This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Weiner, M. A.
Right arrow Articles by Hanna, P. C.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Weiner, M. A.
Right arrow Articles by Hanna, P. C.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Infection and Immunity, July 2003, p. 3954-3959, Vol. 71, No. 7
0019-9567/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/IAI.71.7.3954-3959.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Macrophage-Mediated Germination of Bacillus anthracis Endospores Requires the gerH Operon

Matthew A. Weiner and Philip C. Hanna*

Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Received 31 January 2003/ Returned for modification 25 March 2003/ Accepted 11 April 2003

The gerHABC operon of Bacillus anthracis, encoding a gerA-like family member of germinant sensors, was shown to be required for endospore germination in the presence of macrophages and in macrophage-conditioned media. The loss of the germination phenotype in macrophage cultures of B. anthracis gerH-null endospores was restored by complementation in trans with a wild-type copy of gerH expressed under the control of its own promoter. Using endospores from both the parental strain B. anthracis Sterne and an isogenic gerH-null strain, we partially characterized germinants secreted by macrophages into the extracellular medium.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Michigan Medical School, 5641 Med. Sci. II, Box 0620, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. Phone: (734) 615-3706. Fax: (734) 764-3562. E-mail: pchanna{at}umich.edu.

Editor: D. L. Burns

Infection and Immunity, July 2003, p. 3954-3959, Vol. 71, No. 7
0019-9567/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/IAI.71.7.3954-3959.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Barua, S., McKevitt, M., DeGiusti, K., Hamm, E. E., Larabee, J., Shakir, S., Bryant, K., Koehler, T. M., Blanke, S. R., Dyer, D., Gillaspy, A., Ballard, J. D. (2009). The Mechanism of Bacillus anthracis Intracellular Germination Requires Multiple and Highly Diverse Genetic Loci. Infect. Immun. 77: 23-31 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Senior, A., Moir, A. (2008). The Bacillus cereus GerN and GerT Protein Homologs Have Distinct Roles in Spore Germination and Outgrowth, Respectively. J. Bacteriol. 190: 6148-6152 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Stojkovic, B., Torres, E. M., Prouty, A. M., Patel, H. K., Zhuang, L., Koehler, T. M., Ballard, J. D., Blanke, S. R. (2008). High-Throughput, Single-Cell Analysis of Macrophage Interactions with Fluorescently Labeled Bacillus anthracis Spores. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 74: 5201-5210 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • McKevitt, M. T., Bryant, K. M., Shakir, S. M., Larabee, J. L., Blanke, S. R., Lovchik, J., Lyons, C. R., Ballard, J. D. (2007). Effects of Endogenous D-Alanine Synthesis and Autoinhibition of Bacillus anthracis Germination on In Vitro and In Vivo Infections. Infect. Immun. 75: 5726-5734 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Weaver, J., Kang, T. J., Raines, K. W., Cao, G.-L., Hibbs, S., Tsai, P., Baillie, L., Rosen, G. M., Cross, A. S. (2007). Protective Role of Bacillus anthracis Exosporium in Macrophage-Mediated Killing by Nitric Oxide. Infect. Immun. 75: 3894-3901 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Basu, S., Kang, T. J., Chen, W. H., Fenton, M. J., Baillie, L., Hibbs, S., Cross, A. S. (2007). Role of Bacillus anthracis Spore Structures in Macrophage Cytokine Responses. Infect. Immun. 75: 2351-2358 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Akoachere, M., Squires, R. C., Nour, A. M., Angelov, L., Brojatsch, J., Abel-Santos, E. (2007). Identification of an in Vivo Inhibitor of Bacillus anthracis Spore Germination. J. Biol. Chem. 282: 12112-12118 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Boydston, J. A., Yue, L., Kearney, J. F., Turnbough, C. L. Jr. (2006). The ExsY Protein Is Required for Complete Formation of the Exosporium of Bacillus anthracis. J. Bacteriol. 188: 7440-7448 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Heffernan, B. J., Thomason, B., Herring-Palmer, A., Shaughnessy, L., McDonald, R., Fisher, N., Huffnagle, G. B., Hanna, P. (2006). Bacillus anthracis Phospholipases C Facilitate Macrophage-Associated Growth and Contribute to Virulence in a Murine Model of Inhalation Anthrax. Infect. Immun. 74: 3756-3764 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Raines, K. W., Kang, T. J., Hibbs, S., Cao, G.-L., Weaver, J., Tsai, P., Baillie, L., Cross, A. S., Rosen, G. M. (2006). Importance of Nitric Oxide Synthase in the Control of Infection by Bacillus anthracis. Infect. Immun. 74: 2268-2276 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Fisher, N., Hanna, P. (2005). Characterization of Bacillus anthracis Germinant Receptors In Vitro. J. Bacteriol. 187: 8055-8062 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Kang, T. J., Fenton, M. J., Weiner, M. A., Hibbs, S., Basu, S., Baillie, L., Cross, A. S. (2005). Murine Macrophages Kill the Vegetative Form of Bacillus anthracis. Infect. Immun. 73: 7495-7501 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»