Regulation of ndh expression in Escherichia coli by Fis

Microbiology ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 150 (2) ◽  
pp. 407-413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Jackson ◽  
Timo Blake ◽  
Jeffrey Green

The Escherichia coli ndh gene encodes NADH dehydrogenase II, a primary dehydrogenase used during aerobic and nitrate respiration. The anaerobic transcription factor FNR represses ndh expression by binding at two sites centred at −94·5 and −50·5. In vivo transcription studies using promoter fusions with 5′ deletions confirmed that both FNR sites are required for maximum repression under anaerobic conditions. The histone-like protein Fis binds to three sites [centred at −123 (Fis I), −72, (Fis II) and +51 (Fis III)] in the ndh promoter. Using ndh : : lacZ promoter fusions carrying 5′ deletions, or replacement mutations it is shown that Fis III is a repressing site and that Fis I and II are activating sites, with the greatest contribution from Fis II. Deletion of the C-terminal domain of the RNA polymerase α-subunit abolished Fis-mediated activation of ndh expression, suggesting that ndh has a Class I Fis-activated promoter. In accordance with the established pattern of Fis synthesis, ndh transcription was greatest during exponential growth. Thus, it is suggested that Fis enhances ndh expression during periods of rapid growth, by acting as a Class I activator, and that the binding of tandem FNR dimers represses ndh expression by preventing interaction of the RNA polymerase α-subunit with DNA and Fis.

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (5) ◽  
pp. 1724-1731 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Derek Weber ◽  
Owen D. Vincent ◽  
Patricia J. Kiley

ABSTRACT The global anaerobic regulator FNR is a DNA binding protein that activates transcription of genes required for anaerobic metabolism in Escherichia coli through interactions with RNA polymerase (RNAP). Alanine-scanning mutagenesis of FNR amino acid residues 181 to 193 of FNR was utilized to determine which amino acid side chains are required for transcription of both class II and class I promoters. In vivo assays of FNR function demonstrated that a core of residues (F181, R184, S187, and R189) was required for efficient activation of class II promoters, while at a class I promoter, FF(−61.5), only S187 and R189 were critical for FNR activation. Site-directed mutagenesis of positions 184, 187, and 189 revealed that the positive charge contributes to the function of the side chain at positions 184 and 189 while the serine hydroxyl is critical for the function of position 187. Subsequent analysis of the carboxy-terminal domain of the α subunit (αCTD) of RNAP, using an alanine library in single copy, revealed that in addition to previously characterized side chains (D305, R317, and L318), E286 and E288 contributed to FNR activation of both class II and class I promoters, suggesting that αCTD region 285 to 288 also participates in activation by FNR. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that multiple side chains within region 181 to 192 are required for FNR activation and the surface of αCTD required for FNR activation is more extensive than previously observed.


1999 ◽  
Vol 181 (12) ◽  
pp. 3864-3868 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilma Ross ◽  
Julia Salomon ◽  
Walter M. Holmes ◽  
Richard L. Gourse

ABSTRACT The transcription factor FIS has been implicated in the regulation of several stable RNA promoters, including that for the major tRNALeu species in Escherichia coli, tRNA1 Leu. However, no evidence for direct involvement of FIS in tRNA1 Leu expression has been reported. We show here that FIS binds to a site upstream of the leuVpromoter (centered at −71) and that it directly stimulatesleuV transcription in vitro. A mutation in the FIS binding site reduces transcription from a leuV promoter in strains containing FIS but has no effect on transcription in strains lacking FIS, indicating that FIS contributes to leuV expression in vivo. We also find that RNA polymerase forms an unusual heparin-sensitive complex with the leuV promoter, having a downstream protection boundary of ∼−7, and that the first two nucleotides of the transcript, GTP and UTP, are required for formation of a heparin-stable complex that extends downstream of the transcription start site. These studies have implications for the regulation of leuV transcription.


2015 ◽  
pp. MCB.00705-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin K Kirkham ◽  
Sung Hee Park ◽  
Tu N Nguyen ◽  
Ju Huck Lee ◽  
Arthur Günzl

Dynein light chain LC8 is highly conserved among eukaryotes and has both dynein-dependent and dynein-independent functions. Interestingly, LC8 was identified as a subunit of the class I transcription factor A (CITFA), which is essential for transcription by RNA polymerase (pol) I in the parasiteTrypanosoma brucei.Given that LC8 has never been identified with a basal transcription factor and thatT. bruceirelies on RNA pol I for expressing the variant surface glycoprotein (VSG), the key protein in antigenic variation, we investigated the CITFA-specific role of LC8. Depletion of LC8 from mammalian-infective bloodstream trypanosomes affected cell cycle progression, reduced the abundances of rRNA andVSGmRNA, and resulted in rapid cell death. Sedimentation analysis, co-immunoprecipitation of recombinant proteins, and bioinformatic analysis revealed an LC8 binding site near the N-terminus of the subunit CITFA2. Mutation of this site prevented the formation of a CITFA2-LC8 heterotetramer and,in vivo, was lethal, affecting assembly of a functional CITFA complex. Gel shift assays and UV-crosslinking experiments identified CITFA2 as a promoter-binding CITFA subunit. Accordingly, silencing ofLC8orCITFA2resulted in a loss of CITFA from RNA pol I promoters. Hence, we discovered an LC8 interaction that, unprecedentedly, has a basal function in transcription.


1999 ◽  
Vol 337 (3) ◽  
pp. 415-423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma C. LAW ◽  
Nigel J. SAVERY ◽  
Stephen J. W. BUSBY

The Escherichia coli cAMP receptor protein (CRP) is a factor that activates transcription at over 100 target promoters. At Class I CRP-dependent promoters, CRP binds immediately upstream of RNA polymerase and activates transcription by making direct contacts with the C-terminal domain of the RNA polymerase α subunit (αCTD). Since αCTD is also known to interact with DNA sequence elements (known as UP elements), we have constructed a series of semi-synthetic Class I CRP-dependent promoters, carrying both a consensus DNA-binding site for CRP and a UP element at different positions. We previously showed that, at these promoters, the CRP–αCTD interaction and the CRP–UP element interaction contribute independently and additively to transcription initiation. In this study, we show that the two halves of the UP element can function independently, and that, in the presence of the UP element, the best location for the DNA site for CRP is position -69.5. This suggests that, at Class I CRP-dependent promoters where the DNA site for CRP is located at position -61.5, the two αCTDs of RNA polymerase are not optimally positioned. Two experiments to test this hypothesis are presented.


2009 ◽  
Vol 425 (2) ◽  
pp. 373-380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabine Wenzel ◽  
Berta M. Martins ◽  
Paul Rösch ◽  
Birgitta M. Wöhrl

The eukaryotic transcription elongation factor DSIF [DRB (5,6-dichloro-1-β-D-ribofuranosylbenzimidazole) sensitivity-inducing factor] is composed of two subunits, hSpt4 and hSpt5, which are homologous to the yeast factors Spt4 and Spt5. DSIF is involved in regulating the processivity of RNA polymerase II and plays an essential role in transcriptional activation of eukaryotes. At several eukaryotic promoters, DSIF, together with NELF (negative elongation factor), leads to promoter-proximal pausing of RNA polymerase II. In the present paper we describe the crystal structure of hSpt4 in complex with the dimerization region of hSpt5 (amino acids 176–273) at a resolution of 1.55 Å (1 Å=0.1 nm). The heterodimer shows high structural similarity to its homologue from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Furthermore, hSpt5-NGN is structurally similar to the NTD (N-terminal domain) of the bacterial transcription factor NusG. A homologue for hSpt4 has not yet been found in bacteria. However, the archaeal transcription factor RpoE” appears to be distantly related. Although a comparison of the NusG-NTD of Escherichia coli with hSpt5 revealed a similarity of the three-dimensional structures, interaction of E. coli NusG-NTD with hSpt4 could not be observed by NMR titration experiments. A conserved glutamate residue, which was shown to be crucial for dimerization in yeast, is also involved in the human heterodimer, but is substituted for a glutamine residue in Escherichia coli NusG. However, exchanging the glutamine for glutamate proved not to be sufficient to induce hSpt4 binding.


mBio ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanyu Zhu ◽  
Mainak Mustafi ◽  
James C. Weisshaar

ABSTRACT In nature, bacteria must survive long periods of nutrient deprivation while maintaining the ability to recover and grow when conditions improve. This quiescent state is called stationary phase. The biochemistry of Escherichia coli in stationary phase is reasonably well understood. Much less is known about the biophysical state of the cytoplasm. Earlier studies of harvested nucleoids concluded that the stationary-phase nucleoid is “compacted” or “supercompacted,” and there are suggestions that the cytoplasm is “glass-like.” Nevertheless, stationary-phase bacteria support active transcription and translation. Here, we present results of a quantitative superresolution fluorescence study comparing the spatial distributions and diffusive properties of key components of the transcription-translation machinery in intact E. coli cells that were either maintained in 2-day stationary phase or undergoing moderately fast exponential growth. Stationary-phase cells are shorter and exhibit strong heterogeneity in cell length, nucleoid volume, and biopolymer diffusive properties. As in exponential growth, the nucleoid and ribosomes are strongly segregated. The chromosomal DNA is locally more rigid in stationary phase. The population-weighted average of diffusion coefficients estimated from mean-square displacement plots is 2-fold higher in stationary phase for both RNA polymerase (RNAP) and ribosomal species. The average DNA density is roughly twice as high as that in cells undergoing slow exponential growth. The data indicate that the stationary-phase nucleoid is permeable to RNAP and suggest that it is permeable to ribosomal subunits. There appears to be no need to postulate migration of actively transcribed genes to the nucleoid periphery. IMPORTANCE Bacteria in nature usually lack sufficient nutrients to enable growth and replication. Such starved bacteria adapt into a quiescent state known as the stationary phase. The chromosomal DNA is protected against oxidative damage, and ribosomes are stored in a dimeric structure impervious to digestion. Stationary-phase bacteria can recover and grow quickly when better nutrient conditions arise. The biochemistry of stationary-phase E. coli is reasonably well understood. Here, we present results from a study of the biophysical state of starved E. coli. Superresolution fluorescence microscopy enables high-resolution location and tracking of a DNA locus and of single copies of RNA polymerase (the transcription machine) and ribosomes (the translation machine) in intact E. coli cells maintained in stationary phase. Evidently, the chromosomal DNA remains sufficiently permeable to enable transcription and translation to occur. This description contrasts with the usual picture of a rigid stationary-phase cytoplasm with highly condensed DNA.


1993 ◽  
Vol 175 (8) ◽  
pp. 2455-2457 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Sakumi ◽  
K Igarashi ◽  
M Sekiguchi ◽  
A Ishihama

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