Regulation of the Heat Shock Response in Bacteria

Abstract

Bacteria sense temperature changes in many ways and have developed different strategies to respond to these changes. A sudden increase in temperature results in protein unfolding, and the level of unfolded proteins seems to be the primary signal that triggers the heat shock response. Four different systems have been described so far involved in temperature sensing: alternative sigma factors, transcriptional repressors, and RNA and DNA thermosensors. Furthermore, titration of molecular chaperones serves as mediators in some cases. All four mechanisms will be described in detail and illustrated by prominent examples.