Evaluating the role of phage-shock protein A in Burkholderia pseudomallei

Abstract

The Psp response is an extracytoplasmic response system that is vital for maintenance of the cytoplasmic membrane when the cell encounters stressful conditions. The paradigm of the Psp response has been established in Escherichia coli. The response has been shown to be important for survival during stationary phase, maintenance of the proton motive force across membranes, and implicated in virulence. In this study, we identified a putative PspA homologue in Burkholderia pseudomallei, annotated as BPSL2105. Similarly to the induction of PspA in E. coli, the expression of B. pseudomallei BPSL2105 was induced by heat shock. Deletion of the BPSL2105 gene resulted in a survival defect in late stationary phase coincident with dramatic changes in the pH of the culture medium. The B. pseudomallei BPSL2105 deletion mutant also displayed reduced survival in macrophage infection, the first indication that the Psp response plays a role during intracellular pathogenesis in this species. The purified protein formed large oligomeric structures similar to those observed for the PspA protein of E. coli and PspA homologues in Bacillus, cyanobacteria and higher plants, providing further evidence to support the identification of BPSL2105 as a PspA-like protein in B. pseudomallei.

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ORCID for Ali Tavassoli: orcid.org/0000-0002-7420-5063

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