Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38180978›Full record

ArticlePLoS biology2024

The Staphylococcus aureus CamS lipoprotein is a repressor of toxin production that shapes host-pathogen interaction.

Katrin Schilcher, Morgan M Severn, Christian Jenul, Young-Saeng C Avina, Rebecca A Keogh, Alexander R Horswill

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PLoS biology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
1.6field-weighted citation impact, top 20% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 4 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. A broadly conserved gram-positive lipoprotein regulates cell elongation.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Linking Virulence and Iron Limitation Response inJournal of proteome research · 2025
    Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Katrin SchilcherDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America.ORCID 0000-0002-0935-0846
Morgan M SevernDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America.
Christian JenulDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America.
Young-Saeng C AvinaDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America.
Rebecca A KeoghDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America.
Alexander R HorswillDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, United States of America.ORCID 0000-0002-5568-0096
University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus · USUniversity of Leicester · GBVA Eastern Colorado Health Care System · US

Funding

The S. aureus biofilm lifecycleP01AI083211 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER · PI THOMAS, VINAI · 2009 to 2023
$32.1M
Quorum Sensing Dependent Interactions with Biofilms and Innate Immunity DefensesI01BX002711 · VA · VA EASTERN COLORADO HEALTH CARE SYSTEM · PI ALEXANDER R HORSWILL · 2015 to 2026
–
BLRD VA I01 BX002711NIAID NIH HHS P01 AI083211
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Lipoproteins of the opportunistic pathogen Staphylococcus aureus play a crucial role in various cellular processes and host interactions. Consisting of a protein and a lipid moiety, they support nutrient acquisition and anchor the protein to the bacterial membrane. Recently, we identified several processed and secreted small linear peptides that derive from the secretion signal sequence of S. aureus lipoproteins. Here, we show, for the first time, that the protein moiety of the S. aureus lipoprotein CamS has a biological role that is distinct from its associated linear peptide staph-cAM373. The small peptide was shown to be involved in interspecies horizontal gene transfer, the primary mechanism for the dissemination of antibiotic resistance among bacteria. We provide evidence that the CamS protein moiety is a potent repressor of cytotoxins, such as α-toxin and leukocidins. The CamS-mediated suppression of toxin transcription was reflected by altered disease severity in in vivo infection models involving skin and soft tissue, as well as bloodstream infections. Collectively, we have uncovered the role of the protein moiety of the staphylococcal lipoprotein CamS as a previously uncharacterized repressor of S. aureus toxin production, which consequently regulates virulence and disease outcomes. Notably, the camS gene is conserved in S. aureus, and we also demonstrated the muted transcriptional response of cytotoxins in 2 different S. aureus lineages. Our findings provide the first evidence of distinct biological functions of the protein moiety and its associated linear peptide for a specific lipoprotein. Therefore, lipoproteins in S. aureus consist of 3 functional components: a lipid moiety, a protein moiety, and a small linear peptide, with putative different biological roles that might not only determine the outcome of host-pathogen interactions but also drive the acquisition of antibiotic resistance determinants.

Indexed as

Staphylococcal InfectionsStaphylococcus aureusCell Adhesion MoleculesCytotoxinsHost-Pathogen InteractionsHumansLipoproteinsPeptidesCell Adhesion MoleculesCytotoxinsLipoproteinsPeptides

Identifiers

PMID38180978
PMCPMC10769083
OpenAlexW4390606744

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.