Survival or destruction of a pathogen following phagocytosis depends, in part, on fusion events between the phagosome and the endosomal or lysosomal compartments. Here we use an in vitro assay to show that phagosome-endosome fusion is regulated by the small GTPase rab5 and that fusion events are influenced by an internalized live organism, Listeria monocytogenes (LM), We compare the in vitro fusion of phagosomes containing heat-killed organisms (dead LM) with that of phagosomes containing a Live nonhemolytic mutant (live LM(hly-)). Unlike the wild-type organism, LM(hly-) remains trapped inside the phagosome. Phagosome-endosome fusion was reconstituted using biotinylated organisms and endosomes containing horseradish peroxidase conjugated with avidin, With both Five LM(hly-) and dead LM preparations, in vitro phagosome-endosome fusion was time-, temperature-, and cytosol-dependent. Live LM(hly-) phagosomes exhibited a faster rate of fusion, Fusion in both preparations was regulated by rab5 and possibly by other GTPases. Anti-rab5 antibodies and immunodepletion of cytostolic rab5 inhibited fusion. Addition of glutatione S-transferase-rab5 in the GTP form stimulated phagosome-endosome fusion, whereas addition of a dominant negative mutant of rab5 blocked fusion. Purified live LM(hly-) phagosomal membranes were enriched in rab5 as revealed by Western blotting, compared with dead LM phagosomes. Fusion of endosomes with dead LM containing phagosomes required ATP and was inhibited by ATP depletion and by N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) and anti-NEM-sensitive factor (NSF) antibodies, Unexpectedly, phagosome-endosome fusion with live LM(hly-)-containing phagosomes was not inhibited by ATP depletion nor by NEM or anti-NSF antibodies. Western blot analysis revealed that live LM(hly-)-containing phagosomes were enriched for membrane-bound NSF, while dead LM containing phagosomes contained low or undetectable quantities, Washing live LM(hly-)-containing phagosomes with 0.5 M KCl removed NSF associated with the membranes and rendered them NEM, ATP, anti-NSF antibody sensitive for fusion. We conclude that rab5 regulates phagosome-endosome fusion and that live microorganisms can up-regulate this process by recruiting rab5 to the membrane.
