Exopolyphosphatases PPX1 and PPX2 from Mycobacterium tuberculosis regulate dormancy response and pathogenesis.

Stress adaptation and virulence of various bacterial pathogens require stringent response pathways involving guanosine pentaphosphate and inorganic polyphosphate (PolyP). In M. tuberculosis, intracellular PolyP levels are maintained by the activities of polyphosphate kinase (PPK-1, PPK-2) and exopolyphosphatases (PPX-1, PPX-2). We demonstrate that these exopolyphosphatases cumulatively contribute to biofilm formation and survival of M. tuberculosis in nutrient limiting, low oxygen growth conditions and in macrophages. Characterization of single (Δppx2) and double knock out strain (dkppx) of M. tuberculosis demonstrated that these exopolyphosphatases are essential for establishing infection in guinea pigs and mice. Transcriptional profiling revealed that relative to the parental strain the expression of genes belonging to DosR regulon were significantly reduced in mid-log phase cultures of dkppx strain. We also show that PolyP inhibited the autophosphorylation activities associated with DosT and DosS sensor kinases. Host RNA-seq analysis revealed that transcripts involved in various antimicrobial pathways such as apoptosis, autophagy, macrophage activation, calcium signalling, innate and T-cell response were differentially expressed in lung tissues of dkppx strain infected mice. Taken together, we demonstrate that enzymes involved in PolyP homeostasis play a critical role in physiology and virulence of M. tuberculosis. These enzymes are attractive targets for developing novel interventions that might be active against drug-sensitive and drug-resistant M. tuberculosis.

Inorganic polyphosphate accumulation suppresses the dormancy response and virulence in Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Stringent response pathways involving inorganic polyphosphate (PolyP) play an essential role in bacterial stress adaptation and virulence. The intracellular levels of PolyP are modulated by the activities of polyphosphate kinase-1 (PPK1), polyphosphate kinase-2 (PPK2), and exopolyphosphatases (PPXs). The genome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis encodes two functional PPXs, and simultaneous deletion of ppx1 and ppx2 results in a defect in biofilm formation. We demonstrate here that these PPXs cumulatively contribute to the ability of M. tuberculosis to survive in nutrient-limiting, low-oxygen growth conditions and also in macrophages. Characterization of single (Δppx2) and double knockout (dkppx) strains of M. tuberculosis indicated that PPX-mediated PolyP degradation is essential for establishing bacterial infection in guinea pigs. RNA-Seq-based transcriptional profiling revealed that relative to the parental strain, the expression levels of DosR regulon-regulated dormancy genes were significantly reduced in the dkppx mutant strain. In concordance, we also provide evidence that PolyP inhibits the autophosphorylation activities associated with DosT and DosS sensor kinases. The results in this study uncover that enzymes involved in PolyP homeostasis play a critical role in M. tuberculosis physiology and virulence and are attractive targets for developing more effective therapeutic interventions.

Sequestration of histidine kinases by non-cognate response regulators establishes a threshold level of stimulation for bacterial two-component signaling.

Bacterial two-component systems (TCSs) consist of a sensor histidine kinase (HK) that perceives a specific signal, and a cognate response regulator (RR) that modulates the expression of target genes. Positive autoregulation improves TCS sensitivity to stimuli, but may trigger disproportionately large responses to weak signals, compromising bacterial fitness. Here, we combine experiments and mathematical modelling to reveal a general design that prevents such disproportionate responses: phosphorylated HKs (HK~Ps) can be sequestered by non-cognate RRs. We study five TCSs of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and find, for all of them, non-cognate RRs that show higher affinity than cognate RRs for HK~Ps. Indeed, in vitro assays show that HK~Ps preferentially bind higher affinity non-cognate RRs and get sequestered. Mathematical modelling indicates that this sequestration would introduce a 'threshold' stimulus strength for eliciting responses, thereby preventing responses to weak signals. Finally, we construct tunable expression systems in Mycobacterium bovis BCG to show that higher affinity non-cognate RRs suppress responses in vivo.

Integrated sensing of host stresses by inhibition of a cytoplasmic two-component system controls M. tuberculosis acute lung infection.

Bacterial pathogens that infect phagocytic cells must deploy mechanisms that sense and neutralize host microbicidal effectors. For Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis, these mechanisms allow the bacterium to rapidly adapt from aerosol transmission to initial growth in the lung alveolar macrophage. Here, we identify a branched signaling circuit in M. tuberculosis that controls growth in the lung through integrated direct sensing of copper ions and nitric oxide by coupled activity of the Rip1 intramembrane protease and the PdtaS/R two-component system. This circuit uses a two-signal mechanism to inactivate the PdtaS/PdtaR two-component system, which constitutively represses virulence gene expression. Cu and NO inhibit the PdtaS sensor kinase through a dicysteine motif in the N-terminal GAF domain. The NO arm of the pathway is further controlled by sequestration of the PdtaR RNA binding response regulator by an NO-induced small RNA, controlled by the Rip1 intramembrane protease. This coupled Rip1/PdtaS/PdtaR circuit controls NO resistance and acute lung infection in mice by relieving PdtaS/R-mediated repression of isonitrile chalkophore biosynthesis. These studies identify an integrated mechanism by which M. tuberculosis senses and resists macrophage chemical effectors to achieve pathogenesis.

Acetylation of Response Regulator Proteins, TcrX and MtrA in M. tuberculosis Tunes their Phosphotransfer Ability and Modulates Two-Component Signaling Crosstalk.

Two-component signal transduction (TCS) cascades involve stimulus-dependent activation and phosphorylation of a sensor kinase (SK), which then transfers the phosphoryl moiety to the response regulator (RR) protein. The fidelity of this phosphotransfer reaction from the SK to the RR provides specificity to TCS signaling. In the present study, we show that for TcrX, a transcriptionally autoregulated RR of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, acetylation enhances its net phosphorylation from cognate SK TcrY and lowers it from a non-cognate SK MtrB. Similar acetylation mediated increase in phosphorylation was also observed for another RR MtrA from cognate SK MtrB. Thus, we establish a novel TCS signaling design wherein acetylation of RRs results in enhanced cognate phosphorylation and suppresses non-cognate phosphorylation. Using wild-type or acetylation-deficient TcrX proteins in M. tuberculosis H37Ra, we demonstrate that non-acetylated TcrX acts as a "phosphate sink" for MtrB and suppressing signal propagation from MtrB to MtrA in vivo, linking metabolism to TCS signaling. Overall, we report that acetylation of RRs shields TCSs from crosstalk, modulates the phosphatase activities and alters the DNA-binding activities of RRs, all of which are non-intuitive behavior of TCS systems.

Activation of Bacterial Histidine Kinases: Insights into the Kinetics of the cis Autophosphorylation Mechanism.

Two-component signaling systems (TCSs) are central to bacterial adaptation. However, the mechanisms underlying the reactions involving TCS proteins and their reaction rates are largely undetermined. Here, we employed a combined experimental and theoretical approach to elucidate the kinetics of autophosphorylation of three histidine kinases (HKs) of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, viz., MtrB, PrrB, and PhoR, all known to play a role in regulating its virulence. Using wild-type and mutant proteins, we performed dimerization assays, thermophoretic-affinity measurements, and competition-based phosphorylation assays to establish that for HK, MtrB autophosphorylation occurs in cis, similar to what has been proposed for the PhoR and PrrB HKs. Next, to determine the kinetics of cis autophosphorylation, we used a quantitative high-throughput assay and identified a two-step mechanism of HK activation, involving (i) the reversible association of HK with ATP, followed by (ii) its phosphorylation. We developed a mathematical model based on this two-step cis mechanism that captured the experimental data. Best-fit parameter values yielded estimates of the extent of HK-ATP association and the rates of HK autophosphorylation, allowing quantification of the propensity of HK autophosphorylation. Our combined experimental and theoretical approach presents a facile, scalable tool to quantify reactions involving bacterial TCS proteins, useful in antibacterial drug development strategies.IMPORTANCE Two-component systems consisting of an input-sensing histidine kinase (HK) and an output-generating response regulator (RR) are one of the key apparatuses utilized by bacteria for adapting to the extracellular milieu. HK autophosphorylation is shown to occur primarily in trans (intermolecular) and more recently shown to occur in cis (intramolecular). Although the catalysis of HK activation remains universal, the reaction scheme for evaluation of the kinetic parameter differs between these designs and cis mode largely remains unexplored. We combined experimental and theoretical approach to unravel two-step mechanism of activation of three cis mode HKs of M. tuberculosis The new mathematical model yields best-fit parameters to estimate the rates of HK-ATP association and HK autophosphorylation.