苜蓿中华根瘤菌（Sinorhizobium meliloti）LuxR家族转录因子ExpR调节motC操纵子的表达

目前已知苜蓿中华根瘤菌（S.meliloti）Rm1021 ExpR+突变导致胞外多糖Ⅱ（EPS Ⅱ）的过量表达,而胞外多糖是根瘤菌成功侵染宿主植物形成有效根瘤必需的物质。软琼脂板实验发现ExpR+突变株运动能力有缺陷。但是鞭毛染色实验并没有检测到突变株的鞭毛与野生型有什么不同。通过启动子lacZ融合子进一步研究突变株中基因表达的差异发现,ExpR以细胞密度依赖的方式调节motC操纵子的表达。由此可见,在苜蓿中华根瘤菌中,ExpR同时参与了胞外多糖Ⅱ的合成和细胞运动能力的调节。     

茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571鞭毛马达基因fliN与fliM的功能分析

【目的】考察茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571中鞭毛马达蛋白FliN、FliM的编码基因分别缺失的突变体表型,初步探究其功能机理。【方法】本研究采用同源重组和三亲本接合转移的方法构建突变体,测定野生型及突变株的生长曲线、趋化性、胞外多糖的分泌、生物膜的形成及细胞絮凝等表型。【结果】三种菌株的生长速率基本无差,与野生型菌株相比突变株鞭毛结构丧失,趋化能力、分泌的胞外多糖和生物膜形成能力均下降,但相同时间内细胞絮凝程度比野生型明显。【结论】实验表明,鞭毛基因fliN、fliM对茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571鞭毛的形成、趋化运动、胞外多糖的分泌、生物膜的形成及细胞絮凝能力等均有调控作用。     

茎瘤固氮根瘤菌环二鸟苷酸代谢相关基因的功能鉴定

【目的】考察茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571中c-di-GMP合成酶AZC-2412的编码基因缺失的突变表型,初步探究其功能机理。【方法】本实验构建基于cre-loxp重组酶系统的根瘤菌基因敲除系统,以及采用三亲接合技术构建突变株。测定野生型和突变株的生长速率、趋化能力、胞外多糖产量、生物膜形成等表型。【结果】突变株与野生型生长速率几乎相同。与野生型相比突变株由于细胞内c-di-GMP水平降低,胞外多糖、生物膜产量等均有所下降。【结论】实验表明,环二鸟苷酸合成酶AZC-2412缺失,使得c-di-GMP水平降低,对胞外多糖生成、细菌的运动能力、生物膜的形成、细胞絮凝、与植物的互作等均有调控作用。     

苜蓿中华根瘤菌nifA基因突变影响多种细胞学过程

苜蓿中华根瘤菌nifA基因在共生固氮过程中担负着调控功能,nifA突变株Rm1354在宿主植物的根部诱导白色无效根瘤。本文报道Rm1354在自生状态下的表型变化。nifA的突变导致根瘤菌在半固体培养基上泳动变慢,胞外蛋白含量降低。有趣的是,Rm1354在延宕期间高丝氨酸内酯含量比野生型低,在指数期和静止期却比野生型高。另外,突变株Rm1354的竞争结瘤能力也大大减弱。这些结果揭示了苜蓿中华根瘤菌nifA基因对许多细胞学过程都有调控作用。     

茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571 GGDEF和EAL结构域蛋白的预测及功能研究（英文）

【目的】环二鸟苷酸c-di-GMP是细菌中广泛存在的第二信使,能够调控多种细胞功能。c-di-GMP的合成与水解分别由含有GGDEF结构域和EAL结构域的蛋白催化。本研究针对茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571的GGDEF和EAL结构域相关蛋白进行基因组学分析,并对三个同时含有GGDEF和EAL结构域的蛋白(AZC_3085、AZC_3226和AZC_4658)进行功能研究。【方法】利用SMART数据库对含有GGDEF和EAL结构域的蛋白进行结构域预测。利用CLUSTALW程序对蛋白序列进行比较分析。通过同源重组的方法构建突变株,并对突变株的细胞运动能力、胞外多糖合成、生物膜形成及与豆科宿主的结瘤等表型进行测定。【结果】茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571中一共存在37个GGDEF和EAL结构域蛋白。突变株?4658的运动能力较野生型有下降,但是其胞外多糖合成能力、生物膜形成能力和竞争性结瘤能力较野生型有提高。此外,实验结果表明突变株?4658的胞内c-di-GMP水平高于野生型。突变株?3085和?3226的各种表型与野生型相比没有明显差异。【结论】茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571编码如此大数量的GGDEF和EAL结构域蛋白,表明c-di-GMP可能在其信号转导过程中起到非常重要的作用。同时具有GGDEF和EAL结构域的蛋白AZC_4658对茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571的运动能力、胞外多糖合成、生物膜形成及与宿主的结瘤起到一定的调节作用。     

茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571 GGDEF和EAL结构域蛋白的预测及功能研究

[目的]环二鸟苷酸c-di-GMP是细菌中广泛存在的第二信使,能够调控多种细胞功能。c-di-GMP的合成与水解分别由含有GGDEF结构域和EAL结构域的蛋白催化。本研究针对茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571的GGDEF和EAL结构域相关蛋白进行基因组学分析,并对三个同时含有GGDEF和EAL结构域的蛋白（AZC_3085、AZC_3226和AZC_4658）进行功能研究。[方法]利用SMART数据库对含有GGDEF和EAL结构域的蛋白进行结构域预测。利用CLUSTALW程序对蛋白序列进行比较分析。通过同源重组的方法构建突变株,并对突变株的细胞运动能力、胞外多糖合成、生物膜形成及与豆科宿主的结瘤等表型进行测定。[结果]茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571中一共存在37个GGDEF和EAL结构域蛋白。突变株△4658的运动能力较野生型有下降,但是其胞外多糖合成能力、生物膜形成能力和竞争性结瘤能力较野生型有提高。此外,实验结果表明突变株△4658的胞内c-di-GMP水平高于野生型。突变株△3085和△3226的各种表型与野生型相比没有明显差异。[结论]茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571编码如此大数量的GGDEF和EAL结构域蛋白,表明c-di-GMP可能在其信号转导过程中起到非常重要的作用。同时具有GGDEF和EAL结构域的蛋白AZC_4658对茎瘤固氮根瘤菌ORS571的运动能力、胞外多糖合成、生物膜形成及与宿主的结瘤起到一定的调节作用。     

Sinorhizobium fredii WGF03胞外多糖分泌相关基因exoD功能初探

从费氏中华根瘤菌WGF03的基因组中克隆出与胞外多糖分泌密切相关的基因exoD,研究该基因对胞外多糖合成、菌株共生结瘤能力和固氮效率的影响。利用自杀性质粒pK18mobsacB,通过同源双交换法构建exoD基因的缺失突变体ΔexoD。实验发现:与野生菌株相比,突变株在YMA培养基平板上胞外多糖产量明显减少、运动能力也有所减弱;在NaCl浓度小于350 mmol/L范围内,菌体均能维持稳定生长;接种于大豆幼苗后,产生的根瘤数量较多,但个体小、形状不一,且固氮酶活也显著下降。研究结果说明exoD基因参与S.fredii WGF03胞外多糖的合成并影响菌株共生结瘤能力和固氮效率。     

苜蓿中华根瘤菌042BMnoeA基因的克隆、敲除与功能的初步分析

通过PCR扩增获得了 0 4 2BM的noeA基因。该基因与苜蓿中华根瘤菌 (Sinorhizobiummeliloti) 10 2 1noeA的同源性为 99% ,而其NoeA与 10 2 1NoeA的相似性为 97%。还发现其NoeA与中慢生根瘤菌 (Mesorhizobiumsp .)BNC1可能的SAM_依赖性的甲基转移酶相似性为 32 % ,而其 30 3～ 36 2氨基酸区域与大肠杆菌 (Escherichiacoli)的核糖体 5 0S亚基的L11蛋白甲基转移酶 (PrmA)的 16 0～ 2 2 0氨基酸区域的相似性达到 4 1%。通过插入卡那盒 ,敲除noeA ,获得突变株 0 4 2BMA_Km。与苜蓿中华根瘤菌 0 4 2BM相比 ,敲除noeA的突变株在普通紫花、保定、宁夏、百发和傲汉苜蓿品种上的结瘤数、根瘤鲜重和植株地上部分的干重都有不同程度的增加 ,而在秘鲁苜蓿品种上的结瘤数和植株地上部分的干重明显下降 ,在皇后和美国杂花苜蓿品种上则没有明显的变化。     

田菁根瘤菌YIC4027可溶性趋化受体Tlp1的功能鉴定

【目的】初步探究田菁根瘤菌Sinorhizobium alkalisoli YIC4027中唯一含有PAS结构域可溶性趋化受体Tlp1的功能机理。【方法】本研究基于Red重组系统以及三亲接合技术进行缺失突变株的构建。对野生型和突变株的生长情况、趋化能力、趋氧性、细胞凝结、生物膜的形成、胞外多糖产量、在宿主根表的定殖及竞争性结瘤等表型进行了测定。【结果】与野生型相比,突变株的生长不受影响,趋化和趋氧能力降低,在宿主根表的定殖及竞争性结瘤能力降低,而细胞凝结能力、生物膜形成以及胞外多糖产生能力等均有所提高【。结论】本研究首次证实了S. alkalisoli YIC4027中可溶性趋化受体Tlp1影响细胞的趋化运动。     

根瘤菌属胞外多糖的研究

本文研究了豌豆根瘤菌(Rhizobum Leguminosarum),苜蓿根瘤菌(R. meliloti),三叶草根瘤菌(R. trifolii),菜豆根瘤菌(R. phaseoli),豇豆根瘤菌(Rradyrhizobium sp.(Vigna))和大豆根瘤菌(R. Japonicum)产生的胞外多糖化学组分的差异,结果表明,不同种的根瘤菌能产生具有不同组分的胞外多糖,其多糖组分的差异主要表现在糖醛酸和甘露糖的含量。豌豆根瘤菌、三叶草根瘤菌,菜豆根瘤菌产生的胞外多糖含有糖醛酸,大豆根瘤菌和苜蓿根瘤菌产生的胞外多糖一般不含有糖醛酸。根瘤菌有快生型和慢生型之别,这种差异也可由其产生的胞外多糖组分看到,一般快生型根瘤菌:豌豆根瘤菌,苜蓿根瘤菌,菜豆根瘤菌,三叶草根瘤菌,(包括最近证明的快生型大豆根瘤菌)的胞外多糖中甘露糖所占百分比较低(低于20％),葡萄糖所占的百分比较高(高于60％),而慢生型根瘤菌:大豆根瘤菌和豇豆根瘤菌的胞外多糖中甘露糖所占百分比较高(高于36％),葡萄糖所占的百分比较低(低于50％)。     

ExpR is not required for swarming but promotes sliding in Sinorhizobium meliloti

Swarming is a mode of translocation dependent on flagellar activity that allows bacteria to move rapidly across surfaces. In several bacteria, swarming is a phenotype regulated by quorum sensing. It has been reported that the swarming ability of the soil bacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti Rm2011 requires a functional ExpR/Sin quorum-sensing system. However, our previous published results demonstrate that strains Rm1021 and Rm2011, both known to have a disrupted copy of expR, are able to swarm on semisolid minimal medium. In order to clarify these contradictory results, the role played by the LuxR-type regulator ExpR has been reexamined. Results obtained in this work revealed that S. meliloti can move over semisolid surfaces using at least two different types of motility. One type is flagellum-independent surface spreading or sliding, which is positively influenced by a functional expR gene mainly through the production of exopolysaccharide II (EPS II). To a lesser extent, EPS II-deficient strains can also slide on surfaces by a mechanism that is at least dependent on the siderophore rhizobactin 1021. The second type of surface translocation shown by S. meliloti is swarming, which is greatly dependent on flagella and rhizobactin 1021 but does not require ExpR. We have extended our study to demonstrate that the production of normal amounts of succinoglycan (EPS I) does not play a relevant role in surface translocation but that its overproduction facilitates both swarming and sliding motilities.     

Sinorhizobium meliloti regulator MucR couples exopolysaccharide synthesis and motility

In order to enter symbiosis with its legume partner, Sinorhizobium meliloti requires regulatory systems for the appropriate responses to its environment. For example, motility is required for the chemotactic movement of bacteria toward the compounds released by its host, and exopolysaccharides (EPS) are required for bacterial attachment to the root or for invasion of the infection thread. Previous research has shown that ExoR/ExoS/ChvI as well as the ExpR/Sin quorum-sensing system inversely regulate both motility and EPS production, although the regulation mechanisms were unknown. We were able to attribute the ExpR-mediated regulation of motility to the ability of ExpR to bind a DNA sequence upstream of visN when activated by N-acyl-homoserine lactone. Furthermore, MucR, previously characterized as a regulator of EPS production, also affected motility. MucR inhibited expression of rem encoding an activator of motility gene expression and, consequently, the expression of Rem-regulated genes such as flaF and flgG. Binding of MucR to the rem promoter region was demonstrated and a sequence motif similar to the previously identified MucR binding consensus was identified within this region. The swarming ability of S. meliloti Rm2011 was shown to depend on a functional ExpR/Sin quorum-sensing system and the production of both flagella and EPS. Finally, we propose a model for the coordination of motility and EPS synthesis in S. meliloti.     

The LuxR homolog ExpR, in combination with the Sin quorum sensing system, plays a central role in Sinorhizobium meliloti gene expression

Quorum sensing, a population density-dependent mechanism for bacterial communication and gene regulation, plays a crucial role in the symbiosis between alfalfa and its symbiont Sinorhizobium meliloti. The Sin system, one of three quorum sensing systems present in S. meliloti, controls the production of the symbiotically active exopolysaccharide EPS II. Based on DNA microarray data, the Sin system also seems to regulate a multitude of S. meliloti genes, including genes that participate in low-molecular-weight succinoglycan production, motility, and chemotaxis, as well as other cellular processes. Most of the regulation by the Sin system is dependent on the presence of the ExpR regulator, a LuxR homolog. Gene expression profiling data indicate that ExpR participates in additional cellular processes that include nitrogen fixation, metabolism, and metal transport. Based on our microarray analysis we propose a model for the regulation of gene expression by the Sin/ExpR quorum sensing system and another possible quorum sensing system(s) in S. meliloti.     

The acetyl substituent of succinoglycan is not necessary for alfalfa nodule invasion by Rhizobium meliloti Rm1021.

Rhizobium meliloti Rm1021 requires a Calcofluor-binding exopolysaccharide, termed succinoglycan or EPS I, to invade alfalfa nodules. We have determined that a strain carrying a mutation in the exoZ locus produces succinoglycan that lacks the acetyl substituent. The exoZ mutant nodules alfalfa normally.     

Characterization of surface motility in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sinorhizobium meliloti</Emphasis>: regulation and role in symbiosis

Sinorhizobium meliloti can exhibit diverse modes of surface translocation whose manifestation depends on the strain. The mechanisms involved and the role played by the different modes of surface motility in the establishment of symbiosis are largely unknown. In this work, we have characterized the surface motility shown by two S. meliloti reference strains (Rm1021 and GR4) under more permissive conditions for surface spreading and analyzed the symbiotic properties of two flagella-less S. meliloti mutants with different behavior on surfaces. The use of Noble agar in semisolid minimal medium induces surface motility in GR4, a strain described so far as non-motile on surfaces. The motility exhibited by GR4 is swarming as revealed by the non-motile phenotype of the flagella-less flaAB mutant. Intriguingly, a flgK mutation which also abolishes flagella production, triggers surface translocation in GR4 through an as yet unknown mechanism. In contrast to GR4, Rm1021 moves over surfaces using mostly a flagella-independent motility which is highly reliant on siderophore rhizobactin 1021 production. Surprisingly, this motility is absent in a flagella-less flgE mutant. In addition, we found that fadD loss-of-function, known to promote surface motility in S. meliloti, exerts different effects on the two reference strains: while fadD inactivation promotes a flagella-independent type of motility in GR4, the same mutation interferes with the surface translocation exhibited by the Rm1021 flaAB mutant. The symbiotic phenotypes shown by GR4flaAB and GR4flgK, non-flagellated mutants with opposite surface motility behavior, demonstrate that flagella-dependent motility positively influences competitiveness for nodule occupation, but is not crucial for optimal infectivity.     

Characterization of the Sinorhizobium meliloti sinR/sinI locus and the production of novel N-acyl homoserine lactones

Sinorhizobium meliloti is a soil bacterium which can establish a nitrogen-fixing symbiosis with the legume Medicago sativa. Recent work has identified a pair of genes, sinR and sinI, which represent a potential quorum-sensing system and are responsible for the production of N-acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs) in two S. meliloti strains, Rm1021 and Rm41. In this work, we characterize the sinRI locus and show that these genes are responsible for the synthesis of several long-chain AHLs ranging from 12 to 18 carbons in length. Four of these, 3-oxotetradecanoyl HL, 3-oxohexadecenoyl HL, hexadecenoyl HL, and octadecanoyl HL, have novel structures. This is the first report of AHLs having acyl chains longer than 14 carbons. We show that a disruption in sinI eliminates these AHLs and that a sinR disruption results in only basal levels of the AHLs. Moreover, the same sinI and sinR mutations also lead to a decrease in the number of pink nodules during nodulation assays, as well as a slight delay in the appearance of pink nodules, indicating a role for quorum sensing in symbiosis. We also show that sinI and sinR mutants are still capable of producing several short-chain AHLs, one of which was identified as octanoyl HL. We believe that these short-chain AHLs are evidence of a second quorum-sensing system in Rm1021, which we refer to here as the mel system, for "S. meliloti."     

A positive correlation between bacterial autoaggregation and biofilm formation in native Sinorhizobium meliloti isolates from Argentina

Sinorhizobium meliloti is a symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacterium that elicits nodule formation on roots of alfalfa plants. S. meliloti produces two exopolysaccharides (EPSs), termed EPS I and EPS II, that are both able to promote symbiosis. EPS I and EPS II are secreted in two major fractions that reflect differing degrees of subunit polymerization, designated high- and low-molecular-weight fractions. We reported previously that EPSs are crucial for autoaggregation and biofilm formation in S. meliloti reference strains and isogenic mutants. However, the previous observations were obtained by use of "domesticated" laboratory strains, with mutations resulting from successive passages under unnatural conditions, as has been documented for reference strain Rm1021. In the present study, we analyzed the autoaggregation and biofilm formation abilities of native S. meliloti strains isolated from root nodules of alfalfa plants grown in four regions of Argentina. 16S rRNA gene analysis of all the native isolates revealed a high degree of identity with reference S. meliloti strains. PCR analysis of the expR gene of all the isolates showed that, as in the case of reference strain Rm8530, this gene is not interrupted by an insertion sequence (IS) element. A positive correlation was found between autoaggregation and biofilm formation abilities in these rhizobia, indicating that both processes depend on the same physical adhesive forces. Extracellular complementation experiments using mutants of the native strains showed that autoaggregation was dependent on EPS II production. Our results indicate that a functional EPS II synthetic pathway and its proper regulation are essential for cell-cell interactions and surface attachment of S. meliloti.