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

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

J Bacteriol. 1988 July; 170(7): 3102-3109

research-article

Expression of the Bacillus subtilis xyl operon is repressed at the level of transcription and is induced by xylose.

D Gärtner, M Geissendörfer and W Hillen

Lehrstuhl für Mikrobiologie, Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Federal Republic of Germany.

ABSTRACT

Expression of xylose isomerase was repressed in Bacillus subtilis strains W23, 168, and BR151 and could be induced in the presence of xylose. The expression was also glucose repressed in strains 168 and BR151, although this effect was not observed with W23. A xyl-cat fusion gene was constructed on a multicopy plasmid, from which the xyl promoter located on a 366-base-pair (bp) DNA fragment derived from W23 directed the expression of chloramphenicol resistance. The regulation of expression was not very pronounced in this multicopy situation. The xyl promoter is a strong signal for transcription initiation. The 5' sequence of the xyl mRNA was identified by nuclease S1 mapping. The promoter consisted of the -10 sequence TAAGAT, the -35 sequence TTGAAA spaced by 17 bp, and an upstream poly(A) block with 14 As out of 17 bp. To study the regulation, a xyl-lacZ fusion gene was constructed and integrated as a single copy into the amygene of B. subtilis 168. This strain grows blue on X-Gal (5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-beta-D-galactoside) indicator plates in the presence of xylose and white in the presence of glucose. Quantitatively, the induction of beta-galactosidase by xylose was 100-fold. In the presence of xylose plus glucose, the expression of the indicator gene was repressed to 30% of the fully induced level. About 25 to 60% of the maximal lacZ expression was obtained with this strain when the 366-bp xyl DNA fragment was provided in trans on a multicopy plasmid. This result indicates that repression in the absence of xylose is mediated in trans by a soluble factor which is expressed at a low level in B. subtilis 168. The xylose effect depended on negative regulation. The estimations of mRNA amounts by dot blot analysis showed unambiguously that the induction by xylose occurs at the level of transcription. The possible molecular mechanisms are discussed with respect to the nucleotide sequence of the 366-bp xyl regulatory DNA.

J Bacteriol. 1988 July; 170(7): 3102-3109




This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Kedar, G. C., Brown-Driver, V., Reyes, D. R., Hilgers, M. T., Stidham, M. A., Shaw, K. J., Finn, J., Haselbeck, R. J. (2007). Evaluation of the metS and murB Loci for Antibiotic Discovery Using Targeted Antisense RNA Expression Analysis in Bacillus anthracis. Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 51: 1708-1718 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Waldeck, J., Daum, G., Bisping, B., Meinhardt, F. (2006). Isolation and Molecular Characterization of Chitinase-Deficient Bacillus licheniformis Strains Capable of Deproteinization of Shrimp Shell Waste To Obtain Highly Viscous Chitin. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 7879-7885 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Espinasse, S., Gohar, M., Lereclus, D., Sanchis, V. (2004). An Extracytoplasmic-Function Sigma Factor Is Involved in a Pathway Controlling {beta}-Exotoxin I Production in Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. thuringiensis Strain 407-1. J. Bacteriol. 186: 3108-3116 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Suess, B., Fink, B., Berens, C., Stentz, R., Hillen, W. (2004). A theophylline responsive riboswitch based on helix slipping controls gene expression in vivo. Nucleic Acids Res 32: 1610-1614 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Bhavsar, A. P., Zhao, X., Brown, E. D. (2001). Development and Characterization of a Xylose-Dependent System for Expression of Cloned Genes in Bacillus subtilis: Conditional Complementation of a Teichoic Acid Mutant. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 67: 403-410 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Moch, C., Schrögel, O., Allmansberger, R. (2000). Transcription of the nfrA-ywcH Operon from Bacillus subtilis Is Specifically Induced in Response to Heat. J. Bacteriol. 182: 4384-4393 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Eichenbaum, Z., Federle, M. J., Marra, D., de Vos, W. M., Kuipers, O. P., Kleerebezem, M., Scott, J. R. (1998). Use of the Lactococcal nisA Promoter To Regulate Gene Expression in Gram-Positive Bacteria: Comparison of Induction Level and Promoter Strength. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 64: 2763-2769 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Takeda, Y., Takase, K., Yamato, I., Abe, K. (1998). Sequencing and Characterization of the xyl Operon of a Gram-Positive Bacterium, Tetragenococcus halophila. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 64: 2513-2519 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Krispin, O., Allmansberger, R. (1998). . J. Bacteriol. 180: 3250-3252 [Abstract]  
  • Krispin, O., Allmansberger, R. (1998). The Bacillus subtilis galE Gene Is Essential in the Presence of Glucose and Galactose. J. Bacteriol. 180: 2265-2270 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Erbeznik, M., Dawson, K. A., Strobel, H. J. (1998). Cloning and Characterization of Transcription of the xylAB Operon in Thermoanaerobacter ethanolicus. J. Bacteriol. 180: 1103-1109 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»