Dual promoters of the major catalase (KatA) govern distinct survival strategies of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

KatA is the major catalase required for hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) resistance and acute virulence in Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14, whose transcription is driven from the promoter (katAp1) located at 155 nucleotide (nt) upstream of the start codon. Here, we identified another promoter (katAp2), the +1 of which was mapped at the 51 nt upstream of the start codon, which was responsible for the basal transcription during the planktonic culture and down-regulated upon H2O2 treatment under the control by the master regulator of anaerobiosis, Anr. To dissect the roles of the dual promoters in conditions involving KatA, we created the promoter mutants for each -10 box (p1m, p2m, and p1p2m) and found that katAp1 is required for the function of KatA in the logarithmic growth phase during the planktonic culture as well as in acute virulence, whereas katAp2 is required for the function of KatA in the stationary phase as well as in the prolonged biofilm culture. This dismantling of the dual promoters of katA sheds light on the roles of KatA in stress resistance in both proliferative and growth-restrictive conditions and thus provides an insight into the regulatory impacts of the major catalase on the survival strategies of P. aeruginosa.