Increased Oxidative Stress Tolerance of a Spontaneously Occurring perR Gene Mutation in Streptococcus mutans UA159

The ability of bacteria, such as the dental pathogen Streptococcus mutans, to coordinate a response against damage-inducing oxidants is a critical aspect of their pathogenicity. The oxidative stress regulator SpxA1 has been demonstrated to be a major player in the ability of S. mutans to withstand both disulfide and peroxide stresses. While studying spontaneously occurring variants of an S. mutans DspxA1 strain, we serendipitously discovered that our S. mutans UA159 host strain bore a single-nucleotide deletion within the coding region of perR, resulting in a premature truncation of the encoded protein. PerR is a metal-dependent transcriptional repressor that senses and responds to peroxide stress such that loss of PerR activity results in activation of oxidative stress responses. To determine the impact of loss of PerR regulation, we obtained a UA159 isolate bearing an intact perR copy and created a clean perR deletion mutant. Our findings indicate that loss of PerR activity results in a strain that is primed to tolerate oxidative stresses in the laboratory setting. Interestingly, RNA deep sequencing (RNA-Seq) and targeted transcriptional expression analyses reveal that PerR offers a minor contribution to the ability of S. mutans to orchestrate a transcriptional response to peroxide stress. Furthermore, we detected loss-of-function perR mutations in two other commonly used laboratory strains of S. mutans, suggesting that this may be not be an uncommon occurrence. This report serves as a cautionary tale regarding the so-called domestication of laboratory strains and advocates for the implementation of more stringent strain authentication practices. IMPORTANCE A resident of the human oral biofilm, Streptococcus mutans is one of the major bacterial pathogens associated with dental caries. This report highlights a spontaneously occurring mutation within the laboratory strain S. mutans UA159 found in the coding region of perR, a gene encoding a transcriptional repressor associated with peroxide tolerance. Though perR mutant strains of S. mutans showed a distinct growth advantage and enhanced tolerance toward H2O2, a DperR deletion strain showed a small number of differentially expressed genes compared to the parent strain, suggesting few direct regulatory targets. In addition to characterizing the role of PerR in S. mutans, our findings serve as a warning to laboratory researchers regarding bacterial adaptation to in vitro growth conditions.

Automated summary

The study found that Streptococcus mutans exhibit tolerance to oxidative stress in laboratory conditions, with the protein PerR playing a minor role in orchestrating the transcriptional response to peroxide stress. Furthermore, the report serves as a cautionary tale for laboratory researchers regarding bacterial adaptation to in vitro growth conditions.