An update on the transport and metabolism of iron in Listeria monocytogenes: the role of proteins involved in pathogenicity

Listeria monocytogenes is a Gram-positive bacterium that causes a rare but severe human disease with high mortality rate. The microorganism is widespread in the natural environment where it shows a saprophytic lifestyle. In the human body it infects many different cell types, where it lives intracellularly, however it may also temporarily live extracellularly. The ability to survive and grow in such diverse niches suggests that this bacterium has a wide range of mechanisms for both the acquisition of various sources of iron and effective management of this microelement. In this review, data about the mechanisms of transport, metabolism and regulation of iron, including recent findings in these areas, are summarized with focus on the importance of these mechanisms for the virulence of L. monocytogenes. These data indicate the key role of haem transport and maintenance of intracellular iron homeostasis for the pathogenesis of L. monocytogenes. Furthermore, some of the proteins involved in iron homeostasis like Fri and FrvA seem to deserve special attention due to their potential use in the development of new therapeutic antilisterial strategies.