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Unlabelled: is a highly infectious, Gram-negative, obligate intracellular bacterium and the causative agent of human Q fever. The Containing Vacuole (CCV) is a modified phagolysosome that forms through fusion with host endosomes and lysosomes. While an initial acidic pH < 4.7 is essential to activate metabolism, the mature, growth-permissive CCV has a luminal pH of ~5.2 that remains stable throughout infection. Inducing CCV acidification to a lysosomal pH (~4.7) causes degradation, suggesting that regulates CCV pH. Supporting this hypothesis, blocks host lysosomal biogenesis, leading to fewer host lysosomes available to fuse with the CCV. Host cell lysosome biogenesis is primarily controlled by the transcription factor EB (TFEB), which binds Coordinated Lysosomal Expression And Regulation (CLEAR) motifs upstream of genes involved in lysosomal biogenesis and function. TFEB is a member of the microphthalmia/transcription factor E (MiT/TFE) protein family, which also includes MITF, TFE3, and TFEC. This study examines the roles of MiT/TFE proteins during infection. We found that in cells lacking TFEB, both growth and CCV size increase. Conversely, TFEB overexpression or expression in the absence of other family members leads to significantly less bacterial growth and smaller CCVs. TFE3 and MITF do not appear to play a significant role during infection. Surprisingly, we found that actively blocks TFEB nuclear translocation in a Type IV Secretion System-dependent manner, thus decreasing lysosomal biogenesis. Together, these results suggest that inhibits TFEB nuclear translocation to limit lysosomal biogenesis, thus avoiding further CCV acidification through CCV-lysosomal fusion.
Importance: The obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen causes the zoonotic disease Q fever, which is characterized by a debilitating flu-like illness in acute cases and life-threatening endocarditis in patients with chronic disease. While survives in a unique lysosome-like vacuole called the Containing Vacuole (CCV), the bacterium inhibits lysosome biogenesis as a mechanism to avoid increased CCV acidification. Our results establish that transcription factor EB (TFEB), a member of the microphthalmia/transcription factor E (MiT/TFE) family of transcription factors that regulate lysosomal gene expression, restricts infection. Surprisingly, blocks TFEB translocation from the cytoplasm to the nucleus, thus downregulating the expression of lysosomal genes. These findings reveal a novel bacterial mechanism to regulate lysosomal biogenesis.
