A virulence activator of a surface attachment protein in Burkholderia pseudomallei acts as a global regulator of other membrane-associated virulence factors

, causing a highly fatal disease called melioidosis, is a facultative intracellular pathogen that attaches and invades a variety of cell types. We previously identified BP1026B_I0091 as a surface attachment protein (Sap1) and an essential virulence factor, contributing to pathogenesis and . The expression of is regulated at different stages of intracellular lifecycle by unidentified regulator(s). Here, we identified SapR (BP1026B_II1046) as a transcriptional regulator that activates , using a high-throughput transposon mutagenesis screen in combination with Tn-Seq. Consistent with phenotypes of the Δ mutant, the Δ activator mutant exhibited a significant reduction in attachment to the host cell, leading to subsequent decreased intracellular replication. RNA-Seq analysis further revealed that SapR regulates . The regulation of by SapR was confirmed quantitatively by qRT-PCR, which also validated the RNA-Seq data. SapR globally regulates genes associated with the bacterial membrane in response to diverse environments, and some of the genes regulated by SapR are virulence factors that are required for intracellular infection (e.g., type III and type VI secretion systems). This study has identified the complex SapR regulatory network and its importance as an activator of an essential Sap1 attachment factor.