Identifying small regulatory RNA responding to metal availability in Staphylococcus aureus HG001

In contrast, zinS transcription is solely repressed by Zur. Amongst the ZinS targets are several Zn-dependent enzymes, such as the alcohol dehydrogenase Adh, whose synthesis is negatively regulated by ZinS. Loss of ZinS does not alter staphylococcal metal accumulation, suggesting that this sRNA controls a Zn-sparing response.

Remarkably, zinS also encodes a small peptide, ZinP, which is produced in response to Zn limitation. Genomic analysis suggests that the regulatory portion of ZinS emerged from the 3’ untranslated region of ZinP in S. aureus and closely related species after horizontal transfer from phylogenetically distant organisms. All our findings demonstrate that sRNAs facilitate bacterial adaptation to Zn limitation, and that genetic exchange and subsequent neofunctionalization have enabled S. aureus to adapt to metal-restricted environments.