The ttsA gene is required for low-calcium-induced type III secretion of Yop proteins and virulence of Yersinia enterocolitica W22703.

ABSTRACT: Pathogenic Yersinia species use a virulence-plasmid encoded type III secretion pathway to escape the innate immune response and to establish infections in lymphoid tissues. At least 22 secretion machinery components are required for type III transport of 14 different Yop proteins, and 10 regulatory factors are responsible for activating this pathway in response to environmental signals. Although the genes for these products are located on the 70-kb virulence plasmid of Yersinia, this extrachromosomal element does not appear to harbor genes that provide for the sensing of environmental signals, such as calcium-, glutamate-, or serum-sensing proteins. To identify such genes, we screened transposon insertion mutants of Y. enterocolitica W22703 for defects in type III secretion and identified

SUBMITTER: DeBord KL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC156212 | biostudies-literature | 2003 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature