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Abstract：
Bacterial cooperation and antagonism mediated by secretion systems are among the ways in which bacteria interact with one another. Here we report the discovery of an antagonistic property of a type IV secretion system (T4SS) sourced from a conjugative plasmid, RP4, using engineering approaches. We scrutinized the genetic determinants and suggested that this antagonistic activity is independent of molecular cargos, while we also elucidated the resistance genes. We further showed that a range of Gram-negative bacteria and a mixed bacterial population can be eliminated by this T4SS-dependent antagonism. Finally, we showed that such an antagonistic property is not limited to T4SS sourced from RP4, rather it can also be observed in a T4SS originated from another conjugative plasmid, namely R388. Our results are the first demonstration of conjugative T4SS-dependent antagonism between Gram-negative bacteria on the genetic level and provide the foundation for future mechanistic studies.
摘要：
由分泌系统介导的细菌协作和拮抗作用是细菌彼此相互作用的方式之一。在这里，我们报告了来自接合质粒的IV型分泌系统（T4SS）的拮抗性质的发现，RP4，使用工程方法。我们仔细检查了遗传决定因素，并建议这种拮抗活性独立于分子货物，同时我们还阐明了抗性基因。我们进一步表明，这种T4SS依赖性拮抗作用可以消除一系列革兰氏阴性细菌和混合细菌种群。最后,我们表明，这种拮抗性质不限于T4SS来源于RP4，而是它也可以在T4SS来源于另一个接合质粒，即R388。我们的结果首次证明了革兰氏阴性菌之间在遗传水平上的T4SS依赖性拮抗作用，并为未来的机理研究奠定了基础。
