title: SlyA is a transcriptional regulator involved in the virulence of Enterococcus faecalis.
abstract: Phylogenetic analysis of the crystal structure of the Enterococcus faecalis SlyA (EF_3002) transcriptional factor places it between the SlyA and MarR regulator subfamilies. Proteins of these families are often involved in the regulation of genes important for bacterial virulence and stress response. To gather evidence for the role of this putative regulator in E. faecalis biology, we dissected the genetic organization of the slyA-EF_3001 locus and constructed a slyA deletion mutant as well as complemented strains. Interestingly, compared to the wild-type parent, the ΔslyA mutant is more virulent in an insect infection model (Galleria mellonella), exhibits increased persistence in mouse kidneys and liver, and survives better inside peritoneal macrophages. In order to identify a possible SlyA regulon, global microarray transcriptional analysis was performed. This study revealed that the slyA-EF_3001 locus appears to be autoregulated and that 117 genes were differentially regulated in the ΔslyA mutant. In the mutant strain, 111 were underexpressed and 6 overexpressed, indicating that SlyA functions mainly as an activator of transcription.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Microbiologie de l'Environnement, EA 956 Soutenue par l'INRA, IFR 146, Université de Caen, 14032 Caen Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Charlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Michaux
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sanguinetti
authors.forename: Fany
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Reffuveille
authors.forename: Yanick
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Auffray
authors.forename: Brunella
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Posteraro
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Gilmore
authors.forename: Axel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hartke
authors.forename: Jean-Christophe
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Giard
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D001483:Base Sequence; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D007814:Larva / Q000382:microbiology; D046228:Microarray Analysis; D009036:Moths / Q000382:microbiology; D010802:Phylogeny; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors