This Article
Right arrow Full Text
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 Quisel, J. D.
Right arrow Articles by Grossman, A. D.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Quisel, J. D.
Right arrow Articles by Grossman, A. D.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Bacteriology, June 2000, p. 3446-3451, Vol. 182, No. 12
0021-9193/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Control of Sporulation Gene Expression in Bacillus subtilis by the Chromosome Partitioning Proteins Soj (ParA) and Spo0J (ParB)

John D. Quisel and Alan D. Grossman*

Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139

Received 7 February 2000/Accepted 24 March 2000

Two chromosome partitioning proteins, Soj (ParA) and Spo0J (ParB), regulate the initiation of sporulation in Bacillus subtilis. In a spo0J null mutant, sporulation is inhibited by the action of Soj. Soj negatively regulates expression of several sporulation genes by binding to the promoter regions and inhibiting transcription. All of the genes known to be inhibited by Soj are also activated by the phosphorylated form of the transcription factor Spo0A (Spo0A~P). We found that, in a spo0J null mutant, Soj affected sporulation, in part, by decreasing the level of Spo0A protein. Soj negatively regulated transcription of spo0A and associated with the spo0A promoter region in vivo. Expression of spo0A from a heterologous promoter in a spo0J null mutant restored Spo0A levels and partly bypassed the sporulation and gene expression defects. Soj did not appear to significantly affect phosphorylation of Spo0A. Thus, in the absence of Spo0J, Soj inhibits sporulation and sporulation gene expression by inhibiting accumulation of the activator protein Spo0A and by acting downstream of Spo0A to inhibit gene expression directly.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Biology, Bldg. 68-530, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139. Phone: (617) 253-1515. Fax: (617) 253-2643. E-mail: adg{at}mit.edu.

Journal of Bacteriology, June 2000, p. 3446-3451, Vol. 182, No. 12
0021-9193/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Bartosik, A. A., Mierzejewska, J., Thomas, C. M., Jagura-Burdzy, G. (2009). ParB deficiency in Pseudomonas aeruginosa destabilizes the partner protein ParA and affects a variety of physiological parameters. Microbiology 155: 1080-1092 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Vallet-Gely, I., Sharp, J. S., Dove, S. L. (2007). Local and Global Regulators Linking Anaerobiosis to cupA Fimbrial Gene Expression in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. J. Bacteriol. 189: 8667-8676 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Livny, J., Yamaichi, Y., Waldor, M. K. (2007). Distribution of Centromere-Like parS Sites in Bacteria: Insights from Comparative Genomics. J. Bacteriol. 189: 8693-8703 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Lasocki, K., Bartosik, A. A., Mierzejewska, J., Thomas, C. M., Jagura-Burdzy, G. (2007). Deletion of the parA (soj) Homologue in Pseudomonas aeruginosa Causes ParB Instability and Affects Growth Rate, Chromosome Segregation, and Motility. J. Bacteriol. 189: 5762-5772 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Gasper, R., Scrima, A., Wittinghofer, A. (2006). Structural Insights into HypB, a GTP-binding Protein That Regulates Metal Binding. J. Biol. Chem. 281: 27492-27502 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • McLeod, B. N., Spiegelman, G. B. (2005). Soj Antagonizes Spo0A Activation of Transcription in Bacillus subtilis. J. Bacteriol. 187: 2532-2536 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Leonard, T. A, Moller-Jensen, J., Lowe, J. (2005). Towards understanding the molecular basis of bacterial DNA segregation. Phil Trans R Soc B 360: 523-535 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Voigt, C. A., Wolf, D. M., Arkin, A. P. (2005). The Bacillus subtilis sin Operon: An Evolvable Network Motif. Genetics 169: 1187-1202 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Bartosik, A. A., Lasocki, K., Mierzejewska, J., Thomas, C. M., Jagura-Burdzy, G. (2004). ParB of Pseudomonas aeruginosa: Interactions with Its Partner ParA and Its Target parS and Specific Effects on Bacterial Growth. J. Bacteriol. 186: 6983-6998 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hilbert, D. W., Piggot, P. J. (2004). Compartmentalization of Gene Expression during Bacillus subtilis Spore Formation. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 68: 234-262 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Ogura, Y., Ogasawara, N., Harry, E. J., Moriya, S. (2003). Increasing the Ratio of Soj to Spo0J Promotes Replication Initiation in Bacillus subtilis. J. Bacteriol. 185: 6316-6324 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hosoya, S., Asai, K., Ogasawara, N., Takeuchi, M., Sato, T. (2002). Mutation in yaaT Leads to Significant Inhibition of Phosphorelay during Sporulation in Bacillus subtilis. J. Bacteriol. 184: 5545-5553 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Lewis, R. A., Bignell, C. R., Zeng, W., Jones, A. C., Thomas, C. M. (2002). Chromosome loss from par mutants of Pseudomonas putida depends on growth medium and phase of growth. Microbiology 148: 537-548 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • McCarter, L. L. (2001). Polar Flagellar Motility of the Vibrionaceae. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 65: 445-462 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Lemon, K. P., Grossman, A. D. (2001). The extrusion-capture model for chromosome partitioning in bacteria. Genes Dev. 15: 2031-2041 [Full Text]  
  • Adler, E., Barák, I., Stragier, P. (2001). Bacillus subtilis Locus Encoding a Killer Protein and Its Antidote. J. Bacteriol. 183: 3574-3581 [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»