Mutation of luxS affects growth and virulence factor expression in Streptococcus pyogenes

Adaptive responses of bacteria that involve sensing the presence of other bacteria are often critical for proliferation and the expression of virulence characteristics. The autoinducer II (AI-2) pathway has recently been shown to be a mechanism for sensing other bacteria that is highly conserved among diverse bacterial species, including Gram-positive pathogens. However, a role for this pathway in the regulation of virulence factors in Gram-positive pathogens has yet to be established. In this study, we have inactivated luxS, an essential component of the AI-2 pathway, in the Gram-positive pathogen Streptococcus pyogenes. Analyses of the resulting mutants revealed the aberrant expression of several virulence properties that are regulated in response to growth phase, including enhanced haemolytic activity, and a dramatic reduction in the expression of secreted proteolytic activity. This latter defect was associated with a reduced ability to secrete and process the precursor of the cysteine protease (SpeB) as well as a difference in the timing of expression of the protease. Enhanced haemolytic activity of the luxS strain was also shown to be linked with an increased expression of the haemolysin S-associated gene sagA. Disruptions of luxS in these mutants also produced a media-dependent growth defect. Finally, an allelic replacement analysis of an S. pyogenes strain with a naturally occurring insertion of IS 1239 in luxS suggested a mechanism for modulation of virulence during infection. Results from this study suggest that luxS makes an important contribution to the regulation of S. pyogenes virulence factors.