Activation of a Vibrio cholerae CBASS anti-phage system by quorum sensing and folate depletion
Geoffrey B. Severin, Miriam S. Ramliden, Kathryne C. Ford, Andrew J. Van Alst, Ram Sanath-Kumar, Kaitlin A. Decker, Brian Y. Hsueh, Gong Chen, Soo Hun Yoon, Lucas M. Demey, Brendan J. O'Hara, Christopher R. Rhoades, Victor J. DiRita, Wai-Leung Ng, Christopher M. Waters- Virology
- Microbiology
ABSTRACT
A major challenge faced by bacteria is infection by bacteriophage (phage). Abortive infection is one strategy for combating phage in which an infected cell kills itself to limit phage replication, thus protecting neighboring kin. One class of abortive infection systems is the
IMPORTANCE
To counteract infection with phage, bacteria have evolved a myriad of molecular defense systems. Some of these systems initiate a process called abortive infection, in which the infected cell kills itself to prevent phage propagation. However, such systems must be inhibited in the absence of phage infection to prevent spurious death of the host. Here, we show that the cyclic oligonucleotide based anti-phage signaling system (CBASS) accomplishes this by sensing intracellular folate molecules and only expressing this system in a group. These results enhance our understanding of the evolution of the seventh Vibrio cholerae pandemic and more broadly how bacteria defend themselves against phage infection.