H-NST Induces LEE Expression and the Formation of Attaching and Effacing Lesions in Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli

Background: Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) and enterohemorrhagic E. coli are important causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. These enteric pathogens contain a type III secretion system (T3SS) responsible for the attaching and effacing (A/E) lesion phenotype. The T3SS is encoded by the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) pathogenicity island. The H-NS-mediated repression of LEE expression is counteracted by Ler, the major activator of virulence gene expression in A/E pathogens. A regulator present in EPEC, H-NST, positively affects expression of H-NS regulon members in E. coli K-12, although the effect of H-NST on LEE expression and virulence of A/ E pathogens has yet-to-be determined. Results: We examine the effect of H-NST on LEE expression and A/ E lesion formation on intestinal epithelial cells. We find that H-NST positively affects the levels of LEE-encoded proteins independently of ler and induces A/ E lesion formation. We demonstrate H-NST binding to regulatory regions of LEE1 and LEE3, the first report of DNA-binding by H-NST. We characterize H-NST mutants substituted at conserved residues including Ala16 and residues Arg60 and Arg63, which are part of a potential DNA-binding domain. The single mutants A16V, A16L, R60Q and the double mutant R60Q/ R63Q exhibit a decreased effect on LEE expression and A/ E lesion formation. DNA mobility shift assays reveal that these residues are important for H-NST to bind regulatory LEE DNA targets. H-NST positively affects Ler binding to LEE DNA in the presence of H-NS, and thereby potentially helps Ler displace H-NS bound to DNA. Conclusions: H-NST induces LEE expression and A/ E lesion formation likely by counteracting H-NS-mediated repression. We demonstrate that H-NST binds to DNA and identify arginine residues that are functionally important for DNA-binding. Our study suggests that H-NST provides an additional means for A/ E pathogens to alleviate repression of virulence gene expression by H-NS to promote virulence capabilities.