sibling sRNAs from Neisseria

What is it about?

Regulatory small RNAs (sRNAs) of pathogens are coming to be recognized as highly important components of riboregulatory networks, involved in the control of essential cellular processes. They play a prominent role in adaptation to physiological changes as represented by different host environments. They can function as posttranscriptional regulators of gene expression to orchestrate metabolic adaptation to nutrient stresses. Here, we identified highly conserved sibling sRNAs in Neisseria meningitidis which are functionally involved in the regulation of gene expression of components of the tricarboxylic acid cycle. These novel sibling sRNAs that function by antisense mechanisms extend the so-called stringent response which connects metabolic status to colonization and possibly virulence as well as pathogenesis in meningococci.

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