Abstract
Staphylococcus aureus is an opportunistic pathogen that colonizes the anterior nares of 30 to 50% of the population. Colonization is most often asymptomatic; however, self-inoculation can give rise to potentially fatal infections of the deeper tissues and blood. Like all bacteria, S. aureus can sense and respond to environmental cues and modify gene expression to adapt to specific environmental conditions. The transition of S. aureus from the nares to the deeper tissues and blood is accompanied by changes in environmental conditions, such as nutrient availability, pH, and temperature. In this study, we perform transcriptomics and proteomics on S. aureus cultures growing at three physiologically relevant temperatures, 34°C (nares), 37°C (body), and 40°C (pyrexia), to determine if small scale, biologically meaningful alterations in temperature impact S. aureus gene expression. Results show that small but definite temperature changes elicit a large-scale restructuring of the S. aureus transcriptome and proteome in a manner that, most often, inversely correlates with increasing temperature. We also provide evidence that a large majority of these changes are modulated at the posttranscriptional level, possibly by sRNA regulatory elements. Phenotypic analyses were also performed to demonstrate that these changes have physiological relevance. Finally, we investigate the impact of temperature-dependent alterations in gene expression on S. aureus pathogenesis and demonstrate decreased intracellular invasion of S. aureus grown at 34°C. Collectively, our results demonstrate that small but biologically meaningful alterations in temperature influence S. aureus gene expression, a process that is likely a major contributor to the transition from a commensal to pathogen.IMPORTANCE Enteric bacterial pathogens, like Escherichia coli, are known to experience large temperature differences as they are transmitted through the fecal oral route. This change in temperature has been demonstrated to influence bacterial gene expression and facilitate infection. Staphylococcus aureus is a human-associated pathogen that can live as a commensal on the skin and nares or cause invasive infections of the deeper tissues and blood. Factors influencing S. aureus nasal colonization are not fully understood; however, individuals colonized with S. aureus are at increased risk of invasive infections through self-inoculation. The transition of S. aureus from the nose (colonization) to the body (infection) is accompanied by a modest but definite temperature increase, from 34°C to 37°C. In this study, we investigate whether these host-associated small temperature changes can influence S. aureus gene expression. Results show widespread changes in the bacterial transcriptome and proteome at three physiologically relevant temperatures (34°C, 37°C, and 40°C).