This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Takeda, H. Articles by Fukuda, M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Takeda, H. Articles by Fukuda, M.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Bacteriology, April 2004, p. 2134-2146, Vol. 186, No. 7
0021-9193/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JB.186.7.2134-2146.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Characterization of Transcriptional Regulatory Genes for Biphenyl Degradation in Rhodococcus sp. Strain RHA1

Department of Bioengineering, Nagaoka University of Technology, Kamitomioka, Nagaoka, Niigata, 940-2188, Japan

Received 3 November 2003/ Accepted 30 December 2003

Transcription of the bphA1A2A3A4C1B genes, which are responsible for the conversion of biphenyl and polychlorinated biphenyl to the meta-cleavage products in Rhodococcus sp. strain RHA1, was examined. The bphA1 promoter (P_bphA1) was identified and was shown to promote transcription induction by biphenyl and ethylbenzene. An 8.8-kb HindIII fragment that promotes transcription induction of P_bphA1 in Rhodococcus erythropolis IAM1399 was isolated from the region downstream of bphB by using a reporter plasmid containing P_bphA1. Analysis of the nucleotide sequence of this fragment revealed a set of putative two-component regulatory system genes, which were designated bphS and bphT. Deletion analysis of the 8.8-kb HindIII fragment indicated that bphT is responsible for the basal activation of P_bphA1 and that both bphS and bphT are required for the elevated basal activation of and transcriptional induction by biphenyl of P_bphA1. These results support the notion that bphS and bphT encode a sensor kinase and a response regulator, respectively, of a two-component regulatory system. The bphS and bphT genes promote transcriptional induction by a variety of aromatic compounds, including biphenyl, benzene, alkylbenzenes, and chlorinated benzenes. A promoter activity assay and reverse transcription (RT)-PCR analysis revealed a weak constitutive promoter in the adjacent region upstream of bphS. RT-PCR analysis indicated that there is induced transcription of bphA1 through bphT, in which P_bphA1 is thought to take part. An insertionally inactivated bphS mutant, SDR1, did not grow on biphenyl. Growth was restored by introduction of an intact bphS gene into SDR1. These results indicate that at least bphS is indispensably responsible for the growth of RHA1 on biphenyl.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Patrauchan, M. A., Florizone, C., Eapen, S., Gomez-Gil, L., Sethuraman, B., Fukuda, M., Davies, J., Mohn, W. W., Eltis, L. D. (2008). Roles of Ring-Hydroxylating Dioxygenases in Styrene and Benzene Catabolism in Rhodococcus jostii RHA1. J. Bacteriol. 190: 37-47 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Hara, H., Eltis, L. D., Davies, J. E., Mohn, W. W. (2007). Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals a Bifurcated Terephthalate Degradation Pathway in Rhodococcus sp. Strain RHA1. J. Bacteriol. 189: 1641-1647 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Goncalves, E. R., Hara, H., Miyazawa, D., Davies, J. E., Eltis, L. D., Mohn, W. W. (2006). Transcriptomic Assessment of Isozymes in the Biphenyl Pathway of Rhodococcus sp. Strain RHA1. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 6183-6193 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Iwasaki, T., Miyauchi, K., Masai, E., Fukuda, M. (2006). Multiple-Subunit Genes of the Aromatic-Ring-Hydroxylating Dioxygenase Play an Active Role in Biphenyl and Polychlorinated Biphenyl Degradation in Rhodococcus sp. Strain RHA1. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 5396-5402 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Patrauchan, M. A., Florizone, C., Dosanjh, M., Mohn, W. W., Davies, J., Eltis, L. D. (2005). Catabolism of Benzoate and Phthalate in Rhodococcus sp. Strain RHA1: Redundancies and Convergence. J. Bacteriol. 187: 4050-4063 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Furukawa, K., Suenaga, H., Goto, M. (2004). Biphenyl Dioxygenases: Functional Versatilities and Directed Evolution. J. Bacteriol. 186: 5189-5196 [Full Text]