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Shotgun cloning and characterization of the thymidylate synthase-encoding gene from Mycobacterium bovis BCG.

The shotgun cloning of a Mycobacterium bovis BCG (BCG) genome into pBluescript SK (+) successfully yielded a 0.9 kbp fragment, confirming the ability of Escherichia coli thyA mutant MH2702 to grow in a thymine-depleted medium. This DNA fragment contained a gene homologous to the thymidylate synthase (TS)-encoding genes (thyA) of other organisms. An inverted repeat sequence and open reading frame (ORF) were observed at the upstream region of the thyA. A computer analysis revealed that the protein encoded by this ORF possessed a structure unique for a DNA binding protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Mutations that affect regulation of the korB gene of Streptomyces lividans plasmid plJ101 alter plasmid transmission.

Using the catechol dehydrogenase gene as a reporter, we isolated random mutations in the plJ101 korB gene operator/promoter (OP) region that affect korB expression and regulation. We mapped these mutations to inverted repeat sequences within the promoter and studied their effects on binding of the KorB repressor protein to the OP, on expression of the korB gene, and on plasmid transmission during mating. Additionally, we investigated the biological effects of KorB binding to a locus (sti, for strong incompatibility) adjacent to the korB OP and implicated in plJ101 replication. Our results identify sites that influence the synthesis and autoregulation of KorB; they also show that interaction of KorB with sti affects repression of korB and transmission of plasmids to spores of recipients.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Importance of lipooligosaccharide structure in determining gonococcal resistance to hydrophobic antimicrobial agents resulting from the mtr efflux system.

Levels of gonococcal resistance to antimicrobial hydrophobic agents (HAs) are controlled by the mtr (multiple transferrable resistance) system, composed of the mtrRCDE genes. The mtrR gene encodes a transcriptional repressor that appears to regulate expression of the upstream and divergent mtrCDE operon. The mtrCDE genes encode membrane proteins analogous to the MexABOprK proteins of Pseudomonas aeruginosa that mediate export of structurally diverse antimicrobial agents. In this study we found that a single base pair deletion in a 13 bp inverted repeat sequence within the mtrR promoter resulted in increased resistance of gonococci to both crystal violet (CV) and erythromycin (ERY) as well as to the more lipophilic non-ionic detergent Triton X-100 (TX-100). However, this cross-resistance was contingent on the production of a full-length lipooligosaccharide (LOS) by the recipient strain used in transformation experiments. Introduction of this mutation (mtrR-171) into three chemically distinct deep-rough LOS mutants by transformation resulted in a fourfold increase in resistance to TX-100 compared with a 160-fold increase in an isogenic strain producing a full-length LOS. However, both wild-type and deep-rough LOS strains exhibited an eightfold increase in resistance to CV and ERY as a result of the mtrR-171 mutation. This suggests that gonococci have different LOS structural requirements for mtr-mediated resistance to HAs that differ in their lipophilic properties. Evidence is presented that gonococci exclude HAs by an energy-dependent efflux process mediated by the mtr system.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Transcriptional response of Escherichia coli to external copper.

Transcriptional response of Escherichia coli upon exposure to external copper was studied using DNA microarray and in vivo and in vitro transcription assays. Transcription of three hitherto-identified copper-responsive genes, copA (copper efflux transporter), cueO (multicopper oxidase) and cusC (tripartite copper pump component) became maximum at 5 min after addition of copper sulphate, and thereafter decreased to the preshift levels within 30 min. Microarray analysis at 5 min after addition of copper indicated that a total of at least 29 genes including these three known genes were markedly and specifically affected (28 upregulated and one downregulated). Transcription of the divergent operons, cusCFB and cusRS, was found to be activated by CusR, which bound to a CusR box between the cusC and cusR promoters. Except for this site, the CusR box was not identified in the entire E. coli genome. On the other hand, transcription of copA and cueO was found to be activated by another copper-responsive factor CueR, which bound to a conserved inverted repeat sequence, CueR box. A total of 197 CueR boxes were identified on the E. coli genome, including the CueR box associated with the moa operon for molybdenum cofactor synthesis. At least 10 copper-induced genes were found to be under the control of CpxAR two-component system, indicating that copper is one of the signals for activation of the CpxAR system. In addition, transcription of yedWV, a putative two-component system, was activated by copper in CusR-dependent manner. Taken together we conclude that the copper-responsive genes are organized into a hierarchy of the regulation network, forming at least four regulons, i.e. CueR, CusR, CpxR and YedW regulons. These copper-responsive regulons appear to sense and respond to different concentrations of external copper.

Base Sequence↗

Large DNA palindromes as a common form of structural chromosome aberrations in human cancers.

Breakage-fusion-bridge cycles contribute to chromosome aberrations and generate large DNA palindromes that facilitate oncogene amplification in cancer cells. At the molecular level, large DNA palindrome formation is initiated by chromosome breaks, and genomic architecture such as short inverted repeat sequences facilitates this process in mammalian cells. However, the prevalence of DNA palindromes in cancer cells is currently unknown. To determine the prevalence of DNA palindromes in human cancer cells, we have developed a new microarray-based approach called Genome-wide Analysis of Palindrome Formation (GAPF, Tanaka et al., Nat Genet 2005; 37: 320-7). This approach is based on a relatively simple and efficient method to purify "snap-back DNA" from large DNA palindromes by intramolecular base-pairing, followed by elimination of single-stranded DNA by nuclease S1. Comparison of Genome-wide Analysis of Palindrome Formation profiles between cancer and normal cells using microarray can identify genome-wide distributions of somatic palindromes. Using a human cDNA microarray, we have shown that DNA palindromes occur frequently in human cancer cell lines and primary medulloblastomas. Significant overlap of the loci containing DNA palindromes between Colo320DM and MCF7 cancer cell lines suggests regions in the genome susceptible to chromosome breaks and palindrome formation. A subset of loci containing palindromes is associated with gene amplification in Colo320DM, indicating that the location of palindromes in the cancer genome serves as a structural platform that supports subsequent gene amplification.

Base Pairing↗

Genetic manipulation of Bacillus methanolicus, a gram-positive, thermotolerant methylotroph.

We report the fist genetic transformation system, shuttle vectors, and integrative vectors for the thermotolerant, methylotrophic bacterium Bacillus methanolicus. By using a polyethylene glycol-mediated transformation procedure, we have successfully transformed B. methanolicus with both integrative and multicopy plasmids. For plasmids with a single BmeTI recognition site, dam methylation of plasmid DNA (in vivo or in vitro) was found to enhance transformation efficiency from 7- to 11-fold. Two low-copy-number Escherichia coli-B, methanolicus shuttle plasmids, pDQ507 and pDQ508, are described. pDQ508 caries the replication origin cloned from a 17-kb endogenous B. methanolicus plasmid, pBM1. pDQ507 carries a cloned B. methanolicus DNA fragment, pmr-1, possibly of chromosomal origin, that supports maintenance of pDQ507 as a circular, extrachromosomal DNA molecule. Deletion analysis of pDQ507 indicated two regions required for replication, i.e., a 90-bp AT-rich segment containing a 46-bp imperfect, inverted repeat sequence and a second region 65% homologous to the B. subtilis dpp operon. We also evaluated two E. coli-B. subtilis vectors, pEN1 and pHP13, for use as E. coli-B. methanolicus shuttle vectors. The plasmids pHP13, pDQ507, and pDQ508 were segregationally and structurally stable in B. methanolicus for greater than 60 generations of growth under nonselective conditions; pEN1 was segregationally unstable. Single-stranded plasmid DNA was detected in B. methanolicus transformants carrying either pEN1, pHP13, or pDQ508, suggesting that pDQ508, like the B. subtilis plasmids, is replicated by a rolling-circle mechanism. These studies provide the basic tools for the genetic manipulation of B. methanolicus.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

An intragenic guide RNA location suggests a complex mechanism for mitochondrial gene expression in Trypanosoma brucei.

In Trypanosoma brucei, two classes of transcripts are produced from two distinct mitochondrial genome components. Guide RNAs (gRNAs) are usually minicircle encoded and exist as primary transcripts, while the maxicircle-encoded rRNAs and mRNAs are processed from a polycistronic precursor. The genes for the gRNAs gMURF2-II and gCYb(560) each have uncommon kinetoplast DNA (kDNA) locations that are not typically associated with transcription initiation events. We demonstrate that the conserved maxicircle gRNA gMURF2-II has an unusual location within the ND4 gene. This is the first report of a completely intragenic gene in kDNA. In addition, the gMURF2-II and ND4 transcripts are generated by distinctly different events; the ND4 mRNA is processed from a polycistronic precursor, while transcription of the gRNA initiates downstream of the 5' end of the ND4 gene. The gCYb(560) gene has an atypical minicircle location in that it is not flanked by the inverted repeat sequences that surround the majority of minicircle gRNA genes. Our data indicate that the mature gCYb(560) gRNA is also a primary transcript and that the 5'-end heterogeneity previously observed for this gRNA is a result of multiple transcription initiation sites and not of imprecise 5'-end processing. Together, these data indicate that gRNA genes represent individual transcription units, regardless of their genomic context, and suggest a complex mechanism for mitochondrial gene expression in T. brucei.

Animals↗

Polypeptides expressed in Escherichia coli K-12 minicells by transposition elements Tn1 and Tn3.

Escherichia coli K-12 minicells were employed to examine polypeptides encoded by plasmids carrying wild-type and mutant Tn1 or Tn3 transposition elements. Tn1- and Tn3-containing minicells express high levels of four transposon-specified polypeptides. Three, of molecular weights 30,000, 28,000, and 25,000, are related immunologically to beta-lactamase, the enzyme responsible for ampicillin hydrolysis. A fourth polypeptide of molecular weight 19,000 is encoded by the Tn1 or Tn3 region which spans the BamHI cleavage site. Mutant transposons which no longer produce this polypeptide transpose at higher than wild-type frequencies to give aberrant transposition products (Gill et al., J. Bacteriol. 136: 742--756, 1978; Heffron et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci U.S.A. 72:3632--3627, 1975). No expression could be detected from a region of the transposons extending from the inverted repeat sequence distal to the beta-lactamase gene to more than half the distance into the Tn1 or Tn3 sequence.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Transposition of the oxacillin-hydrolyzing penicillinase gene.

We have found that the oxacillin-hydrolyzing penicillinase gene (oxa) encoded by plasmid RGN238 transposes to various plasmids in a recA background. We call this transposable element Tn2603. Tn2603 encodes the genes for streptomycin, sulfonamide, and mercury resistance in addition to the oxa gene. Tn2603 has a molecular size of 19.6 kilobase pairs and appears to be flanked by small inverted repeat sequences of about 200 base pairs long.

DNA Transposable Elements↗

Functional organization of plasmid pKM101.

Tn5 insertion mutants and in vitro-generated deletion mutants of the mutagenesis-enhancing plasmid pKM101 have been used to identify several genetic regions on the pKM101 map. In clockwise order on the pKM101 map are: (i) the bla gene, coding for a beta-lactamase; (ii) the Slo region, responsible for retarding cell growth on minimal medium; (iii) the tra genes, enabling pKM101 to transfer conjugally; (iv) sensitivity to IKe phage (this function[s] maps within the tra region); (v) the muc gene(s), responsible for enhancing ultraviolet light and chemically induced mutagenesis in the cell; and (vi) the Rep region, essential for plasmid replication. The muc gene(s) and the Rep region are contained in a deoxyribonucleic acid region bounded by inverted repeated sequences.

Coliphages↗

Genetic and molecular characterization of Tn21, a multiple resistance transposon from R100.1.

Tge transposon Tn21 has been transposed from R100.1 to plasmid pACYC184 and, from the resulting recombinants, to plasmid R388. The sites of insertion and the orientation of the element in several pACYC184::Tn21 recombinants have been examined. Restriction enzyme analysis of these recombinants has resulted in a detailed map of Tn21; this is compared with the published maps of the relevant part of R100.1. Heteroduplex analysis has shown short inverted repeat sequences at the ends of the element. With various in vitro-generated deletion mutants of Tn21, the internal gene necessary for transposition (tnpA) was localized within the terminal 4.3 kilobases of the right-hand end of the element. Genetic analysis of transposition of Tn21 suggests that the process proceeds via cointegrates. Since the end products of transposition are simple recombinants of the element and the recipient replicon, Tn21 must contain a gene that codes for a resolvase type of activity (tnpR gene).

Conjugation, Genetic↗

Isolation of a novel transposon which carries the Escherichia coli enterotoxin STII gene.

The Escherichia coli heat-stable enterotoxin STII gene in P307 is flanked by inverted repeat sequences, suggesting that the STII gene is part of a transposon. To study the transposability, a DNA fragment containing the putative STII transposon has been cloned. Results of transposition assays indicated that the STII gene can transpose from one plasmid to another. The size of the transposon has been determined to be approximately 9 kilobases. The structure and the location of the STII gene in clinical isolates of Escherichia coli have been investigated by restriction enzyme analyses. The structural genes of STII from different clinical isolates appear to be uniform in size, but the flanking sequences are heterogeneous. This result suggests that the STII genes in different isolates are not on the same transposon as observed in P307.

Bacterial Toxins↗

The virC and virD operons of the Agrobacterium Ti plasmid are regulated by the ros chromosomal gene: analysis of the cloned ros gene.

The ros chromosomal gene is present in octopine and nopaline strains of Agrobacterium tumefaciens as well as in Rhizobium meliloti. This gene encodes a 15.5-kDa protein that specifically represses the virC and virD operons in the virulence region of the Ti plasmid. The ros gene was cloned from a genomic bank by electroporation and complementation in Agrobacterium cells. Reporter fusion to the ros gene indicates that the level of transcription is controlled in part by autoregulation. A consensus inverted repeat sequence present in the ros promoter and in the virC and virD promoters of pTiC58, pTiA6, and pRiA4b suggests that a specific Ros binding site exists in these promoters. In the virC and virD promoter region, this binding site is within a cluster of vir box consensus sequences in which the VirG protein binds. This suggests possible binding competition between Ros and VirG at the virC and virD promoters. That the Ros protein binds DNA is suggested by the presence of a 'zinc finger' consensus sequence in the protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

DNA-binding domain of the RepE initiator protein of mini-F plasmid: involvement of the carboxyl-terminal region.

The RepE initiator protein (251 residues) is essential for mini-F replication in Escherichia coli and exhibits two major functions: initiation of DNA replication from ori2 and autogenous repression of repE transcription. Whereas the initiation is mediated by RepE monomers that bind to the ori2 iterons (direct repeats), the autogenous repression is mediated by dimers that bind to the repE operator, which contains an inverted repeat sequence related to the iterons. We now report that the binding of RepE to these DNA sites is primarily determined by the C-terminal region of this protein. The mutant RepE proteins lacking either the N-terminal 33 (or more) residues or the C-terminal 7 (or more) residues were first shown to be defective in binding to both the ori2 and the operator DNAs. However, direct screening and analysis of mutant RepEs which are specifically affected in binding to the ori2 iterons revealed that the mutations (mostly amino acid substitutions) occur exclusively in the C-terminal region (residues 168 to 242). These mutant proteins exhibited reduced binding to ori2 and no detectable binding to the operator. Thus, whereas truncation of either end of RepE can destroy the DNA-binding activities, the C-terminal region appears to represent a primary DNA-binding domain of RepE for both ori2 and the operator. Analogous DNA-binding domains seem to be conserved among the initiator proteins of certain related plasmids.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Repression of the Escherichia coli modABCD (molybdate transport) operon by ModE.

The modABC gene products constitute the molybdate-specific transport system in Escherichia coli. Another operon coding for two proteins which diverges from the modABCD operon has been identified. The first gene of this operon codes for a 262-amino-acid protein, designated ModE (28 kDa), and the second genes codes for a 490-amino-acid protein. ModF (54 kDa). The role of ModF has not yet been determined; however, mutations in modE depressed modABCD transcription even in the presence of molybdate, suggesting that ModE is a repressor. ModE, in the presence of 1 mM molybdate, repressed the production of plasmid-encoded ModA and ModB' proteins in an in vitro transcription-translation system. DNA mobility shift experiments confirmed that ModE binds to an oligonucleotide derived from the operator region of the modABCD operon. Further experimentation indicated that ModE binding to target DNA minimally requires an 8-bp inverted-repeat sequence, TAAC GITA. A highly conserved amino acid sequence, TSARNOXXG (amino acids 125 to 133), was identified in ModE and homologs from Azotobacter vinelandii, Haemophilus influenzae, Rhodobacter capsulatus, and Clostridium pasterianum. Mutants with mutations in either T or G of this amino acid sequence were isolated as "superrepressor" mutants. These mutant proteins repressed modABCD transcription even in the absence of molybdate, which implies that this stretch of amino acids is essential for the binding of molybdate by the ModE protein. These results show that molybdate transport in E. coli is regulated by ModE, which acts as a repressor when bound to molybdate.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Identical transcriptional control of the divergently transcribed prtP and prtM genes that are required for proteinase production in lactococcus lactis SK11.

We have investigated transcriptional regulation of the divergently transcribed genes required for proteinase production (prtP and prtM) of Lactococcus lactis SK11. Their promoters partially overlap and are arranged in a face-to-face configuration. The medium-dependent activities of both prtP and prtM promoters were analyzed by quantitative primer extension studies and beta-glucuronidase assays with L. lactis MG1363 cells harboring transcriptional gene fusions of each promoter with the promoterless beta-glucuronidase gene (gusA) from Escherichia coli. High-level production of prtP- or prtM-specific mRNAs was found after the growth of cells in media with low peptide concentrations, while increases in peptide concentrations resulted in an approximately eightfold decrease in mRNA production. Furthermore, prtP and prtM promoters exhibited similar efficiencies under different growth conditions. Deletion analysis of the prt promoter region showed that all the information needed for full activity and regulation of the prtP and prtM promoters is retained within a 90-bp region which includes both transcription initiation sites. An inverted repeat sequence positioned around the prtP and prtM transcription initiation sites was disrupted by either deletion or insertion of a small DNA sequence to analyze their effects on the activities of both prtP and prtM promoters. The mutations affected the activities of these promoters only marginally at low peptide concentrations but resulted in 1.5- to 5-fold derepression at high peptide concentrations. These results indicate that the expression of both prtM and prtP genes is controlled in an identical manner via a control mechanism capable of repressing transcription initiation at high peptide concentrations.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Regulation of the dnaK operon of Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) is governed by HspR, an autoregulatory repressor protein.

The dnaK operon of Streptomyces coelicolor contains four genes (5'-dnaK-grpE-dnaJ-hspR). The fourth gene encodes a novel heat shock protein, HspR, which appears so far to be unique to the high-G+C actinomycete group of bacteria. HspR binds with high specificity to three inverted repeat sequences in the promoter region of the S. coelicolor dnaK operon, strongly suggesting a direct role for HspR in heat shock gene regulation. Here we present genetic and biochemical evidence that HspR is the repressor of the dnaK operon. Disruption of hspR leads to high-level constitutive transcription of the dnaK operon. Parallel transcriptional analyses of groESL1 and groEL2 expression demonstrated that heat shock regulation of the groE genes was essentially unaffected in an hspR null mutant, although the basal (uninduced) level of groEL2 transcription was slightly elevated compared with the wild type. The results of HspR titration experiments, where the dnaK operon promoter region was cloned at ca. 50 copies per chromosome, were consistent with the prediction that HspR functions as a negative autoregulator. His-tagged HspR, overproduced and purified from Escherichia coli, was shown to repress transcription from the dnaK operon promoter in vitro, providing additional evidence for the proposal that HspR directly regulates transcription of the dnaK operon. These studies indicate that there are at least two transcriptional mechanisms for controlling heat shock genes in S. coelicolor--one controlling the dnaK operon and another controlling the groE genes.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Regulation of Bacteriodes fragilis katB mRNA by oxidative stress and carbon limitation.

Regulation of the katB catalase gene in the anaerobic bacterium Bacteroides fragilis was studied. Northern blot hybridization analyses revealed that katB was transcribed as an approximately 1.6-kb monocistronic mRNA. The levels of katB mRNA increased > 15-fold when anaerobic, mid-logarithmic-phase cultures were exposed to O2, O2 with paraquat, or hydrogen peroxide. Under anaerobic conditions, the low levels of katB mRNA increased in a growth-dependent manner, reaching maximum expression at late logarithmic or early stationary phase, followed by a decrease in stationary phase. Under anaerobic conditions, the expression of katB mRNA was strongly repressed by glucose and to a lesser extent by xylose. However, glucose repression was completely abolished upon exposure to oxygen. The nonfermentable carbon sources fumarate, succinate, acetate, and pyruvate did not significantly affect expression. Phosphate, nitrogen, and hemin limitation did not affect the expression of katB mRNA, suggesting that the nutritional control of katB expression is restricted to carbon and energy sources and not other forms of nutrient limitation. Primer extension analysis revealed that during both oxidative stress and carbon or energy limitation, katB utilized the same promoter region but transcription initiation occurred at two different nucleotides separated by 3 or 4 bases. Interestingly, a 6-bp inverted repeat sequence present in the katB regulatory region was also observed upstream of the B. fragilis superoxide dismutase gene sod. It is possible that this is a recognition site for a DNA binding protein involved in the regulation of oxidative stress genes in this organism.

Acetates↗