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S Gottesman

Publications and source records attributed to S Gottesman.

83 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Role of sulA and sulB in filamentation by lon mutants of Escherichia coli K-12.

Cells containing the pleiotropic Escherichia coli mutation lon filament extensively and die after exposure to ultraviolet light. Outside suppressors of the ultraviolet sensitivity, called sul, have previously been described at two loci; these mutations reverse the ultraviolet sensitivity of lon strains but do not affect the mucoidal or degradation defect of these strains. An isogenic set of strains carrying combinations of lon, sulA, and sulI was constructed, and their behavior during normal growth and after ultraviolet treatment was studied. sulA mutations had no detectable phenotype in lon+ cells; the lon sulA strains filamented transiently after ultraviolet irradiation, as did lon+ sul+ cells. We found that the sulB mutation, which alters cell morphology and slows recovery from transient filamentation after ultraviolet treatment, was epistatic to both lon and sulA. Whereas sulA mutations were recessive to the wild-type allele, sulB was partially dominant. The simplest model to account for our observations is that sulA and lon participate in a pathway of filamentation independent of that which produces transient filamentation in wild-type strains; sulB product may be the target of sulA action and may play a role in normal cell division.

Cell Division↗

Hyperdegradation of proteins in Escherichia coli rho mutants.

An Escherichia coli mutant, HDF026, defective for growth of phage T4, has been characterized biochemically and genetically. The mutant displays an elevated level of degradation of abnormal proteins, such as puromycyl polypeptides or canavanine-containing polypeptides. Genetically, HDF026 appears to be an allele of rho, which also encodes the transcription termination factor and RNA-dependent ATPase, Rho. The mutation contransduces by phage PI with ilv, weakly suppresses polar mutations in gal, and permits some growth of lambda N- phage. Temperature sensitive lambda mutants in gene O exhibit a reduced efficiency of plating at intermediate temperature on HDF026 mutants; presumably the lambda Ots protein is rapidly degraded in these strains. The ability of wild-type lambda to grow on HDF026 is also reduced, apparently the result of the lambda N product deficiency. gal escape synthesis, which reflects the level of lambda N activity, is decreased 50-66% in the HDF026 mutant. lambda r32, which requires more N function than wild-type phage, does not grow at all in HDF026. A lon mutation, which decreases protein degradation, partially reverses some of these phenotypes, suggesting that they are related to the protein hyperlability of HDF026.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Deg phenotype of Escherichia coli lon mutants.

Deg. one of the Escherichia coli systems for degrading abnormal polypeptides (e.g., nonsense fragments), is also involved in the degradation of some classes of missense proteins. Both missense proteins of beta-galactosidase and temperature-sensitive phage products appear to be degraded by the Deg system. Mutations in the Deg system are indistinguishable from mutations classically called lon or capR; all map near proC, all are mucoid, defective in protein degradation, sensitive to radiomimetic agents, and defective in P1 lysogenization. All are able to propagate temperature-sensitive phage better than lon+ parental strains. Mutations that suppress the radiation sensitivity of these strains (sul) also suppress the P1 lysogenization defect, but do not affect mucoidy or the degradation defect.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Excision of prophage lambda in a cell-free system.

A cell-free system that promotes the excision of prophage lambda DNA has been established. The substrate for the reaction is phage DNA carrying two attachment sites, which, in vivo, undergoes intramolecular recombination between these sites. The in vitro recombination system is efficient; 25-35% of the substrate DNA undergoes recombination in 30 min. There is an absolute requirement for ATP; Mg++ and spermidine are stimulatory. RNA does not appear to be involved, nor can a role for DNA synthesis be demonstrated.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

Characterization of Escherichia coli mutants with altered ploidy.

We describe the isolation and characterization of new mutants in the cell cycle of Escherichia coli. The mutants were selected as gain of function mutants that are able to maintain more than the normal number of chromosomes. Our increased ploidy mutants were isolated as resistant to camphor vapours, which selects for cells with more chromosomes than normal. The mutants (called mbr for moth-ball-resistant) map to four chromosomal locations: mbrA at 68 min; mbrB at 88.5 min; mbrC at 89.5 min; and mbrD at 90 min. To investigate the nature of these cell cycle mutants, we have coupled them with defects in recA, to test for induction of the SOS response, and dam, to determine if methylation is required for mbr function. Based on the results of these and other tests, we have made a preliminary placement of the mbr mutants within the context of the cell cycle. mbrA mutations appear to be defective in the coupling of the DNA replication cycle to the cell division cycle, and as such, may define a new link between the two processes. mbrB does not seem to be able to coordinate the cell cycle and the growth rate of the cell. mbrC appears to be defective in partitioning of chromosomes. mbrD, which may be allelic to rpoB (a subunit of RNA polymerase), appears to be defective in either chromosomal partitioning or the later stages of DNA replication.

Camphor↗

Managing the electronic NIH-guide for grants and contracts.

This article describes the implementation of a suite of computer programs to manage and provide access to a database containing the electronic documents that constitute the NIH-Guide that is distributed by the NIH on a weekly basis. The software consists of a management program that reads, processes, and stores the incoming documents and performs erratum updates on existing documents; an alerting program that sends selected information to users who have registered their information needs; a viewer that can be used on the local computer to read these documents; and a World-Wide-Web (WWW) server that can distribute the guide to computers that run WWW client software. The design of the documentation annotations, the management software, and the WWW server are expected to constitute valuable models for similar projects in the future.

Feasibility Studies↗