Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth

During construction of several gene deletion mutants in Lactococcus lactis MG1363 which involved a high-temperature (37.5°C) incubation step, additional spontaneous mutations were observed which resulted in stable heat resistance and in some cases salt-hypersensitive phenotypes. Whole-genome sequenc...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Smith, W., Pham, T., Lei, L., Dou, J., Soomro, A., Beatson, S., Dykes, Gary, Turner, M.
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2012
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16815
_version_ 1848749284969676800
author Smith, W.
Pham, T.
Lei, L.
Dou, J.
Soomro, A.
Beatson, S.
Dykes, Gary
Turner, M.
author_facet Smith, W.
Pham, T.
Lei, L.
Dou, J.
Soomro, A.
Beatson, S.
Dykes, Gary
Turner, M.
author_sort Smith, W.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description During construction of several gene deletion mutants in Lactococcus lactis MG1363 which involved a high-temperature (37.5°C) incubation step, additional spontaneous mutations were observed which resulted in stable heat resistance and in some cases salt-hypersensitive phenotypes. Whole-genome sequencing of one strain which was both heat resistant and salt hypersensitive, followed by PCR and sequencing of four other mutants which shared these phenotypes, revealed independent mutations in llmg_1816 in all cases. This gene encodes a membrane-bound stress signaling protein of the GdpP family, members of which exhibit cyclic dimeric AMP (c-di-AMP)-specific phosphodiesterase activity. Mutations were predicted to lead to single amino acid substitutions or protein truncations. An independent llmg_1816 mutant (Δ1816), created using a suicide vector, also displayed heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity phenotypes which could be restored to wild-type levels following plasmid excision. L. lactis Δ1816 also displayed improved growth in response to sublethal concentrations of penicillin G. High-temperature incubation of a wild-type industrial L. lactis strain also resulted in spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 and heat-resistant and salt-hypersensitive phenotypes, suggesting that this is not a strain-specific phenomenon and that it is independent of a plasmid integration event. Acidification of milk by the llmg_1816-altered strain was inhibited by lower salt concentrations than the parent strain. This study demonstrates that spontaneous mutations can occur during high-temperature growth of L. lactis and that inactivation of llmg_1816 leads to temperature resistance and salt hypersensitivity.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T07:18:30Z
format Journal Article
id curtin-20.500.11937-16815
institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T07:18:30Z
publishDate 2012
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling curtin-20.500.11937-168152023-02-22T06:24:16Z Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth Smith, W. Pham, T. Lei, L. Dou, J. Soomro, A. Beatson, S. Dykes, Gary Turner, M. During construction of several gene deletion mutants in Lactococcus lactis MG1363 which involved a high-temperature (37.5°C) incubation step, additional spontaneous mutations were observed which resulted in stable heat resistance and in some cases salt-hypersensitive phenotypes. Whole-genome sequencing of one strain which was both heat resistant and salt hypersensitive, followed by PCR and sequencing of four other mutants which shared these phenotypes, revealed independent mutations in llmg_1816 in all cases. This gene encodes a membrane-bound stress signaling protein of the GdpP family, members of which exhibit cyclic dimeric AMP (c-di-AMP)-specific phosphodiesterase activity. Mutations were predicted to lead to single amino acid substitutions or protein truncations. An independent llmg_1816 mutant (Δ1816), created using a suicide vector, also displayed heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity phenotypes which could be restored to wild-type levels following plasmid excision. L. lactis Δ1816 also displayed improved growth in response to sublethal concentrations of penicillin G. High-temperature incubation of a wild-type industrial L. lactis strain also resulted in spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 and heat-resistant and salt-hypersensitive phenotypes, suggesting that this is not a strain-specific phenomenon and that it is independent of a plasmid integration event. Acidification of milk by the llmg_1816-altered strain was inhibited by lower salt concentrations than the parent strain. This study demonstrates that spontaneous mutations can occur during high-temperature growth of L. lactis and that inactivation of llmg_1816 leads to temperature resistance and salt hypersensitivity. 2012 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16815 10.1128/AEM.02316-12 unknown
spellingShingle Smith, W.
Pham, T.
Lei, L.
Dou, J.
Soomro, A.
Beatson, S.
Dykes, Gary
Turner, M.
Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth
title Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth
title_full Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth
title_fullStr Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth
title_full_unstemmed Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth
title_short Heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in Lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpP) induced by high-temperature growth
title_sort heat resistance and salt hypersensitivity in lactococcus lactis due to spontaneous mutation of llmg_1816 (gdpp) induced by high-temperature growth
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16815