Identification of Conserved ABC Importers Necessary for Intracellular Survival of Legionella pneumophila in Multiple Hosts.

ABSTRACT: It is established that the human pathogen Legionella pneumophila becomes significantly augmented for infection of macrophages after intracellular growth in amoebae when compared to like-strains cultivated in laboratory media. Based on this observation, we reasoned that the most critical virulence determinants of L.p. are expressed by responding to stimuli generated by the protozoan host specifically; a process we term "protozoan-priming." We sought to identify L.p. virulence factors that were required for replication in amoebae in order to highlight the genes necessary for production of the most infectious form of the bacterium. Using a transposon mutagenesis screen, we successfully identified 12 insertions that produced bacteria severely attenuated for growth in amoeb

SUBMITTER: Lama A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5714930 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature