Phage-encoded sRNA counteracts xenogeneic silencing in pathogenic E. coli

Horizontal gene transfer introduces foreign DNA that can disrupt cellular processes and is therefore subject to xenogeneic silencing by nucleoid-associated proteins such as H-NS and Hha. In Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC), prophages make up a large fraction of the accessory genome and encode many virulence factors, yet their expression must overcome this silencing. We identify a prophage-encoded small RNA (sRNA), HnrS, that functions as an anti-silencing factor by targeting the H-NS paralogue Hha. HnrS is a short (66-nt) sRNA that is enriched in the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE⁺) E. coli strains and present in up to nine copies in EHEC and Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) genomes. HnrS base-pairs with the hha ribosome-binding site to inhibit translation, thereby modulating Hha–H-NS repression of virulence loci including the LEE type III secretion system. Loss of HnrS alters motility, T3SS expression, and a subset of Hha-regulated genes. These findings reveal an RNA-based counter-silencing strategy encoded by prophage to relieve xenogenic silencing.