Quorum sensing modulates the formation of virulent Legionella persisters within infected cells.

The facultative intracellular bacterium Legionella pneumophila replicates in environmental amoebae and in lung macrophages, and causes Legionnaires' disease. Here we show that L. pneumophila reversibly forms replicating and nonreplicating subpopulations of similar size within amoebae. The nonreplicating bacteria are viable and metabolically active, display increased antibiotic tolerance and a distinct proteome, and show high virulence as well as the capacity to form a degradation-resistant compartment. Upon infection of naïve or interferon-γ-activated macrophages, the nonreplicating subpopulation comprises ca. 10% or 50%, respectively, of the total intracellular bacteria; hence, the nonreplicating subpopulation is of similar size in amoebae and activated macrophages. The numbers of nonreplicating bacteria within amoebae are reduced in the absence of the autoinducer synthase LqsA or other components of the Lqs quorum-sensing system. Our results indicate that virulent, antibiotic-tolerant subpopulations of L. pneumophila are formed during infection of evolutionarily distant phagocytes, in a process controlled by the Lqs system.

Analysis of Legionella Metabolism by Pathogen Vacuole Proteomics.

The causative agent of Legionnaires' disease, Legionella pneumophila, replicates in free-living amoebae as well as in macrophages of the innate immune system within a distinct membrane-bound compartment, the "Legionella-containing-vacuole" (LCV). LCV formation is a complex process and requires the bacterial Icm/Dot type IV secretion system, which translocates approximately 300 different "effector" proteins. Intact LCVs from infected Dictyostelium discoideum amoebae or RAW 264.7 murine macrophages can be purified using a straightforward protocol. In the first step, the LCVs in cell homogenates are tagged with an antibody directed against an L. pneumophila effector protein specifically localizing to the pathogen vacuole membrane and isolated by immunomagnetic separation using a secondary antibody coupled to magnetic beads. In the second step, the LCVs are further enriched by density gradient centrifugation through a Histodenz cushion. LCVs thus purified are analyzed by mass spectrometry-based proteomics and characterized by biochemical and cell biological approaches.

Comparative Proteomics of Purified Pathogen Vacuoles Correlates Intracellular Replication of Legionella pneumophila with the Small GTPase Ras-related protein 1 (Rap1).

Legionella pneumophila is an opportunistic bacterial pathogen that causes a severe lung infection termed "Legionnaires' disease." The pathogen replicates in environmental protozoa as well as in macrophages within a unique membrane-bound compartment, the Legionella-containing-vacuole (LCV). LCV formation requires the bacterial Icm/Dot type IV secretion system, which translocates ca. 300 "effector proteins" into host cells, where they target distinct host factors. The L. pneumophila "pentuple" mutant (Δpentuple) lacks 5 gene clusters (31% of the effector proteins) and replicates in macrophages but not in Dictyostelium discoideum amoeba. To elucidate the host factors defining a replication-permissive compartment, we compare here the proteomes of intact LCVs isolated from D. discoideum or macrophages infected with Δpentuple or the parental strain Lp02. This analysis revealed that the majority of host proteins are shared in D. discoideum or macrophage LCVs containing the mutant or the parental strain, respectively, whereas some proteins preferentially localize to distinct LCVs. The small GTPase Rap1 was identified on D. discoideum LCVs containing strain Lp02 but not the Δpentuple mutant and on macrophage LCVs containing either strain. The localization pattern of active Rap1 on D. discoideum or macrophage LCVs was confirmed by fluorescence microscopy and imaging flow cytometry, and the depletion of Rap1 by RNA interference significantly reduced the intracellular growth of L. pneumophila Thus, comparative proteomics identified Rap1 as a novel LCV host component implicated in intracellular replication of L. pneumophila.

Metabolism of myo-Inositol by Legionella pneumophila Promotes Infection of Amoebae and Macrophages.

UNLABELLED: Legionella pneumophila is a natural parasite of environmental amoebae and the causative agent of a severe pneumonia termed Legionnaires' disease. The facultative intracellular pathogen employs a bipartite metabolism, where the amino acid serine serves as the major energy supply, while glycerol and glucose are mainly utilized for anabolic processes. The L. pneumophila genome harbors the cluster lpg1653 to lpg1649 putatively involved in the metabolism of the abundant carbohydrate myo-inositol (here termed inositol). To assess inositol metabolism by L. pneumophila, we constructed defined mutant strains lacking lpg1653 or lpg1652, which are predicted to encode the inositol transporter IolT or the inositol-2-dehydrogenase IolG, respectively. The mutant strains were not impaired for growth in complex or defined minimal media, and inositol did not promote extracellular growth. However, upon coinfection of Acanthamoeba castellanii, the mutants were outcompeted by the parental strain, indicating that the intracellular inositol metabolism confers a fitness advantage to the pathogen. Indeed, inositol added to L. pneumophila-infected amoebae or macrophages promoted intracellular growth of the parental strain, but not of the ΔiolT or ΔiolG mutant, and growth stimulation by inositol was restored by complementation of the mutant strains. The expression of the Piol promoter and bacterial uptake of inositol required the alternative sigma factor RpoS, a key virulence regulator of L. pneumophila Finally, the parental strain and ΔiolG mutant bacteria but not the ΔiolT mutant strain accumulated [U-(14)C6]inositol, indicating that IolT indeed functions as an inositol transporter. Taken together, intracellular L. pneumophila metabolizes inositol through the iol gene products, thus promoting the growth and virulence of the pathogen. IMPORTANCE: The environmental bacterium Legionella pneumophila is the causative agent of a severe pneumonia termed Legionnaires' disease. The opportunistic pathogen replicates in protozoan and mammalian phagocytes in a unique vacuole. Amino acids are thought to represent the prime source of carbon and energy for L. pneumophila However, genome, transcriptome, and proteome studies indicate that the pathogen not only utilizes amino acids as carbon sources but possesses broader metabolic capacities. In this study, we analyzed the metabolism of inositol by extra- and intracellularly growing L. pneumophila By using genetic, biochemical, and cell biological approaches, we found that L. pneumophila accumulates and metabolizes inositol through the iol gene products, thus promoting the intracellular growth, virulence, and fitness of the pathogen. Our study significantly contributes to an understanding of the intracellular niche of a human pathogen.

Pathway analysis using (13) C-glycerol and other carbon tracers reveals a bipartite metabolism of Legionella pneumophila.

Amino acids represent the prime carbon and energy source for Legionella pneumophila, a facultative intracellular pathogen, which can cause a life-threatening pneumonia termed Legionnaires' disease. Genome, transcriptome and proteome studies indicate that L. pneumophila also utilizes carbon substrates other than amino acids. We show here that glycerol promotes intracellular replication of L. pneumophila in amoeba or macrophages (but not extracellular growth) dependent on glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, GlpD. An L. pneumophila mutant strain lacking glpD was outcompeted by wild-type bacteria upon co-infection of amoeba, indicating an important role of glycerol during infection. Isotopologue profiling studies using (13) C-labelled substrates were performed in a novel minimal defined medium, MDM, comprising essential amino acids, proline and phenylalanine. In MDM, L. pneumophila utilized (13) C-labelled glycerol or glucose predominantly for gluconeogenesis and the pentose phosphate pathway, while the amino acid serine was used for energy generation via the citrate cycle. Similar results were obtained for L. pneumophila growing intracellularly in amoeba fed with (13) C-labelled glycerol, glucose or serine. Collectively, these results reveal a bipartite metabolism of L. pneumophila, where glycerol and carbohydrates like glucose are mainly fed into anabolic processes, while serine serves as major energy supply.

Amoebae-Based Screening Reveals a Novel Family of Compounds Restricting Intracellular Legionella pneumophila.

The causative agent of Legionnaires' disease, Legionella pneumophila, grows in environmental amoebae and mammalian macrophages within a distinct compartment, the 'Legionella-containing vacuole' (LCV). Intracellular bacteria are protected from many antibiotics, and thus are notoriously difficult to eradicate. To identify novel compounds that restrict intracellular bacterial replication, we previously developed an assay based on a coculture of amoebae and GFP-producing L. pneumophila. This assay was used to screen a pathway-based, highly diverse chemical library, referred to as the Sinergia library. In this work, we chose to focus on a group of 11 hit compounds, the majority of which originated from the query molecule CN585, a compound that targets the protein phosphatase calcineurin. Further studies on 78 related compound variants revealed crucial structural attributes, namely a triple-ring scaffold with a central triazine moiety, substituted in positions 3 and 5 by two piperidine or pyrrolidine rings, and in position 1 by an amine group bearing a single aliphatic chain moiety. The most effective compound, ZINC00615682, inhibited intracellular replication of L. pneumophila with an IC50 of approximately 20 nM in Acanthamoeba castellanii and slightly less efficiently in Dictyostelium discoideum or macrophages. Pharmacological and genetic attempts to implicate calcineurin in the intracellular replication of L. pneumophila failed. Taken together, these results show that the amoebae-based screen and structure-activity relationship analysis is suitable for the identification of novel inhibitors of the intracellular replication of L. pneumophila. The most potent compound identified in this study targets (an) as yet unidentified host factor(s).

Metabolism of the vacuolar pathogen Legionella and implications for virulence.

Legionella pneumophila is a ubiquitous environmental bacterium that thrives in fresh water habitats, either as planktonic form or as part of biofilms. The bacteria also grow intracellularly in free-living protozoa as well as in mammalian alveolar macrophages, thus triggering a potentially fatal pneumonia called "Legionnaires' disease." To establish its intracellular niche termed the "Legionella-containing vacuole" (LCV), L. pneumophila employs a type IV secretion system and translocates ~300 different "effector" proteins into host cells. The pathogen switches between two distinct forms to grow in its extra- or intracellular niches: transmissive bacteria are virulent for phagocytes, and replicative bacteria multiply within their hosts. The switch between these forms is regulated by different metabolic cues that signal conditions favorable for replication or transmission, respectively, causing a tight link between metabolism and virulence of the bacteria. Amino acids represent the prime carbon and energy source of extra- or intracellularly growing L. pneumophila. Yet, the genome sequences of several Legionella spp. as well as transcriptome and proteome data and metabolism studies indicate that the bacteria possess broad catabolic capacities and also utilize carbohydrates such as glucose. Accordingly, L. pneumophila mutant strains lacking catabolic genes show intracellular growth defects, and thus, intracellular metabolism and virulence of the pathogen are intimately connected. In this review we will summarize recent findings on the extra- and intracellular metabolism of L. pneumophila using genetic, biochemical and cellular microbial approaches. Recent progress in this field sheds light on the complex interplay between metabolism, differentiation and virulence of the pathogen.

Pyrones as bacterial signaling molecules.

Bacteria communicate via small diffusible molecules and thereby mediate group-coordinated behavior, a process referred to as quorum sensing. The prototypical quorum sensing system found in Gram-negative bacteria consists of a LuxI-type autoinducer synthase that produces N-acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs) as signals and a LuxR-type receptor that detects the AHLs to control expression of specific genes. However, many proteobacteria have proteins with homology to LuxR receptors yet lack any cognate LuxI-like AHL synthase. Here we show that in the insect pathogen Photorhabdus luminescens the orphan LuxR-type receptor PluR detects endogenously produced α-pyrones that serve as signaling molecules at low nanomolar concentrations. Additionally, the ketosynthase PpyS was identified as pyrone synthase. Reconstitution of the entire system containing PluR, the PluR-target operon we termed pcf and PpyS in Escherichia coli demonstrated that the cell-cell communication circuit is portable. Our research thus deorphanizes a signaling system and suggests that additional modes of bacterial communication may await discovery.