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Journal of Bacteriology, December 2004, p. 7944-7950, Vol. 186, No. 23
0021-9193/04/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JB.186.23.7944-7950.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Physiological and Gene Expression Analysis of Inhibition of Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough by Nitrite
Shelley A. Haveman,
E. Anne Greene,
Claire P. Stilwell,
Johanna K. Voordouw, and
Gerrit Voordouw*
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Received 11 June 2004/
Accepted 2 September 2004
A Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough mutant lacking the nrfA gene for the catalytic subunit of periplasmic cytochrome c nitrite reductase (NrfHA) was constructed. In mid-log phase, growth of the wild type in medium containing lactate and sulfate was inhibited by 10 mM nitrite, whereas 0.6 mM nitrite inhibited the nrfA mutant. Lower concentrations (0.04 mM) inhibited the growth of both mutant and wild-type cells on plates. Macroarray hybridization indicated that nitrite upregulates the nrfHA genes and downregulates genes for sulfate reduction enzymes catalyzing steps preceding the reduction of sulfite to sulfide by dissimilatory sulfite reductase (DsrAB), for two membrane-bound electron transport complexes (qmoABC and dsrMKJOP) and for ATP synthase (atp). DsrAB is known to bind and slowly reduce nitrite. The data support a model in which nitrite inhibits DsrAB (apparent dissociation constant Km for nitrite = 0.03 mM), and in which NrfHA (Km for nitrite = 1.4 mM) limits nitrite entry by reducing it to ammonia when nitrite concentrations are at millimolar levels. The gene expression data and consideration of relative gene locations suggest that QmoABC and DsrMKJOP donate electrons to adenosine phosphosulfate reductase and DsrAB, respectively. Downregulation of atp genes, as well as the recorded cell death following addition of inhibitory nitrite concentrations, suggests that the proton gradient collapses when electrons are diverted from cytoplasmic sulfate to periplasmic nitrite reduction.
* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada. Phone: (403) 220-6388. Fax: (403) 289-9311. E-mail:
voordouw{at}ucalgary.ca.
Supplemental material for this article may be found at http://jb.asm.org/.
Journal of Bacteriology, December 2004, p. 7944-7950, Vol. 186, No. 23
0021-9193/04/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JB.186.23.7944-7950.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
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