title: Characterization of the Opp peptide transporter of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis and its role in virulence and pathogenicity.
abstract: Despite the economic importance of caseous lymphadenitis (CLA), a chronic disease caused by Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis, few genes related to the virulence of its etiologic agent have been characterized. The oligopeptide permease (Opp) transporters are located in the plasma membrane and have functions generally related to the uptake of peptides from the extracellular environment. These peptide transporters, in addition to having an important role in cell nutrition, also participate in the regulation of various processes involving intercellular signaling, including the control of the expression of virulence genes in pathogenic bacteria. To study the role of Opp in C. pseudotuberculosis, an OppD deficient strain was constructed via simple crossover with a nonreplicative plasmid carrying part of the oppD gene sequence. As occurred to the wild-type, the ΔoppD strain showed impaired growth when exposed to the toxic glutathione peptide (GSH), indicating two possible scenarios: (i) that this component can be internalized by the bacterium through an Opp-independent pathway or (ii) that there is toxicity while the peptide is extracellular. Additionally, the ΔoppD mutant presented a reduced ability to adhere to and infect macrophages compared to the wild-type, although both strains exhibit the same potential to colonize spleens and cause injury and death to infected mice.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Pablo M R O
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Moraes
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Nubia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Seyffert
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Wanderson M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Thiago L P
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Castro
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Renata F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 40210-340 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Danielle D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Lima
authors.affiliation: Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro, 21941-901 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
authors.forename: Raphael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hirata
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Pará, 66075-110 Belém, PA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Artur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Anderson
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Miyoshi
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vasco
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Azevedo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001692:Biological Transport / Q000235:genetics*; D016925:Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D006801:Humans; D008199:Lymphadenitis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D009154:Mutation; D009876:Operon / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; C037230:oligopeptide permease, Bacteria