The alternative sigma factor AlgT represses Pseudomonas aeruginosa flagellum biosynthesis by inhibiting expression of fleQ.

ABSTRACT: Pseudomonas aeruginosa poses a serious risk in individuals suffering from cystic fibrosis (CF). Strains colonizing the CF lung are generally motile but frequently convert to a nonmotile phenotype as the disease progresses. In many cases, this is coordinately regulated with the overproduction of the exopolysaccharide alginate. Both the expression of alginate (mucoidy) and the loss of flagellum synthesis may provide the bacterium with a selective advantage in the CF lung. Previously published data showed that the regulation of alginate production and flagellum biosynthesis in the CF isolate FRD1 is inversely controlled by the alternative sigma factor AlgT. In this study, we observed that in CF isolates, the mucoid and the nonmotile phenotypes occur predominantly together. Using microarrays,

SUBMITTER: Tart AH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1291279 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature