This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Gottesman, S Articles by Torres-Cabassa, A Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Gottesman, S Articles by Torres-Cabassa, A

Regulation of capsular polysaccharide synthesis in Escherichia coli K-12: characterization of three regulatory genes.

ABSTRACT

The synthesis of the Escherichia coli capsular polysaccharide varies with growth medium, temperature of growth, and genetic background. lac fusions to genes necessary for capsule synthesis (cps) demonstrated that these genes are regulated negatively in vivo by the lon gene product. We have now isolated, characterized, and mapped mutations in three new regulatory genes (rcs, for regulator of capsule synthesis) that control expression of these same fusions. rcsA and rcsB are positive regulators of capsule synthesis. rcsA is located at min 43 on the E. coli map, whereas rcsB lies at 47 min. rcsC, a negative regulator of capsule synthesis, is located at min 47, close to rcsB. All three regulatory mutations are unlinked to either the structural genes cpsA-F or lon. Mutations in all three rcs genes are recessive to the wild type. We postulate that lon may regulate capsule synthesis indirectly, by regulating the availability of one of the positive regulators.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Laubacher, M. E., Ades, S. E. (2008). The Rcs Phosphorelay Is a Cell Envelope Stress Response Activated by Peptidoglycan Stress and Contributes to Intrinsic Antibiotic Resistance. J. Bacteriol. 190: 2065-2074 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Schwan, W. R., Shibata, S., Aizawa, S.-I., Wolfe, A. J. (2007). The Two-Component Response Regulator RcsB Regulates Type 1 Piliation in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 189: 7159-7163 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Garcia-Calderon, C. B., Casadesus, J., Ramos-Morales, F. (2007). Rcs and PhoPQ Regulatory Overlap in the Control of Salmonella enterica Virulence. J. Bacteriol. 189: 6635-6644 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Meredith, T. C., Mamat, U., Kaczynski, Z., Lindner, B., Holst, O., Woodard, R. W. (2007). Modification of Lipopolysaccharide with Colanic Acid (M-antigen) Repeats in Escherichia coli. J. Biol. Chem. 282: 7790-7798 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Pruss, B. M., Besemann, C., Denton, A., Wolfe, A. J. (2006). A Complex Transcription Network Controls the Early Stages of Biofilm Development by Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 188: 3731-3739 [Full Text]  
• Peterson, C. N., Carabetta, V. J., Chowdhury, T., Silhavy, T. J. (2006). LrhA Regulates rpoS Translation in Response to the Rcs Phosphorelay System in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 188: 3175-3181 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Majdalani, N., Heck, M., Stout, V., Gottesman, S. (2005). Role of RcsF in Signaling to the Rcs Phosphorelay Pathway in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 187: 6770-6778 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Peleg, A., Shifrin, Y., Ilan, O., Nadler-Yona, C., Nov, S., Koby, S., Baruch, K., Altuvia, S., Elgrably-Weiss, M., Abe, C. M., Knutton, S., Saper, M. A., Rosenshine, I. (2005). Identification of an Escherichia coli Operon Required for Formation of the O-Antigen Capsule. J. Bacteriol. 187: 5259-5266 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Francez-Charlot, A., Castanie-Cornet, M.-P., Gutierrez, C., Cam, K. (2005). Osmotic Regulation of the Escherichia coli bdm (Biofilm-Dependent Modulation) Gene by the RcsCDB His-Asp Phosphorelay. J. Bacteriol. 187: 3873-3877 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Delgado, M. A., Vincent, P. A., Farias, R. N., Salomon, R. A. (2005). YojI of Escherichia coli Functions as a Microcin J25 Efflux Pump. J. Bacteriol. 187: 3465-3470 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Boulanger, A., Francez-Charlot, A., Conter, A., Castanie-Cornet, M.-P., Cam, K., Gutierrez, C. (2005). Multistress Regulation in Escherichia coli: Expression of osmB Involves Two Independent Promoters Responding either to {sigma}S or to the RcsCDB His-Asp Phosphorelay. J. Bacteriol. 187: 3282-3286 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Garcia-Calderon, C. B., Garcia-Quintanilla, M., Casadesus, J., Ramos-Morales, F. (2005). Virulence attenuation in Salmonella enterica rcsC mutants with constitutive activation of the Rcs system. Microbiology 151: 579-588 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Joloba, M. L., Clemmer, K. M., Sledjeski, D. D., Rather, P. N. (2004). Activation of the gab Operon in an RpoS-Dependent Manner by Mutations That Truncate the Inner Core of Lipopolysaccharide in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 186: 8542-8546 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Mouslim, C., Latifi, T., Groisman, E. A. (2003). Signal-dependent Requirement for the Co-activator Protein RcsA in Transcription of the RcsB-regulated ugd Gene. J. Biol. Chem. 278: 50588-50595 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Sturny, R., Cam, K., Gutierrez, C., Conter, A. (2003). NhaR and RcsB Independently Regulate the osmCp1 Promoter of Escherichia coli at Overlapping Regulatory Sites. J. Bacteriol. 185: 4298-4304 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Cano, D. A., Dominguez-Bernal, G., Tierrez, A., Portillo, F. G.-d., Casadesus, J. (2002). Regulation of Capsule Synthesis and Cell Motility in Salmonella enterica by the Essential Gene igaA. Genetics 162: 1513-1523 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Davalos-Garcia, M., Conter, A., Toesca, I., Gutierrez, C., Cam, K. (2001). Regulation of osmC Gene Expression by the Two-Component System rcsB-rcsC in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 183: 5870-5876 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Suzuki, T., Miwa, K., Ishikawa, K., Yamada, H., Aiba, H., Mizuno, T. (2001). The Arabidopsis Sensor His-kinase, AHK4, Can Respond to Cytokinins. Plant Cell Physiol 42: 107-113 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Summers, M. L., Botero, L. M., Busse, S. C., McDermott, T. R. (2000). The Sinorhizobium meliloti Lon Protease Is Involved in Regulating Exopolysaccharide Synthesis and Is Required for Nodulation of Alfalfa. J. Bacteriol. 182: 2551-2558 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Wehland, M., Bernhard, F. (2000). The RcsAB Box. CHARACTERIZATION OF A NEW OPERATOR ESSENTIAL FOR THE REGULATION OF EXOPOLYSACCHARIDE BIOSYNTHESIS IN ENTERIC BACTERIA. J. Biol. Chem. 275: 7013-7020 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Wu, W.-F., Zhou, Y., Gottesman, S. (1999). Redundant In Vivo Proteolytic Activities of Escherichia coli Lon and the ClpYQ (HslUV) Protease. J. Bacteriol. 181: 3681-3687 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Ebel, W., Skinner, M. M., Dierksen, K. P., Scott, J. M., Trempy, J. E. (1999). A Conserved Domain in Escherichia coli Lon Protease Is Involved in Substrate Discriminator Activity. J. Bacteriol. 181: 2236-2243 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Ebel, W., Trempy, J. E. (1999). Escherichia coli RcsA, a Positive Activator of Colanic Acid Capsular Polysaccharide Synthesis, Functions To Activate Its Own Expression. J. Bacteriol. 181: 577-584 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Rozanov, D. V., D'Ari, R., Sineoky, S. P. (1998). RecA-Independent Pathways of Lambdoid Prophage Induction in Escherichia coli. J. Bacteriol. 180: 6306-6315 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Majdalani, N., Cunning, C., Sledjeski, D., Elliott, T., Gottesman, S. (1998). DsrA RNA regulates translation of RpoS message by an anti-antisense mechanism, independent of its action as an antisilencer of transcription. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95: 12462-12467 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Berlyn, M. K. B. (1998). Linkage Map of Escherichia coli K-12, Edition 10: The Traditional Map. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 62: 814-984 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Gottesman, S., Roche, E., Zhou, Y., Sauer, R. T. (1998). The ClpXP and ClpAP proteases degrade proteins with carboxy-terminal peptide tails added by the SsrA-tagging system. Genes Dev. 12: 1338-1347 [Abstract] [Full Text]