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Published on: May 23, 2020
Cell aggregation is negatively regulated by N-acylhomoserine lactone-mediated quorum sensing in Pantoea ananatis SK-1
Tomohiro Morohoshi1, Yuji Ogata, Tsukasa Ikeda
1Department of Material and Environmental Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Utsunomiya University, 7-1-2 Yoto, Utsunomiya 321-8585, Japan. morohosi@cc.utsunomiya-u.ac.jp
Abstract:
Pantoea ananatis SK-1 produces N-acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) and regulates expression of some virulence factors through AHL-mediated quorum sensing. In this study, we discovered that the strain SK-02I, which has a disrupted AHL-synthetic gene, showed constitutive cell aggregation. SK-1 has the ability to aggregate, and cell aggregation inhibitory factors are expressed under control of AHL-mediated quorum sensing. One of the transposon mutants, SK-33M, constitutively aggregates without defective AHL production. A homology search revealed that the transposon integration site was located in the adhesin-like yeeJ gene. Based on RT-PCR analysis, transcription of yeeJ is regulated by AHL-mediated quorum sensing. However, because both the wild-type and SK-33M strains induced necrotic symptoms in onion leaves, we conclude that the yeeJ gene is not involved in the pathogenicity of SK-1.
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