Multiple Layered Control of the Conjugation Process of the Bacillus subtilis Plasmid pLS20
Meijer, Wilfried J. J. (Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa)
Boer, Roeland (ALBA Laboratori de Llum de Sincrotró)
Ares, Saúl (Centro Nacional de Biotecnología. Departamento de Biología de Sistemas)
Alfonso, Carlos (Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas (Madrid))
Rojo, Fernando (Centro Nacional de Biotecnología. Department of Microbial Biotechnology)
Luque-Ortega, Juan Román (Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas (Madrid))
Wu, Ling Juan (Newcastle University. Centre for Bacterial Cell Biology, Biosciences Institute)

Fecha:	2021
Resumen:	Bacterial conjugation is the main horizontal gene transfer route responsible for the spread of antibiotic resistance, virulence and toxin genes. During conjugation, DNA is transferred from a donor to a recipient cell via a sophisticated channel connecting the two cells. Conjugation not only affects many different aspects of the plasmid and the host, ranging from the properties of the membrane and the cell surface of the donor, to other developmental processes such as competence, it probably also poses a burden on the donor cell due to the expression of the large number of genes involved in the conjugation process. Therefore, expression of the conjugation genes must be strictly controlled. Over the past decade, the regulation of the conjugation genes present on the conjugative Bacillus subtilis plasmid pLS20 has been studied using a variety of methods including genetic, biochemical, biophysical and structural approaches. This review focuses on the interplay between Rco, Rap and Phr*, the proteins that control the activity of the main conjugation promoter P located upstream of the conjugation operon. Proper expression of the conjugation genes requires the following two fundamental elements. First, conjugation is repressed by default and an intercellular quorum-signaling system is used to sense conditions favorable for conjugation. Second, different layers of regulation act together to repress the P promoter in a strict manner but allowing rapid activation. During conjugation, ssDNA is exported from the cell by a membrane-embedded DNA translocation machine. Another membrane-embedded DNA translocation machine imports ssDNA in competent cells. Evidences are reviewed indicating that conjugation and competence are probably mutually exclusive processes. Some of the questions that remain unanswered are discussed.
Ayudas:	Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2019-108778GB-C21 Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad BIO2016-77883-C2-2-P Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad FIS2015-72574-EXP Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2019-104544GB-I00 Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2019-109320GB-100 Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad FIS2016-78313-P Agencia Estatal de Investigación SEV-2017-0712 Agencia Estatal de Investigación PGC2018-094143-B-I00
Derechos:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Lengua:	Anglès
Documento:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Materia:	Quorum sensing ; Bacillus subtilis ; Gram-positive bacteria ; Antibiotic resistance ; Horizontal gene transfer ; DNA looping ; Transcriptional regulation ; Conjugation
Publicado en:	Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences, Vol. 8 (March 2021) , art. 648468, ISSN 2296-889X

DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2021.648468
PMID: 33816561

14 p, 1.5 MB

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