Pseudomonas fluorescens Pf0-1 showed positive chemotactic responses toward 20 commonly-occurring l-amino acids. Genomic analysis revealed that P. fluorescens Pf0-1 possesses three genes (Pfl01_0124, Pfl01_0354, and Pfl01_4431) homologous to the Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 pctA gene, which has been identified as a chemotaxis sensory protein for amino acids. When Pf01_4431, Pfl01_0124, and Pfl01_0354 were introduced into the pctA pctB pctC triple mutant of P. aeruginosa PAO1, a mutant defective in chemotaxis to amino acids, its transformants showed chemotactic responses to 18, 16, and one amino acid, respectively. This result suggests that Pf01_4431, Pfl01_0124, and Pfl01_0354 are chemotaxis sensory proteins for amino acids and their genes were designated ctaA, ctaB, and ctaC, respectively. The ctaA ctaB ctaC triple mutant of P. fluorescens Pf0-1 showed only weak responses to Cys and Pro but no responses to the other 18 amino acids, indicating that CtaA, CtaB, and CtaC are major chemotaxis sensory proteins in P. fluorescens Pf0-1. Tomato root colonization by P. fluorescens strains was analyzed by gnotobiotic competitive root colonization assay. It was found that ctaA ctaB ctaC mutant was less competitive than the wild-type strain, suggesting that chemotaxis to amino acids, major components of root exudate, has an important role in root colonization by P. fluorescens Pf0-1. The ctaA ctaB ctaC triple mutant was more competitive than the cheA mutant of P. fluorescens Pf0-1, which is non-chemotactic, but motile. This result suggests that chemoattractants other than amino acids are also involved in root colonization by P. fluorescens Pf0-1.

Genome analyses indicate that many bacteria possess an elevated number of chemoreceptors, suggesting that these species are able to perform chemotaxis to a wide variety of compounds. The scientific community is now only beginning to explore this diversity and to elucidate the corresponding physiological relevance. The discovery of histamine chemotaxis in the human pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa provides insight into tactic movements that occur within the host. Since histamine is released in response to bacterial pathogens, histamine chemotaxis may permit bacterial migration and accumulation at infection sites, potentially modulating, in turn, quorum-sensing-mediated processes and the expression of virulence genes. As a consequence, the modulation of histamine chemotaxis by signal analogues may result in alterations of the bacterial virulence. As the first report of bacterial histamine chemotaxis, this study lays the foundation for the exploration of the physiological relevance of histamine chemotaxis and its role in pathogenicity.

Sequence analysis has revealed the presence of 22 putative methyl-accepting chemotaxis protein (mcp) genes in the Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum GMI1000 genome. PCR analysis and DNA sequencing showed that the highly motile R. pseudosolanacearum strain Ps29 possesses homologs of all 22 R. pseudosolanacearum GMI1000 mcp genes. We constructed a complete collection of single mcp gene deletion mutants of R. pseudosolanacearum Ps29 by unmarked gene deletion. Screening of the mutant collection revealed that R. pseudosolanacearum Ps29 mutants of RSp0507 and RSc0606 homologs were defective in chemotaxis to L-malate and amino acids, respectively. RSp0507 and RSc0606 homologs were designated mcpM and mcpA. While wild-type R. pseudosolanacearum strain Ps29 displayed attraction to 16 amino acids, the mcpA mutant showed no response to 12 of these amino acids and decreased responses to 4 amino acids. We constructed mcpA and mcpM deletion mutants of highly virulent R. pseudosolanacearum strain MAFF106611 to investigate the contribution of chemotaxis to L-malate and amino acids to tomato plant infection. Neither single mutant exhibited altered virulence for tomato plants when tested by root dip inoculation assays. In contrast, the mcpM mutant (but not the mcpA mutant) was significantly less infectious than the wild type when tested by a sand soak inoculation assay, which requires bacteria to locate and invade host roots from sand. Thus, McpM-mediated chemotaxis, possibly reflecting chemotaxis to L-malate, facilitates R. pseudosolanacearum motility to tomato roots in sand. Chemotaxis, the movement of motile bacteria with reference to a chemical agent, is a widespread phenomenon (1). Bacteria sense and respond behaviorally to a wide variety of chemical stimuli, including amino acids, sugars, organic acids, aromatic compounds, and phosphate (2-5). Bacterial chemotaxis also can be viewed as an important prelude to ecological interactions such as symbiosis, infection, and root colonization (6). Indeed, chemotaxis has been shown to be involved in nodulation by Rhizobium leguminosarum (7) and root colonization by Pseudomonas fluorescens (8-10).The molecular mechanisms that underlie bacterial chemotaxis have been studied intensively in Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (11, 12). Chemotactic ligands are detected by cell surface chemoreceptors called methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins (MCPs). Upon binding a chemotactic ligand, a MCP generates chemotaxis signals that are communicated to the flagellar motor via a series of chemotaxis (Che) proteins. E. coli possesses 5 MCPs and 6 Che proteins (CheA, CheB, CheR, CheW, CheY, and CheZ).Ralstonia solanacearum is a Gram-negative plant-pathogenic bacterium that causes bacterial wilt in economically important crops, including tomato, potato, eggplant, tobacco, and banana (13,14). This soilborne bacterium usually enters plant roots through wounds, root tips, and secondary root emerging points, from which the organism invades the xylem vessels and spreads to aerial parts (...

Pseudomonas fluorescens Pf0-1 exhibited chemotactic responses to l-malate, succinate, and fumarate. We constructed a plasmid library of 37 methyl-accepting chemotaxis protein (MCP) genes of P. fluorescens Pf0-1. To identify a MCP for l-malate, the plasmid library was screened using the PA2652 mutant of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1, a mutant defective in chemotaxis to l-malate. The introduction of Pfl01_0728 and Pfl01_3768 genes restored the ability of the PA2652 mutant to respond to l-malate. The Pfl01_0728 and Pfl01_3768 double mutant of P. fluorescens Pf0-1 showed no response to l-malate or succinate, while the Pfl01_0728 single mutant did not respond to fumarate. These results indicated that Pfl01_0728 and Pfl01_3768 were the major MCPs for l-malate and succinate, and Pfl01_0728 was also a major MCP for fumarate. The Pfl01_0728 and Pfl01_3768 double mutant unexpectedly exhibited stronger responses toward the tomato root exudate and amino acids such as proline, asparagine, methionine, and phenylalanine than those of the wild-type strain. The ctaA, ctaB, ctaC (genes of the major MCPs for amino acids), Pfl01_0728, and Pfl01_3768 quintuple mutant of P. fluorescens Pf0-1 was less competitive than the ctaA ctaB ctaC triple mutant in competitive root colonization, suggesting that chemotaxis to l-malate, succinate, and/or fumarate was involved in tomato root colonization by P. fluorescens Pf0-1.

Pseudomonas protegens CHA0, known as plant-growth-promoting rhizobacterium, showed positive chemotactic responses toward proteinaceous L-amino acids. Genomic analysis revealed that P. protegens CHA0 possesses four putative chemoreceptors for amino acids (designated CtaA, CtaB, CtaC, and CtaD, respectively). Pseudomonas aeruginosa PCT2, a mutant defective in chemotaxis to amino acids, harboring a plasmid containing each of ctaA, ctaB, ctaC, and ctaD showed chemotactic responses to 20, 4, 4, and 11 types of amino acids, respectively. To enhance chemotaxis toward amino acids, we introduced the plasmids containing ctaA, ctaB, ctaC, or ctaD into P. protegens CHA0. By overexpression of the genes, we succeeded in enhancing chemotaxis toward more than half of the tested ligands. However, unexpectedly, the P. protegens CHA0 transformants showed unchanged or decreased responses to some amino acids when compared to wild-type CHA0. We speculate that alternation of expression of a chemoreceptor may affect the abundance of other chemoreceptors. Abbreviations cDNA: complementary DNA; LBD: ligand-binding domain; MCP: methyl-accepting chemotaxis protein; PDC: PhoQ/DcuS/CitA; PGPR: plant-growth-promoting rhizobacteria; qRT-PCR: quantitative reverse transcription PCR