A light-induced microprotein triggers regulated intramembrane proteolysis to promote photo-sensing in a pathogenic bacterium.

ABSTRACT: Light, a ubiquitous environmental stimulus, shapes behavior and physiology across all domains of life. While photoreceptors are widespread in bacterial genomes, their functional roles and signal transduction mechanisms in non-photosynthetic bacteria remain understudied. Light represses biofilms and virulence factors through a bacteriophytochrome photoreceptor BphP and response regulator AlgB in the human pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Here, we used transposon mutagenesis screening to identify a conserved hypothetical microprotein, DimA, as the master activator of the photo-sensing cascade. Transcriptomics, luciferase reporter assays and physiological assays revealed that deletion of dimA abolishes light-dependent suppression of virulence factors and biofilms. Mechanistically, we demonstr

SUBMITTER: Manias D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12780092 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature