FimY does not interfere with FimZ-FimW interaction during type 1 fimbria production by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium.

The production of type 1 fimbriae in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium is controlled, in part, by three proteins, FimZ, FimY, and FimW. Amino acid sequence analysis indicates that FimZ belongs to the family of bacterial response regulators of two-component systems. In these studies, we have demonstrated that introducing a mutation mimicking phosphorylation of FimZ is necessary for activation of its target gene, fimA. In addition, the interaction of FimZ with FimW, a repressor of fimA expression, occurs only when FimZ is phosphorylated. Consequently, the negative regulatory effect of FimW is most likely due to downmodulation of the active FimZ protein. FimY does not appear to function as a response regulator, and its activity can be lost by mimicking the phosphorylation of FimY. Overproduction of FimY cannot alleviate the nonfimbriate phenotype in a FimZ mutant, whereas high levels of FimZ can overcome the nonfimbriate phenotype of a FimY mutant. It appears that FimY acts upstream of FimZ to activate fimA expression.