EAGER: Analysis of the Role of Mg2+ in Bacterial Heat Tolerance

EAGER：Mg2 在细菌耐热性中的作用分析

• 批准号: 1054977
• 负责人: Laszlo Csonka
• 金额: $ 16.01万
• 依托单位: Purdue University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-09-01 至 2013-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1054977&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: EAGER; Analysis; Role; Mg2+; Bacterial

Salmonella is the most prevalent causative agent of food-borne illness in the US. Because cooking is the most cost effective and common means of inactivating bacteria in foods, better understanding of the factors that control the heat tolerance of bacteria is crucial for promoting increased food safety. The Csonka laboratory at Purdue University recently discovered that mutations that increase the synthesis of magnesium (Mg2+) transport proteins greatly elevate the resistance of Salmonella to killing by high temperature. The objective of this research will be to determine whether the increased heat tolerance in these mutants is actually due to the increased accumulation of Mg2+. If results indicate that the mutations do increase the accumulation of Mg2+, then this would imply that the enhanced heat tolerance in the mutants is the consequence of increased concentrations of this nutrient. On the other hand, if results indicate that the mutants do not have increased Mg2+, this would imply that the increased heat tolerance is the consequence of some unknown function of the Mg2+ transport proteins. In either case, these experiments will lay the groundwork for subsequent research to pursue the question of why increased synthesis of Mg2+ transport proteins enhances thermotolerance. This work will contribute to the understanding of the factors that determine the heat tolerance of pathogenic food bacteria, providing important insights for more efficient elimination of pathogens from food products. The project will also provide training opportunities for future scientists from high school students to university undergraduate and graduate students.

沙门氏菌是美国最常见的食源性疾病病原体。 由于烹饪是灭活食品中细菌的最具成本效益和最常见的方法，因此更好地了解控制细菌耐热性的因素对于促进食品安全至关重要。 普渡大学的Csonka实验室最近发现，增加镁（Mg2+）转运蛋白合成的突变大大提高了沙门氏菌对高温杀死的抵抗力。本研究的目的是确定这些突变体的耐热性增加是否实际上是由于Mg2+积累增加。 如果结果表明突变确实增加了Mg 2+的积累，那么这将意味着突变体中增强的耐热性是这种营养素浓度增加的结果。 另一方面，如果结果表明突变体不具有增加的Mg 2+，这将意味着增加的耐热性是Mg 2+转运蛋白的一些未知功能的结果。 无论哪种情况，这些实验都将为后续研究奠定基础，以探讨为什么Mg 2+转运蛋白的合成增加会增强耐热性。这项工作将有助于了解决定致病性食品细菌耐热性的因素，为更有效地消除食品中的病原体提供重要的见解。 该项目还将为从高中生到大学本科生和研究生的未来科学家提供培训机会。