Characterization of the transcriptional regulation of the tarIJKL locus involved in ribitol-containing wall teichoic acid biosynthesis in Lactobacillus plantarum
Tomita, S. and Lee, I.-C. and van Swam, I. I. and Boeren, S. and Vervoort, J. and Bron, P. A. and Kleerebezem, M.,, 162, 420-432 (2016),
doi = https://doi.org/10.1099/mic.0.000229,
publicationName = Microbiology Society,
issn = 1350-0872,
abstract= Lactobacillus plantarum strains produce either glycerol (Gro)- or ribitol (Rbo)-backbone wall teichoic acid (WTA) (Gro-WTA and Rbo-WTA, respectively). The strain WCFS1 has been shown to be able to activate the tarIJKL locus involved in Rbo-WTA synthesis when the tagD1F1F2 locus for Gro-WTA synthesis was mutated, resulting in switching of the native Gro-WTA into Rbo-WTA. Here, we identify a regulator involved in the WTA backbone alditol switching and activation of the tarIJKL locus. Promoter reporter assays of the tarI promoter (P tar ) demonstrated its activity in the Rbo-WTA-producing mutant derivative (ΔtagF1—2) but not in the parental strain WCFS1. An electrophoresis mobility shift assay using a P tar nucleotide fragment showed that this fragment bound to P tar -binding protein(s) in a cell-free extract of WCFS1. Three proteins were subsequently isolated using P tar bound to magnetic beads. These proteins were isolated efficiently from the lysate of WCFS1 but not from the lysate of its ΔtagF1—2 derivative, and were identified as redox-sensitive transcription regulator (Lp_0725), catabolite control protein A (Lp_2256) and TetR family transcriptional regulator (Lp_1153). The role of these proteins in P tar regulation was investigated by knockout mutagenesis, showing that the Δlp_1153 mutant expressed the tarI gene at a significantly higher level, supporting its role as a repressor of the tarIJKL locus. Notably, the Δlp_1153 mutation also led to reduced expression of the tagF1 gene. These results show that Lp_1153 is a regulatory factor that plays a role in WTA alditol switching in Lb. plantarum WCFS1 and we propose to rename this gene/protein wasR/WasR, for WTA alditol switch regulator.,
language=,
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