The Capsule Regulatory Network of Klebsiella pneumoniae Defined by density-TraDISort

Capsule production is essential for K. pneumoniae to cause infections, but its regulation and mechanism of synthesis are not fully understood in this organism. We have developed and applied a new method for genome-wide identification of capsule regulators. Using this method, many genes that positively or negatively affect capsule production in K. pneumoniae were identified, and we use these data to propose an integrated model for capsule regulation in this species. Several of the genes and biological processes identified have not previously been linked to capsule synthesis. We also show that the methods presented here can be applied to other species of capsulated bacteria, providing the opportunity to explore and compare capsule regulatory networks in other bacterial strains and species.