Pseudomonas aeruginosa autoinducer enters and functions in mammalian cells.

ABSTRACT: Quorum sensing (QS) is a cell density-dependent signaling mechanism used by many bacteria to control gene expression. Several recent reports indicate that the signaling molecules (autoinducers) that mediate QS in Pseudomonas aeruginosa may also modulate gene expression in host cells; however, the mechanisms are largely unknown. Here we show that two P. aeruginosa autoinducers, N-3-oxododecanoyl-homoserine lactone and N-butyryl-homoserine lactone, can both enter eukaryotic cells and activate artificial chimeric transcription factors based on their cognate transcriptional activators, LasR and RhlR, respectively. The autoinducers promoted nuclear localization of chimeric proteins containing the full LasR or RhlR coding region, and the LasR-based proteins were capable of activating transcripti

SUBMITTER: Williams SC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC412166 | biostudies-literature | 2004 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature