GSTT SEMINAR: From strings of nucleotides to collective behaviour: lessons from Vibrio cholerae
1:00pm - 2:00pm /
Monday 13th March 2017
/ Venue: Lecture Theatre 1 Life Sciences Building
- Dada Pisconti
- Admission: Free
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GSTT SEMINAR: Dr Kai Papenfort, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich - Title: 'From strings of nucleotides to collective behaviour: lessons from Vibrio cholerae.'
Quorum-sensing (QS), is a process of bacterial cell-to-cell communication that relies on the production, release, and population-wide detection of extracellular signal molecules. Processes controlled by QS are inactive in individual bacteria but become effective when in large groups of bacteria. QS controls many important microbial processes including bioluminescence, secretion of virulence factors, competence and biofilm formation. We have recently identified and characterized a novel bacterial communication system present in Vibrio cholerae.
This system consists of a transcriptional regulator, VqmA and a small regulatory RNA (sRNA), VqmR.
VqmR is activated by VqmA and functions as a trans-acting regulator through base-pairing with multiple target mRNAs. These targets include key factors for biofilm formation and virulence factor expression in V. cholerae indicating that VqmA/R could participate in the regulation of complex behaviours. Our latest results show that VqmA binds to and is activated by an extracellular signal, which we discovered was a novel autoinducer molecule, DPO. DPO is a new molecule to biology and is produced by diverse microbes. Further, we obtained evidence that the signaling molecule is produced by commensal species of the host microbiota and that VqmA/R plays an important role during V. cholerae pathogenesis and mediates communication with other bacteria.
Quorum-sensing (QS), is a process of bacterial cell-to-cell communication that relies on the production, release, and population-wide detection of extracellular signal molecules. Processes controlled by QS are inactive in individual bacteria but become effective when in large groups of bacteria. QS controls many important microbial processes including bioluminescence, secretion of virulence factors, competence and biofilm formation. We have recently identified and characterized a novel bacterial communication system present in Vibrio cholerae.
This system consists of a transcriptional regulator, VqmA and a small regulatory RNA (sRNA), VqmR.
VqmR is activated by VqmA and functions as a trans-acting regulator through base-pairing with multiple target mRNAs. These targets include key factors for biofilm formation and virulence factor expression in V. cholerae indicating that VqmA/R could participate in the regulation of complex behaviours. Our latest results show that VqmA binds to and is activated by an extracellular signal, which we discovered was a novel autoinducer molecule, DPO. DPO is a new molecule to biology and is produced by diverse microbes. Further, we obtained evidence that the signaling molecule is produced by commensal species of the host microbiota and that VqmA/R plays an important role during V. cholerae pathogenesis and mediates communication with other bacteria.