Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Abstract The co‐catabolism of multiple host‐derived carbon substrates is required by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) to successfully sustain a tuberculosis infection. However, the metabolic plasticity of this pathogen and the complexity of the metabolic networks present a major obstacle in identify...

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Main Authors: Khushboo Borah, Tom A Mendum, Nathaniel D Hawkins, Jane L Ward, Michael H Beale, Gerald Larrouy‐Maumus, Apoorva Bhatt, Martine Moulin, Michael Haertlein, Gernot Strohmeier, Harald Pichler, V Trevor Forsyth, Stephan Noack, Celia W Goulding, Johnjoe McFadden, Dany J V Beste
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Springer Nature 2021-05-01
Series:Molecular Systems Biology
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.15252/msb.202110280
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author Khushboo Borah
Tom A Mendum
Nathaniel D Hawkins
Jane L Ward
Michael H Beale
Gerald Larrouy‐Maumus
Apoorva Bhatt
Martine Moulin
Michael Haertlein
Gernot Strohmeier
Harald Pichler
V Trevor Forsyth
Stephan Noack
Celia W Goulding
Johnjoe McFadden
Dany J V Beste
author_facet Khushboo Borah
Tom A Mendum
Nathaniel D Hawkins
Jane L Ward
Michael H Beale
Gerald Larrouy‐Maumus
Apoorva Bhatt
Martine Moulin
Michael Haertlein
Gernot Strohmeier
Harald Pichler
V Trevor Forsyth
Stephan Noack
Celia W Goulding
Johnjoe McFadden
Dany J V Beste
author_sort Khushboo Borah
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The co‐catabolism of multiple host‐derived carbon substrates is required by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) to successfully sustain a tuberculosis infection. However, the metabolic plasticity of this pathogen and the complexity of the metabolic networks present a major obstacle in identifying those nodes most amenable to therapeutic interventions. It is therefore critical that we define the metabolic phenotypes of Mtb in different conditions. We applied metabolic flux analysis using stable isotopes and lipid fingerprinting to investigate the metabolic network of Mtb growing slowly in our steady‐state chemostat system. We demonstrate that Mtb efficiently co‐metabolises either cholesterol or glycerol, in combination with two‐carbon generating substrates without any compartmentalisation of metabolism. We discovered that partitioning of flux between the TCA cycle and the glyoxylate shunt combined with a reversible methyl citrate cycle is the critical metabolic nodes which underlie the nutritional flexibility of Mtb. These findings provide novel insights into the metabolic architecture that affords adaptability of bacteria to divergent carbon substrates and expand our fundamental knowledge about the methyl citrate cycle and the glyoxylate shunt.
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spelling doaj-art-1069c34eaaa04423b4e6683142460c702025-08-20T02:37:58ZengSpringer NatureMolecular Systems Biology1744-42922021-05-0117511610.15252/msb.202110280Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosisKhushboo Borah0Tom A Mendum1Nathaniel D Hawkins2Jane L Ward3Michael H Beale4Gerald Larrouy‐Maumus5Apoorva Bhatt6Martine Moulin7Michael Haertlein8Gernot Strohmeier9Harald Pichler10V Trevor Forsyth11Stephan Noack12Celia W Goulding13Johnjoe McFadden14Dany J V Beste15Department of Microbial and Cellular Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of SurreyDepartment of Microbial and Cellular Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of SurreyDepartment of Computational and Analytical Sciences, Rothamsted ResearchDepartment of Computational and Analytical Sciences, Rothamsted ResearchDepartment of Computational and Analytical Sciences, Rothamsted ResearchMRC Centre for Molecular Bacteriology and Infection, Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Imperial College LondonSchool of Biosciences, University of BirminghamLife Sciences Group, Institut Laue‐LangevinLife Sciences Group, Institut Laue‐LangevinAustrian Centre of Industrial BiotechnologyAustrian Centre of Industrial BiotechnologyLife Sciences Group, Institut Laue‐LangevinInstitute of Bio‐ and Geosciences 1: Biotechnology 2, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbHDepartment of Pharmaceutical Sciences & Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California IrvineDepartment of Microbial and Cellular Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of SurreyDepartment of Microbial and Cellular Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of SurreyAbstract The co‐catabolism of multiple host‐derived carbon substrates is required by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) to successfully sustain a tuberculosis infection. However, the metabolic plasticity of this pathogen and the complexity of the metabolic networks present a major obstacle in identifying those nodes most amenable to therapeutic interventions. It is therefore critical that we define the metabolic phenotypes of Mtb in different conditions. We applied metabolic flux analysis using stable isotopes and lipid fingerprinting to investigate the metabolic network of Mtb growing slowly in our steady‐state chemostat system. We demonstrate that Mtb efficiently co‐metabolises either cholesterol or glycerol, in combination with two‐carbon generating substrates without any compartmentalisation of metabolism. We discovered that partitioning of flux between the TCA cycle and the glyoxylate shunt combined with a reversible methyl citrate cycle is the critical metabolic nodes which underlie the nutritional flexibility of Mtb. These findings provide novel insights into the metabolic architecture that affords adaptability of bacteria to divergent carbon substrates and expand our fundamental knowledge about the methyl citrate cycle and the glyoxylate shunt.https://doi.org/10.15252/msb.202110280chemostatmetabolic fluxmetabolismMycobacterium tuberculosistuberculosis
spellingShingle Khushboo Borah
Tom A Mendum
Nathaniel D Hawkins
Jane L Ward
Michael H Beale
Gerald Larrouy‐Maumus
Apoorva Bhatt
Martine Moulin
Michael Haertlein
Gernot Strohmeier
Harald Pichler
V Trevor Forsyth
Stephan Noack
Celia W Goulding
Johnjoe McFadden
Dany J V Beste
Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Molecular Systems Biology
chemostat
metabolic flux
metabolism
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
tuberculosis
title Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
title_full Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
title_fullStr Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
title_full_unstemmed Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
title_short Metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
title_sort metabolic fluxes for nutritional flexibility of mycobacterium tuberculosis
topic chemostat
metabolic flux
metabolism
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
tuberculosis
url https://doi.org/10.15252/msb.202110280
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