Cmr is a redox-responsive regulator of DosR that contributes to M. tuberculosis virulence.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTb) is the causative agent of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB). MTb colonizes the human lung, often entering a non-replicating state before progressing to life-threatening active infections. Transcriptional reprogramming is essential for TB pathogenesis. In vitro, Cmr (a member of the CRP/FNR super-family of transcription regulators) bound at a single DNA site to act as a dual regulator of cmr transcription and an activator of the divergent rv1676 gene. Transcriptional profiling and DNA-binding assays suggested that Cmr directly represses dosR expression. The DosR regulon is thought to be involved in establishing latent tuberculosis infections in response to hypoxia and nitric oxide. Accordingly, DNA-binding by Cmr was severely impaired by nitrosation. A cmr mutant was better able to survive a nitrosative stress challenge but was attenuated in a mouse aerosol infection model. The complemented mutant exhibited a ∼2-fold increase in cmr expression, which led to increased sensitivity to nitrosative stress. This, and the inability to restore wild-type behaviour in the infection model, suggests that precise regulation of the cmr locus, which is associated with Region of Difference 150 in hypervirulent Beijing strains of Mtb, is important for TB pathogenesis

Comparative investigation of the pathogenicity of three Mycobacterium tuberculosis mutants defective in the synthesis of p-hydroxybenzoic acid derivatives.

p-Hydroxybenzoic acid derivatives (p-HBADs) are glycoconjugates secreted by all Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates whose contribution to pathogenicity remains to be determined. The pathogenicity of three transposon mutants of M. tuberculosis deficient in the biosynthesis of some or all forms of p-HBADs was studied. Whilst the mutants grew similarly to the wild-type strain in macrophages and C57BL/6 mice, two of the mutants induced a more severe and diffuse inflammation in the lungs. The lack of production of some or all forms of p-HBADs in these two mutants also correlated with an increased secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokines tumour-necrosis factor α, interleukin 6 and interleukin 12 in vivo. We propose that the loss of production of p-HBADs by tubercle bacilli results in their diminished ability to suppress the pro-inflammatory response to infection and that this ultimately provokes extensive pulmonary lesions in the C57BL/6 model of tuberculosis infection

The proneurotrophin receptor sortilin is required for Mycobacterium tuberculosis control by macrophages.

Sorting of luminal and membrane proteins into phagosomes is critical for the immune function of this organelle. However, little is known about the mechanisms that contribute to the spatiotemporal regulation of this process. Here, we investigated the role of the proneurotrophin receptor sortilin during phagosome maturation and mycobacterial killing. We show that this receptor is acquired by mycobacteria-containing phagosomes via interactions with the adaptor proteins AP-1 and GGAs. Interestingly, the phagosomal association of sortilin is critical for the delivery of acid sphingomyelinase (ASMase) and required for efficient phagosome maturation. Macrophages from Sort1(-/-) mice are less efficient in restricting the growth of Mycobacterium bovis BCG and M. tuberculosis. In vivo, Sort1(-/-) mice showed a substantial increase in cellular infiltration of neutrophils in their lungs and higher bacterial burden after infection with M. tuberculosis. Altogether, sortilin defines a pathway required for optimal intracellular mycobacteria control and lung inflammation in vivo