Proline-dependent regulation of Clostridium difficile Stickland metabolism

L Bouillaut, WT Self, AL Sonenshein - Journal of bacteriology, 2013 - Am Soc Microbiol
L Bouillaut, WT Self, AL Sonenshein
Journal of bacteriology, 2013Am Soc Microbiol
Clostridium difficile, a proteolytic Gram-positive anaerobe, has emerged as a significant
nosocomial pathogen. Stickland fermentation reactions are thought to be important for
growth of C. difficile and appear to influence toxin production. In Stickland reactions, pairs of
amino acids donate and accept electrons, generating ATP and reducing power in the
process. Reduction of the electron acceptors proline and glycine requires the d-proline
reductase (PR) and the glycine reductase (GR) enzyme complexes, respectively. Addition of …
Abstract
Clostridium difficile, a proteolytic Gram-positive anaerobe, has emerged as a significant nosocomial pathogen. Stickland fermentation reactions are thought to be important for growth of C. difficile and appear to influence toxin production. In Stickland reactions, pairs of amino acids donate and accept electrons, generating ATP and reducing power in the process. Reduction of the electron acceptors proline and glycine requires the d-proline reductase (PR) and the glycine reductase (GR) enzyme complexes, respectively. Addition of proline in the medium increases the level of PR protein but decreases the level of GR. We report the identification of PrdR, a protein that activates transcription of the PR-encoding genes in the presence of proline and negatively regulates the GR-encoding genes. The results suggest that PrdR is a central metabolism regulator that controls preferential utilization of proline and glycine to produce energy via the Stickland reactions.
American Society for Microbiology