Previous Article | Next Article ![]()
J Bacteriol, February 1998, p. 538-546, Vol. 180, No. 3
Max von Pettenkofer-Institut für
Medizinische Mikrobiologie und Hygiene, Ludwig Maximilians
Universität München, Munich, Germany
Received 11 August 1997/Accepted 20 November 1997
The ability to synthesize and uptake the Yersinia
siderophore yersiniabactin is a hallmark of the highly pathogenic,
mouse-lethal species Yersinia pestis, Y. pseudotuberculosis, and Y. enterocolitica 1B. We have
identified four genes, irp1, irp3,
irp4, and irp5, on a 13-kb chromosomal DNA
fragment of Y. enterocolitica O8, WA-314. These genes
constitute the yersiniabactin biosynthetic gene cluster together with
the previously defined irp2. The irp1 gene
consists of 9,486 bp capable of encoding a 3,161-amino-acid
high-molecular-weight protein 1 (HMWP1) polypeptide with a predicted
mass of 384.6 kDa. The first 3,000 bp of irp1 show
similarity to the corresponding regions of the polyketide synthase
genes of Bacillus subtilis and Streptomyces
antibioticus. The remaining part of irp1 is most similar to irp2, encoding HMWP2, which might be the reason
for immunological cross-reactivity of the two polypeptides. Irp4 was found to have 41.7% similarity to thioesterase-like protein of the
anguibactin biosynthetic genes of Vibrio anguillarum. Irp5 shows 41% similarity to EntE, the 2,3-dihydroxybenzoic acid-activating enzyme utilized in enterobactin synthesis of Escherichia
coli. Irp4 and Irp5 are nearly identical to YbtT and YbtE,
recently identified in Y. pestis. irp3 has no similarity to
any known gene. Inactivation of either irp1 or
irp2 abrogates yersiniabactin synthesis. Mutations in
irp1 or fyuA (encoding yersiniabactin/pesticin
receptor) result in downregulation of irp2 that can be
upregulated by the addition of yersiniabactin. A FyuA-green fluorescent
protein translational fusion was downregulated in an irp1
mutant. Upregulation was achieved by addition of yersiniabactin but not
desferal, pesticin, or pyochelin, which indicates high specificity of
the FyuA receptor and autoregulation of genes involved in synthesis and
uptake of yersiniabactin.
0021-9193/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
The Yersiniabactin Biosynthetic Gene Cluster
of Yersinia enterocolitica: Organization and
Siderophore-Dependent Regulation
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Max von
Pettenkofer-Institut für Medizinische Mikrobiologie und Hygiene
der Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, Pettenkoferstr.
9a, 80336 Munich, Germany. Phone: 089-51605261. Fax: 5380584. E-mail: rakin{at}M3401.MPK.MED.uni-muenchen.de.
This article has been cited by other articles:
| Appl. Environ. Microbiol. | Infect. Immun. | Eukaryot. Cell |
|---|---|---|
| Mol. Cell. Biol. | J. Virol. | Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. |
| ALL ASM JOURNALS |