Characterization of the mechanisms of CspC action in Caulobacter crescentus cell viability and stress response

• Grant number: 11/21883-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): March 01, 2012
• Effective date (End): February 29, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Genetics - Molecular Genetics and Genetics of Microorganisms
• Principal Investigator: Marilis Do Valle Marques
• Grantee: Juliana Santos Nakayama
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Proteins containing the structural domain called "cold shock domain" (CSD) are widely distributed throughout the three domains of life. These proteins have two motifs with nucleic acid binding properties and many of the functions of these proteins are mediated through this ability. Diferent functions for the orthologs of these proteins in different bacteria have been assigned: RNA chaperones, cold shock and stationary phase adaptation, freezing survival, response to nutritional deficiency, sensitivity to UV, condensing and inhibition of chromosome replication. In C. crescentus, an oligotrophic, non-pathogenic alfa-proteobacteria the levels of CspC and CspD, which contain two CSDs, increase only during stationary phase. The absence of cspC causes sensitivity to low temperature, hydrogen peroxide and superoxide and also causes severe impairment in stationary phase adaptability with morphological abnormalities during this phase. Concerning about cspC regulation, it was found that its expression is dependent on oxyR and sigJ. Besides that, it was shown to be positively self-regulated, probaly by stabilization of its own mRNA. Given the importance of cspC for the maintenance of cell viability, this project proposes the study of regulatory cspC targets by global transcriptional analysis to define their involvement in the maintenance of cell viability. Still, we intend to study the molecular mechanisms of regulation of these genes by cspC and determine the residues important amino acid for the function of cspC. We expect to identify the mechanisms of cspC action in the maintenance of C. crescentus cell viability and response

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

SANTOS, JULIANA S.; DA SILVA, CAROLINA A. P. T.; BALHESTEROS, HELOISE; LOURENCO, ROGERIO F.; MARQUES, MARILIS V.. CspC regulates the expression of the glyoxylate cycle genes at stationary phase in Caulobacter. BMC Genomics, v. 16, AUG 27 2015. (14/04046-8, 11/21883-2, 12/10563-0, 11/17513-5)