title: SsrA (tmRNA) acts as an antisense RNA to regulate Staphylococcus aureus pigment synthesis by base pairing with crtMN mRNA.
abstract: SsrA RNA (small stable RNA A), also known as tmRNA and 10Sa RNA, functions both as tRNA and mRNA through its unique structure. The carotenoid pigment is the eponymous feature of human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus. Here, we found that the pigment of the mutant strain with ssrA deletion was increased. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that ssrA could act as an antisense RNA aside from its well-known biological function, and crtMN, encoding two essential enzymes for the pigment synthesis, was identified as target of ssrA. Further investigation showed ssrA could specifically base pair with the RBS (ribosomal binding site) region of the crtMN mRNA. Our results revealed a new mechanism by which ssrA regulated the biosynthesis of pigment in S. aureus.
authors.affiliation: Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: Yaping
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Ningsheng
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.forename: Guang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D020121:5' Untranslated Regions / Q000235:genetics; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020029:Base Pairing; D001483:Base Sequence; D001665:Binding Sites / Q000235:genetics; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000378:metabolism*; D024202:Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay; D013186:Farnesyl-Diphosphate Farnesyltransferase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D009154:Mutation; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D010860:Pigments, Biological / Q000378:metabolism; D016372:RNA, Antisense / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012329:RNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012270:Ribosomes / Q000378:metabolism; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D020121:5' Untranslated Regions; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D010860:Pigments, Biological; D016372:RNA, Antisense; D012329:RNA, Bacterial; C096222:tmRNA; D002338:Carotenoids; C091055:CrtN protein, Staphylococcus aureus; D010088:Oxidoreductases; C091056:CrtM protein, Staphylococcus aureus; D013186:Farnesyl-Diphosphate Farnesyltransferase