Multi-metal nutrient restriction and crosstalk in metallostasis systems in microbial pathogens

Abstract

Transition metals from manganese to zinc function as catalytic and structural cofactors for an amazing diversity of proteins and enzymes, and thus are essential for all forms of life. During infection, inflammatory host proteins limit the accessibility of multiple transition metals to invading pathogens in a process termed nutritional immunity. In order to respond to host-mediated metal starvation, bacteria employ both protein and RNA-based mechanisms to sense prevailing transition metal concentrations that collectively regulate systems-level strategies to maintain cellular metallostasis. In this review, we discuss a number of recent advances in our understanding of how bacteria orchestrate the adaptive response to host-mediated multi-metal restriction, highlighting crosstalk among these regulatory systems.