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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, December 2007, p. 7826-7836, Vol. 73, No. 24
0099-2240/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.01586-07
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

CpxRA Regulates Mutualism and Pathogenesis in Xenorhabdus nematophila{triangledown}

Erin E. Herbert, Kimberly N. Cowles,{dagger} and Heidi Goodrich-Blair*

Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706

Received 12 July 2007/ Accepted 9 October 2007

The CpxRA signal transduction system, which in Escherichia coli regulates surface structure assembly and envelope maintenance, is involved in the pathogenic and mutualistic interactions of the entomopathogenic bacterium Xenorhabdus nematophila. When {Delta}cpxR1 cells were injected into Manduca sexta insects, the time required to kill 50% of the insects was twofold longer than the time observed for wild-type cells and the {Delta}cpxR1 cells ultimately killed 16% fewer insects than wild-type cells killed. During mutualistic colonization of Steinernema carpocapsae nematodes, the {Delta}cpxR1 mutant achieved colonization levels that were only 38% of the wild-type levels. {Delta}cpxR1 cells exhibited an extended lag phase when they were grown in liquid LB or hemolymph, formed irregular colonies on solid medium, and had a filamentous cell morphology. A mutant with a cpxRp-lacZ fusion had peaks of expression in the log and stationary phases that were conversely influenced by CpxR; the {Delta}cpxR1 mutant produced 130 and 17% of the wild-type β-galactosidase activity in the log and stationary phases, respectively. CpxR positively influences motility and secreted lipase activity, as well as transcription of genes necessary for mutualistic colonization of nematodes. CpxR negatively influences the production of secreted hemolysin, protease, and antibiotic activities, as well as the expression of mrxA, encoding the pilin subunit. Thus, X. nematophila CpxRA controls expression of envelope-localized and secreted products, and its activity is necessary for both mutualistic and pathogenic functions.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, WI 53706. Phone: (608) 265-4537. Fax: (608) 262-9865. E-mail: hgblair{at}bact.wisc.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 19 October 2007.

{dagger} Present address: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, December 2007, p. 7826-7836, Vol. 73, No. 24
0099-2240/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.01586-07
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Herbert Tran, E. E., Goodrich-Blair, H. (2009). CpxRA Contributes to Xenorhabdus nematophila Virulence through Regulation of lrhA and Modulation of Insect Immunity. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 3998-4006 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Herbert Tran, E. E., Andersen, A. W., Goodrich-Blair, H. (2009). CpxRA Influences Xenorhabdus nematophila Colonization Initiation and Outgrowth in Steinernema carpocapsae Nematodes through Regulation of the nil Locus. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 4007-4014 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Richards, G. R., Herbert, E. E., Park, Y., Goodrich-Blair, H. (2008). Xenorhabdus nematophila lrhA Is Necessary for Motility, Lipase Activity, Toxin Expression, and Virulence in Manduca sexta Insects. J. Bacteriol. 190: 4870-4879 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Drace, K., Darby, C. (2008). The hmsHFRS Operon of Xenorhabdus nematophila Is Required for Biofilm Attachment to Caenorhabditis elegans. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 74: 4509-4515 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Wolfe, A. J., Parikh, N., Lima, B. P., Zemaitaitis, B. (2008). Signal Integration by the Two-Component Signal Transduction Response Regulator CpxR. J. Bacteriol. 190: 2314-2322 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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