What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to understand how additions of amino acids at the C-terminus of PhcA affect its gene regulatory function and virulence.

June 14, 2026Journal of General Plant Pathology0 citationsOpen Access

Effects of the C-terminal alternative addition of amino acids on the gene regulatory activity of the LysR-type transcriptional regulator PhcA in Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum strain OE1-1

TUTatsuya UeyamaKōchi University MTM TsuzukiKōchi University STSora TatedaKōchi University

Key Points

This research aims to understand how additions of amino acids at the C-terminus of PhcA affect its gene regulatory function and virulence.
Transformed phcA-deletion strain with truncated and frameshift-mutated phcA variants.
Evaluated regulation of PhcA-regulated genes in the presence of these variants.
Analyzed the impact on virulence in Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum strain OE1-1.
The frameshift mutation affected gene regulation, resulting in a loss of virulence.
Truncation of the C-terminus did not alter the ability to regulate PhcA-regulated genes.
Amino acid additions due to frameshift mutations impair the regulatory function of PhcA.

Abstract

Abstract In the quorum sensing-active state, the phytopathogenic Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum strain OE1-1 activates the 347-amino acid LysR-type transcriptional regulator PhcA, which regulates PhcA-regulated genes responsible for its virulence. To elucidate the functional role of the PhcA C-terminus, the phcA -deletion strain was transformed with a truncated phcA encoding PhcA lacking only the 20 C-terminal amino acids or a frameshift-mutated phcA carrying a single adenine deletion at position 983. The frameshift-mutation but not truncation of PhcA C-terminus affected the regulation of PhcA-regulated genes, losing virulence. These results indicate that the frameshift-derived amino acid additions at the C-terminus impair PhcA’s regulatory function.

Ask AI

Helpful

Bookmark

View Full Paper