Disease relevance of comC

• The quorum-sensing system of Streptococcus mutans is mediated by the competence-stimulating peptide (CSP), whose precursor is encoded by the comC gene [1].
• Seven comC alleles encoding three distinct mature CSPs were identified among 36 geographically diverse strains, although, compared with Streptococcus pneumoniae, the amount of predicted amino acid sequence variation is low [2].

High impact information on comC

• By using this shuttle plasmid system, modulation of gene function by inducible antisense RNA expression was demonstrated for comC antisense fragments of different sizes as well as for distinct gtfB antisense fragments [3].
• Since the addition of exogenous CSP did not complement this phenotype, it was determined that the increased tetracycline, penicillin, and triclosan sensitivities resulted from repression of the putative bacteriocin immunity protein gene, bip, which is located immediately upstream from comC [1].
• In Streptococcus mutans, competence for genetic transformation and biofilm formation are dependent on the two-component signal transduction system ComDE together with the inducer peptide pheromone competence-stimulating peptide (CSP) (encoded by comC) [4].
• The comC mutant, unable to produce or secrete a competence-stimulating peptide (CSP), formed biofilms with altered architecture, whereas the comD and comE mutants, which were defective in sensing and responding to the CSP, formed biofilms with reduced biomass [5].
• Addition of synthetic CSP into the culture medium or introduction of the wild-type comC gene on a shuttle vector into the comCDE deletion mutant partially restored the wild-type biofilm architecture and further supported this idea [5].

Biological context of comC

• Genetic variation in comC, the gene encoding competence-stimulating peptide (CSP) in Streptococcus mutans [2].

Other interactions of comC

• Analyses of S. mutans comY-luciferase reporter fusions indicated that comY expression is growth-phase dependent, with maximal expression at an OD(600) of about 0.2, while mutations in ciaH, comC and luxS reduced the level of comY expression [6].

References