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La production de protéines hétérologues permet de développer une nouvelle génération de vaccins. La bactérie Escherichia coli est l’un des organismes hôtes les plus utilisés pour la production de protéines hétérologues, appelées également protéines recombinantes. Le déclenchement de la production de protéine altère la croissance bactérienne en réponse à la réallocation des ressources métaboliques vers la synthèse de la protéine ; ce qui peut conduire à l’arrêt complet de la croissance. Le maintien de la croissance bactérienne durant la production de la protéine recombinante est pourtant essentiel pour améliorer significativement la quantité et la fonctionnalité des protéines produites. Dans une démarche rationnelle visant à développer un système biologique robuste et performant pour la production d’une grande diversité de protéines recombinantes chez E. coli, les contraintes métaboliques liées à leur production ont été quantifiées. A partir de ces résultats, le système d’expression T7 a été intégré à la régulation métabolique et traductionnelle de la bactérie E. coli BL21 (DE3) afin d’adapter la vitesse de production avec les capacités métaboliques de la souche. Ce nouveau système biologique de production a ainsi permis d’augmenter considérablement les quantités de protéines produites et offre la possibilité de développer de nouveaux procédés performants de production semi-continus et continus en milieu chimiquement défini. / The production of heterologous proteins offers the ability to develop a new generation of vaccines. The most used organism for the production of heterologous proteins, also called recombinant proteins, is the bacterium Escherichia coli. However, the induction of the production often alleviates the bacterial growth by the new allocation of metabolic resources toward the production of the recombinant protein. Even, this may also lead to growth arrest. The production of high quantities of functional recombinant proteins requires a good balance between of bacterial growth and production of the recombinant protein.In order to rationally develop a robust and an efficient biological system for the production of a large variety of recombinant proteins in E. coli, the metabolic constraints associated to their production have been quantified. From this observation, the T7 expression system has been integrated into the metabolic and translational regulation of the E. coli BL21 (DE3) in order to adjust as perfect as possible the protein production rate to the metabolic capacities of the strain. This new biological production system has made it possible to significantly increase the quantities of proteins produced and opens up the possibility of developing performant semi-continuous and continuous production processes in a chemically defined medium.

Escherichia coli enteropatogênica (EPEC) é uma das principais causas de diarreia em crianças. Na carência de fosfato (Pi), um conjunto de genes conhecido como regulon PHO é induzido. Esse regulon é controlado pelo sistema Pst, que além de ser um transportador de Pi, reprime a expressão de PHO quando Pi é abundante, e pelo sistema de dois componentes PhoB/PhoR. A deleção de pst reduziu a adesão de EPEC à células epiteliais in vitro, pois diminuiu da expressão dos reguladores PerA/PerC, que por sua vez controlam a expressão de genes envolvidos na adesão. Este efeito foi exclusivo de pst e não devido a expressão constitutiva dos genes de PHO causada pela deleção de pst. A expressão da fímbria BFP, PerA e PerC também dependem da síntese de ppGpp, uma molécula de alarme envolvida na regulação de genes relacionados à carência nutricional. ppGpp regula positivamente a expressão de PerA e PerC. Entretanto, RpoS, o fator relacionado à resposta ao estresse, afetou negativamente o nível de adesão de EPEC e a expressão de BFP. / Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) is one of the causes of diarrhea in children. Phosphate (Pi) shortage induces transcription of the genes known as the PHO regulon. These genes are controlled by the Pst system, that is also a high-affinity Pi transporter, and represses PHO expression under Pi-replete conditions. PHO is also controlled by the two-component system PhoB/PhoR. Deletion of the pst operon reduced the adhesion of EPEC to epithelial cells in vitro due to a decrease in the expression of the regulators PerA and PerC that in turn control the expression of genes related to adhesion. The constitutive expression of the PHO genes in the pst mutant was not the cause of adhesion inhibition. Expression of bfp and the regulators PerA and PerC was also dependent on ppGpp, an alarmone involved in the regulation of genes related to nutrient limitation. On the other hand, RpoS, the factor that controls the general stress response, negatively affected EPEC adhesion and bfpA expression.

Escherichia coli enteropatogênica (EPEC) é uma das principais causas de diarreia em crianças. Na carência de fosfato (Pi), um conjunto de genes conhecido como regulon PHO é induzido. Esse regulon é controlado pelo sistema Pst, que além de ser um transportador de Pi, reprime a expressão de PHO quando Pi é abundante, e pelo sistema de dois componentes PhoB/PhoR. A deleção de pst reduziu a adesão de EPEC à células epiteliais in vitro, pois diminuiu da expressão dos reguladores PerA/PerC, que por sua vez controlam a expressão de genes envolvidos na adesão. Este efeito foi exclusivo de pst e não devido a expressão constitutiva dos genes de PHO causada pela deleção de pst. A expressão da fímbria BFP, PerA e PerC também dependem da síntese de ppGpp, uma molécula de alarme envolvida na regulação de genes relacionados à carência nutricional. ppGpp regula positivamente a expressão de PerA e PerC. Entretanto, RpoS, o fator relacionado à resposta ao estresse, afetou negativamente o nível de adesão de EPEC e a expressão de BFP. / Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) is one of the causes of diarrhea in children. Phosphate (Pi) shortage induces transcription of the genes known as the PHO regulon. These genes are controlled by the Pst system, that is also a high-affinity Pi transporter, and represses PHO expression under Pi-replete conditions. PHO is also controlled by the two-component system PhoB/PhoR. Deletion of the pst operon reduced the adhesion of EPEC to epithelial cells in vitro due to a decrease in the expression of the regulators PerA and PerC that in turn control the expression of genes related to adhesion. The constitutive expression of the PHO genes in the pst mutant was not the cause of adhesion inhibition. Expression of bfp and the regulators PerA and PerC was also dependent on ppGpp, an alarmone involved in the regulation of genes related to nutrient limitation. On the other hand, RpoS, the factor that controls the general stress response, negatively affected EPEC adhesion and bfpA expression.

The Escherichia coli acid stress response allows the survival of cells over a wide range of pH challenges: down to pH 2.0 with the extreme acid stress response and down to pH 4.0 – 5.0 with the mild acid stress response. The cell employs a number of different acid stress response systems, including a number of structurally related, pyridoxal-5′-phosphate (PLP)-dependent amino acid decarboxylases, including the glutamic acid, arginine, lysine, and ornithine decarboxylases. The decarboxylases are large multi-domain enzymes that exist as homodimers or higher-order oligomers and have various activity optima at different pH values. By the proton-consuming decarboxylation of a target amino acid, these enzymes provide a response to a wide range of pH challenges. The primary focus of this work is the elucidation of the X-ray crystal structure of the inducible lysine decarboxylase LdcI, a homodecameric enzyme that has distinct 5-fold symmetry. A combination of heavy-atom derivatization, anomalous scattering and molecular replacement techniques were used to determine the X-ray structure and the model was refined to a resolution of 2.0 Å. The structure of LdcI revealed that the protein co-crystallized with the stringent response alarmone ppGpp. The stringent response is activated under nutritional and stress conditions and reorganizes cellular transcription and metabolism from exponential-phase growth into stationary phase growth. The primary target of ppGpp is the RNA polymerase, but other classes of enzymes are known to be affected. ppGpp was found to be a potent inhibitor of LdcI both in vitro and in vivo and this role provides the first evidence of a linkage between the stringent response and acid stress response. Among the decarboxylases related to LdcI (the constitutive lysine, the ornithine and arginine decarboxylases), a number of these enzymes were similarly regulated by ppGpp.

Most free-living bacteria will encounter different environments and it is therefore critical to be able to rapidly adjust to new growth conditions in order to be competitively successful. Responding to changes requires efficient gene regulation in terms of transcription, RNA stability, translation and post-translational modifications. Studies of an extremely slow-growing mutant of Salmonella enterica, with a Glu125Arg mutant version of EF-Tu, revealed it to be trapped in a stringent response. The perceived starvation was demonstrated to be the result of increased mRNA cleavage of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase genes leading to lower prolyl-tRNA levels. The mutant EF-Tu caused an uncoupling of transcription and translation, leading to increased turnover of mRNA, which trapped the mutant in a futile stringent response. To examine the essentiality of RNase E, we selected and mapped three classes of extragenic suppressors of a ts RNase E phenotype. The ts RNase E mutants were defective in the degradation of mRNA and in the processing of tRNA and rRNA. Only the degradation of mRNA was suppressed by the compensatory mutations. We therefore suggest that degradation of at least a subset of cellular mRNAs is an essential function of RNase E. Bioinformatically, we discovered that the mRNA of tufB, one of the two genes encoding EF-Tu, could form a stable structure masking the ribosomal binding site. This, together with previous studies that suggested that the level of EF-Tu protein could affect the expression of tufB, led us to propose three models for how this could occur. The stability of the tufB RNA structure could be affected by the elongation rate of tufB-translating ribosomes, possibly influenced by the presence of rare codons early in the in tufB mRNA. Using proteomic and genetic assays we concluded that two previously isolated RNAP mutants, each with a growth advantage when present as subpopulations on aging wild-type colonies, were dependent on the utilization of acetate for this phenotype. Increased growth of a subpopulation of wild-type cells on a colony unable to re-assimilate acetate demonstrated that in aging colonies, acetate is available in levels sufficient to sustain the growth of at least a small subpopulation of bacteria.

The Escherichia coli acid stress response allows the survival of cells over a wide range of pH challenges: down to pH 2.0 with the extreme acid stress response and down to pH 4.0 – 5.0 with the mild acid stress response. The cell employs a number of different acid stress response systems, including a number of structurally related, pyridoxal-5′-phosphate (PLP)-dependent amino acid decarboxylases, including the glutamic acid, arginine, lysine, and ornithine decarboxylases. The decarboxylases are large multi-domain enzymes that exist as homodimers or higher-order oligomers and have various activity optima at different pH values. By the proton-consuming decarboxylation of a target amino acid, these enzymes provide a response to a wide range of pH challenges. The primary focus of this work is the elucidation of the X-ray crystal structure of the inducible lysine decarboxylase LdcI, a homodecameric enzyme that has distinct 5-fold symmetry. A combination of heavy-atom derivatization, anomalous scattering and molecular replacement techniques were used to determine the X-ray structure and the model was refined to a resolution of 2.0 Å. The structure of LdcI revealed that the protein co-crystallized with the stringent response alarmone ppGpp. The stringent response is activated under nutritional and stress conditions and reorganizes cellular transcription and metabolism from exponential-phase growth into stationary phase growth. The primary target of ppGpp is the RNA polymerase, but other classes of enzymes are known to be affected. ppGpp was found to be a potent inhibitor of LdcI both in vitro and in vivo and this role provides the first evidence of a linkage between the stringent response and acid stress response. Among the decarboxylases related to LdcI (the constitutive lysine, the ornithine and arginine decarboxylases), a number of these enzymes were similarly regulated by ppGpp.

<p>Becoming antibiotic resistant is often associated with fitness costs for the resistant bacteria. This is seen as a loss of competitiveness against the antibiotic-sensitive wild-type in an antibiotic-free environment. In this study, the physiological alterations associated with fitness cost of antibiotic resistance <i>in vitro</i> (in the laboratory medium), and <i>in vivo</i> (in a mouse infection model), are identified in the model system of fusidic acid resistant (Fus^R) <i>Salmonella</i> <i>enterica</i> serovar Typhimurium.</p><p>Fus^R mutants have mutations in <i>fusA</i>, the gene that encodes translation elongation factor G (EF-G). Fus^R EF-G has a slow rate of regeneration of active EF-G·GTP off the ribosome, resulting in a slow rate of protein synthesis. The low fitness of Fus^R mutants <i>in vitro</i>, and <i>in vivo</i>, can be explained in part by a slow rate of protein synthesis and resulting slow growth. However, some Fus^R mutants with normal rates of protein synthesis still suffer from reduced fitness <i>in vivo</i>. We observed that Fus^R mutants have perturbed levels of the global regulatory molecule ppGpp. One consequence of this is an inefficient induction of RpoS, a regulator of general stress reponse and an important virulence factor for <i>Salmonella</i>. In addition, we found that Fus^R mutants have reduced amounts of heme, a co-factor of catalases and cytochromes. As a consequence of the heme defect, Fus^R mutants have a reduced ability to withstand oxidative stress and a low rate of aerobic respiration.</p><p>The pleiotropic phenotypes of Fus^R mutants suggest that antibiotic resistance can be associated with broad changes in bacterial physiology. Knowledge of physiological alterations that reduce the fitness of antibiotic-resistant mutants can be useful in identifying novel targets for antimicrobial agents. Drugs that alter the levels of global transcriptional regulators such as ppGpp or RpoS deserve attention as potential antimicrobial agents. Finally, the observation that Fus^R mutants have increased sensitivity to several unrelated classes of antibiotics suggests that the identification of physiological cost of resistance can help in optimizing treatment of resistant bacterial populations.</p>

Becoming antibiotic resistant is often associated with fitness costs for the resistant bacteria. This is seen as a loss of competitiveness against the antibiotic-sensitive wild-type in an antibiotic-free environment. In this study, the physiological alterations associated with fitness cost of antibiotic resistance in vitro (in the laboratory medium), and in vivo (in a mouse infection model), are identified in the model system of fusidic acid resistant (FusR) Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium. FusR mutants have mutations in fusA, the gene that encodes translation elongation factor G (EF-G). FusR EF-G has a slow rate of regeneration of active EF-G·GTP off the ribosome, resulting in a slow rate of protein synthesis. The low fitness of FusR mutants in vitro, and in vivo, can be explained in part by a slow rate of protein synthesis and resulting slow growth. However, some FusR mutants with normal rates of protein synthesis still suffer from reduced fitness in vivo. We observed that FusR mutants have perturbed levels of the global regulatory molecule ppGpp. One consequence of this is an inefficient induction of RpoS, a regulator of general stress reponse and an important virulence factor for Salmonella. In addition, we found that FusR mutants have reduced amounts of heme, a co-factor of catalases and cytochromes. As a consequence of the heme defect, FusR mutants have a reduced ability to withstand oxidative stress and a low rate of aerobic respiration. The pleiotropic phenotypes of FusR mutants suggest that antibiotic resistance can be associated with broad changes in bacterial physiology. Knowledge of physiological alterations that reduce the fitness of antibiotic-resistant mutants can be useful in identifying novel targets for antimicrobial agents. Drugs that alter the levels of global transcriptional regulators such as ppGpp or RpoS deserve attention as potential antimicrobial agents. Finally, the observation that FusR mutants have increased sensitivity to several unrelated classes of antibiotics suggests that the identification of physiological cost of resistance can help in optimizing treatment of resistant bacterial populations.

Bacteria have the ability to sense different environmental signals. When an environmental stress is detected, bacteria rapidly adjust their gene expression profile to be able to survive and thrive. The transduction of such environmental signals often requires the coordinated involvement of several factors that constitute complex regulatory networks. Hence, depending on the combination of signals, a unique gene expression profile required to adapt to the specific stress conditions is generated. Proteins are the best-known regulatory factors. However, non-proteinaceous molecules are also important in signal-responsive control of bacterial gene expression. Alarmones are low molecular weight non-proteinaceous regulatory factors which can characteristically be rapidly turned-over to mediate instant changes in gene expression. One such alarmone is the modified nucleotide ppGpp, which directly binds to RNA polymerase to alter its activity. The levels of this alarmone are expected to rapidly increase in response to any environmental stress that result in slow proliferation. DksA, a putative ppGpp co-regulator that likewise directly targets RNA polymerase, has been suggested to be required for both the positive and negative regulation mediated by ppGpp in Escherichia coli. This thesis describes dissection of the role of ppGpp and DksA on transcriptional regulation, primarily using the fim genetic determinant that encodes for the type 1 fimbriae. Type 1 fimbriae are involved in adhesion to abiotic surface and initial adhesion/invasion of bladder cells, as well as in biofilm formation. We found that ppGpp regulates phase variation by increasing the sub-population of cells that express the fimbriae. The effect of ppGpp was ultimately traced to its role in transcription of the fimB gene that encodes a recombinase involved in the phase variation process (paper 1). In contrast, we unexpectedly found that lack of DksA causes an increase, rather than a decrease, in transcription from the fimB P2 promoter in vivo. However, in vitro transcription studies demonstrated that ppGpp and DksA, both independently and co-dependently, stimulate transcription from the fimB P2 promoter. These seemingly contradictory results from the in vivo and in vitro transcriptional studies were shown to be, at least in part, a consequence of the increased association of Gre-factors with RNA polymerase that can occur in the absence of DksA in vivo (paper 2). The results outlined above have implications for the role of ppGpp and/or DksA in global gene expression. Using gene expression profile (microarray analysis) during the transition from logarithmic to stationary phase of E. coli, we found that while most of the genes regulated by ppGpp and DksA are regulated in the same direction by the two factors, many were not. In addition to the fim genes, genes involved in flagella functioning, taxis responses, and a few genes encoding different transport systems are also differentially regulated in ppGpp- and DksA-deficient strains in vivo. Our results clearly indicate that the effect of deficiencies in ppGpp and DksA is far more complex than phenotypic similarity of the corresponding mutants anticipated by the proposed concerted action of ppGpp and DksA on gene expression (paper 2 &amp; 3).