Shigella takes the temperature

Abstract

For bacteria, temperature is a fairly reliable cue for entry into a vertebrate host. Many pathogenic bacteria sense elevated temperatures (37°C) and turn on virulence and metabolic genes appropriate for survival and growth within the host. A recent study demonstrated that the expression of a heme uptake protein in Shigella dysenteriae and pathogenic Escherichia coli was dependent on an RNA thermometer. © 2013 Landes Bioscience.