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 Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ramírez, M. E. Articles by Curtis, S. E. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Ramírez, M. E. Articles by Curtis, S. E.

Anabaena sp. Strain PCC 7120 Gene devH Is Required for Synthesis of the Heterocyst Glycolipid Layer

Martha E. Ramírez,¹ Pratibha B. Hebbar,^1, Ruanbao Zhou,^2, C. Peter Wolk,² and Stephanie E. Curtis^1*

Department of Genetics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina,¹ MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan²

Received 8 July 2004/ Accepted 3 January 2005

In response to deprivation for fixed nitrogen, the filamentous cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 provides a microoxic intracellular environment for nitrogen fixation through the differentiation of semiregularly spaced vegetative cells into specialized cells called heterocysts. The devH gene is induced during heterocyst development and encodes a product with characteristics of a trans-acting regulatory protein. A devH mutant forms morphologically distinguishable heterocysts but is Fox^–, incapable of nitrogen fixation in the presence of oxygen. We demonstrate that rearrangements of nitrogen fixation genes take place normally in the devH mutant and that it is Fix⁺, i.e., has nitrogenase activity under anoxic conditions. The Fox^– phenotype was shown by ultrastructural studies to be associated with the absence of the glycolipid layer of the heterocyst envelope. The expression of glycolipid biosynthetic genes in the mutant is greatly reduced, and heterocyst glycolipids are undetectable.

Present address: Laboratory of Molecular Carcinogenesis, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709.

Permanent address: College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, People's Republic of China.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Miller, S. R., Castenholz, R. W., Pedersen, D. (2007). Phylogeography of the Thermophilic Cyanobacterium Mastigocladus laminosus. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 73: 4751-4759 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Shi, L., Li, J.-H., Cheng, Y., Wang, L., Chen, W.-L., Zhang, C.-C. (2007). Two Genes Encoding Protein Kinases of the HstK Family Are Involved in Synthesis of the Minor Heterocyst-Specific Glycolipid in the Cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. Strain PCC 7120. J. Bacteriol. 189: 5075-5081 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Lechno-Yossef, S., Fan, Q., Ehira, S., Sato, N., Wolk, C. P. (2006). Mutations in Four Regulatory Genes Have Interrelated Effects on Heterocyst Maturation in Anabaena sp. Strain PCC 7120. J. Bacteriol. 188: 7387-7395 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Fan, Q., Lechno-Yossef, S., Ehira, S., Kaneko, T., Ohmori, M., Sato, N., Tabata, S., Wolk, C. P. (2006). Signal Transduction Genes Required for Heterocyst Maturation in Anabaena sp. Strain PCC 7120.. J. Bacteriol. 188: 6688-6693 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Johnson, M. A., Peti, W., Herrmann, T., Wilson, I. A., Wuthrich, K. (2006). Solution structure of Asl1650, an acyl carrier protein from Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 with a variant phosphopantetheinylation-site sequence. Protein Sci. 15: 1030-1041 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Miller, S. R., Purugganan, M. D., Curtis, S. E. (2006). Molecular Population Genetics and Phenotypic Diversification of Two Populations of the Thermophilic Cyanobacterium Mastigocladus laminosus. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 2793-2800 [Abstract] [Full Text]