Noncontiguous operon atlas in Staphylococcus aureus

Abstract

In previous work from the group, we described the existence of a new transcriptional architecture that we call a noncontiguous operon (NcO). NcOs consist of groups of genes that are transcribed on the same RNA molecule, although genes that are transcribed in the opposite direction separate them. The mRNA of the gene transcribed in the opposite direction is full-length complementary and therefore antisense to the mRNA of the operon. Unlike classical operons, whose presence in the genome is predicted based on theoretical criteria of proximity between genes and biological function of the encoded proteins, the presence of NcOs cannot be determined theoretically and it is necessary to resort to transcriptomic analyses to demonstrate the co-transcription of non-contiguous groups of genes. As a continuation of this line of research, in this thesis we decided to determine the map of NcOs present in the genome of a bacterium. This information would allow us to know the abundance of this transcriptional architecture and thus analyze whether they have common elements or related functions. We decided to use Staphylococcus aureus as a model for four reasons: (I) it is the bacterium in which we first described this transcriptional architecture, (II) we had transcriptomic data obtained from the Illumina platform that could be useful in our study, (III) we have experience in its genetic manipulation and (IV) it has enormous clinical relevance due to its versatility as a pathogen and the existence of multidrug-resistant bacteria.