A novel stress-inducible CmtR-ESX3-Zn regulatory pathway essential for survival of under oxidative stress.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are an unavoidable host environmental cue for intracellular pathogens such as and ; however, the signaling pathway in mycobacteria for sensing and responding to environmental stress remains largely unclear. Here, we characterize a novel CmtR-Zur-ESX3-Zn regulatory pathway in that aids mycobacterial survival under oxidative stress. We demonstrate that CmtR functions as a novel redox sensor and that its expression can be significantly induced under HO stress.