AUTHOR=Hayashi-Nishino Mitsuko , Fukushima Aiko , Nishino Kunihiko 

TITLE=Impact of Hfq on the Intrinsic Drug Resistance of Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=3

YEAR=2012

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2012.00205

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2012.00205

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>Salmonella enterica</italic> is an important enteric pathogen, and its various serovars cause both systemic and intestinal diseases in humans and domestic animals. The emergence of multidrug-resistant strains of <italic>Salmonella</italic>, leading to increased morbidity and mortality, has further complicated its management. Hfq is an RNA chaperon that mediates the binding of small RNAs to mRNA and assists in post-transcriptional gene regulation in bacteria. Although Hfq is related to important phenotypes including virulence in <italic>Salmonella</italic>, its role in the drug resistance of this organism is unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of Hfq in intrinsic drug resistance of <italic>S. enterica</italic> serovar Typhimurium. <italic>hfq</italic> Mutant was susceptible to acriflavine. Although there is a relationship between the production of the AcrB multidrug efflux pump and Hfq in <italic>Escherichia coli</italic>, the deletion of the drug efflux <italic>acrB</italic> did not impair the effect of <italic>hfq</italic> deletion on <italic>Salmonella</italic> susceptibility. In contrast, the deletion of another drug efflux gene, <italic>smvA</italic>, impaired the effect of <italic>hfq</italic> deletion on acriflavine susceptibility. These results indicate that Hfq regulates the intrinsic drug resistance, and it may influence drug susceptibility by regulating SmvA in <italic>Salmonella</italic>.</p>