Distribution characteristics of the Legionella CRISPR-Cas system and its regulatory mechanism underpinning phenotypic function

Author:

Xu Pei-Xing1ORCID,Ren Hong-Yu1,Zhao Na1,Jin Xiao-Jing1,Wen Bo-Hai2,Qin Tian1ORCID

Affiliation:

1. National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, China

2. Pathogen and Biosecurity, Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing, China

Abstract

ABSTRACT Legionella is a common intracellular parasitic bacterium that infects humans via the respiratory tract, causing Legionnaires’ disease, with fever and pneumonia as the main symptoms. The emergence of highly virulent and azithromycin-resistant Legionella pneumophila is a major challenge in clinical anti-infective therapy. The CRISPR-Cas acquired immune system provides immune defense against foreign nucleic acids and regulates strain biological functions. However, the distribution of the CRISPR-Cas system in Legionella and how it regulates gene expression in L. pneumophila remain unclear. Herein, we assessed 915 Legionella whole-genome sequences to determine the distribution characteristics of the CRISPR-Cas system and constructed gene deletion mutants to explore the regulation of the system based on growth ability in vitro , antibiotic sensitivity, and intracellular proliferation of L. pneumophila . The CRISPR-Cas system in Legionella was predominantly Type II-B and was mainly concentrated in the genome of L. pneumophila ST1 strains. The Type II-B CRISPR-Cas system showed no effect on the strain’s growth ability in vitro but significantly reduced resistance to azithromycin and decreased proliferation ability due to regulation of the lpeAB efflux pump and the Dot/Icm type IV secretion system. Thus, the Type II-B CRISPR-Cas system plays a crucial role in regulating the virulence of L. pneumophila . This expands our understanding of drug resistance and pathogenicity in Legionella , provides a scientific basis for the prevention of Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks and the rational use of clinical drugs, and facilitates effective treatment of Legionnaires’ disease.

Funder

Foundation for Innovative Research Groups of the National Natural Science Foundation of China

State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control of China

Public Health Service Capability Improvement Project of the National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China

Publisher

American Society for Microbiology

Subject

Infectious Diseases,Immunology,Microbiology,Parasitology

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