A bacteria known as meningococcus, causes septicaemia and meningitis in children. This bacteria is quite prevalent in the nose and
pharynx of humans. Yet we are normally protected by our immune
system. But then, how does it suddenly infect humans? What does it do to fool our immune system?
Scientists have started unfolding the mystery with the finding that there are three RNAs in
meningococcus that respond to the increasing temperature.
The hairpin bends in these three RNAs melt and
separate out and that starts the transcription of three
proteins. These proteins help the meningococcus to make a new kind of cell wall and to escape detection by our immune system.
Interestingly, for meningococcus, these RNA
switches are a response to the threat of increasing
temperature. The increase due to fever in the human body.
Such transitions from innocuous to virulent
pathogens are known to happen in many other
micro-organisms. The results published in Nature online in
September may be a clue for many other researchers to start looking at RNA switches in other pathogens too.
Nature (2013) doi:10.1038/nature12563, Published online 25
September 2013
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