Integrated analysis of transcriptomic and protein-protein interaction data reveals cadmium stress response in Geobacter sulfurreducens

Bacteria have evolved several mechanisms to resist Cd toxicity, which are crucial for Cd detoxication and have the potential to be used for bioremediation of Cd. Geobacter species are widely found in anaerobic environments and play important roles in natural biogeochemical cycles. However, the transcriptomic response of Geobacter sulfurreducens under Cd stress have not been fully elucidated. Through integrated analysis of transcriptomic and protein-protein interaction (PPI) data, we uncovered a global view of mRNA changes in Cd-induced cellular processes in this study. We identified 182 differentially expressed genes (|log2(fold change)| > 1, adjusted P < 0.05) in G. sulfurreducens exposed to 0.1 mM CdCl2 using RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses showed that CdCl2 significantly affected sulfur compound metabolic processes. In addition, through PPI network analysis, hub genes related to molecular chaperones were identified to play important role in Cd stress response. We also identified a Cd-responsive transcriptional regulator ArsR2 (coded by GSU2149) and verified the function of ArsR2-ParsR2 regulatory cir-cuit in Escherichia coli. This study provides new insight into Cd stress response in G. sulfurreducens, and identified a potential sensor element for Cd detection.

Automated summary

Bacteria have developed mechanisms to resist Cd toxicity, which are important for Cd detoxication and bioremediation. Through integrated analysis of transcriptomic and protein-protein interaction data, the global view of mRNA changes in Cd-induced cellular processes was revealed in Geobacter sulfurreducens. Differentially expressed genes were identified, and gene ontology and KEGG enrichment analyses showed significant effects on sulfur compound metabolic processes. Hub genes related to molecular chaperones were found to play important roles through PPI network analysis. A Cd-responsive transcriptional regulator ArsR2 was also identified, and its function in Escherichia coli was verified. This study provides new insights into Cd stress response and identifies a potential sensor element for Cd detection.