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  • New insights into the disul...
    Matavacas, Judith; Anand, Deepak; Wachenfeldt, Claes

    Molecular microbiology, July 2023, Letnik: 120, Številka: 1
    Journal Article

    Spx is a global transcriptional regulator that orchestrates the Bacillus subtilis response to disulfide stress. The YjbH (SpxH) protein adapts Spx for ClpXP‐mediated degradation, playing a critical role in the regulation of the cellular Spx levels. Upon stress, YjbH forms aggregates by a yet unknown mechanism, resulting in increased Spx levels due to reduced proteolysis. Here, we studied how individual cells use the Spx‐YjbH system to respond to disulfide stress. We show, using fluorescent reporters, a correlation between the Spx levels and the amount of YjbH, as well as a transient growth inhibition upon disulfide stress. The in vivo dynamics and inheritance of YjbH aggregates are characterized by a bipolar distribution over time and appear to be entropy‐driven by nucleoid exclusion. Moreover, we reveal that the population following disulfide stress is highly heterogenous in terms of aggregate load and that the aggregate load has strong implications for cellular fitness. We propose that the observed heterogeneity could be a mechanism to ensure population survival during stress. Finally, we find that the two YjbH domains (DsbA‐like domain and winged‐helix domain) contribute to its aggregation function, and show that the aggregation of the DsbA‐like domain is conserved among other studied orthologs, whereas important differences are observed for the winged‐helix domain. Upon stress, the adaptor protein YjbH forms aggregates. YjbH aggregation promotes increased levels of Spx, a key transcriptional regulator that orchestrates gene expression to mitigate stress. We investigated the localization and in vivo dynamics of YjbH aggregates, the impact of aggregates on cellular fitness, and the contributions of the two domains of YjbH to aggregation. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the aggregation properties of YjbH are conserved among members of the Bacillota (Firmicutes) phylum.