Another gene affecting sexual expression of Escherichia coli

Cytochrome d but not cytochrome o rescues the toluidine blue growth sensitivity of arc mutants of Escherichia coli

The Arc (anoxic redox control) two-component signal transduction system, consisting of the ArcB sensor kinase and the ArcA response regulator, allows adaptive responses of Escherichia coli to changes of O(2) availability. The arcA gene was previously known as the dye gene because null mutants were growth sensitive to the photosensitizer redox dyes toluidine blue and methylene blue, a phenotype whose molecular basis still remains elusive. In this study we report that the toluidine blue O (TBO) effect on the arc mutants is light independent and observed only during aerobic growth conditions. Moreover, 16 suppressor mutants with restored growth were generated and analyzed. Thirteen of those possessed insertion elements upstream of the cydAB operon, rendering its expression ArcA independent. Also, it was found that, in contrast to cythocrome d, cythocrome o was not able to confer toluidine blue resistance to arc mutants, thereby representing an intriguing difference between the two terminal oxidases. Finally, a mechanism for TBO sensitivity and resistance is discussed.

Linkage map of Escherichia coli K-12, edition 10: the traditional map

This map is an update of the edition 9 map by Berlyn et al. (M. K. B. Berlyn, K. B. Low, and K. E. Rudd, p. 1715-1902, in F. C. Neidhardt et al., ed., Escherichia coli and Salmonella: cellular and molecular biology, 2nd ed., vol. 2, 1996). It uses coordinates established by the completed sequence, expressed as 100 minutes for the entire circular map, and adds new genes discovered and established since 1996 and eliminates those shown to correspond to other known genes. The latter are included as synonyms. An alphabetical list of genes showing map location, synonyms, the protein or RNA product of the gene, phenotypes of mutants, and reference citations is provided. In addition to genes known to correspond to gene sequences, other genes, often older, that are described by phenotype and older mapping techniques and that have not been correlated with sequences are included.

Functions of the gene products of Escherichia coli

A list of currently identified gene products of Escherichia coli is given, together with a bibliography that provides pointers to the literature on each gene product. A scheme to categorize cellular functions is used to classify the gene products of E. coli so far identified. A count shows that the numbers of genes concerned with small-molecule metabolism are on the same order as the numbers concerned with macromolecule biosynthesis and degradation. One large category is the category of tRNAs and their synthetases. Another is the category of transport elements. The categories of cell structure and cellular processes other than metabolism are smaller. Other subjects discussed are the occurrence in the E. coli genome of redundant pairs and groups of genes of identical or closely similar function, as well as variation in the degree of density of genetic information in different parts of the genome.

arcA (dye), a global regulatory gene in Escherichia coli mediating repression of enzymes in aerobic pathways

In Escherichia coli the levels of numerous enzymes associated with aerobic metabolism are decreased during anaerobic growth. In an arcA mutant the anaerobic levels of these enzymes are increased. The enzymes, which are encoded by different regulons, include members that belong to the tricarboxylic acid cycle, the glyoxylate shunt, the pathway for fatty acid degradation, several dehydrogenases of the flavoprotein class, and the cytochrome o oxidase complex. Transductional crosses placed the arcA gene near min O on the chromosomal map. Complementation tests showed that the arcA gene corresponded to the dye gene, which is also known as fexA, msp, seg, or sfrA because of various phenotypic properties [Bachmann, B. (1983) Microbiol. Rev. 47, 180-230]. A dye-deletion mutant was derepressed in the aerobic enzyme system. The term modulon is proposed to describe a set of regulons that are subject to a common transcriptional control.

Cyclic AMP and its receptor protein are required for expression of transfer genes of conjugative plasmid F in Escherichia coli

A number of cya and crp mutants of Escherichia coli HfrH were analyzed for several Tra functions of the F plasmid. The mutants were observed to be deficient in conjugal donor ability, absorption of phages MS2 and Q beta and surface exclusion. These defects were suppressed in cya mutants grown with cAMP supplementation. A cAMP concentration of 3 X 10(-4) M produced maximal suppression of donor ability defect in a cya strain. cAMP did not suppress the Tra- phenotype of crp mutants. Latent periods of MS2 were shorter in cya and crp bacteria. Phage T7 development appeared similar in wild type, cya, and crp cells. It is concluded that tra genes of F plasmid are expressed only to a small extent in cya and crp mutants and that cAMP and its receptor protein are required for the normal expression of tra genes.