Francisella tularensis is a facultative intracellular pathogen and is the etiological agent of tularemia. One key aspect to the success of Francisella as a pathogen is ability of the organism to establish infection with a low inoculum, as few as 10 colony forming units (cfu). Essential to this process is the Francisella pathogenicity island (FPI). Several studies have been performed to understand how the FPI is regulated; however, the working model is not complete, as the signals important for regulation are unknown. Additionally, the mechanisms of the proteins MigR, TrmE, and CphA, which are important for activation of the FPI, are unknown. I initiated the study of this regulatory system by measuring the ability of various cellular stresses to activate an iglA-lacZ reporter. I identified that amino acid starvation and growth in basic pH activated expression of the reporter in both LVS and Schu S4. By combining these two stresses I was able to induce iglA-lacZ reporter expression in an additive manner. As it was previously demonstrated that ppGpp is important for stabilization of the regulatory complex that transcribes FPI genes, I demonstrated by TLC that both amino acid starvation and basic pH effected iglA-lacZ expression by increasing ppGpp. Due to the importance of ppGpp in FPI expression and because MigR, TrmE, and CphA each appear to be involved in a metabolic process: fatty acid metabolism (migR) t-RNA modification (trmE) and amino acid storage (cphA), I had hypothesized that the effect on these mutations were due to decreased levels of the small alarmone ppGpp. I compared ppGpp accumulation of LVS mutants in migR, trmE, and cphA to the parent strain and observed that loss of these genes resulted in reduced ppGpp. To better understand the importance of ppGpp synthesis in F. tularensis pathogenesis, I compared the phenotypes of these strains in primary human macrophages and two immortalized epithelial cell lines. These experiments demonstrated that although each of these strains had reduced ppGpp, there were cell line specific growth phenotypes. Mice infected with these strains survived suggesting tight regulation of the FPI is required for virulence. When similar mutations were characterized in the Schu S4 background these mutations retained their regulatory role; however, mutation of migR did not significantly decrease virulence in mice. As my data demonstrated that there are different challenges that Francisella must overcome to successfully replicate within cells, I developed an in vitro model to study the interactions of F. tularensis with human alveolar type II cells (AT-II). Interestingly, Schu S4 internalizes and replicates in these recently immortalized human AT-II cells whereas, LVS internalizes, but replicates poorly within these cells. Finally, to better understand the role of AT-II cells in vivo, I performed Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) of infected mice. These data confirmed that Schu S4 infected both alveolar macrophages and AT-II cells. Together, this work contributes to the understanding of how Francisella adapts to various environments by modulating virulence gene expression and highlights differences between virulent Schu S4 and LVS, which may partially contribute to virulence differences observed between strains.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 151-166).

Thesis (Ph. D., Microbiology, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry)--University of Idaho, October 2008. / Major professor: Scott A. Minnich. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online (PDF file) by subscription or by purchasing the individual file.

Francisella tularensis and Francisella novicida are closely related facultative intracellular pathogens capable of survival and growth within macrophages. In this work we present evidence to show that F. tularensis uses phase variation to alter lipopolysaccharide (LPS) antigenicity, macrophage nitric oxide (NO) production, and microbial intramacrophage growth. The LPS and lipid A of F. tularensis LVS fail to stimulate production of significant levels of nitric oxide by rat macrophage monolayers. However, spontaneous variants of F. tularensis expressing an antigenically distinct LPS induce rat macrophages to produce increased levels of NO, thereby suppressing intracellular growth. This new form of LPS produced by F. tularensis is also the predominant form of LPS found normally in F. novicida. Rat macrophages infected with F. novicida produce high levels of NO and exhibit suppression of intracellular growth. LPS and lipid A isolated from F. novicida and variants of F. tularensis stimulate increased levels of NO production. In addition, a reverse phase shift can occur which returns the LPS of the F. tularensis variants to the original antigenic form, resulting in reduced macrophage NO production and restoration of intracellular growth. These results suggest that F. tularensis can modulate macrophage NO production through phase variation of its LPS. It was of interest to initiate a study that would ultimately characterize the molecular mechanism of LPS phase variation in Francisella tularensis . To this end, we used shuttle mutagenesis to create a mutant library of F. novicida. We mutagenized a size- restricted plasmid library of F. novicida with the erythromycin- resistant transposon TnMax2. Putative F. novicida LPS mutants created by shuttle mutagenesis were screened visually for aberrant colony phenotypes on agar plates. Of 10464 mutants screened, 5 unique F. novicida LPS mutants were isolated which exhibit three distinct LPS phenotypes as determined by Western immunoblot. A single mutant from each of the three phenotypic groups was further characterized with respect to DNA sequence analysis, intramacrophage growth, and sensitivity to detergent and serum complement. Furthermore, these three loci were shown to hybridize with a corresponding locus in F. tularensis LVS. However, there was no difference in the restriction pattern of the hybridizing bands between LVS and its LPS phase variants, thus indicating that no major genetic rearrangements or insertion/deletion of a large mobile genetic element occurs in these genes during the phase variation process of F. tularensis. The F. novicida valAB locus has previously been cloned, sequenced, and shown to be functionally homologous to the E. coli genes msbA/lpxK. In order to investigate the hypothesis that valAB is involved in transport of LPS to the cell surface, an E. coli strain harboring an NTG-mutagenized temperature sensitive (t.s.) allele of valAB, a nonfunctional copy of msbA/lpxK, and an IPTG-inducible copy of the gene encoding the Chlamydia trachomatis genus-specific LPS epitope (gseA) was constructed. In this study, DNA sequencing was used to locate the temperature sensitive mutations in the valAB locus. Two C to T transitions were found in the valA coding region which result in a S to F change at amino acid 543 and a T to I change at amino acid 458. The ability of E. coli cells harboring this t.s. copy of valAB to transport the Chlamydia LPS epitope across the inner membrane at the permissive and non-permissive temperatures was determined using sucrose density gradient centrifugation and ELISA. It was determined that there was increased association of the LPS epitope with the inner membrane at the non-permissive temperature, thus suggesting that ValA is required for transport of an LPS precursor across the inner membrane. / Graduate

The induction of an innate immune response upon infection is dependent on the detection of the invading organism and the generation of a signalling cascade leading to the production of inflammatory mediators. Toll-like receptors are expressed on multiple cell types and induce the activation of a complex network of signalling pathways containing numerous branches with multiple interactions and cross-talk between the different branches. The TLR system is integral to the generation of a protective immune response and as such is an important target for pathogen-associated modulation. Many bacterial and viral pathogens employ strategies for interrupting or modulating TLR signalling to evade the host immune response. The obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen, F. tularensis, successfully invades and replicates within immune and epithelial cells. However, despite significant research the exact mechanisms used by this pathogen to successfully evade the host immune response remain elusive. To establish the exact signalling events that occur within a host upon infection with F. tularensis, the activation of specific signalling proteins was characterised using in vitro and in vivo models. The MAPKs, ERK and p38, were identified as critical in generating the host response. Furthermore, the temporal regulation of these signalling proteins was found to be bi-phasic with an early transient activation of both ERK and p38 followed by a sustained activation of ERK and a suppression of p38 activation at later time points. The role of ERK was investigated further using a specific inhibitor (PD0325901). Although there was no decrease in bacterial burdens in vitro and no increase in survival in mice treated with PD0325901, the inhibition of ERK activation reduced the secretion of TNF and IL-6 and reduced systemic bacterial proliferation in vivo. The induction of immune signalling cascades requires the activation of one or more receptors. The contribution of TLR2, TLR4 and TLR9 to the immune response to F. tularensis infection was examined using KO cell lines and specific antagonists. TLR2 was confirmed as a receptor for F. tularensis and was observed to play a role in the translational regulation of TNF. A role for TLR4 was also identified and further characterisation identified a potential priming relationship with TLR9. Sub-stimulation of 13 TLR4 by LPS enhanced the response induced by a subsequent stimulation of TLR9 by purified F. tularensis DNA. Overall, this study has provided evidence that, during infection, F. tularensis interacts with innate immune signalling pathways. By simultaneously suppressing p38 activation and prolonging ERK activation F. tularensis is able to regulate cytokine secretion and the induction of host-cell death mechanisms. Furthermore, this work has demonstrated that the activation of TLR9 by F. tularensis genomic DNA can be primed by a prior sub-stimulation of TLR4, although more research is required to fully understand the contribution of this interaction to the pathogenesis of F. tularensis.

The innate immune response to pathogens by the host is dependent upon the interplay of both pathogen and host intrinsic factors. Nucleotide-binding domain leucine-rich repeat containing (NLR) and pyrin and HIN200 domain containing (PYHIN) proteins are intracellular sensors of damage-associated and pathogen-associated molecular patterns. The studies presented here focus on the PYHIN molecule, AIM2, and the NLR, NLRP12, and the importance of bacteria- and host-associated proteins in the coordination of the innate immune response to the Gram-negative pathogen Fracisella tularensis. We have found that several genes expressed by F. tularensis encode for proteins that, when disrupted, cause the bacteria to trigger hyper- or hypoactivation of the AIM2 inflammasome. Bacteria with a mutation in FTL_0724, which hyperactivates the AIM2 inflammasome, are highly attenuated in a mouse model of infection, and induce robust caspase-1 processing and secretion of IL-1β by bone marrow derived macrophages (BMDMs). In contrast the hypoactivating mutant of F. tularensis, FTL0699, reduces IL-1β secretion by BMDMs and remains virulent in in vivo models of infection. We have also investigated the role of host-expressed NLRs in F. tularensis infection models. We have found that NLRP12 is important in the coordination of the innate immune response to F. tularensis through the modulation of CXCL1 production. We hypothesized that decreased CXCL1 production by Nlrp12-deficient mice was in turn responsible for the diminished recruitment of neutrophils in to the lungs of Nlrp12-deficient mice following intranasal challenge with F. tularensis. Nlrp12-deficient mice were found to be highly susceptible to infection with F. tularensis, and succumbed to infection at a much higher rate than wild-type mice. Taken together these data demonstrate that a number of pathogen and host factors can play critical roles in the outcome F. tularensis infections.

Francisella tularensis, l’agent étiologique de la tularémie, est une bactérie à multiplication intracellulaire facultative capable d’infecter de nombreux types cellulaires avec un tropisme particulier pour les macrophages. Cette bactérie est responsable d’infections graves chez de nombreuses espèces animales mais aussi chez l'homme. En particulier, la sous-espèce F. tularensis ssp tularensis a été classée comme agent de bioterrorisme de type A du fait de son pouvoir pathogène extrêmement élevé avec une faible dose infectieuse. Des approches de mutagénèse aléatoire et de criblage de banques de mutants ont suggéré l’importance des gènes impliqués dans les fonctions métaboliques et nutritionnelles dans le cycle intracellulaire de Francisella. Parmi ces gènes, on retrouve de très nombreux systèmes de transport d’acides aminés dont la sous-famille de transporteurs amino-polyamine-organocation (APC). Dans un premier temps, nous nous sommes intéressés à un transporteur APC codé par le gène FTN_0571, que nous avons appelé GadC. Pour comprendre l’importance de GadC dans la virulence de F. tularensis, nous avons réalisé un mutant chromosomique, délété du gène gadC, chez la sous-espèce novicida. Nous avons démontré que GadC est un importeur de glutamate et qu’il est nécessaire à la multiplication intracellulaire et à la virulence de Francisella, en assurant une sortie normale de la bactérie du phagosome. Ce phénomène s’explique par l’implication de GadC dans la résistance au stress oxydant généré dans le phagosome. De façon remarquable, la multiplication du mutant gadC est restaurée dans un contexte gp91phox-/-, incapable de générer des espèces réactives de l’oxygène, aussi bien in vitro qu’in vivo. Enfin, nous avons montré que l’activité de GadC modifie la production de certains intermédiaires du cycle de Krebs, et la transcription de l’enzyme qui leur est associée, démontrant un lien étroit entre la résistance au stress oxydant, le métabolisme du glutamate et la virulence de F. tularensis. Ces résultats nous ont conduits à nous intéresser à un autre transporteur appartenant à la sous-famille APC, présentant une homologie de 33% avec GadC, et que nous avons nommé ArgP. Nous montrons qu’un mutant argP présente un défaut de multiplication intracellulaire et de virulence résultant d’un retard sévère de sortie du phagosome. Ce phénotype s’explique par un défaut d’import d’arginine. L’inactivation du gène argP dans la sous-espèce holarctica LVS provoque des défauts de multiplication intracellulaire similaires à ceux observés dans la sous-espèce novicida, suggérant un rôle conservé du transporteur ArgP dans les différentes sous-espèces de F. tularensis. Comme l’arginine constitue un acide aminé essentiel pour la bactérie, nous nous sommes posés la question de l’importance de cet acide aminé durant la phase phagosomale. Une analyse du protéome bactérien du mutant argP de F. novicida, dans des conditions mimant les conditions nutritionnelles phagosomales, révèle que l’arginine joue un rôle prépondérant dans la traduction des protéines en affectant la synthèse des protéines ribosomales. L’ensemble des travaux réalisés au cours de cette thèse constitue la première démonstration de l’importance de l’acquisition d’acides aminés durant la phase phagosomale du cycle intracellulaire de F. tularensis. / Francisella tularensis, the etiologic agent of the zoonotic disease tularemia, is a facultative intracellular bacterium which can infect multiple cell types with specific tropism for macrophages. This bacterium is responsible for severe infections in numerous animal species and in humans. Of note, F. tularensis subsp. tularensis has been classified as a type A bioterrorism agent because of its high infectivity and very low infectious dose. Genome sequence analyses and genome-scale genetic studies have revealed the importance of genes involved in metabolic functions throughout the bacterial intracellular cycle. Among these genes, several amino acid transporter where found to belong to the amino-acid-polyamine organocation subfamily (APC), prompting us to address the role of these transporters in bacterial virulence. We first focused on the APC transporter encoded by gene FTN_0571 in F. tularensis subsp. novicida and named GadC. We showed that GadC was a genuine glutamate importer, necessary for Francisella intracellular multiplication and virulence. gadC inactivation completely blocked bacterial phagosomal escape. Remarkably, multiplication of a gadC mutant was restored in gp91phox-/- macrophages that are unable to generate reactive oxygen species. Altogether, our study revealed that glutamate uptake was critical in bacterial oxidative stress resistance in the phagosomal compartment and highlighted possible links between glutamate utilization and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. These results prompted us to address the role of a second APC transporter sharing 33 % amino acid identity with GadC and named ArgP. argP inactivation severely delayed bacterial phagosomal escape, thus impairing intracellular multiplication and virulence. We demonstrated that ArgP was a high affinity arginine transporter, suggesting that impaired phagosomal escape might be directly linked to an arginine import defect. argP inactivation in the F. tularensis subsp. holarctica Live vaccine strain also leads to a severe intracellular multiplication defect, consistent with a conserved role among all F. tularensis subspecies. Arginine is an essential amino acid for F. tularensis. To understand the importance of this amino acid during the phagosomal phase of the Francisella intracellular life cycle, a proteomic analysis of the bacteria, in conditions of arginine limitation, was carried out. This analysis revealed that arginine limitation affected in the argP mutant the expression of a series of proteins and in particular of all the ribosomal proteins. One may imagine that intracellular bacteria could also sense nutrient limitations in the phagosome as a subcellular localization signal. Altogether, these studies constitute the first demonstration of the importance of amino acid acquisition during F. tularensis phagosomal escape.

This thesis is about analyzing genetic differences among isolates of Francisella tularensis – the tularemia-causing bacterium. To elucidate how these bacterial isolates are related, and their geographical and genetic origins, I have developed typing assays for Francisella and used them to study the epidemiology of tularemia. Tularemia is an infectious disease of humans and other mammals found throughout the Northern Hemisphere. The severity of the disease depends on the type of F. tularensis causing the infection. In Sweden, as in other countries of Europe and Eurasia, tularemia is caused by F. tularensis subsp. holarctica, while other varieties of the bacterium occur in Middle Asia and North America. It is important to identify a tularemia infection promptly in order to initiate the correct antibiotic treatment. A rapid identification of the causative F. tularensis variety gives additional clinical information. In recent years, several genomes of various Francisella strains have been sequenced, and in this thesis, I have utilized these genomes to identify genetic markers. In studies reported in the first paper (I) appended to the thesis, we identified and analyzed insertion/deletion mutations (INDELs) inferred to have resulted from a sequence repeat-mediated excision mechanism. We found eight new Regions of Difference (RDs) among Francisella strains. Using RDs together with single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), we were able to predict an evolutionary scenario for F. tularensis in which Francisella novicida was the oldest variety while F. tularensis subsp. holarctica was the youngest. We also found that all virulence-attenuated isolates analyzed had deletions at two specific genetic regions - denoted RD18 and RD19 – suggesting that repeat-mediated excision is a mechanism of attenuation in F. tularensis. In subsequent studies (presented in paper II), we developed a combined analysis of INDELs lacking flanking repeats and variable number of tandem repeats (VNTRs). Both markers could be assayed using the same analytical equipment. The inclusion of INDELs provided increased phylogenetic robustness compared with the use of VNTRs alone, while still maintaining a high level of genetic resolution. In analyses described in the next paper (III), we selected INDELs from paper (II) and discovered novel SNPs by DNA comparisons of multiple Francisella strains. Thirty-four phylogenetically informative genetic markers were included in a hierarchical real-time PCR array for rapid and robust characterization of Francisella. We successfully used the assay to genotype 14 F. tularensis isolates from tularemia patients and DNA in six clinical ulcer specimens. Finally, in paper (IV) we demonstrated a strategy to enhance epidemiological investigations of tularemia by combining GIS-mapping of disease-transmission place collected from patient interviews, with high-resolution genotyping of F. tularensis subsp. holarctica isolates recovered from tularemia patients. We found the geographic distributions of specific F. tularensis subsp. holarctica sub-populations to be highly localized during outbreaks (infections by some genotypes being restricted to areas as small as 2 km2), indicative of a landscape epidemiology of tularemia with distinct point sources of infection. In conclusion, the results acquired during the studies underlying this thesis contribute to our understanding of the genetic genealogy of tularemia at both global and local outbreak scales.

Francisella tularensis is capable of infecting numerous cell types, including professional phagocytes. Upon phagocytosis, F. tularensis resides within the phagosome before escaping into the cytosol to replicate. Phagocytes constitute a hostile environment rich in ROS, which are employed as a means of killing pathogens. ROS interact with and disrupt the function of vital molecules such as DNA, proteins and bacterial structures. Iron potentiates the danger of ROS through the Fenton reaction where ferrous iron reduces H2O2 causing the formation of highly reactive hydroxyl radicals and anions. Low levels of ROS are formed during normal aerobic metabolism and pathogens thus have a need for defense mechanisms to handle the ever present levels of ROS but even more so to combat the onslaught of ROS experienced within a host. This thesis was focused on the investigation of the iron status and oxidative stress response of F. tularensis; thereby identifying key players controlling the bacterial iron content, its adaptation to oxygen-rich environments and defense against ROS. We identified subspecies-specific differences in iron content, where F. tularensis subsp. tularensis was found to contain significantly less iron than strains of subsp. holarctica. The reduced iron content resulted in an increased tolerance to H2O2, despite simultaneously causing a decrease in the activity of catalase - the iron-dependent enzyme responsible for degrading H2O2 in F. tularensis. This strongly suggests that the restricted iron uptake and storage by subsp. tularensis strains is beneficial by rendering the bacteria less susceptible to H2O2, thereby evading the toxic effects of the iron-driven Fenton reaction. This evasion is likely to be an important part of the higher virulence displayed by subsp. tularensis as compared to subsp. holarctica. We further identified that the global regulator, MglA, is important for the adaptation of LVS to oxygen-rich environments. Deletion of mglA from LVS resulted in a mutant, ΔmglA, with impaired defense to oxidative stress, as manifested by an inability to grow to wild-type levels under aerobic conditions, an accumulation of proteins with oxidative damage, a suppressed expression of iron-uptake related genes, an increased catalase activity, and an increased tolerance to H2O2. This phenotype was reversed in a microaerobic environment. We therefore conclude that MglA is an important factor for the defense of LVS to oxidative damage under aerobic conditions and speculate that MglA is of greatest importance in oxygen-rich foci. We also studied the role of OxyR in LVS by creating a ΔoxyR mutant as well as a double mutant, ΔoxyR/ΔkatG. The in vitro response of these mutants, as well as of ΔkatG, to defined ROS was assessed using H2O2, the O2- generating agent paraquat, and the ONOO- generator SIN-1. ΔoxyR was more susceptible to all ROS than LVS as was ΔkatG, with the exception of O2- Strikingly, ΔoxyR/ΔkatG was significantly more susceptible to all ROS tested compared to either single deletion mutant. LVS, ΔoxyR and ΔkatG replicated efficiently in bone marrow-derived macrophages whereas ΔoxyR/ΔkatG showed no replication. In mice, the ΔoxyR mutant displayed impaired replication in liver, but intact replication vs. LVS in spleen. Collectively, our results demonstrate an important role of OxyR in the oxidative stress response and virulence of F. tularensis, and further reveal overlapping roles of OxyR and catalase in the defense against ROS. The results thus shed new light on the complexity of ROS defense in F. tularensis.

The mechanisms by which the facultative intracellular pathogen Francisella tularensis is recognized by the innate immune system and the strategies that F. tularensis uses to avoid this recognition are not well understood. We have identified the basic components of the inflammasome that assemble in response to F. tularensis Live Vaccine Strain (LVS) challenge as containing the cysteine protease caspase-1, the adaptor protein ASC and the PYHIN molecule AIM2. We have also shown here that the nucleotide-binding domain leucine-rich repeat containing receptors (NLRs), NLRC4, NLRP3, NLRP6, NLRP10, and NLRP12 were not necessary for activation of caspase-1 and subsequent IL-1β secretion in response to challenge with F. tularensis LVS in vitro. In vivo, NLRC4, NLRP3, NLRP6, NLRP10, and NLRP12 did not appear to enhance survival. However, caspase-1- and ASC-deficient mice succumbed more rapidly to infection, indicating that the inflammasome played a role in defense against F. tularensis LVS. Additionally, we identified a gene with homology to Escherichia coli mviN, a putative lipid II flippase, that functions as a F. tularensis virulence factor. In vivo infection of mice with a F. tularensis LVS mviN transposon mutant (mviN::Tn5) resulted in improved host survival and decreased bacterial burdens compared to infection with wild-type F. tularensis LVS. Wild-type F. tularensis LVS and the mviN::Tn5 mutant replicated at a similar rate in both macrophages and liquid broth culture. Additionally, the ability to induce the production of TNF-α or IL-6 was also similar between WT F. tularensis and the mviN::Tn5 mutant. In contrast to the similar levels of production of IL-6 and TNF-α, the mviN mutant induced increased AIM2 inflammasome-dependent IL-1β secretion and cytotoxicity in macrophages compared to wild-type F. tularensis. The compromised in vivo virulence associated with the mutation of mviN was dependent upon inflammasome activation, as caspase-1- and ASC-deficient mice did not exhibit preferential survival following infection. These data show that F. tularensis LVS activation of the inflammasome is caspase-1-, ASC-, and AIM2-dependent. These data also identify mviN as a novel F. tularensis virulence factor that enables F. tularensis LVS to evade some AIM2 inflammasome activation.