Mobilized colistin resistance (mcr) genes are plasmid-borne genes that confer resistance to colistin, an antibiotic used to treat severe bacterial infections. To date, eight known mcr homologues have been described (mcr-1 to -8). Here, we describe mcr-9, a novel mcr homologue detected during routine in silico screening of sequenced Salmonella genomes for antimicrobial resistance genes. The amino acid sequence of mcr-9, detected in a multidrug-resistant (MDR) Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) strain isolated from a human patient in Washington State in 2010, most closely resembled mcr-3, aligning with 64.5% amino acid identity and 99.5% coverage using Translated Nucleotide BLAST (tblastn). The S. Typhimurium strain was tested for phenotypic resistance to colistin and was found to be sensitive at the 2-mg/liter European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing breakpoint under the tested conditions. mcr-9 was cloned in colistin-susceptible Escherichia coli NEB5α under an IPTG (isopropyl-β-d-thiogalactopyranoside)-induced promoter to determine whether it was capable of conferring resistance to colistin when expressed in a heterologous host. Expression of mcr-9 conferred resistance to colistin in E. coli NEB5α at 1, 2, and 2.5 mg/liter colistin, albeit at a lower level than mcr-3. Pairwise comparisons of the predicted protein structures associated with all nine mcr homologues (Mcr-1 to -9) revealed that Mcr-9, Mcr-3, Mcr-4, and Mcr-7 share a high degree of similarity at the structural level. Our results indicate that mcr-9 is capable of conferring phenotypic resistance to colistin in Enterobacteriaceae and should be immediately considered when monitoring plasmid-mediated colistin resistance. IMPORTANCE Colistin is a last-resort antibiotic that is used to treat severe infections caused by MDR and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) bacteria. The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated colistin as a “highest priority critically important antimicrobial for human medicine” (WHO, Critically Important Antimicrobials for Human Medicine, 5th revision, 2017, https://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/antimicrobials-fifth/en/), as it is often one of the only therapies available for treating serious bacterial infections in critically ill patients. Plasmid-borne mcr genes that confer resistance to colistin pose a threat to public health at an international scale, as they can be transmitted via horizontal gene transfer and have the potential to spread globally. Therefore, the establishment of a complete reference of mcr genes that can be used to screen for plasmid-mediated colistin resistance is essential for developing effective control strategies.

Bacillithiol (BSH), the α-anomeric glycoside of L-cysteinyl-D-glucosamine with L-malic acid, is a major low-molecular-weight thiol in Bacillus subtilis and related bacteria. Here, we identify genes required for BSH biosynthesis and provide evidence that the synthetic pathway has similarities to that established for the related thiol (mycothiol) in the Actinobacteria. Consistent with a key role for BSH in detoxification of electrophiles, the BshA glycosyltransferase and BshB1 deacetylase are encoded in an operon with methylglyoxal synthase. BshB1 is partially redundant in function with BshB2, a deacetylase of the LmbE family. Phylogenomic profiling identified a conserved unknown function protein (COG4365) as a candidate cysteine-adding enzyme (BshC) that cooccurs in genomes also encoding BshA, BshB1, and BshB2. Additional evolutionarily linked proteins include a thioredoxin reductase homolog and two thiol:disulfide oxidoreductases of the DUF1094 (CxC motif) family. Mutants lacking BshA, BshC, or both BshB1 and BshB2 are devoid of BSH. BSH is at least partially redundant in function with other low-molecular-weight thiols: redox proteomics indicates that protein thiols are largely reduced even in the absence of BSH. At the transcriptional level, the induction of genes controlled by two thiol-based regulators (OhrR, Spx) occurs normally. However, BSH null cells are significantly altered in acid and salt resistance, sporulation, and resistance to electrophiles and thiol reactive compounds. Moreover, cells lacking BSH are highly sensitive to fosfomycin, an epoxidecontaining antibiotic detoxified by FosB, a prototype for bacillithiol-Stransferase enzymes.Bacillus subtilis | glutathione | glutaredoxin | mycothiol | thioredoxin

Regulation of bacterial iron homeostasis is often controlled by the iron-sensing ferric uptake repressor (Fur). The Bacillus subtilis Fur protein acts as an iron-dependent repressor for siderophore biosynthesis and iron transport proteins. Here, we demonstrate that Fur also coordinates an iron-sparing response that acts to repress the expression of iron-rich proteins when iron is limiting. When Fur is inactive, numerous iron-containing proteins are downregulated, including succinate dehydrogenase, aconitase, cytochromes, and biosynthetic enzymes for heme, cysteine, and branched chain amino acids. As a result, a fur mutant grows slowly in a variety of nutrient conditions. Depending on the growth medium, rapid growth can be restored by mutations in one or more of the molecular effectors of the iron-sparing response. These effectors include the products of three Fur-regulated operons that encode a small RNA (FsrA) and three small, basic proteins (FbpA, FbpB, and FbpC). Extensive complementarity between FsrA and the leader region of the succinate dehydrogenase operon is consistent with an RNA-mediated translational repression mechanism for this target. Thus, iron deprivation in B. subtilis activates pathways to remodel the proteome to preserve iron for the most critical cellular functions.

Summary Gene regulation in cis by riboswitches is prevalent in bacteria. The yybP-ykoY riboswitch family is quite widespread, yet its ligand and function remained unknown. Here we characterize the Lactococcus lactis yybP-ykoY riboswitch as a Mn2+-dependent transcription-ON riboswitch, with a ~30–40 μM affinity for Mn2+. We further determined its crystal structure at 2.7 Å to elucidate the metal sensing mechanism. The riboswitch resembles a hairpin, with two coaxially stacked helices tethered by a four-way junction and a tertiary docking interface. The Mn2+-sensing region, strategically located at the highly conserved docking interface, has two metal binding sites. Whereas the one site tolerates binding of both Mg2+ and Mn2+, the other site strongly prefers Mn2+ due to a direct contact from the N7 of an invariable adenosine. Mutagenesis and a Mn2+-free E. coli yybP-ykoY structure further reveal that Mn2+ binding is coupled with stabilization of the Mn2+-sensing region and the aptamer domain.

Bacillus subtilis exhibits a complex adaptive response to low levels of peroxides. We used global transcriptional profiling to monitor the magnitude and kinetics of changes in the mRNA population after exposure to either hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) or tert-butyl peroxide (t-buOOH). The peroxide stimulons could be largely accounted for by three regulons controlled by the PerR, B , and OhrR transcription factors. Three members of the PerR regulon (katA, mrgA, and zosA) were strongly induced by H 2 O 2 and weakly induced by t-buOOH. The remaining members of the PerR regulon were only modestly up-regulated by peroxide treatment. Overall, the magnitude of peroxide induction of PerR regulon genes corresponded well with the extent of derepression in a perR mutant strain. The B regulon was activated by 58 M H 2 O 2 but not by 8 M H 2 O 2 and was strongly activated by either t-buOOH or, in a control experiment, tert-butyl alcohol. Apart from the B regulon there was a single gene, ohrA, that was strongly and rapidly induced by t-buOOH exposure. This gene, controlled by the peroxide-sensing repressor OhrR, was not induced by any of the other conditions tested.

SummaryThe Bacillus subtilis sigW gene encodes an extracytoplasmic function (ECF) factor that is expressed in early stationary phase from a sigW-dependent autoregulatory promoter, P W . Using a consensus-based search procedure, we have identified 15 operons preceded by promoters similar in sequence to P W . At least 14 of these promoters are dependent on W both in vivo and in vitro as judged by lacZ reporter fusions, run-off transcription assays and nucleotide resolution start site mapping. We conclude that W controls a regulon of more than 30 genes, many of which encode membrane proteins of unknown function. The W regulon includes a penicillin binding protein (PBP4*) and a co-transcribed amino acid racemase (RacX), homologues of signal peptide peptidase (YteI), flotillin (YuaG), ABC transporters (YknXYZ), non-haem bromoperoxidase (YdjP), epoxide hydrolase (YfhM) and three small peptides with structural similarities to bacteriocin precursor polypeptides. We suggest that W activates a large stationary-phase regulon that functions in detoxification, production of antimicrobial compounds or both.

SummaryMetal ion homeostasis is regulated principally by metalloregulatory proteins that control metal ion uptake, storage and efflux genes. We have used transcriptional profiling to survey Bacillus subtilis for genes that are rapidly induced by exposure to high levels of

Daptomycin (DAP) is a cyclic lipopeptide that disrupts the functional integrity of the cell membranes of Gram-positive bacteria in a Ca2؉ -dependent manner. Here we present genetic, genomic, and phenotypic analyses of an evolved DAP-resistant isolate, Dap R 1, from the model bacterium Bacillus subtilis 168. Dap R 1 was obtained by serial passages with increasing DAP concentrations, is 30-fold more resistant than the parent strain, and displays cross-resistance to vancomycin, moenomycin, and bacitracin. Dap R 1 is characterized by aberrant septum placement, notably thickened peptidoglycan at the cell poles, and pleiotropic alterations at both the transcriptome and proteome levels. Genome sequencing of Dap R 1 revealed 44 point mutations, 31 of which change protein sequences. An intermediate isolate that was 20-fold more resistant to DAP than the wild type had only three of these point mutations: mutations affecting the cell shape modulator gene mreB, the stringent response gene relA, and the phosphatidylglycerol synthase gene pgsA. Genetic reconstruction studies indicated that the pgsA(A64V) allele is primarily responsible for DAP resistance. Allelic replacement with wild-type pgsA restored DAP sensitivity to wild-type levels. The additional point mutations in the evolved strain may contribute further to DAP resistance, serve to compensate for the deleterious effects of altered membrane composition, or represent neutral changes. These results suggest a resistance mechanism by which reduced levels of phosphatidylglycerol decrease the net negative charge of the membrane, thereby weakening interaction with the positively charged Ca 2؉ -DAP complex.Daptomycin (DAP) is a cyclic lipopeptide antibiotic used to treat complicated skin and skin structure infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus or enterococci. In addition, it has been approved to treat S. aureus-induced bacteremia and infective endocarditis (21), and animal model studies suggest that it may be a useful alternative for treatment of inhalational anthrax (26). The mechanism of action involves the calcium-dependent insertion of DAP into the bacterial membrane, followed by depolarization of the membrane and extrusion of potassium ions, leading to arrest of macromolecular synthesis and to cell death (49, 51).The introduction of new antibacterial compounds seems to be followed inevitably by the emergence of resistant isolates. It is estimated that over 1 million patients have been treated with DAP (J. Silverman, personal communication). According to the SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program in the United States for the years 2002 to 2010, 99.9% of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates treated with DAP had an MIC of 1.0 g/ml or lower, with only a slight increase of MIC over time (47; http://www.gp-pathogens.com/data/default.cfm).Previous studies to define mechanisms of resistance to DAP were performed on clinical isolates and by in vitro selection (22,31). After serial passages with increasing DAP concentrations, Friedman et al. characterized three...