The small RNA Teg41 is a pleiotropic regulator of virulence and stress response in Staphylococcus aureus

In this study, we further characterize the regulation of the αPSM transcript by Teg41. We show that a single chromosomally integrated copy of Teg41 restores virulence, hemolysis, extracellular vesicle production, and αPSM production in a strain deleted for the 3’ end of Teg41 (Teg41Δ3′ strain). We show that substituting four Teg41 nucleotides in the predicted Teg41- αPSM interaction site abolishes increased hemolysis in a Teg41 overexpression strain. We go on to demonstrte that Teg41 expression influences both the stability and abundance of the αPSM transcript, and, interestingly, that the Teg41Δ3′ strain shows decreased stability in more than 50 transcripts and altered expression levels in over 900 transcripts when compared to wild type S. aureus. Finally, we observe that Teg41 plays a role in S. aureus stress response and that the Teg41Δ3′ strain is more severely attenuated in murine systemic infection than a ∆αPSM strain, indicating that Teg41 regulation reaches beyond the αPSMs. Overall, we show that Teg41 is a unique pleiotropic sRNA in S. aureus that influences several key cellular processes. 24 data sets in total. Three biological replicates for each strain (WT and Teg41delta3' strain) at each timepoint. 4 timepoints, T0, 2.5, 5, and 10 mins after rifampicin addition.