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Polar Localization of Replicon Origins in the Multipartite Genomes of Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Sinorhizobium meliloti

Lyn Sue Kahng^1,2, and Lucy Shapiro^1*

Department of Developmental Biology,¹ Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California²

Received 24 January 2003/ Accepted 12 March 2003

The origins of replication of many different bacteria have been shown to reside at specific subcellular locations, but the mechanisms underlying their positioning and segregation are still being elucidated. In particular, little is known about the replication of multipartite genomes in bacteria. We determined the cellular positions of the origins of the replicons in the alpha proteobacteria Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Sinorhizobium meliloti and found that they are located at the poles of the cells. Our work demonstrates the conserved extreme polar localization of circular chromosome origins in these alpha proteobacteria and is also the first to specify the cellular location of origin regions from the repABC family. The cellular location of a derivative of the RK2 plasmid is distinct from that of the alpha proteobacterium genomic replicon origins but is conserved across bacteria. Colocalization experiments with the genomic replicons of A. tumefaciens revealed that the repABC replicons, although preferentially positioned at the cell pole, colocalize only rarely. For the repABC replicons in this organism, occupying discrete spatial locations may contribute to their coexistence and stable inheritance.

Present address: Section of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Ill.

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