Iron uptake regulation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

The Pseudomonas genus belongs to the gamma division of Proteobacteria and many species produce the characteristic yellow-green siderophore pyoverdine, and often a second siderophore, of lower affinity for iron. These bacteria are known for their ability to colonize different ecological niches and for their versatile metabolism. It is therefore not surprising that they are endowed with the capacity to take up exogenous xenosiderophores via different TonB-dependent receptors. Uptake of iron is controlled by the central regulator Fur, and via extracytoplasmic sigma factors or other types of regulators (two-component systems, AraC regulators). In this review the Fur regulon (experimentally proven and/or predicted) of P. aeruginosa will be presented. An interesting feature revealed by this analysis of Fur-regulated genes is the overlap between the iron and the sulfur regulons as well with the quorum sensing system.