title: The Cpx two-component signal transduction pathway of Escherichia coli regulates transcription of the gene specifying the stress-inducible periplasmic protease, DegP.
abstract: DegP is a heat-shock inducible periplasmic protease in Escherichia coli. Unlike the cytoplasmic heat shock proteins, DegP is not transcriptionally regulated by the classical heat shock regulon coordinated by sigma 32. Rather, the degP gene is transcriptionally regulated by an alternate heat shock sigma factor, sigma E. Previous studies have demonstrated a signal transduction pathway that monitors the amount of outer-membrane proteins in the bacterial envelope and modulates degP levels in response to this extracytoplasmic parameter. To analyze the transcriptional regulation of degP, we examined mutations that altered transcription of a degP-lacZ operon fusion. Gain-of-function mutations in cpxA, which specifies a two-component sensor protein, stimulate transcription from degP. Defined null mutations in cpxA or the gene encoding its cognate response regulator, cpxR, decrease transcription from degP. These null mutations also prevent transcriptional induction of degP in response to overexpression of a gene specifying an envelope lipoprotein. Cpx-mediated transcription of degP is partially dependent on the activity of E sigma E, suggesting that the Cpx pathway functions in concert with E sigma E and perhaps other RNA polymerases to drive transcription of degP.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, New Jersey 08544.
authors.forename: P N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Danese
authors.forename: W B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Snyder
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Cosma
authors.forename: L J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Silhavy
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D001483:Base Sequence; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000201:enzymology; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D006360:Heat-Shock Proteins; D007763:Lac Operon / Q000235:genetics; D008074:Lipoproteins / Q000378:metabolism; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D008957:Models, Genetic; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D010755:Organophosphates / Q000494:pharmacology; D033903:Periplasmic Proteins; D011494:Protein Kinases; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D012808:Sigma Factor / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics*; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D006360:Heat-Shock Proteins; D008074:Lipoproteins; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D010755:Organophosphates; D033903:Periplasmic Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D012808:Sigma Factor; C085504:CpxR protein, Bacteria; C011632:acetyl phosphate; D011494:Protein Kinases; C490475:CpxA protein, E coli; C092472:CpxA protein, bacteria; C061682:DegP protease; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases