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Infection and Immunity, April 2001, p. 2493-2501, Vol. 69, No. 4
0019-9567/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/IAI.69.4.2493-2501.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Identification of Stress-Responsive Genes in Streptococcus mutans by Differential Display Reverse Transcription-PCR

Jean-San Chia,* Ya-Yu Lee, Peng-Tu Huang, and Jen-Yang Chen

Graduate Institute of Microbiology, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China

Received 18 December 2000/Returned for modification 17 January 2001/Accepted 24 January 2001

Streptococcus mutans, which causes dental caries in the human oral cavity and occasionally causes infective endocarditis in the heart, withstands adverse environmental stress through diverse alterations in protein synthesis. Differential gene expression in response to environmental stress was analyzed by RNA fingerprinting using arbitrarily primed PCR with a panel of 11mer primers designed for differential display in Enterobacteriaceae. Dot and Northern blot hybridization confirmed that the transcription of several genes was up- or down-regulated following exposure to acid shock from pH 7.5 to 5.5. RNA of a gene designated AP-185 (acid-stress protein) was induced specifically by acid treatment, while RNA of GSP-781 (general-stress protein) was up-regulated significantly when bacteria were exposed to high osmolarity and temperature, as well as low pH. The deduced amino acid sequence of AP-185 shares homology (78% identity) with branched-chain amino acid aminotransferase. Cloning and sequence analysis of GSP-781 revealed a potential secreted protein of a molecular mass of about 43 kDa and with a pI predicted to be 5.5. Transcriptional levels of another gene, designated AR-186 (acid-repressed protein), which encodes putative aconitase, were repressed by acid treatment but were enhanced by plasma or serum components. Analogous results were identified in icd and citZ genes, and repression of these genes, along with AR-186, was also observed when they were exposed to high osmolarity and temperature. These results indicate that differential regulation of specific genes at the transcriptional level is triggered by different stress and that genes responsible for glutamate biosynthesis in the citrate pathway are coordinately regulated during the stress response of S. mutans.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: No. 1, Jen Ai Road 1st Section, Room 713, Graduate Institute of Microbiology, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. Phone: 886-2-23123456, ext. 8222. Fax: 886-2-23915293. E-mail: chiajs{at}ha.mc.edu.tw.

Infection and Immunity, April 2001, p. 2493-2501, Vol. 69, No. 4
0019-9567/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/IAI.69.4.2493-2501.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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