Novel structure of the recA locus of Mycobacterium tuberculosis implies processing of the gene product.

A fragment of Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA containing recA-like sequences was identified by hybridization with the Escherichia coli recA gene and cloned. Although no expression was detected from its own promoter in E. coli, expression from a vector promoter partially complemented E. coli recA mutants for recombination, DNA repair, and mutagenesis, but not for induction of phage lambda. This clone produced a protein which cross-reacts with antisera raised against the E. coli RecA protein and was approximately the same size. However, the nucleotide sequence of the cloned fragment revealed the presence of an open reading frame for a protein about twice the size of other RecA proteins and the cloned product detected by Western blotting (immunoblotting). The predicted M. tuberculosis RecA protein sequence was homologous with RecA sequences from other bacteria, but this homology was not dispersed; rather it was localized to the first 254 and the last 96 amino acids, with the intervening 440 amino acids being unrelated. Furthermore, the junctions of homology were in register with the uninterrupted sequence of the E. coli RecA protein. Identical restriction fragments were found in the genomic DNAs of M. tuberculosis H37Rv and H37Ra and of M. bovis BCG. It is concluded that the ancestral recA gene of these species diversified via an insertional mutation of at least 1,320 bp of DNA. Possible processing mechanisms for synthesizing a normal-size RecA protein from this elongated sequence are discussed.     

The nucleotide sequence of the yeast MEL1 gene.

The complete nucleotide sequence of the MEL1 gene of the yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, encoding alpha-galactosidase was determined. The nucleotide sequence contains an open reading frame of 1413 bp encoding a protein of 471 amino acids. Comparison with the known N-terminal amino acid sequence of the mature secreted protein indicated that alpha-galactosidase is synthesized as a precursor with an N-terminal signal sequence of 18 amino acids. The general features of this signal peptide resemble those of other yeast signal peptides. Molecular weight of the mature alpha-galactosidase polypeptide deduced from the nucleotide sequence is 50.049 kd. The 5' regulatory region has sequences in common with other yeast genes regulated by the GAL4-protein.     

Molecular cloning and characterization of the recA gene from the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002.

The recA gene of Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 was detected and cloned from a lambda gtwes genomic library by heterologous hybridization by using a gene-internal fragment of the Escherichia coli recA gene as the probe. The gene encodes a 38-kilodalton polypeptide which is antigenically related to the RecA protein of E. coli. The nucleotide sequence of a portion of the gene was determined. The translation of this region was 55% homologous to the E. coli protein; allowances for conservative amino acid replacements yield a homology value of about 74%. The cyanobacterial recA gene product was proficient in restoring homologous recombination and partial resistance to UV irradiation to recA mutants of E. coli. Heterologous hybridization experiments, in which the Synechococcus sp. strain PCC 7002 recA gene was used as the probe, indicate that a homologous gene is probably present in all cyanobacterial strains.     

Molecular cloning and nucleotide sequence of the gramicidin S synthetase 1 gene

The entire gene for gramicidin S synthetase 1 (GS 1) was cloned into the plasmid vector pUC18, and the nucleotide sequences of the GS 1 gene and its flanking region were determined. The full-length clone was 4,539 base pairs long and had an open reading frame of 3,294 nucleotides coding for 1,098 amino acids. The calculated molecular weight of 123,474 agreed with the apparent molecular weight of 120,000 found in SDS-PAGE of GS 1 from B. brevis. The nucleotide sequence of GS 1 gene was highly homologous to that of tyrocidine synthetase 1. The overall similarity between the deduced amino acid sequences of the two genes was 57.5%. The gene product of clone GS309 was easily purified to an essentially homogeneous state by ammonium sulfate fractionation followed by DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B, Ultrogel AcA-34, and second DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B column chromatography. The purified protein catalyzed the D-phenylalanine-dependent ATP-32PPi exchange reaction which is specific for GS 1 activity, and the specific activity of the purified product was nearly the same as the purified GS 1 from B. brevis. The product also showed a weak phenylalanine racemase activity.     

Nucleotide sequence of the tail sheath gene of bacteriophage T4 and amino acid sequence of its product.

The nucleotide sequence of gene 18 of bacteriophage T4 was determined by the Maxam-Gilbert method, partially aided by the dideoxy method. To confirm the deduced amino acid sequence of the tail sheath protein (gp18) that is encoded by gene 18, gp18 was extensively digested by trypsin or lysyl endopeptidase and subjected to reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Approximately 40 peptides, which cover 88% of the primary structure, were fractionated, the amino acid compositions were determined, and the corresponding sequences in DNA were identified. Furthermore, the amino acid sequences of 10 of the 40 peptides were determined by a gas phase protein sequencer, including N- and C-terminal sequences. Thus, the complete amino acid sequence of gp18, which consists of 658 amino acids with a molecular weight of 71,160, was determined.     

Nucleotide sequence of the R.meliloti nitrogenase reductase (nifH) gene.

The nucleotide sequence of the structural gene (nifH) of nitrogenase reductase (Fe protein) from R.meliloti 41 with its flanking ends is reported. The amino acid sequence of nitrogenase reductase was deduced from the DNA sequence. The predicted R.meliloti nitrogenase reductase protein consists of 297 amino acid residues, has a molecular weight of 32,740 daltons and contains 5 cysteine residues. The codon usage in the nifH gene is presented. In the 5' flanking region, sequences resembling to consensus sequences of bacterial control regions were found. Comparison of the R.meliloti nifH nucleotide and amino acid sequences with those from different nitrogen-fixing organisms showed that the amino acid sequences are more conserved than the nucleotide sequences. This structural conservation of nitrogenase reductase may be related to its function and may explain the conservation of the nifH gene during evolution.     

5''-flanking sequences that inhibit in vitro transcription of a xenopus laevis tRNA gene

We determined the nucleotide sequences of all coding regions and a significant part of the flanking regions of the chicken c-src gene, which is a cellular homolog of the v-src gene of Rous sarcoma virus. The c-src gene consists of 12 exons; the boundaries of the exons were determined by assuming that the amino acid sequence of its product, pp60c-src, is basically the same as that of pp60v-src. The deduced amino acid sequence of pp60c-src was very similar to that of pp60v-src, but the last 19 carboxy-terminal amino acids of pp60c-src were replaced by a new set of 12 amino acids of pp60v-src. The sequence encoding the carboxy-terminal sequence of pp60v-src was found 900 bp downstream from the termination codon of the c-src gene. We suggest that the c-src sequence was captured by a virus through recombination at both sides of the c-src gene, and that the recombinations occurred at the level of proviral DNA.     

Structural gene and complete amino acid sequence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa IFO 3455 elastase.

The DNA encoding the elastase of Pseudomonas aeruginosa IFO 3455 was cloned, and its complete nucleotide sequence was determined. When the cloned gene was ligated to pUC18, the Escherichia coli expression vector, bacteria carrying the gene exhibited high levels of both elastase activity and elastase antigens. The amino acid sequence, deduced from the nucleotide sequence, revealed that the mature elastase consisted of 301 amino acids with a relative molecular mass of 32,926 daltons. The amino acid composition predicted from the DNA sequence was quite similar to the chemically determined composition of purified elastase reported previously. We also observed nucleotide sequence encoding a signal peptide and "pro" sequence consisting of 197 amino acids upstream from the mature elastase protein gene. The amino acid sequence analysis revealed that both the N-terminal sequence of the purified elastase and the N-terminal side sequences of the C-terminal tryptic peptide as well as the internal lysyl peptide fragment were completely identical to the deduced amino acid sequences. The pattern of identity of amino acid sequences was quite evident in the regions that include structurally and functionally important residues of Bacillus subtilis thermolysin.     

Identification and characterization of the products from the traJ and traY genes of plasmid R100.

The nucleotide sequence of part of the tra region of R100 including traJ and traY was determined, and the products of several tra genes were identified. The nucleotide sequence of traJ, encoding a protein of 223 amino acids, showed poor homology with the corresponding segments of other plasmids related to R100, but the deduced amino acid sequences showed low but significant homology. The first four amino acids at the N-terminal region of the TraJ protein were not essential for positive regulation of expression of traY, the first gene of the traYZ operon. The nucleotide sequence of traY shows that this gene may use TTG as the initiation codon and that it encodes a protein of 75 amino acids. Analysis of the traY gene product, which was obtained as the fusion protein with beta-galactosidase, showed that the N-terminal region of the product has an amino acid sequence identical to that deduced from the assigned frame but lacks formylmethionine. traY of plasmid F, which encodes a larger protein than the TraY protein of R100, is thought to use ATG as an initiation codon. However, a TTG initiation codon was found in the preceding region of the previously assigned traY coding frame of F. Interestingly, when translation of traY of F was initiated from TTG, the amino acid sequence homologous to the TraY protein of R100 appeared in tandem in the TraY protein of F. This may suggest that traY of F has undergone duplication of a gene like the traY gene of R100.     

Biosynthesis of bacterial glycogen. Primary structure of Escherichia coli 1,4-alpha-D-glucan:1,4-alpha-D-glucan 6-alpha-D-(1, 4-alpha-D-glucano)-transferase as deduced from the nucleotide sequence of the glg B gene

The nucleotide sequence of the glg B gene, coding for branching enzyme (EC 2.4.1.18), was elucidated. It consists of 2181 base pairs specifying a protein of 727 amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence was consistent with the amino acid analysis that was obtained with the pure protein as well as with the molecular weight determined from sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel electrophoresis. The deduced amino acid sequence was also consistent with the amino-terminal amino acid sequence and the amino acid sequence analysis of various peptides obtained from CNBr degradation of purified branching enzyme.     

鲤鱼肥胖基因的分子克隆及在大肠杆菌中的表达

为了研究鲤鱼肥胖基因的结构特点和体外表达产物的生物学活性 ,利用RT PCR技术从鲤鱼肠系膜脂肪组织中扩增出鲤鱼肥胖基因的cDNA编码序列 ,分析表明该cDNA序列由 4 38个核苷酸组成 ,编码 14 6个氨基酸组成的多肽 ,鲤鱼肥胖基因与人、猪、鼠的相比 ,核苷酸同源性分别为 :84 %、 86 %、 95 % ;氨基酸的同源性分别为 84 %、 82 %、 96 %。构建了原核表达载体 pET 2 8a li,利用IPTG在大肠杆菌中进行了诱导表达 ,并对表达产物进行了初步纯化和生物活性检测 ,结果表明 ,鲤鱼肥胖基因在大肠杆菌中进行了高效特异性融合表达 ,融合蛋白质分子量约为 2 0kD ,经薄层扫描分析 ,目的蛋白占菌体总蛋白的 2 0 3%。表达产物经过纯化和复性能够明显抑制小鼠的摄食和生长 ,说明表达产物Leptin具有明显的生物学活性     

鲤鱼肥胖基因的分子克隆及在大肠杆茵中的表达

为了研究鲤鱼肥胖基因的结构特点和体外表达产物的生物学活性,利用RT-PCR技术从鲤鱼肠系膜脂肪组织中扩增出鲤鱼肥胖基因的cDNA编码序列,分析表明该cDNA序列由438个核苷酸组成,编码146个氨基酸组成的多肽,鲤鱼肥胖基因与人、猪、鼠的相比,核苷酸同源性分别为84%、86%、95%;氨基酸的同源性分别为84%、82%、96%.构建了原核表达载体pET-28a-li,利用IPTG在大肠杆菌中进行了诱导表达,并对表达产物进行了初步纯化和生物活性检测,结果表明,鲤鱼肥胖基因在大肠杆菌中进行了高效特异性融合表达,融合蛋白质分子量约为20 kD,经薄层扫描分析,目的蛋白占菌体总蛋白的20.3%.表达产物经过纯化和复性能够明显抑制小鼠的摄食和生长,说明表达产物Leptin具有明显的生物学活性[动物学报 51(1)95-100,2005].     

Complete nucleotide sequence of recD, the structural gene for the alpha subunit of Exonuclease V of Escherichia coli.

Intracellular amplification of the Escherichia coli RecB and RecC proteins does not result in an increase in Exonuclease V activity unless the level of a third protein, encoded between the recB and argA genes, is also amplified. Nucleotide sequence analysis of this region reveals a 1,824 nucleotide open reading frame which would encode a protein of 608 amino acids with a calculated molecular weight of 66,973. This is assumed to be the structural gene for the alpha subunit of Exonuclease V, recently designated recD. The proposed initiation codon of the recD gene overlaps the termination codon of the upstream recB gene by one nucleotide, suggesting that these genes may form an operon. The deduced amino acid sequence of the RecD protein contains a region which is homologous to highly conserved sequences in adenine nucleotide binding proteins.