The single-domain response regulator LerC functions as a connector protein in the Legionella pneumophila effectors regulatory network.

The intracellular pathogen Legionella pneumophila translocates more than 300 effector proteins into host cells during infection. The PmrAB two-component system (TCS) has been shown to activate the expression of a large pool of these effector-encoding genes (EEGs) and the LetAS TCS, as part of the LetAS-RsmYZ-CsrA cascade, has been shown to repress the expression of another pool of EEGs. We identified a single-domain response regulator (SDRR), named LerC, which functions as a connector protein between the PmrAB and the LetAS TCSs.