title: A dynamic and complex monochloramine stress response in Escherichia coli revealed by transcriptome analysis.
abstract: Despite the widespread use of monochloramine in drinking water treatment, there is surprisingly little information about its mode of action. In this study, DNA microarrays were used to investigate the global gene expression of Escherichia coli cells exposed to sub-lethal concentrations of monochloramine, with a focus on temporal dynamics. Genes induced by monochloramine were associated with several stress response functions, including oxidative stress, DNA repair, multidrug efflux, biofilm formation, antibiotic resistance, and cell wall repair. The diversity of functional associations supports a model of monochloramine action involving multiple cellular targets including cell membranes, nucleic acids, and proteins. These data suggest that E. coli responds to monochloramine exposure by activating diverse defense responses rather than a single antioxidant system and the exposure may also induce biofilm formation. The induction of multidrug efflux pumps and specific antibiotic resistance genes further suggests that exposure to monochloramine may contribute to reduced susceptibility to some antibiotics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
authors.forename: Diane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Holder
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Berry
authors.forename: Dongjuan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Lutgarde
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Raskin
authors.forename: Chuanwu
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xi
mesh_terms: D018441:Biofilms / Q000187:drug effects; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D002700:Chloramines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004202:Disinfectants / Q000494:pharmacology; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial / Q000187:drug effects; D007700:Kinetics; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D013312:Stress, Physiological
chemical_list: D002700:Chloramines; D004202:Disinfectants; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C030816:chloramine
keywords: Antibiotic resistance; Biofilm; Disinfection; Drinking water; Microarray; Monochloramine