The Periplasmic Oxidoreductase DsbA Is Required for Virulence of the Phytopathogen <i>Dickeya solani</i>

oleh: Tomasz Przepiora, Donata Figaj, Aleksandra Bogucka, Jakub Fikowicz-Krosko, Robert Czajkowski, Nicole Hugouvieux-Cotte-Pattat, Joanna Skorko-Glonek

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2022-01-01

Deskripsi

In bacteria, the DsbA oxidoreductase is a crucial factor responsible for the introduction of disulfide bonds to extracytoplasmic proteins, which include important virulence factors. A lack of proper disulfide bonds frequently leads to instability and/or loss of protein function; therefore, improper disulfide bonding may lead to avirulent phenotypes. The importance of the DsbA function in phytopathogens has not been extensively studied yet. <i>Dickeya solani</i> is a bacterium from the Soft Rot <i>Pectobacteriaceae</i> family which is responsible for very high economic losses mainly in potato. In this work, we constructed a <i>D. solani dsbA</i> mutant and demonstrated that a lack of DsbA caused a loss of virulence. The mutant bacteria showed lower activities of secreted virulence determinants and were unable to develop disease symptoms in a potato plant. The SWATH-MS-based proteomic analysis revealed that the <i>dsbA</i> mutation led to multifaceted effects in the <i>D. solani</i> cells, including not only lower levels of secreted virulence factors, but also the induction of stress responses. Finally, the outer membrane barrier seemed to be disturbed by the mutation. Our results clearly demonstrate that the function played by the DsbA oxidoreductase is crucial for <i>D. solani</i> virulence, and a lack of DsbA significantly disturbs cellular physiology.