Hao Gong

A Salmonella small non-coding RNA facilitates bacterial invasion and intracellular replication by modulating the expression of virulence factors.

Small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs) that act as regulators of gene expression have been identified in all kingdoms of life, including microRNA (miRNA) and small interfering RNA (siRNA) in eukaryotic cells. Numerous sRNAs identified in Salmonella are encoded by genes located at Salmonella pathogenicity islands (SPIs) that are commonly found in pathogenic strains. Whether these sRNAs are important for Salmonella pathogenesis and virulence in animals has not been reported. In this study, we provide the first direct evidence that a pathogenicity island-encoded sRNA, IsrM, is important for Salmonella invasion of epithelial cells, intracellular replication inside macrophages, and virulence and colonization in mice. IsrM RNA is expressed in vitro under conditions resembling those during infection in the gastrointestinal tract. Furthermore, IsrM is found to be differentially expressed in vivo, with higher expression in the ileum than in the spleen. IsrM targets the mRNAs coding for SopA, a SPI-1 effector, and HilE, a global regulator of the expression of SPI-1 proteins, which are major virulence factors essential for bacterial invasion. Mutations in IsrM result in disregulation of expression of HilE and SopA, as well as other SPI-1 genes whose expression is regulated by HilE. Salmonella with deletion of isrM is defective in bacteria invasion of epithelial cells and intracellular replication/survival in macrophages. Moreover, Salmonella with mutations in isrM is attenuated in killing animals and defective in growth in the ileum and spleen in mice. Our study has shown that IsrM sRNA functions as a pathogenicity island-encoded sRNA directly involved in Salmonella pathogenesis in animals. Our results also suggest that sRNAs may represent a distinct class of virulence factors that are important for bacterial infection in vivo.

Release of extracellular ATP by bacteria during growth

BackgroundAdenosine triphosphate (ATP) is used as an intracellular energy source by all living organisms. It plays a central role in the respiration and metabolism, and is the most important energy supplier in many enzymatic reactions. Its critical role as the energy storage molecule makes it extremely valuable to all cells.ResultsWe report here the detection of extracellular ATP in the cultures of a variety of bacterial species. The levels of the extracellular ATP in bacterial cultures peaked around the end of the log phase and decreased in the stationary phase of growth. Extracellular ATP levels were dependent on the cellular respiration as bacterial mutants lacking cytochrome bo oxidase displayed lower extracellular ATP levels. We have also shown that Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Salmonella actively depleted extracellular ATP and an ATP supplement in culture media enhanced the stationary survival of E. coli and Salmonella. In addition to E. coli and Salmonella the presence of the extracellular ATP was observed in a variety of bacterial species that contain human pathogens such as Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, Klebsiella and Staphylococcus.ConclusionOur results indicate that extracellular ATP is produced by many bacterial species during growth and extracellular ATP may serve a role in the bacterial physiology.

Yeast two hybrid analyses reveal novel binary interactions between human cytomegalovirus-encoded virion proteins.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is the largest human herpesvirus and its virion contains many viral encoded proteins found in the capsid, tegument, and envelope. In this study, we carried out a yeast two-hybrid (YTH) analysis to study potential binary interactions among 56 HCMV-encoded virion proteins. We have tested more than 3,500 pairwise combinations for binary interactions in the YTH analysis, and identified 79 potential interactions that involve 37 proteins. Forty five of the 79 interactions were also identified in human cells expressing the viral proteins by co-immunoprecipitation (co-IP) experiments. To our knowledge, 58 of the 79 interactions revealed by YTH analysis, including those 24 that were also identified in co-IP experiments, have not been reported before. Novel potential interactions were found between viral capsid proteins and tegument proteins, between tegument proteins, between tegument proteins and envelope proteins, and between envelope proteins. Furthermore, both the YTH and co-IP experiments have identified 9, 7, and 5 interactions that were involved with UL25, UL24, and UL89, respectively, suggesting that these “hub” proteins may function as the organizing centers for connecting multiple virion proteins in the mature virion and for recruiting other virion proteins during virion maturation and assembly. Our study provides a framework to study potential interactions between HCMV proteins and investigate the roles of protein-protein interactions in HCMV virion formation or maturation process.

The Potassium Transporter Trk and External Potassium Modulate Salmonella enterica Protein Secretion and Virulence

ABSTRACT Potassium (K+) is the most abundant intracellular cation and is essential for many physiological functions of all living organisms; however, its role in the pathogenesis of human pathogens is not well understood. In this study, we characterized the functions of the bacterial Trk K+ transport system and external K+ in the pathogenesis of Salmonella enterica, a major food-borne bacterial pathogen. Here we report that Trk is important for Salmonella to invade and grow inside epithelial cells. It is also necessary for the full virulence of Salmonella in an animal infection model. Analysis of proteins of Salmonella indicated that Trk is involved in the expression and secretion of effector proteins of the type III secretion system (TTSS) encoded by Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 (SPI1) that were previously shown to be necessary for Salmonella invasion. In addition to the role of the Trk transporter in the pathogenesis of Salmonella, we discovered that external K+ modulates the pathogenic properties of Salmonella by increasing the expression and secretion of effector proteins of the SPI1-encoded TTSS and by enhancing epithelial cell invasion. Our studies demonstrated that K+ is actively involved in the pathogenesis of Salmonella and indicated that Salmonella may take advantage of the high K+ content inside host cells and in the intestinal fluid during diarrhea to become more virulent.

The Smallest Capsid Protein Mediates Binding of the Essential Tegument Protein pp150 to Stabilize DNA-Containing Capsids in Human Cytomegalovirus

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a ubiquitous herpesvirus that causes birth defects in newborns and life-threatening complications in immunocompromised individuals. Among all human herpesviruses, HCMV contains a much larger dsDNA genome within a similarly-sized capsid compared to the others, and it was proposed to require pp150, a tegument protein only found in cytomegaloviruses, to stabilize its genome-containing capsid. However, little is known about how pp150 interacts with the underlying capsid. Moreover, the smallest capsid protein (SCP), while dispensable in herpes simplex virus type 1, was shown to play essential, yet undefined, role in HCMV infection. Here, by cryo electron microscopy (cryoEM), we determine three-dimensional structures of HCMV capsid (no pp150) and virion (with pp150) at sub-nanometer resolution. Comparison of these two structures reveals that each pp150 tegument density is composed of two helix bundles connected by a long central helix. Correlation between the resolved helices and sequence-based secondary structure prediction maps the tegument density to the N-terminal half of pp150. The structures also show that SCP mediates interactions between the capsid and pp150 at the upper helix bundle of pp150. Consistent with this structural observation, ribozyme inhibition of SCP expression in HCMV-infected cells impairs the formation of DNA-containing viral particles and reduces viral yield by 10,000 fold. By cryoEM reconstruction of the resulting “SCP-deficient” viral particles, we further demonstrate that SCP is required for pp150 functionally binding to the capsid. Together, our structural and biochemical results point to a mechanism whereby SCP recruits pp150 to stabilize genome-containing capsid for the production of infectious HCMV virion.

Oral delivery of RNase P ribozymes by Salmonella inhibits viral infection in mice

Safe, effective, and tissue-specific delivery is a central issue for the therapeutic application of nucleic-acid-based gene interfering agents, such as ribozymes and siRNAs. In this study, we constructed a functional RNase P-based ribozyme (M1GS RNA) that targets the overlapping mRNA region of M80.5 and protease, two murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) proteins essential for viral replication. In addition, a novel attenuated strain of Salmonella, which exhibited efficient gene transfer activity and little cytotoxicity and pathogenicity in mice, was constructed and used for delivery of anti-MCMV ribozyme. In MCMV-infected macrophages treated with the constructed attenuated Salmonella strain carrying the functional M1GS RNA construct, we observed an 80–85% reduction in the expression of M80.5/protease and a 2,500-fold reduction in viral growth. Oral inoculation of the attenuated Salmonella strain in mice efficiently delivered antiviral M1GS RNA into spleens and livers, leading to substantial expression of the ribozyme without causing significant adverse effects in the animals. Furthermore, the MCMV-infected mice that were treated orally with Salmonella carrying the functional M1GS sequence displayed reduced viral gene expression, decreased viral titers, and improved survival compared to the untreated mice or mice treated with Salmonella containing control ribozyme sequences. Our results provide direct evidence that oral delivery of M1GS RNA by Salmonella-based vectors effectively inhibits viral gene expression and replication in mice. Moreover, this study demonstrates the utility of Salmonella-mediated oral delivery of RNase P ribozyme for gene-targeting applications in vivo.

Unconventional Sequence Requirement for Viral Late Gene Core Promoters of Murine Gammaherpesvirus 68

ABSTRACT Infection with the human gammaherpesviruses, Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and Kaposis sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), is associated with several cancers. During lytic replication of herpesviruses, viral genes are expressed in an ordered cascade. However, the mechanism by which late gene expression is regulated has not been well characterized in gammaherpesviruses. In this study, we have investigated the cis element that mediates late gene expression during de novo lytic infection with murine gammaherpesvirus 68 (MHV-68). A reporter system was established and used to assess the activity of viral late gene promoters upon infection with MHV-68. It was found that the viral origin of lytic replication, orilyt, must be on the reporter plasmid to support activation of the late gene promoter. Furthermore, the DNA sequence required for the activation of late gene promoters was mapped to a core element containing a distinct TATT box and its neighboring sequences. The critical nucleotides of the TATT box region were determined by systematic mutagenesis in the reporter system, and the significance of these nucleotides was confirmed in the context of the viral genome. In addition, EBV and KSHV late gene core promoters could be activated by MHV-68 lytic replication, indicating that the mechanisms controlling late gene expression are conserved among gammaherpesviruses. Therefore, our results on MHV-68 establish a solid foundation for mechanistic studies of late gene regulation.

Differential expression of Salmonella type III secretion system factors InvJ, PrgJ, SipC, SipD, SopA and SopB in cultures and in mice

The type III secretion system (T3SS) encoded by Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 (SPI-1) is important for the invasion of epithelial cells during development of Salmonella-associated enterocolitis. It has been suggested that the level and timing of the expression of the SPI-1 T3SS proteins and effectors dictate the consequences of bacterial infection and pathogenesis. However, the expression of these proteins has not been extensively studied in vivo, especially during the later stages of salmonellosis when the infection is established. We have constructed recombinant Salmonella strains that contain a FLAG epitope inserted in-frame to genes invJ, prgJ, sipC, sipD, sopA and sopB, and investigated the expression of the tagged proteins both in vitro and in vivo during murine salmonellosis. Mice were inoculated intraperitoneally or intragastrically with the tagged Salmonella strains. At different time points post-infection, bacteria were recovered from various organs, and the expression of the tagged proteins was determined. Our results provide direct evidence that PrgJ and SipD are expressed in Salmonella colonizing the liver and ileum of infected animals at both the early and late stages of infection. Furthermore, our study has shown that the InvJ protein is expressed preferentially in Salmonella colonizing the ileum but not the liver, while SipC is expressed preferentially in Salmonella colonizing the liver but not the ileum. Thus, Salmonella appears to express different SPI-1 proteins and effectors when colonizing specific tissues. Our results suggest that differential expression of these proteins may be important for tissue-specific aspects of bacterial pathogenesis such as gastroenterititis in the ileum and systemic infection in the liver.

Mass spectrometry-based quantitative proteomic analysis of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis protein expression upon exposure to hydrogen peroxide.

BackgroundSalmonellaenterica, a common food-borne bacterial pathogen, is believed to change its protein expression profile in the presence of different environmental stress such as that caused by the exposure to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which can be generated by phagocytes during infection and represents an important antibacterial mechanism of host cells. Among Salmonella proteins, the effectors of Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 and 2 (SPI-1 and SPI-2) are of particular interest since they are expressed during host infection in vivo and are important for invasion of epithelial cells and for replication in organs during systemic infection, respectively. However, the expression profiles of these proteins upon exposure to H2O2 or to host cells in vivo during the established phase of systemic infection have not been extensively studied.ResultsUsing stable isotope labeling coupled with mass spectrometry, we performed quantitative proteomic analysis of Salmonellaenterica serovar Enteritidis and identified 76 proteins whose expression is modulated upon exposure to H2O2. SPI-1 effector SipC was expressed about 3-fold higher and SopB was expressed approximately 2-fold lower in the presence of H2O2, while no significant change in the expression of another SPI-1 protein SipA was observed. The relative abundance of SipA, SipC, and SopB was confirmed by Western analyses, validating the accuracy and reproducibility of our approach for quantitative analysis of protein expression. Furthermore, immuno-detection showed substantial expression of SipA and SipC but not SopB in the late phase of infection in macrophages and in the spleen of infected mice.ConclusionsWe have identified Salmonella proteins whose expression is modulated in the presence of H2O2. Our results also provide the first direct evidence that SipC is highly expressed in the spleen at late stage of salmonellosis in vivo. These results suggest a possible role of SipC and other regulated proteins in supporting survival and replication of Salmonella under oxidative stress and during its systemic infection in vivo.

Characterization of the expression of Salmonella Type III secretion system factor PrgI, SipA, SipB, SopE2, SpaO, and SptP in cultures and in mice

BackgroundThe type III secretion systems (T3SSs) encoded by Salmonella pathogenicity island 1 and 2 (SPI-1 and SPI-2) are important for invasion of epithelial cells during development of Salmonella-associated enterocolitis and for replication in macrophages during systemic infection, respectively. In vitro studies have previously revealed hierarchical transport of different SPI-1 factors and ordered synergistic/antagonistic relationships between these proteins during Salmonella entry. These results suggest that the level and timing of the expression of these proteins dictate the consequences of bacterial infection and pathogenesis. However, the expression of these proteins has not been extensively studied in vivo, especially during the later stages of salmonellosis when the infection is established.ResultsIn this study, we have constructed bacterial strains that contain a FLAG epitope inserted in frame to SPI-1 genes prgI, sipA, sipB, sopE2, spaO, and sptP, and investigated the expression of the tagged proteins both in vitro and in vivo during murine salmonellosis. The tagged Salmonella strains were inoculated intraperitoneally or intragastrically into mice and recovered from various organs. Our results provide direct evidence that PrgI and SipB are expressed in Salmonella colonizing the spleen and cecum of the infected animals at early and late stages of infection. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that the SpaO protein is expressed preferably in Salmonella colonizing the cecum but not the spleen and that SptP is expressed preferably in Salmonella colonizing the spleen but not the cecum.ConclusionThese results suggest that Salmonella may express different SPI-1 proteins when they colonize specific tissues and that differential expression of these proteins may be important for tissue-specific aspects of bacterial pathogenesis such as gastroenterititis in the cecum and systemic infection in the spleen.