Endogenous nitric oxide promotes Staphylococcus aureus virulence by activating autophagy

Endogenous nitric oxide (NO) is a small molecule that has been demonstrated to affect the physiology and survival of bacteria. The role of endogenous NO for Staphylococcus aureus survival inside host cells remains unclear. Here, we show that the production of endogenous NO by bacterial nitrate reductase (NR) is affected by molybdopterin biosynthesis protein A (MoeA), which is essential for molybdenum cofactor synthesis in S. aureus. During the infection, the production of endogenous NO promotes S. aureus survival inside macrophages by initiating cellular autophagy. Mechanistically, bacterial endogenous NO can modify the host regulatory protein thioredoxin vis S-nitrosylation, subsequently triggering the phosphorylation of the JNK-Bcl-2 pathway and promoting the initiation of autophagy through the release of Beclin1. Moreover, we confirmed the critical role of MoeA in bacterial survival in vivo by using bloodstream infection, pneumonia, and skin abscess model on both wild-type and autophagy-deficient mice. Interestingly, we observed the significantly increased production of NO and activation of cellular autophagy of sequence type (ST)5 compared with ST239, suggesting that the initiation of autophagy is involved in the clone shift of S. aureus. Our data offered new insights on the role of bacterial endogenous NO in regulating the host signal pathway during infection inside host cells.IMPORTANCEUnderstanding the mechanism underlying Staphylococcus aureus pathogenesis is essential for developing innovative strategies for the prevention and treatment of infection. In this study, we underscore the critical role of molybdopterin biosynthesis protein A and nitric oxide (NO) in inducing autophagy during S. aureus survival within macrophage and in vivo infection. We demonstrate that host regulatory protein can be modified by bacterial metabolites, which may influence cellular processes. Furthermore, our findings indicated that increased endogenous NO production may contribute to the stable prevalence of S. aureus ST5 in the healthcare-associated environment. These findings highlight the significance of bacterial metabolism in modulating the host immune system, thereby facilitating S. aureus survival and persistence.