Biosynthesis of Mannose-Containing Cell Wall Components Important in Mycobacterium
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Biosynthesis of mannose-containing cell wall components important in Mycobacterium tuberculosis virulence Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of the The Ohio State University By Tracy Lynn Keiser Graduate Program in Microbiolgy The Ohio State University 2014 Dissertation Committee: Dr. Larry S. Schlesinger, MD, Advisor Dr. Samantha King, PhD Dr. Robert Munson, PhD Dr. Stephanie Seveau, PhD Copyright by Tracy Lynn Keiser 2014 2 Abstract Tuberculosis (TB) remains a worldwide scourge. Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb) is one of the oldest and most successful pathogens in human history. It has developed a plethora of ways to subvert the host immune response and make a home out of what should be its undoing, its host cell niche, the macrophage phagosome. Mycobacterium species are compositionally unique organisms belonging to the phyla, Actinomycetes, which also includes Corynebacterium, Rhodococcus, Nocardia and Streptomyces. Their cell envelope includes structural components of both Gram negative and Gram positive bacteria in addition to molecules exclusive to mycobacterium, like mycolic acids. This unique cell envelope configuration provides M.tb with a physical barrier to environmental insults and is responsible for the variable retention of the Gram stain. M.tb coats itself with mannosylated molecules such as the abundant mannosylated lipoglycans which have mannosyl motifs that resemble those of mammalian glycoproteins. This molecular mimicry enables M.tb to take advantage of alveolar macrophages that have up-regulated surface receptors like the C-type lectin mannose receptor to gain entry into the cell and enhance its survival. ii Synthesis of the mannosylated lipoglycans involves several enzymes and pathways, and thus is difficult to study as a whole. The emphasis of this thesis will be on synthesis of the mannose donor molecules for these lipoglycans. The terminal mannose caps as well as the mannan structures in the core of these molecules are synthesized through a variety of specific mannosyltransferases that use the donors GDP-mannose and polyprenyl phosphate mannose (PPM) that are products of the mannose donor biosynthesis pathway. The putative genes of this pathway in M.tb are orthologs with 100% sequence identity to those in the attenuated vaccine strain M. bovis BCG and include manA (an isomerase), manB (a phosphomannomutase), manC (a GDP-mannose pyrophosphorylase), and ppm1 (polyprenyl-phosphate mannose synthase). Additionally, there are several other neighboring genes, like whiB2 (Fe-S clustering molecule and transcriptional regulator), Rv3256c, Rv3258c (hypothetical proteins), and Rv3253c (a postulated membrane flipase) whose functions are unknown, but are potentially contributing members of the mannose donor biosynthesis pathway. In this thesis we examined expression and some functional characterization of genes involved in the putative mannose donor biosynthetic pathway. Our results for the transcriptional profile in broth show that there are differences in expression of certain genes between M.tb and BCG under the same growth conditions despite their identical sequences. The expression profile of M.tb and BCG mannose donor biosynthesis genes in human macrophages is of particular importance not only because macrophages are the natural host cell niche for M.tb but also because the expression profiles are highly reproducible among different donors. It is of particular interest that the genes Rv3256c, iii Rv3258c and ppm1 were highly expressed in M.tb 2 hours post-infection of macrophages and then gradually decreased. Due to this up regulation at early time points post infection, characterization of the genes Rv3256c, Rv3258c and ppm1was of great interest and a focus of this work. Ppm1over-expressiom in M. smegmatis or M. tuberculosis provided no phenotype while over-expression of Rv3258c was unstable in the surrogate organism, M. smegmatis, and also showed no phenotype in M.tb. On the other hand, over-expression of Rv3256c reduced rather than increased cell wall mannosylated lipoglycans compared to the vector control. Despite the decrease in these molecules, over-expression of Rv3256c showed an increase in association with and survival in human macrophages. Thus, although the function still remains a mystery, evidence is provided for the role of Rv3256c in virulence. TB has become romanticized in our culture claiming the lives of some of our most beloved characters. Although we understand that the disease is caused solely by this unicellular organism, the interaction between host and microbe is incredibly complex. A more complete understanding of the entry and acclimation of M.tb into host cell macrophages could possibly allow us to develop new ways to prevent infection, limit dissemination following primary infection and possibly help enhance immune protection. iv Dedication Without the love and unwavering support of my family, none of this would have been possible. First and foremost to my father for being my number 1 fan and sparking my infatuation with science. My sisters Angie and Kimberly Keiser for showing me that when you want something enough in life, you will find a way to do it. And to the rest of my huge, fun and kind family whose names would go for pages but are certainly not forgotten. Science opened many new doors for me both professionally and socially. Their everyday support in a career fraught with disappointment was made bearable. Too many to name, but a few worth a special mention start with Anice, Ben and Oliver Daigle for always being my Columbus home. To Mels Lodder and Neinke Willigenburg for their genuine kindness. Last but not least, my best friends Ran Furman and Geoffrey Gonzalez. The three of us started as classmates, quickly became friends and are now considered my family. Cheers! v Acknowledgements I would like to thank my advisor Larry Schlesinger for providing me with the opportunity pursue my degree in his lab, for his patience when I wasn’t and for the smile on his face…….. most of time anyway! Thanks to the entire Schlesinger lab with special mention to Abul Azad for the introduction to genetics. To Evelina Guirado for her support and input. To Murugesan Rajaram for always giving me a fresh perspective and to all the ladies I spent the majority of the time with, huddled in a lab bay: Tracy Carlson, Michelle Brooks, Bin Ni and Eusondia Arnett. I would also like to acknowledge our collaborator, Jordi Torrelles and Jesus Arcos for guiding me through the biochemistry. vi Vita May, 1994……………………………...Versailles High School 2005……………………………………B.S. Microbiology, The Ohio State University 2007 to present………………………....Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University Publications 1. Yang L, Sinha T, Carlson TC, Keiser TL, Torrelles JB. and Schlesinger LS. Changes in the major cell envelope components of Mycobacterium tuberculosis during in vitro growth. Glycobiology, April 2013. 2. Cummings HE, Barbi J, Reville P., Oghumu S., Zorko N, Sarkar A, Keiser TL, Lu B, Rückle T, Varikuti S., Lezama-Davila C., Wewers MD, Whitacre C, Radzioch D., Rommel C, Seveau S, and Satoskar AR. Critical role for phosphoinositide 3-kinase gamma in parasite invasion and disease progression of cutaneous leishmaniasis. PNAS, Jauary 2012. 3. Keiser TL, Azad AK, Guirado E and Schlesinger LS. A comparative transcriptional study of the putative mannose donor biosynthesis genes in the virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis and attenuated Mycobacterium bovis BCG strains. Infection and Immunity, November, 2011. 4. Martin J, Duncan FJ, Keiser TL, Shin S, Kusewitt DF, Oberyszyn T, Satoskar AR, Vanbuskirk AM. Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) plays a critical role in pathogenesis of ultraviolet-B (UVB) -induced nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC). FASEB. 2008 Oct 24. vii 5. Rosas LE, Barbi J, Snider H, , Satoskar AA, Keiser TL, Papenfuss T, Durbin J, Radzioch D, Glimcher LH, Satoskar AR. Cutting Edge: STAT1 and T-bet play opposite roles in determining outcome of visceral leishmaniasis caused by L. donovani. Journal of Immunology, 2006; Jul 1:177(1):22-5. 6. Rosas LE, Satoskar AA, Roth K, Keiser TL, Barbi J, Hunter CA, de Sauvage F, Satoskar AR. Interleukin-27R (WSX-1/T-cell receptor) gene deficient mice display enhanced resistance to Leishmania donovani infection but develop severe liver immunopathology. American Journal of Pathology. 2006; Jan:168(1):158-69. 7. Rosas LE, Keiser TL, Barbi J, Satoskar AA, Septer A, Kaczmarek J, Lezama-Davilla CM, Satoskar AR. Genetic background influences immune responses and disease outcome of cutaneous L. mexicana infection in mice. International Journal of Immunology. 2005; 17:1347. 8. Rosas LE, Keiser T, Pyles R, Durbin J, Satoskar AR. Development of protective immunity against cutaneous leishmaniasis is dependent on STAT1-mediated IFN signaling pathway. European Journal of Immunology. 2003: 33:701. Fields of Study Major Field: Microbiology viii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................ ii Dedication ........................................................................................................................................ v Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... vi Vita................................................................................................................................................