Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

P Cossart

Publications and source records attributed to P Cossart.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Evidence that PrfA, the pleiotropic activator of virulence genes in Listeria monocytogenes, can be present but inactive.

All virulence genes of Listeria monocytogenes identified to date are positively regulated by PrfA, a transcriptional activator belonging to the Crp-Fnr family. Low temperature and cellobiose are two environmental signals known to repress expression of virulence genes in L. monocytogenes. In the present work, we analyzed the effect of temperature and cellobiose on the expression of the PrfA protein. At low temperature, PrfA was undetected, although prfA monocistronic transcripts are present. In contrast, PrfA was fully expressed in the presence of cellobiose. These results strongly suggest that virulence gene activation depends on both the presence of PrfA and additional regulatory pathways that either modify PrfA or act synergistically with PrfA.

Bacterial Proteins↗
PubMed1997

Identification of four new members of the internalin multigene family of Listeria monocytogenes EGD.

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacterial pathogen that is able to invade nonphagocytic cells. Two surface proteins, internalin, the inlA gene product, and InlB, play important roles in the entry into cultured mammalian cells. These proteins also have extensive sequence similarities. Previously, Southern hybridization predicted the existence of an internalin multigene family. Recently, InlC, a secreted protein of 30 kDa homologous to InlA and InlB, was identified. In this work, we identified and characterized four new members of the internalin multigene family, inlC2, inlD, inlE, and inlF which encode proteins of 548, 567, 499, and 821 amino acids respectively. inlC2, inlD, and inlE are contiguous on the chromosome of L. monocytogenes EGD, whereas inlF is located in a different chromosomal region. These four inl gene products display the principal features of internalin, namely, a signal sequence, two regions of repeats (or LRR and B repeats), and a putative cell wall anchor sequence containing the sorting motif LPXTG. The four inl genes were maximally expressed albeit at a low level during early exponential growth in bacterial medium at 37 degrees C. The role of these inl genes in L. monocytogenes invasion was assessed by constructing isogenic chromosomal deletion mutants and testing them for entry into various nonphagocytic cells. Unexpectedly, the inlC2, inlD, inlE, and inlF null mutants were not affected for entry into any of the cell lines tested, raising the possibility that these genes are needed for an aspect of pathogenicity other than invasion. The identity of such an aspect remains to be determined.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

The rpoN (sigma54) gene from Listeria monocytogenes is involved in resistance to mesentericin Y105, an antibacterial peptide from Leuconostoc mesenteroides.

To gain insight into the mode of action of mesentericin Y105, a bacteriocin bactericidal agent against Listeria monocytogenes, we undertook to identify the listerial factors mediating this susceptibility by using a genetic approach. Transposon mutants resistant to the bacteriocin were obtained. One of them corresponded to a transposon insertion in a gene (rpoN) encoding a putative protein (447 amino acids) with strong homologies to alternative transcriptional sigma54 factors, including that of Bacillus subtilis (38% identity). Complementation experiments with the wild-type rpoN gene demonstrated that the insertion in rpoN was responsible for the resistance phenotype in L. monocytogenes. Moreover, expression of the L. monocytogenes rpoN gene in an rpoN mutant strain of B. subtilis promoted transcription of a sigma54-dependent operon in the presence of the associated regulator. These results demonstrate that the L. monocytogenes rpoN gene encodes a new sigma54 factor.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Host-pathogen interactions during entry and actin-based movement of Listeria monocytogenes.

Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogenic bacterium that induces its own uptake into mammalian cells, and spreads from one cell to another by an actin-based motility process. Entry into host cells involves the bacterial surface proteins InlA (internalin) and InlB. The receptor for InlA is the cell adhesion molecule E-cadherin. InlB-mediated entry requires activation of the host protein phosphoinositide (PI) 3-kinase, probably in response to engagement of a receptor. Actin-based movement of L. monocytogenes is mediated by the bacterial surface protein ActA. The N-terminal region of this protein is necessary and sufficient for polymerization of host cell actin. Other host proteins involved in bacterial motility include profilin, Vasodilator-Stimulated Phosphoprotein (VASP), the Arp2/Arp3 complex, and cofilin. Studies of entry and intracellular movement of L. monocytogenes could lead to a better understanding of receptor-ligand signaling and dynamics of actin polymerization in mammalian cells.

Actins↗
PubMed1996

A role for phosphoinositide 3-kinase in bacterial invasion.

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacterial pathogen that invades cultured nonphagocytic cells. Inhibitors and a dominant negative mutation were used to demonstrate that efficient entry requires the phosphoinositide (PI) 3-kinase p85alpha-p110. Infection with L. monocytogenes caused rapid increases in cellular amounts of PI(3, 4)P2 and PI(3,4,5)P3, indicating that invading bacteria stimulated PI 3-kinase activity. This stimulation required the bacterial protein InlB, host cell tyrosine phosphorylation, and association of p85alpha with one or more tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins. This role for PI 3-kinase in bacterial entry may have parallels in some endocytic events.

Androstadienes↗
PubMed1996

E-cadherin is the receptor for internalin, a surface protein required for entry of L. monocytogenes into epithelial cells.

We report the first identification of a cellular receptor mediating entry of a gram-positive bacterium into nonphagocytotic cells. By an affinity chromatography approach, we identified E-cadherin as the ligand for internalin, an L. monocytogenes protein essential for entry into epithelial cells. Expression of the chicken homolog of E-cadherin (L-CAM) in transfected fibroblasts dramatically increases entry of L. monocytogenes and promotes that of a recombinant L. innocua strain expressing internalin but does not promote entry of the wild-type noninvasive L. innocua or that of an internalin-deficient mutant of L. monocytogenes. Furthermore, L-CAM-specific antibodies block internalin-mediated entry. In contrast to Salmonella, Listeria enters cells by a mechanism of induced phagocytosis occurring without membrane ruffling. This work reveals a novel type of heterophilic interactions for E-cadherin.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Actin-based bacterial motility: towards a definition of the minimal requirements.

At the border line between microbiology and cell biology, the spectacular capacity o f some intracellular bacterial pathogens, including Listeria monocytogenes, Shigella flexneri and several Rickettsias, to use actin polymerization as a driving force for intracellular movement, cell-to-cell spreading and dissemination within the infected tissue is being increasingly studied. Now that it is possible to manipulate the bacterial surface proteins involved in this process - ActA o f L. monocytogenes and IcsA of S. flexneri - these bacterial systems are providing experimental models in which to investigate the role o f actin filament dynamics in cell motility.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1996

A single substitution in the putative helix-turn-helix motif of the pleiotropic activator PrfA attenuates Listeria monocytogenes virulence.

PrfA, the regulator of virulence-gene expression in the pathogenic bacterium Listeria monocytogenes, displays sequence similarity to members of the CAP-FNR family of transcriptional regulators. To test the functional significance of this similarity, we constructed and analysed substitutions of two amino acids of PrfA predicted to contact DNA, i.e. Ser-184 and Ser-183. Substitution of Ser-184 by Ala reduced DNA binding and virulence-gene activation, and attenuated the virulence in a mouse model of infection. In contrast, substitution of Ser-183 by Ala had the opposite effect in these functional assays. A 17bp DNA sequence, which includes a putative PrfA site, was shown to be sufficient for target-site recognition by PrfA and PrfA-S183A. Our results strongly support the hypothesis that PrfA is a structural and functional homologue of CAP. In addition, they establish a clear correlation between DNA binding by PrfA, virulence-gene activation, and virulence.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Internalin must be on the bacterial surface to mediate entry of Listeria monocytogenes into epithelial cells.

Entry of Listeria monocytogenes into cultured epithelial cells requires production of internalin, a protein with features characteristic of some Gram-positive bacterial surface proteins, in particular an LPXTG motif preceding a hydrophobic sequence and a few basic residues at its C-terminal end. By immunofluorescence and immunogold labelling, we show that in wild-type L. monocytogenes, internalin is present on the cell surface and has a polarized distribution similar to that of ActA, another surface protein of L. monocytogenes involved in actin assembly. Through a genetic analysis, we establish that the C-terminal region of internalin is necessary for cell-surface association, and that although internalin is partially released in the culture medium, its location on the bacterial surface is required to promote entry. Finally, using a 'domain-swapping' strategy-replacement of the cell wall anchor of IniA by the membrane anchor of ActA- we show that the reduced ability to adhere and enter cells of strains expressing IniA-ActA correlates with a lower amount of surface-exposed internalin. Taken together, these results suggest that internalin exposed on the bacterial surface mediates direct contact between the bacterium and the host cell.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Antibodies to the leucine-rich repeat region of internalin block entry of Listeria monocytogenes into cells expressing E-cadherin.

Internalin, a surface protein essential for entry of Listeria monocytogenes EGD into epithelial cells, was used as an antigen to raise nine monoclonal antibodies. These monoclonal antibodies recognized seven distinct epitopes which were located in three different regions of the protein. Three of them inhibited internalin-mediated entry and recognized the amino-terminal leucine-rich repeat region of the protein, suggesting that this region is essential for entry.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Listeriolysin O activates mitogen-activated protein kinase in eucaryotic cells.

Infection with Listeria monocytogenes induces the activation of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase in several tissue culture cell lines (P.Tang, I. Rosenshine, and B. B. Finlay, Mol. Biol. Cell 5:455-464, 1994). After various mutants were examined, the bacterial factor responsible for MAP kinase activation was identified as listeriolysin O (LLO). Growth supernatant containing LLO or purified LLO alone can induce MAP kinase tyrosine phosphorylation in HeLa cells. Single-amino-acid mutations in LLO that do not affect its membrane binding capacity but reduce its cytolytic activity also reduced its ability to induce MAP kinase activity in HeLa cells. Streptolysin O, another sulfhydryl-activated hemolysin, and the detergent saponin are also able to activate MAP kinase in target cells. Thus, the increased MAP kinase activity observed in L. monocytogenes-infected cells is most likely a result of the permeabilization of the host cell membrane by LLO and may not be linked with invasion.

Bacterial Toxins↗
PubMed1995

Actin-based motility of vaccinia virus.

The role of the cytoskeleton during viral infection is poorly understood. Here we show, using a combination of mutant and drug studies, that the intracellular enveloped form of vaccinia virus is capable of inducing the formation of actin tails that are strikingly similar to those seen in Listeria, Shigella and Rickettsia infections. Analysis using video microscopy reveals that single viral particles are propelled in vivo on the tip of actin tails, at a speed of 2.8 mumol min-1. On contact with the cell surface, virus particles extend outwards on actin projections at a similar rate, to contact and infect neighboring cells. Given the similarities between the motility of vaccinia virus and bacterial pathogens, we suggest that intracellular pathogens have developed a common mechanism to exploit the actin cytoskeleton as a means to facilitate their direct spread between cells.

Actins↗
PubMed1995

Targeting of Listeria monocytogenes ActA protein to the plasma membrane as a tool to dissect both actin-based cell morphogenesis and ActA function.

Actin assembly on the surface of Listeria monocytogenes in the cytoplasm of infected cells provides a model to study actin-based motility and changes in cell shape. We have shown previously that the ActA protein, exposed on the bacterial surface, is required for polarized nucleation of actin filaments. To investigate whether plasma membrane-associated ActA can control the organization of microfilaments and cell shape, variants of ActA, in which the bacterial membrane signal had been replaced by a plasma membrane anchor sequence, were produced in mammalian cells. While both cytoplasmic and membrane-bound forms of ActA increased the F-actin content, only membrane-associated ActA caused the formation of plasma membrane extensions. This finding suggests that ActA acts as an actin filament nucleator and shows that permanent association with the inner face of the plasma membrane is required for changes in cell shape. Based on the observation that the amino-terminal segment of ActA and the remaining portion which includes the proline-rich repeats cause distinct phenotypic modifications in transfected cells, we propose a model in which two functional domains of ActA cooperate in the nucleation and dynamic turnover of actin filaments. The present approach is a new model system to dissect the mechanism of action of ActA and to further investigate interactions of the plasma membrane and the actin cytoskeleton during dynamic changes of cell shape.

Actins↗
PubMed1995

Actin-based bacterial motility.

Listeria monocytogenes and other bacterial pathogens move in the host cell cytoplasm, propelled by continuous actin assembly at one pole of the bacterium. This actin-based motility requires the presence of the bacterial proteins ActA on L. monocytogenes and IcsA on Shigella flexneri. There have been several major discoveries in the past year: the discovery of the polar distribution of ActA and IcsA on the bacterial surface; the demonstration that bacterial ActA is phosphorylated in infected host cells; the involvement of some host cell proteins, particularly profilin; and the dramatic effect of ActA expression in transfected eukaryotic cells. A cell-free system that reconstitutes faithfully the actin-based motility of L. monocytogenes promises to be instrumental in the further dissection of this fascinating phenomenon.

Actins↗
PubMed1995

Actin-based movement of Listeria monocytogenes: actin assembly results from the local maintenance of uncapped filament barbed ends at the bacterium surface.

The thermodynamic basis for actin-based motility of Listeria monocytogenes has been investigated using cytoplasmic extracts of Xenopus eggs, initially developed by Theriot et al. (Theriot, J. A., J. Rosenblatt, D. A. Portnoy, P. J. Goldschmidt-Clermont, and T. J. Mitchison. 1994. Cell. 76:505-517) as an in vitro cell-free system. A large proportion (75%) of actin was found unpolymerized in the extracts. The amount of unassembled actin (12 microM) is accounted for by the sequestering functions of T beta 4Xen (20 microM) and profilin (5 microM), the barbed ends being capped. Movement of Listeria was not abolished by depletion of over 99% of the endogenous profilin. The proline-rich sequences of ActA are unlikely to be the target of profilin. All data support the view that actin assembly at the rear of Listeria results from a local shift in steady state due to a factor, keeping filaments uncapped, bound to the surface of the bacterium, while barbed ends are capped in the bulk cytoplasm. Movement is controlled by the energetic difference (i.e., the difference in critical concentration) between the two ends of the filaments, hence a constant ATP supply and the presence of barbed end capped F-actin in the medium are required to buffer free G-actin at a high concentration. The role of membrane components is demonstrated by the facts that: (a) Listeria movement can be reconstituted in the resuspended pellets of high speed-centrifuged extracts that are enriched in membranes; (b) Actin-based motility of endogenous vesicles, exhibiting the same rocketing movement as Listeria, can be observed in the extracts.

Actins↗