RILseqDB

Sivan Pearl Mizrahi, Netanel Elbaz, Liron Argaman, Yael Altuvia, Naama Katsowich, Yaakov Socol, Amir Bar, Ilan Rosenshine, and Hanah Margalit

Small RNAs (sRNAs) exert their regulation post-transcriptionally by base pairing with their target mRNAs, often in association with the RNA chaperone protein Hfq. Here, integrating RNA-seq-based technologies and bioinformatics, we deciphered the Hfq-mediated sRNA-target interactome of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC). The emerging network comprises hundreds of sRNA-mRNA pairs, including mRNAs of virulence-associated genes interacting with known sRNAs encoded within the core genome, as well as with newly discovered sRNAs encoded within pathogenicity islands. Some of the sRNAs impact multiple virulence genes, suggesting they function as hubs of virulence control. We further analyzed one such sRNA hub, MgrR, and one of its targets identified here, the major virulence-associated chaperon, cesT. Remarkably, we show that MgrR adjusts the level of EPEC cytotoxicity via regulation of CesT expression. Our results reveal an elaborate sRNA-mRNA interactome controlling the pathogenicity of EPEC, and reinforce a role for sRNAs in the control of pathogen-host interaction.

DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abi8228

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