Inactivation of the Ecs ABC transporter of Staphylococcus aureus attenuates virulence by altering composition and function of bacterial wall.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Ecs is an ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter present in aerobic and facultative anaerobic gram-positive Firmicutes. Inactivation of Bacillus subtilis Ecs causes pleiotropic changes in the bacterial phenotype including inhibition of intramembrane proteolysis. The molecule(s) transported by Ecs is (are) still unknown.

Methodology/principal findings

In this study we mutated the ecsAB operon in two Staphylococcus aureus strains, Newman and LS-1. Phenotypic and functional characterization of these Ecs deficient mutants revealed a defect in growth, increased autolysis and lysostaphin sensitivity, altered composition of cell wall proteins including the precursor form of staphylokinase and an altered bacterial surface texture. DNA microarray analysis indicated that th

SUBMITTER: Jonsson IM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2996298 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature