Control of Quorum Sensing by a Membrane-Embedded Peptidase.

Gram-positive bacteria process and release small peptides, or pheromones, that act as signals for the induction of adaptive traits, including those involved in pathogenesis. One class of small signaling pheromones is the cyclic autoinducing peptides (AIPs), which regulate expression of genes that orchestrate virulence and persistence in a range of microbes, including staphylococci, listeriae, clostridia, and enterococci. In a genetic screen for secreted virulence factors, we identified an mutant containing an insertion in the gene (), which encodes a putative membrane-embedded metalloprotease.