Transcriptional control of two distinct lactococcal plasmid-encoded conjugation systems

Autor: Guillermo Ortiz Charneco, Philip Kelleher, Andrius Buivydas, Paul P. de Waal, Irma M.H. van Rijswijck, Noël N.M.E. van Peij, Jennifer Mahony, Douwe Van Sinderen
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2024
Předmět:
Zdroj: Current Research in Microbial Sciences, Vol 6, Iss , Pp 100224- (2024)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2666-5174
DOI: 10.1016/j.crmicr.2024.100224
Popis: Lactococcal conjugative plasmids are poorly characterized compared to those harbored by numerous other Gram-positive bacteria, despite their significance in dairy fermentations and starter culture development. Furthermore, the transcriptional landscape of these lactococcal conjugation systems and their regulation have not been studied in any detail. Lactococcal plasmids pNP40 and pUC11B possess two genetically distinct and prevalent conjugation systems. Here, we describe the detailed transcriptional analysis of the pNP40 and pUC11B conjugation-associated gene clusters, revealing three and five promoters, respectively, for which the corresponding transcriptional start sites were identified. Regulation of several of these promoters, and therefore conjugation, is shown to involve the individual or concerted activities of the corresponding relaxase and transcriptional repressor(s) encoded by each conjugative plasmid. This work highlights how the conjugative potential of these systems may be unlocked, with significant implications for the starter culture and food fermentation industry.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals