Aeromonas hydrophila AH-3 type III secretion system expression and regulatory network.

The Aeromonas hydrophila type III secretion system (T3SS) has been shown to play a crucial role in this pathogen's interactions with its host. We previously described the genetic organization of the T3SS cluster and the existence of at least one effector, called AexT, in A. hydrophila strain AH-3. In this study, we analyzed the expression of the T3SS regulon by analyzing the activity of the aopN-aopD and aexT promoters (T3SS machinery components and effector, respectively) by means of two different techniques: promoterless gfp fusions and real-time PCR. The expression of the A. hydrophila AH-3 T3SS regulon was induced in response to several environmental factors, of which calcium depletion, a high magnesium concentration, and a high growth temperature were shown to be the major ones. Once the optimal conditions were established, we tested the expression of the T3SS regulon in the background of several virulence determinant knockouts of strain AH-3. The analysis of the data obtained from axsA and aopN mutants, both of which have been described to be T3SS regulators in other species, allowed us to corroborate their function as the major transcription regulator and valve of the T3SS, respectively, in Aeromonas hydrophila. We also demonstrated the existence of a complicated interconnection between the expression of the T3SS and several other different virulence factors, such as the lipopolysaccharide, the PhoPQ two-component system, the ahyIR quorum sensing system, and the enzymatic complex pyruvate deshydrogenase. To our knowledge, this is the first study of the A. hydrophila T3SS regulatory network.