PUBLICATION
A mucin-regulated adhesin determines the spatial organization and inflammatory character of a bacterial symbiont in the vertebrate gut
- Authors
- Smith, T.J., Sundarraman, D., Melancon, E., Desban, L., Parthasarathy, R., Guillemin, K.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-230730-64
- Date
- 2023
- Source
- Cell Host & Microbe 31(8): 1371-1385.e6 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Desban, Laura, Guillemin, Karen
- Keywords
- Akkermansia, adhesin, aggregation, inflammation, motility, mucin, symbiosis
- MeSH Terms
-
- Animals
- Bacteria/metabolism
- Epithelium/metabolism
- Humans
- Mucins*/metabolism
- Polysaccharides/metabolism
- Zebrafish*
- PubMed
- 37516109 Full text @ Cell Host Microbe
Citation
Smith, T.J., Sundarraman, D., Melancon, E., Desban, L., Parthasarathy, R., Guillemin, K. (2023) A mucin-regulated adhesin determines the spatial organization and inflammatory character of a bacterial symbiont in the vertebrate gut. Cell Host & Microbe. 31(8):1371-1385.e6.
Abstract
In a healthy gut, microbes are often aggregated with host mucus, yet the molecular basis for this organization and its impact on intestinal health are unclear. Mucus is a viscous physical barrier separating resident microbes from epithelia, but it also provides glycan cues that regulate microbial behaviors. Here, we describe a mucin-sensing pathway in an Aeromonas symbiont of zebrafish, Aer01. In response to the mucin-associated glycan N-acetylglucosamine, a sensor kinase regulates the expression of an aggregation-promoting adhesin we named MbpA. Upon MbpA disruption, Aer01 colonizes to normal levels but is largely planktonic and more pro-inflammatory. Increasing cell surface MbpA rescues these traits. MbpA-like adhesins are common in human-associated bacteria, and the expression of an Akkermansia muciniphila MbpA-like adhesin in MbpA-deficient Aer01 restores lumenal aggregation and reverses its pro-inflammatory character. Our work demonstrates how resident bacteria use mucin glycans to modulate behaviors congruent with host health.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping