Regulation of the Tryptophan Biosynthetic Genes in Bacillus halodurans: Common Elements but Different Strategies Than Those Used by Bacillus subtilis

Reka Szigeti, Mirela Milescu, Paul Gollnick

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

In Bacillus subtilis, an RNA binding protein called TRAP regulates both transcription and translation of the tryptophan biosynthetic genes. Bacillus halodurans is an alkaliphilic Bacillus species that grows at high pHs. Previous studies of this bacterium have focused on mechanisms of adaptation for growth in alkaline environments. We have characterized the regulation of the tryptophan biosynthetic genes in B. halodurans and compared it to that in B. subtilis. B. halodurans encodes a TRAP protein with 71% sequence identity to the B. subtilis protein. Expression of anthranilate synthetase, the first enzyme in the pathway to tryptophan, is regulated significantly less in B. halodurans than in B. subtilis. Examination of the control of the B. halodurans trpEDCFBA operon both in vivo and in vitro shows that only transcription is regulated, whereas in B. subtilis both transcription of the operon and translation of trpE are controlled. The attenuation mechanism that controls transcription in B. halodurans is similar to that in B. subtilis, but there are some differences in the predicted RNA secondary structures in the B. halodurans trp leader region, including the presence of a potential anti-antiterminator structure. Translation of trpG, which is within the folate operon in both bacilli, is regulated similarly in the two species.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)818-828
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of bacteriology
Volume186
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2004

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Microbiology
  • Molecular Biology

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