Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation
Phosphorus (P) availability, which often limits productivity in marine ecosystems, shapes the P-acquisition gene content of the marine cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus [ [1], [2], [3] and [4]] and its viruses (cyanophages) [ [5] and [6]]. As in other bacteria, in Prochlorococcus these genes are regulat...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2012
|
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/69047 |
| _version_ | 1826195355672248320 |
|---|---|
| author | Zeng, Qinglu Chisholm, Sallie (Penny) |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biology |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biology Zeng, Qinglu Chisholm, Sallie (Penny) |
| author_sort | Zeng, Qinglu |
| collection | MIT |
| description | Phosphorus (P) availability, which often limits productivity in marine ecosystems, shapes the P-acquisition gene content of the marine cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus [ [1], [2], [3] and [4]] and its viruses (cyanophages) [ [5] and [6]]. As in other bacteria, in Prochlorococcus these genes are regulated by the PhoR/PhoB two-component regulatory system that is used to sense and respond to P availability and is typical of signal transduction systems found in diverse organisms [7]. Replication of cyanophage genomes requires a significant amount of P, and therefore these phages could gain a fitness advantage by influencing host P acquisition in P-limited environments. Here we show that the transcription of a phage-encoded high-affinity phosphate-binding protein gene (pstS) and alkaline phosphatase gene (phoA)—both of which have host orthologs—is elevated when the phages are infecting host cells that are P starved, relative to P-replete control cells. We further show that the phage versions of these genes are regulated by the host's PhoR/PhoB system. This not only extends this fundamental signaling mechanism to viruses but is also the first example of regulation of lytic phage genes by nutrient limitation in the host. As such, it reveals an important new dimension of the intimate coevolution of phage, host, and environment in the world's oceans. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:11:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/69047 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:11:23Z |
| publishDate | 2012 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/690472022-09-26T16:17:42Z Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation Zeng, Qinglu Chisholm, Sallie (Penny) Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biology Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Chisholm, Sallie Zeng, Qinglu Chisholm, Sallie (Penny) Phosphorus (P) availability, which often limits productivity in marine ecosystems, shapes the P-acquisition gene content of the marine cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus [ [1], [2], [3] and [4]] and its viruses (cyanophages) [ [5] and [6]]. As in other bacteria, in Prochlorococcus these genes are regulated by the PhoR/PhoB two-component regulatory system that is used to sense and respond to P availability and is typical of signal transduction systems found in diverse organisms [7]. Replication of cyanophage genomes requires a significant amount of P, and therefore these phages could gain a fitness advantage by influencing host P acquisition in P-limited environments. Here we show that the transcription of a phage-encoded high-affinity phosphate-binding protein gene (pstS) and alkaline phosphatase gene (phoA)—both of which have host orthologs—is elevated when the phages are infecting host cells that are P starved, relative to P-replete control cells. We further show that the phage versions of these genes are regulated by the host's PhoR/PhoB system. This not only extends this fundamental signaling mechanism to viruses but is also the first example of regulation of lytic phage genes by nutrient limitation in the host. As such, it reveals an important new dimension of the intimate coevolution of phage, host, and environment in the world's oceans. Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education and Biological Oceanography Programs United States. Dept. of Energy 2012-02-08T19:09:21Z 2012-02-08T19:09:21Z 2012-01 2011-11 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 0960-9822 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/69047 Zeng, Qinglu, and Sallie W. Chisholm. “Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host’s Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation.” Current Biology 22.2 (2012): 124-128. Web. 8 Feb. 2012. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2011.11.055 Current Biology Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ application/pdf Elsevier Prof. Chisholm |
| spellingShingle | Zeng, Qinglu Chisholm, Sallie (Penny) Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation |
| title | Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation |
| title_full | Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation |
| title_fullStr | Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation |
| title_short | Marine Viruses Exploit Their Host's Two-Component Regulatory System in Response to Resource Limitation |
| title_sort | marine viruses exploit their host s two component regulatory system in response to resource limitation |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/69047 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT zengqinglu marinevirusesexploittheirhoststwocomponentregulatorysysteminresponsetoresourcelimitation AT chisholmsalliepenny marinevirusesexploittheirhoststwocomponentregulatorysysteminresponsetoresourcelimitation |