Expanded roles of two-component response regulator OmpR in Escherichia coli: genomic SELEX search for novel regulation targets

The two-component system (TCS) is a sophisticated bacterial signal transduction system for regulation of genome transcription in response to environmental conditions. The EnvZ-OmpR system is one of the well-characterized TCS of Escherichia coli, responding to changes in environmental osmolality. Regulation has largely focused on the differential expression of two porins, OmpF and OmpC, which transport small molecules across the outer membrane. Recently, it has become apparent that OmpR serves a more global regulatory role and regulates additional targets. To identify the entire set of regulatory targets of OmpR, we performed the genomic SELEX screening of OmpR-binding sites along the E.coli genome. As a result, more than 30 novel genes have been identified to be under the direct control of OmpR. One abundant group includes the genes encoding a variety of membrane-associated transporters that mediate uptake or efflux of small molecules, while another group encodes a set of transcription regulators, raising a concept that OmpR is poised to control a diverse set of responses by altering downstream transcriptional regulators.