This construct was cloned into the low-copy plasmid

pWSK29 using primers SEO095 and SEO096 as a SalI and XbaI fragment. Constructs were verified by sequencing and transformed into S. Typhimurium SL1344 ΔrpoE and selected on LB agar with appropriate antibiotics. The promoters for ssaB (SEO005 and SEO006), ssaG (SEO011 and SEO012), sifA (SEO205 and SEO206), sseL (BKC185 and BKC186) and srfN (BKC183 and BKC184) were cloned into pIVET5n [29] to generate single-copy transcriptional fusions to lacZ. Reporters were transformed into E. coli SM10 λpir, conjugated into SL1344 and merodiploid cells were selected on LB agar with appropriate antibiotics. Transcriptional fusions, including a previously constructed

reporter for the sseA promoter [30], were integrated into the chromosome of wild type and ACY-1215 ΔrpoE cells using homologous recombination. The promoters we chose use the SsrB response regulator for expression of the downstream gene or operon, and include both SPI-2-encoded and non-SPI-2-encoded virulence effectors representing structural apparatus genes and effector substrates of the type III secretion system [8, 30–35] Chemiluminescent β-galactosidase Assay Reporter strains were inoculated from an overnight culture into culture medium (LPM pH 5.8) that induces SsrB-dependent learn more gene expression [21, 36]. Cultures were propagated at 37°C

for 7 hours and samples were taken hourly to measure β-galactosidase activity using a chemiluminescence assay described previously [25]. Data was expressed as relative light units (RLU) and was normalized to the optical density (OD600 nm) of the parent culture. Immunoblotting To examine the protein levels of SseB, SseL, SrfN and SifA under SPI-2 inducing conditions, we used plasmids psifA-2HA, psseL-2HA and psrfN-2HA that were published previously (Table 1) [8, 37]. These constructs Lumacaftor express the given gene under the control of the endogenous promoter. Wild type and ΔrpoE cells were transformed with these plasmids and grown in LPM pH 5.8 at 37°C for 6 hours. Whole cell lysates were collected and analyzed by immunoblotting using anti-SseB (1:1000) [21] and anti-HA (1:1000, Covance) antibodies. Blots were probed for DnaK (1:3500, Stressgen) as a control. Acknowledgements We would like to thank Jose Puente for providing λ Red recombination plasmids, Ferric Fang for providing sigma factor mutants in the 14028s strain background, and members of the Coombes laboratory for helpful comments on this work. This work was funded by a grant to BKC from the Canadian Institute for Health Research (MOP-82704).