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Journal of Bacteriology, November 2000, p. 5982-5989, Vol. 182, No. 21
0021-9193/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Control of Lactose Transport, -Galactosidase Activity, and Glycolysis by CcpA in Streptococcus thermophilus: Evidence for Carbon Catabolite Repression by a Non-Phosphoenolpyruvate-Dependent Phosphotransferase System Sugar

Patrick T. C. van den Bogaard,^* Michiel Kleerebezem, Oscar P. Kuipers, and Willem M. de Vos

Wageningen Centre for Food Sciences, NIZO Food Research, Department of Flavour and Natural Ingredients, 6710 BA Ede, The Netherlands

Received 12 April 2000/Accepted 1 August 2000

Streptococcus thermophilus, unlike many other gram-positive bacteria, prefers lactose over glucose as the primary carbon and energy source. Moreover, lactose is not taken up by a phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent phosphotransferase system (PTS) but by the dedicated transporter LacS. In this paper we show that CcpA plays a crucial role in the fine-tuning of lactose transport, -galactosidase (LacZ) activity, and glycolysis to yield optimal glycolytic flux and growth rate. A catabolite-responsive element (cre) was identified in the promoter of the lacSZ operon, indicating a possible role for regulation by CcpA. Transcriptional analysis showed a sevenfold relief of repression in the absence of a functional CcpA when cells were grown on lactose. This CcpA-mediated repression of lacSZ transcription did not occur in wild-type cells during growth on galactose, taken up by the same LacS transport system. Lactose transport during fermentation was increased significantly in strains carrying a disrupted ccpA gene. Moreover, a ccpA disruption strain was found to release substantial amounts of glucose into the medium when grown on lactose. Transcriptional analysis of the ldh gene showed that expression was induced twofold during growth on lactose compared to glucose or galactose, in a CcpA-dependent manner. A reduced rate of glycolysis concomitant with an increased lactose transport rate could explain the observed expulsion of glucose in a ccpA disruption mutant. We propose that CcpA in S. thermophilus acts as a catabolic regulator during growth on the preferred non-PTS sugar lactose. In contrast to other bacteria, S. thermophilus possesses an overcapacity for lactose uptake that is repressed by CcpA to match the rate-limiting glycolytic flux.

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^* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Flavour and Natural Ingredients, NIZO food research, Wageningen Centre for Food Sciences, P.O. Box 20, 6710 BA Ede, The Netherlands. Phone: (31) 318 659511. Fax: (31) 318 650400. E-mail: bogaard{at}nizo.nl.

Present address: Molecular Genetics, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9750 AA Haren, The Netherlands.

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Journal of Bacteriology, November 2000, p. 5982-5989, Vol. 182, No. 21
0021-9193/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

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