Journal of Bacteriology, December 1999, p. 7228-7234, Vol. 181, No. 23
0021-9193/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Department of Molecular Microbiology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9751 NN Haren, The Netherlands,1 and Department of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Krebs Institute for Biomolecular Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, United Kingdom2
Received 8 July 1999/Accepted 19 September 1999
In industrial fermentations, Penicillium chrysogenum uses sulfate as the source of sulfur for the biosynthesis of penicillin. By a PCR-based approach, two genes, sutA and sutB, whose encoded products belong to the SulP superfamily of sulfate permeases were isolated. Transformation of a sulfate uptake-negative sB3 mutant of Aspergillus nidulans with the sutB gene completely restored sulfate uptake activity. The sutA gene did not complement the A. nidulans sB3 mutation, even when expressed under control of the sutB promoter. Expression of both sutA and sutB in P. chrysogenum is induced by growth under sulfur starvation conditions. However, sutA is expressed to a much lower level than is sutB. Disruption of sutB resulted in a loss of sulfate uptake ability. Overall, the results show that SutB is the major sulfate permease involved in sulfate uptake by P. chrysogenum.
Present address: Synpac Pharmaceuticals, Cambois, Bedlington,
Northumberland NE2 7DB, United Kingdom.
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