1
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Martínez-Lumbreras S, Alfano C, Evans NJ, Collins KM, Flanagan KA, Atkinson RA, Krysztofinska EM, Vydyanath A, Jackter J, Fixon-Owoo S, Camp AH, Isaacson RL. Structural and Functional Insights into Bacillus subtilis Sigma Factor Inhibitor, CsfB. Structure 2018; 26:640-648.e5. [PMID: 29526435 PMCID: PMC5890618 DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2018.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2017] [Revised: 11/17/2017] [Accepted: 02/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Global changes in bacterial gene expression can be orchestrated by the coordinated activation/deactivation of alternative sigma (σ) factor subunits of RNA polymerase. Sigma factors themselves are regulated in myriad ways, including via anti-sigma factors. Here, we have determined the solution structure of anti-sigma factor CsfB, responsible for inhibition of two alternative sigma factors, σG and σE, during spore formation by Bacillus subtilis. CsfB assembles into a symmetrical homodimer, with each monomer bound to a single Zn2+ ion via a treble-clef zinc finger fold. Directed mutagenesis indicates that dimer formation is critical for CsfB-mediated inhibition of both σG and σE, and we have characterized these interactions in vitro. This work represents an advance in our understanding of how CsfB mediates inhibition of two alternative sigma factors to drive developmental gene expression in a bacterium.
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MESH Headings
- Amino Acid Sequence
- Bacillus subtilis/chemistry
- Bacillus subtilis/genetics
- Bacillus subtilis/metabolism
- Binding Sites
- Cations, Divalent
- Cloning, Molecular
- Crystallography, X-Ray
- Escherichia coli/genetics
- Escherichia coli/metabolism
- Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
- Genetic Vectors/chemistry
- Genetic Vectors/metabolism
- Models, Molecular
- Mutation
- Protein Binding
- Protein Conformation, alpha-Helical
- Protein Conformation, beta-Strand
- Protein Interaction Domains and Motifs
- Protein Isoforms/antagonists & inhibitors
- Protein Isoforms/chemistry
- Protein Isoforms/genetics
- Protein Isoforms/metabolism
- Protein Multimerization
- Recombinant Proteins/chemistry
- Recombinant Proteins/genetics
- Recombinant Proteins/metabolism
- Repressor Proteins/chemistry
- Repressor Proteins/genetics
- Repressor Proteins/metabolism
- Sequence Alignment
- Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
- Sigma Factor/antagonists & inhibitors
- Sigma Factor/chemistry
- Sigma Factor/genetics
- Sigma Factor/metabolism
- Spores, Bacterial/chemistry
- Spores, Bacterial/genetics
- Spores, Bacterial/metabolism
- Zinc/chemistry
- Zinc/metabolism
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Caterina Alfano
- Department of Chemistry, King's College London, Britannia House, 7 Trinity Street, London SE1 1DB, UK; Structural Biology and Biophysics Unit, Fondazione Ri.MED, Via Bandiera, 11, 90133 Palermo, Italy
| | - Nicola J Evans
- Department of Chemistry, King's College London, Britannia House, 7 Trinity Street, London SE1 1DB, UK
| | - Katherine M Collins
- Department of Chemistry, King's College London, Britannia House, 7 Trinity Street, London SE1 1DB, UK
| | - Kelly A Flanagan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College Street, South Hadley, MA 01075, USA
| | - R Andrew Atkinson
- Centre for Biomolecular Spectroscopy and Randall Division of Cell and Molecular Biophysics, King's College London, New Hunt's House, Guy's Campus, London SE1 1UL, UK
| | - Ewelina M Krysztofinska
- Department of Chemistry, King's College London, Britannia House, 7 Trinity Street, London SE1 1DB, UK
| | - Anupama Vydyanath
- Department of Chemistry, King's College London, Britannia House, 7 Trinity Street, London SE1 1DB, UK
| | - Jacquelin Jackter
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College Street, South Hadley, MA 01075, USA
| | - Sarah Fixon-Owoo
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College Street, South Hadley, MA 01075, USA
| | - Amy H Camp
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College Street, South Hadley, MA 01075, USA
| | - Rivka L Isaacson
- Department of Chemistry, King's College London, Britannia House, 7 Trinity Street, London SE1 1DB, UK.
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2
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Imamura D, Kuwana R, Kroos L, Feig M, Takamatsu H, Watabe K. Substrate specificity of SpoIIGA, a signal-transducing aspartic protease in Bacilli. J Biochem 2011; 149:665-71. [PMID: 21362630 DOI: 10.1093/jb/mvr027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
SpoIIGA is a novel type of membrane-associated aspartic protease that responds to a signal from the forespore by cleaving Pro-σ(E) in the mother cell during sporulation of Bacillus subtilis. Very little is known about how SpoIIGA recognizes Pro-σ(E). By co-expressing proteins in Escherichia coli, it was shown that charge reversal substitutions for acidic residues 24 and 25 of Pro-σ(E), and for basic residues 245 and 284 of SpoIIGA, impaired cleavage. These results are consistent with a model predicting possible electrostatic interactions between these residues; however, no charge reversal substitution for residue 245 or residue 284 of SpoIIGA restored cleavage of Pro-σ(E) with a charge reversal substitution for residue 24 or residue 25. Bacillus subtilis SpoIIGA cleaved Pro-σ(E) orthologs from Bacillus licheniformis and Bacillus halodurans, but not from Bacillus cereus. A triple substitution in the pro-sequence of B. cereus Pro-σ(E) allowed cleavage by B. subtilis SpoIIGA, indicating that residues distal from the cleavage site contribute to substrate specificity. Co-expression of SpoIIGA and Pro-σ(E) orthologs in different combinations suggested that B. licheniformis SpoIIGA has a relatively narrow substrate specificity as compared with B. subtilis SpoIIGA, whereas B. cereus SpoIIGA and B. halodurans SpoIIGA appear to have broader substrate specificity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daisuke Imamura
- Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Setsunan University, Osaka, Japan
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3
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The growth-promoting and stress response activities of the Bacillus subtilis GTP binding protein Obg are separable by mutation. J Bacteriol 2008; 190:6625-35. [PMID: 18689482 DOI: 10.1128/jb.00799-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus subtilis Obg is a ribosome-associating GTP binding protein that is needed for growth, sporulation, and induction of the bacterium's general stress regulon (GSR). It is unclear whether the roles of Obg in sporulation and stress responsiveness are direct or a secondary effect of its growth-promoting functions. The present work addresses this question by an analysis of two obg alleles whose phenotypes argue for direct roles for Obg in each process. The first allele [obg(G92D)] encodes a missense change in the protein's highly conserved "obg fold" region. This mutation impairs cell growth and the ability of Obg to associate with ribosomes but fails to block sporulation or the induction of the GSR. The second obg mutation [obg(Delta22)] replaces the 22-amino-acid carboxy-terminal sequence of Obg with an alternative 26-amino-acid sequence. This Obg variant cofractionates with ribosomes and allows normal growth but blocks sporulation and impairs the induction of the GSR. Additional experiments revealed that the block on sporulation occurs early, preventing the activation of the essential sporulation transcription factor Spo0A, while inhibition of the GSR appears to involve a failure of the protein cascade that normally activates the GSR to effectively catalyze the reactions needed to activate the GSR transcription factor (sigma(B)).
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4
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Imamura D, Zhou R, Feig M, Kroos L. Evidence that the Bacillus subtilis SpoIIGA protein is a novel type of signal-transducing aspartic protease. J Biol Chem 2008; 283:15287-99. [PMID: 18378688 PMCID: PMC2397457 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m708962200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2007] [Revised: 03/25/2008] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
The bacterium Bacillus subtilis undergoes endospore formation in response to starvation. sigma factors play a key role in spatiotemporal regulation of gene expression during development. Activation of sigma factors is coordinated by signal transduction between the forespore and the mother cell. sigma(E) is produced as pro-sigma(E), which is activated in the mother cell by cleavage in response to a signal from the forespore. We report that expression of SpoIIR, a putative signaling protein normally made in the forespore, and SpoIIGA, a putative protease, is necessary and sufficient for accurate, rapid, and abundant processing of pro-sigma(E) to sigma(E) in Escherichia coli. Modeling and mutational analyses provide evidence that SpoIIGA is a novel type of aspartic protease whose C-terminal half forms a dimer similar to the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 protease. Previous studies suggest that the N-terminal half of SpoIIGA is membrane-embedded. We found that SpoIIGA expressed in E. coli is membrane-associated and that after detergent treatment SpoIIGA was self-associated. Also, SpoIIGA interacts with SpoIIR. The results support a model in which SpoIIGA forms inactive dimers or oligomers, and interaction of SpoIIR with the N-terminal domain of SpoIIGA on one side of a membrane causes a conformational change that allows formation of active aspartic protease dimer in the C-terminal domain on the other side of the membrane, where it cleaves pro-sigma(E).
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Affiliation(s)
- Daisuke Imamura
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824 and Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Setsunan University, Osaka 573-0101, Japan
| | - Ruanbao Zhou
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824 and Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Setsunan University, Osaka 573-0101, Japan
| | - Michael Feig
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824 and Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Setsunan University, Osaka 573-0101, Japan
| | - Lee Kroos
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824 and Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Setsunan University, Osaka 573-0101, Japan
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5
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Sharipova MR, Shagimardanova EI, Chastukhina IB, Shamsutdinov TR, Balaban NP, Mardanova AM, Rudenskaya GN, Demidyuk IV, Kostrov SV. The expression of Bacillus intermedius glutamyl endopeptidase gene in Bacillus subtilis recombinant strains. Mol Biol Rep 2007; 34:79-87. [PMID: 17387634 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-006-9017-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2006] [Accepted: 06/05/2006] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The gene encoding for B. intermedius glutamyl endopeptidase (gseBi) has previously been cloned and its nucleotide sequence analyzed. In this study, the expression of this gene was explored in protease-deficient strain B. subtilis AJ73 during stationary phase of bacterial growth. We found that catabolite repression usually involved in control of endopeptidase expression during vegetative growth was not efficient at the late stationary phase. Testing of B. intermedius glutamyl endopeptidase gene expression with B. subtilis spo0-mutants revealed slight effect of these mutations on endopeptidase expression. Activity of glutamyl endopeptidase was partly left in B. subtilis ger-mutants. Probably, gseBi expression was not connected with sporulation. This enzyme might be involved in outgrowth of the spore, when germinating endospore converts into the vegetative cell. These data suggest complex regulation of B. intermedius glutamyl endopeptidase gene expression with contribution of several regulatory systems and demonstrate changes in control of enzyme biosynthesis at different stages of growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- M R Sharipova
- Department of Microbiology, Kazan State University, Kazan, Russia.
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6
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McBride SM, Rubio A, Wang L, Haldenwang WG. Contributions of protein structure and gene position to the compartmentalization of the regulatory proteins sigma(E) and SpoIIE in sporulating Bacillus subtilis. Mol Microbiol 2005; 57:434-51. [PMID: 15978076 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2005.04712.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
At an early stage in endospore formation Bacillus subtilis partitions itself into two dissimilar compartments with unique developmental fates. Transcription appropriate to each compartment is initiated by the activation of compartment-specific RNA polymerase sigma subunits, sigma(E) in the mother cell and sigma(F) in the forespore. Among the possible factors contributing to the compartment specificity of sigma(E) and sigma(F) is the selective accumulation of the sigma(E) protein in the mother cell and that of SpoIIE, a regulatory phosphatase essential to the activation of sigma(F), in the forespore. In the current work, fluorescent microscopy is used to investigate the contributions of sigma(E) and SpoIIE's protein structures, expression and the genetic asymmetry that develops during chromosome translocation into the forespore on their abundance in each compartment. Time of entry of the spoIIE and sigE genes into the forespore was found to have a significant effect on the enrichment of their products in one or the other compartment. In contrast, the structures of the proteins themselves do not appear to promote their transfer to a particular compartment, but nonetheless contribute to compartmentalization by facilitating degradation in the compartment where each protein's activity would be inappropriate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shonna M McBride
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229-3900, USA
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7
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Prince H, Zhou R, Kroos L. Substrate requirements for regulated intramembrane proteolysis of Bacillus subtilis pro-sigmaK. J Bacteriol 2005; 187:961-71. [PMID: 15659674 PMCID: PMC545722 DOI: 10.1128/jb.187.3.961-971.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
During sporulation of Bacillus subtilis, pro-sigmaK is activated by regulated intramembrane proteolysis (RIP) in response to a signal from the forespore. RIP of pro-sigmaK removes its prosequence (amino acids 1 to 20), releasing sigmaK from the outer forespore membrane into the mother cell cytoplasm, in a reaction catalyzed by SpoIVFB, a metalloprotease in the S2P family of intramembrane-cleaving proteases. The requirements for pro-sigmaK to serve as a substrate for RIP were investigated by producing C-terminally truncated pro-sigmaK fused at different points to the green fluorescent protein (GFP) or hexahistidine in sporulating B. subtilis or in Escherichia coli engineered to coexpress SpoIVFB. Nearly half of pro-sigmaK (amino acids 1 to 117), including part of sigma factor region 2.4, was required for RIP of pro-sigmaK-GFP chimeras in sporulating B. subtilis. Likewise, pro-sigmaK-hexahistidine chimeras demonstrated that the N-terminal 117 amino acids of pro-sigma(K) are sufficient for RIP, although the N-terminal 126 amino acids, which includes all of region 2.4, allowed much better accumulation of the chimeric protein in sporulating B. subtilis and more efficient processing by SpoIVFB in E. coli. In contrast to the requirements for RIP, a much smaller N-terminal segment (amino acids 1 to 27) was sufficient for membrane localization of a pro-sigmaK-GFP chimera. Addition or deletion of five amino acids near the N terminus allowed accurate processing of pro-sigmaK, ruling out a mechanism in which SpoIVFB measures the distance from the N terminus to the cleavage site. A charge reversal at position 13 (substituting glutamate for lysine) reduced accumulation of pro-sigmaK and prevented detectable RIP by SpoIVFB. These results elucidate substrate requirements for RIP of pro-sigmaK by SpoIVFB and may have implications for substrate recognition by other S2P family members.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather Prince
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
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8
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McBride S, Haldenwang WG. Sporulation phenotype of a Bacillus subtilis mutant expressing an unprocessable but active sigmaE transcription factor. J Bacteriol 2004; 186:1999-2005. [PMID: 15028683 PMCID: PMC374411 DOI: 10.1128/jb.186.7.1999-2005.2004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
SigmaE, a sporulation-specific sigma factor of Bacillus subtilis, is formed from an inactive precursor (pro-sigmaE) by a developmentally regulated processing reaction that removes 27 amino acids from the proprotein's amino terminus. A sigE variant (sigE335) lacking 15 amino acids of the prosequence is not processed into mature sigmaE but is active without processing. In the present work, we investigated the sporulation defect in sigE335-expressing B. subtilis, asking whether it is the bypass of proprotein processing or a residual inhibition of sigmaE activity that is responsible. Fluorescence microscopy demonstrated that sigE335-expressing B. subtilis progresses further into sporulation (stage III) than do strains lacking sigmaE activity (stage II). Consistent with its stage III phenotype, and a defect in sigmaE activity rather than its timing, the sigE335 allele did not disturb early sporulation gene expression but did inhibit the expression of late sporulation genes (gerE and sspE). The Spo- phenotype of sigE335 was found to be recessive to wild-type sigE. In vivo assays of sigmaE activity in sigE, sigE335, and merodiploid strains indicate that the residual prosequence on sigmaE335, still impairs its activity to function as a transcription factor. The data suggest that the 11-amino-acid extension on sigmaE335 allows it to bind RNA polymerase and direct the resulting holoenzyme to sigmaE-dependent promoters but reduces the enzyme's ability to initiate transcription initiation and/or exit from the promoter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shonna McBride
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas 78229-3900, USA
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9
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Ju J, Haldenwang WG. Tethering of the Bacillus subtilis sigma E proprotein to the cell membrane is necessary for its processing but insufficient for its stabilization. J Bacteriol 2003; 185:5897-900. [PMID: 13129963 PMCID: PMC193969 DOI: 10.1128/jb.185.19.5897-5900.2003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
sigma(E), a sporulation-specific transcription factor of Bacillus subtilis, is synthesized as an inactive proprotein with a 27-amino acid extension at its amino terminus. This "pro" sequence is removed by a developmentally regulated protease, but when present, it blocks sigma(E) activity, tethers sigma(E) to the bacterium's cytoplasmic membrane, and promotes sigma(E) stability. To investigate whether pro-sigma(E) processing and/or stabilization are tied to membrane sequestration, we used fluorescent protein fusions to examine the membrane binding of SigE variants. The results are consistent with membrane association as a prerequisite for pro-sigma(E) processing but not as a sufficient cause for the proprotein's stability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingliang Ju
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas 78229-3900, USA
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10
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Abstract
There is ample clinical evidence, as well as evidence from animal experiments, that Mycobacterium tuberculosis can persist in tissues for months to decades without replicating, yet with the ability to resume growth and activate disease. Our knowledge of both macrophage physiology and the nature of tuberculous lesions in man and animals suggests that hypoxia is a major factor in inducing nonreplicating persistence (NRP) of tubercle bacilli. In vitro models reinforce this conclusion and provide insights into mechanisms that make NRP possible. There is evidence from in vitro models that the strategies employed by the bacilli to permit hypoxic NRP include restriction of biosynthetic activity to conserve energy, induction of alternative energy pathways, and stabilization of essential cell components to lessen the need for repair or replacement.
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Affiliation(s)
- L G Wayne
- Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Tuberculosis Research Laboratory (151), Long Beach, California 90822, USA.
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11
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Arcuri EF, Wiedmann M, Boor KJ. Phylogeny and functional conservation of sigma(E) in endospore-forming bacteria. MICROBIOLOGY (READING, ENGLAND) 2000; 146 ( Pt 7):1593-1603. [PMID: 10878124 DOI: 10.1099/00221287-146-7-1593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Conservation of the sporulation processes between Bacillus spp. and Clostridium spp. was investigated through evolutionary and complementation analyses of sigma(E). Alignment of partial predicted sigma(E) amino acid sequences from three Bacillus spp., Paenibacillus polymyxa and five Clostridium spp. revealed that amino acid residues previously reported to be involved in promoter utilization (M124, E119 and N120) and strand opening (C117) are conserved among all these species. Phylogenetic analyses of various sigma factor sequences from endospore-forming bacteria revealed that homologues of sigma(E), sigma(K) and sigma(G) clustered together regardless of genus, suggesting a common origin of sporulation sigma factors. The functional equivalence between Clostridium acetobutylicum sigma(E) and Bacillus subtilis sigma(E) was investigated by complementing a non-polar B. subtilis sigma(E) null mutant with the spoIIG operon from either B. subtilis (spoIIG(Bs)) or C. acetobutylicum (spoIIG(Ca)). Single-copy integration of spoIIG(Bs) into the amyE locus of the sigma(E) null mutant completely restored the wild-type sporulation phenotype, while spoIIG(Ca) only partially restored sporulation. Maximal expression of spoIIG(Ca)-lacZ occurred approximately 12 h later than maximal expression of spoIIG(Bs)-lacZ. Differences in temporal expression patterns for spoIIG(Ca) and spoIIG(Bs) in the B. subtilis background may at least partially explain the observed sporulation complementation phenotypes. This study suggests a common phylogenetic ancestor for sigma(E) in Bacillus spp. and Clostridium spp., although regulation of sigma(E) expression may differ in these two genera.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edna F Arcuri
- Food Science Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA1
| | - Martin Wiedmann
- Food Science Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA1
| | - Kathryn J Boor
- Food Science Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA1
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12
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Ju J, Haldenwang WG. The "pro" sequence of the sporulation-specific sigma transcription factor sigma(E) directs it to the mother cell side of the sporulation septum. J Bacteriol 1999; 181:6171-5. [PMID: 10498732 PMCID: PMC103647 DOI: 10.1128/jb.181.19.6171-6175.1999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
sigma(E), a mother cell-specific transcription factor of sporulating Bacillus subtilis, is derived from an inactive precursor protein (pro-sigma(E)). Activation of sigma(E) occurs when a sporulation-specific protease (SpoIIGA) cleaves 27 amino acids from the pro-sigma(E) amino terminus. This reaction is believed to take place at the mother cell-forespore septum. Using a chimera of pro-sigma(E) and green fluorescent protein (GFP) to visualize the intracellular location of pro-sigma(E) by fluorescence microscopy, and lysozyme treatment to separate the mother cell and forespore compartments, we determined that the pro-sigma(E)::GFP signal, localized to the forespore septum prior to lysozyme treatment, is restricted to the mother cell compartment after treatment. Thus, pro-sigma(E)::GFP had been sequestered to the mother cell side of the septum. This segregation of pro-sigma(E)::GFP, and presumably pro-sigma(E), to the mother cell is likely to be the reason why sigma(E) activity is restricted to that compartment.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Ju
- Department of Microbiology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas 78284-7758, USA
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13
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Hofmeister A. Activation of the proprotein transcription factor pro-sigmaE is associated with its progression through three patterns of subcellular localization during sporulation in Bacillus subtilis. J Bacteriol 1998; 180:2426-33. [PMID: 9573195 PMCID: PMC107185 DOI: 10.1128/jb.180.9.2426-2433.1998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The activity of the sporulation transcription factor sigmaE in Bacillus subtilis is governed by an intercellular signal transduction pathway that controls the conversion of the inactive proprotein pro-sigmaE to the mature and active form of the factor. Here I use immunofluorescence microscopy to show that the activation of the proprotein is associated with its progression through three patterns of subcellular localization. In the predivisional sporangium, pro-sigmaE was found to be associated with the cytoplasmic membrane. Next, at the stage of asymmetric division, pro-sigmaE accumulated at the sporulation septum. Finally, after processing, mature sigmaE was found to be distributed throughout the mother cell cytoplasm. The results of subcellular fractionation and sedimentation in density gradients of extracts prepared from postdivisional sporangia confirmed that pro-sigmaE was chiefly present in the membrane fraction and that sigmaE was predominantly cytoplasmic, findings that suggest that the pro-amino acid sequence is responsible for the sequestration of pro-sigmaE to the membrane. The results of chemical cross-linking experiments showed that pro-sigmaE was present in a complex with its putative processing protein, SpoIIGA, or with a protein that depended on SpoIIGA. The membrane association of pro-sigmaE was, however, independent of SpoIIGA and other proteins specific to B. subtilis. Likewise, accumulation of pro-sigmaE at the septum did not depend on its interaction with SpoIIGA. Sequestration of pro-sigmaE to the membrane might serve to facilitate its interaction with SpoIIGA and may be important for preventing its premature association with core RNA polymerase. The implications of these findings for the compartmentalization of sigmaE are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Hofmeister
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
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14
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Zhang B, Hofmeister A, Kroos L. The prosequence of pro-sigmaK promotes membrane association and inhibits RNA polymerase core binding. J Bacteriol 1998; 180:2434-41. [PMID: 9573196 PMCID: PMC107186 DOI: 10.1128/jb.180.9.2434-2441.1998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/1997] [Accepted: 01/22/1998] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Pro-sigmaK is the inactive precursor of sigmaK, a mother cell-specific sigma factor responsible for the transcription of late sporulation genes of Bacillus subtilis. Upon subcellular fractionation, the majority of the pro-sigmaK was present in the membrane fraction. The rest of the pro-sigmaK was in a large complex that did not contain RNA polymerase core subunits. In contrast, the majority of the sigmaK was associated with core RNA polymerase. Virtually identical fractionation properties were observed when pro-sigmaE was analyzed. Pro-sigmaK was completely solubilized from the membrane fraction and the large complex by Triton X-100 and was partially solubilized from the membrane fraction by NaCl and KSCN. The membrane association of pro-sigmaK did not require spoIVF gene products, which appear to be located in the mother cell membrane that surrounds the forespore, and govern pro-sigmaK processing in the mother cell. Furthermore, pro-sigmaK associated with the membrane when overproduced in vegetative cells. Overproduction of pro-sigmaK in sporulating cells resulted in more pro-sigmaK in the membrane fraction. In agreement with the results of cell fractionation experiments, immunofluorescence microscopy showed that pro-sigmaK was localized to the mother cell membranes that surround the mother cell and the forespore in sporulating wild-type cells and mutant cells that do not process pro-sigmaK. Treatment of extracts with 0.6 M KCl appeared to free most of the pro-sigmaK and sigmaK from other cell constituents. After salt removal, sigmaK, but not pro-sigmaK, reassociated with exogenous core RNA polymerase to form holoenzyme. These results suggest that the prosequence inhibits RNA polymerase core binding and targets pro-sigmaK to the membrane, where it may interact with the processing machinery.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing 48824, USA
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Ju J, Luo T, Haldenwang WG. Forespore expression and processing of the SigE transcription factor in wild-type and mutant Bacillus subtilis. J Bacteriol 1998; 180:1673-81. [PMID: 9537362 PMCID: PMC107077 DOI: 10.1128/jb.180.7.1673-1681.1998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
SigmaE is a mother cell-specific transcription factor of sporulating Bacillus subtilis that is derived from an inactive precursor protein (pro-sigmaE). To examine the process that prevents sigmaE activity from developing in the forespore, we fused the sigmaE structural gene (sigE) to forespore-specific promoters (PdacF and PspoIIIG), placed these fusions at sites on the B. subtilis chromosome which translocate into the forespore either early or late, and used Western blot analysis to monitor SigE accumulation and pro-sigmaE processing. sigE alleles, placed at sites which entered the forespore early, were found to generate more protein product than the same fusion placed at a late entering site. SigE accumulation and processing in the forespore were enhanced by null mutations in spoIIIE, a gene whose product is essential for translocation of the distal portion of the B. subtilis chromosome into the forespore. In other experiments, a chimera of pro-sigmaE and green fluorescence protein, previously shown to be unprocessed if it is synthesized within the forespore, was found to be processed in this compartment if coexpressed with the gene for the pro-sigmaE-processing enzyme, SpoIIGA. The need for spoIIGA coexpression is obviated in the absence of SpoIIIE. We interpret these results as evidence that selective degradation of both SigE and SpoIIGA prevent mature sigmaE from accumulating in the forespore compartment of wild-type B. subtilis. Presumably, a gene(s) located at a site that is distal to the origin of chromosome transfer is responsible for this phenomenon when it is translocated and expressed in the forespore.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Ju
- Department of Microbiology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 78284-7758, USA
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Dufour A, Voelker U, Voelker A, Haldenwang WG. Relative levels and fractionation properties of Bacillus subtilis σ(B) and its regulators during balanced growth and stress. J Bacteriol 1996; 178:3701-9 sigma. [PMID: 8682769 PMCID: PMC232625 DOI: 10.1128/jb.178.13.3701-9sigma.1996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
sigma B is a secondary sigma factor that controls the general stress response in Bacillus subtilis. sigma B-dependent genes are activated when sigma B is released from an inhibitory complex with an anti-sigma B protein (RsbW) and becomes free to associate with RNA polymerase. Two separate pathways, responding either to a drop in intracellular ATP levels or to environmental stress (e.g., heat, ethanol, or salt), cause the release of sigma B from RsbW. rsbR, rsbS, rsbT, and rsbU are four genes now recognized as the upstream half of an operon that includes sigB (sigma B) and its principal regulators. Using reporter gene assays, we find that none of these four genes are essential for stationary-phase (i.e., ATP-dependent) activation of sigma B, but rsbU and one or more of the genes contained within an rsbR,S,T deletion are needed for stress induction of sigma B. In other experiments, Western blot (immunoblot) analyses showed that the levels of RsbR, RsbS, Rsb, and RsbU, unlike those of the sigB operon's four downstream gene products (RsbV, RsbW, RsbX and sigma B), are not elevated during sigma B activation. Gel filtration and immunoprecipitation studies did not reveal the formation of complexes between any of the four upstream sigB operon products and the products of the downstream half of the operon. Much of the detectable RsbR, RsbS, RsbT, and RsbU did, however, fractionate as a large-molecular-mass (approximately 600-kDa) aggregate which was excluded from our gel filtration matrix. The downstream sigB operon products were not present in this excluded material. The unaggregated RsbR, RsbS, and RsbU, which were retarded by the gel matrix, elated from the column earlier than expected from their molecular weights. The RsbR and RsbS fractionation profile was consistent with homodimers (60 and 30 kDa, respectively), while the RsbU appeared larger, suggesting a protein complex of approximately 90 to 100 kDa.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Dufour
- Department of Microbiology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, Texas 78284-7758, USA
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Carlson HC, Lu S, Kroos L, Haldenwang WG. Exchange of precursor-specific elements between Pro-sigma E and Pro-sigma K of Bacillus subtilis. J Bacteriol 1996; 178:546-9. [PMID: 8550479 PMCID: PMC177691 DOI: 10.1128/jb.178.2.546-549.1996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
sigma E and sigma K are sporulation-specific sigma factors of Bacillus subtilis that are synthesized as inactive proproteins. Pro-sigma E and pro-sigma K are activated by the removal of 27 and 20 amino acids, respectively, from their amino termini. To explore the properties of the precursor-specific sequences, we exchanged the coding elements for these domains in the sigma E and sigma K structural genes and determined the properties of the resulting chimeric proteins in B. subtilis. The pro-sigma E-sigma K chimera accumulated and was cleaved into active sigma K, while the pro-sigma K-sigma E fusion protein failed to accumulate and is likely unstable in B. subtilis. A fusion of the sigE "pro" sequence to an unrelated protein (bovine rhodanese) also formed a protein that was cleaved by the pro-sigma E processing apparatus. The data suggest that the sigma E pro sequence contains sufficient information for pro-sigma E processing as well as a unique quality needed for sigma E accumulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- H C Carlson
- Department of Microbiology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio 78284, USA
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Shuler MF, Tatti KM, Wade KH, Moran CP. A single amino acid substitution in sigma E affects its ability to bind core RNA polymerase. J Bacteriol 1995; 177:3687-94. [PMID: 7601832 PMCID: PMC177084 DOI: 10.1128/jb.177.13.3687-3694.1995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
We have examined the role of the most highly conserved region of bacterial RNA polymerase sigma factors by analyzing the effect of amino acid substitutions and small deletions in sigma E from Bacillus subtilis. sigma E is required for the production of endospores in B. subtilis but not for vegetative growth. Strains expressing each of several mutant forms of sigE were found to be deficient in their ability to form endospores. Single amino acid substitutions at positions 68 and 94 resulted in sigma factors that bind with less affinity to the core subunits of RNA polymerase. The substitution at position 68 did not affect the stability of the protein in B. subtilis; therefore, this substitution probably did not have large effects on the overall structure of the sigma factor. The substitution at position 68 probably defines a position in sigma E that closely contacts a subunit of RNA polymerase, while the substitution at position 94 may define a position that is important for protein stability or for binding to core RNA polymerase.
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Affiliation(s)
- M F Shuler
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA
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Abstract
The specificity of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase for target promotes is largely due to the replaceable sigma subunit that it carries. Multiple sigma proteins, each conferring a unique promoter preference on RNA polymerase, are likely to be present in all bacteria; however, their abundance and diversity have been best characterized in Bacillus subtilis, the bacterium in which multiple sigma factors were first discovered. The 10 sigma factors thus far identified in B. subtilis directly contribute to the bacterium's ability to control gene expression. These proteins are not merely necessary for the expression of those operons whose promoters they recognize; in many instances, their appearance within the cell is sufficient to activate these operons. This review describes the discovery of each of the known B. subtilis sigma factors, their characteristics, the regulons they direct, and the complex restrictions placed on their synthesis and activities. These controls include the anticipated transcriptional regulation that modulates the expression of the sigma factor structural genes but, in the case of several of the B. subtilis sigma factors, go beyond this, adding novel posttranslational restraints on sigma factor activity. Two of the sigma factors (sigma E and sigma K) are, for example, synthesized as inactive precursor proteins. Their activities are kept in check by "pro-protein" sequences which are cleaved from the precursor molecules in response to intercellular cues. Other sigma factors (sigma B, sigma F, and sigma G) are inhibited by "anti-sigma factor" proteins that sequester them into complexes which block their ability to form RNA polymerase holoenzymes. The anti-sigma factors are, in turn, opposed by additional proteins which participate in the sigma factors' release. The devices used to control sigma factor activity in B, subtilis may prove to be as widespread as multiple sigma factors themselves, providing ways of coupling sigma factor activation to environmental or physiological signals that cannot be readily joined to other regulatory mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- W G Haldenwang
- Department of Microbiology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio 78284-7758
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Peters HK, Haldenwang WG. Isolation of a Bacillus subtilis spoIIGA allele that suppresses processing-negative mutations in the Pro-sigma E gene (sigE). J Bacteriol 1994; 176:7763-6. [PMID: 8002606 PMCID: PMC197240 DOI: 10.1128/jb.176.24.7763-7766.1994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
sigma E, a sporulation-essential sigma factor of Bacillus subtilis, is formed by a developmentally regulated proteolysis which removes 27 to 29 amino acids from the amino terminus of an inactive precursor protein (Pro-sigma E). A mutation which facilitates the conversion of inefficiently processed Pro-sigma E variants into mature sigma E was identified and mapped to spoIIGA. The isolation of such a mutation argues that SpoIIGA is directly involved in the Pro-sigma E processing reaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- H K Peters
- Department of Microbiology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio 78284-7758
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