in antimicrobial peptide resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae. Two-component regulatory systems (TCS) are among the most widespread mechanisms that bacteria use to sense and respond to environmental changes. In the human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae, a total of 13 TCS have been identified and many of them have been linked to pathogenicity. Notably, TCS01 strongly contributes to pneumococcal virulence in several infection models. However, it remains one of the least studied TCS in pneumococci and its functional role is still unclear. In this study, we demonstrate that TCS01 cooperates with a BceAB-type ABC transporter to sense and induce resistance to structurally-unrelated antimicrobial peptides of bacterial origin that all target undecaprenyl-pyrophosphate or lipid II, which are essential precursors of cell wall biosynthesis. Even though tcs01 and bceAB genes do not locate in the same gene cluster, disruption of either of them equally sensitized the bacterium to the same set of antimicrobial peptides. We show that the key function of TCS01 is to upregulate the expression of the transporter, while the latter appears the main actor in resistance. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays further demonstrated that the response regulator of TCS01 binds to the promoter region of the bceAB genes, implying a direct control of these genes. The BceAB transporter was overexpressed and purified from E. coli. After reconstitution in liposomes, it displayed substantial ATPase and GTPase activities that were stimulated by antimicrobial peptides to which it confers resistance to, revealing new functional features of a BceAB-type transporter. Altogether, this inducible defense mechanism likely contributes to the survival of the opportunistic microorganism in the human host, in which competition among commensal microorganisms is a key determinant for effective host colonization and invasive path. | 2022 | 35395062 |
| 8301 | 18 | 0.9995 | Metabolic disruption impairs ribosomal protein levels, resulting in enhanced aminoglycoside tolerance. Aminoglycoside antibiotics target ribosomes and are effective against a wide range of bacteria. Here, we demonstrated that knockout strains related to energy metabolism in Escherichia coli showed increased tolerance to aminoglycosides during the mid-exponential growth phase. Contrary to expectations, these mutations did not reduce the proton motive force or aminoglycoside uptake, as there were no significant changes in metabolic indicators or intracellular gentamicin levels between wild-type and mutant strains. Our comprehensive proteomics analysis unveiled a noteworthy upregulation of proteins linked to the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle in the mutant strains during the mid-exponential growth phase, suggesting that these strains compensate for the perturbation in their energy metabolism by increasing TCA cycle activity to maintain their membrane potential and ATP levels. Furthermore, our pathway enrichment analysis shed light on local network clusters displaying downregulation across all mutant strains, which were associated with both large and small ribosomal binding proteins, ribosome biogenesis, translation factor activity, and the biosynthesis of ribonucleoside monophosphates. These findings offer a plausible explanation for the observed tolerance of aminoglycosides in the mutant strains. Altogether, this research provides valuable insights into the mechanisms of aminoglycoside tolerance, paving the way for novel strategies to combat such cells. | 2024 | 39093940 |
| 8323 | 19 | 0.9995 | The impact of environmental stress on Listeria monocytogenes virulence. Listeria monocytogenes, a significant food-borne pathogen, must defy a variety of conditions encountered in the food environment and during the infection process. In reaction to adverse conditions, the bacteria significantly change their metabolism, inducing a stress response which is mediated by a range of alternative sigma factors. The extent of the response to stress was shown to vary in the L. monocytogenes population. According to recent evidence a major L. monocytogenes alternative sigma factor, designated sigma B (sigma B), regulates some virulence genes in response to stress, which supports an older hypothesis that stress-resistant strains should be more pathogenic. The induction of sigma B-dependent genes may also be important from the point of view of food hygiene. It seems that stress response activation can paradoxically enhance resistance to agents used in food preservation. Therefore, monitoring the expression of sigma B-dependent genes can serve as a useful marker to assess the innate resistance of L. monocytogenes strains. This knowledge will allow the design of new methods with sequential preservation steps that could inactivate the bacteria without inducing their stress response. | 2009 | 20169937 |