The H-NS Regulator Plays a Role in the Stress Induced by Carbapenemase Expression in Acinetobacter baumannii

HUANG, FANNY; FITCHETT, NOELLE; RAZO-GUTIERREZ, CHELSEA; LE, CASIN; MARTINEZ, JASMINE; RA, GRACE; LOPEZ, CAROLINA; GONZALEZ, LISANDRO J.; SIEIRA, RODRIGO; VILA, ALEJANDRO J.; BONOMO, ROBERT A.; RAMIREZ, MARIA SOLEDAD

mSphere

American Society for Microbiology

Año: 2020 vol. 5

Disruption of the histone-like nucleoid structuring protein (H-NS) was shown to affect the ability of Gram-negative bacteria to regulate genes associated with virulence, persistence, stress response, quorum sensing, biosynthesis pathways, and cell adhesion. Here, we used the expression of metallo--lactamases (MBLs), known to elicit envelope stress by the accumulation of toxic precursors in the periplasm, to interrogate the role of H-NS in Acinetobacter baumannii, together with other stressors. Using a multidrug-resistant A. baumannii strain, we observed that H-NS plays a role in alleviating the stress triggered by MBL toxic precursors and counteracts the effect of DNA-damaging agents, supporting its role in stress response