金葡菌存在AraC家族转录调节蛋白Rsp是2011年刚发现的，目前仅报道该蛋白对细菌生物膜形成有抑制作用。申请人团队通过近期对这一新近发现的转录调节蛋白初步研究证实：除下调生物膜形成外，Rsp蛋白显著上调细菌重要的毒力因子-溶血素的表达，动物体内实验证实Rsp蛋白明显促进细菌致病力，提示Rsp蛋白在金葡菌致病中发挥重要的调节作用。除溶血素之外，Rsp蛋白还对哪些重要毒力因子有调节作用以及如何调节？它与目前已知的金葡菌毒力因子调控系统之间的关系如何？以上问题尚不清楚。为详尽阐明Rsp蛋白对金葡菌毒力具体调节作用以及机制，本课题拟在成功构建rsp基因敲除株和基因互补表达株以及获得有生物学活性Rsp蛋白基础上，从基因、转录和蛋白水平、从体外到体内实验详尽分析这一新的转录调节蛋白的具体功能。本研究成果将为补充和完善金葡菌毒力因子的调控网络、为高致病力金葡菌如何引起疾病的毒力调节通路提供新的实验依据

In 2011, a novel Arac/XylS family of transcriptional regulator Rsp was discovered in Staphylococcus aureus. It was reported that Rsp inhibits attachment and biofilm formation by repressing fnbA in S. aureus. Our research group`s recent preliminary data on this novel transcriptional regulator protein showed that it could not only inhibit S. aureus biofilm formation, but also significantly up regulated the expression of S. aureus main virulence factor - hemolysin. The in vivo experiments confirmed that Rsp protein significantly promoted the virulence of S. aureus. Our preliminary data suggested that Rsp protein plays a very important role in S. aureus pathogenicity. Our research is still in the initial stage, we want to clarify the specific regulation mechanisms of Rsp protein in S. aureus virulence. In our following study, we intend to successfully get the rsp gene knockout strain and complement strain, expression and purification of Rsp protein with the biological activity, and in the further work, we will analysis of the specific function of this new transcriptional regulatory protein on gene, transcription and protein level, and then confirm the function by using in vitro and in vivo experiments. The results of this research will supply new information to the regulatory network of S. aureus virulence factors, it will provide new experimental evidence for the ideas of S. aureus virulence regulation.