Cloning and characterization of the cysAMK region of Salmonella typhimurium.

A total of 30 kilobases of DNA comprising the cysAMK region of S. typhimurium was cloned as a series of fragments in phage lambda 1059. The genetic organization of this region was established through studies of gene expression from fragments subcloned in pBR322 and from blot hydridization analyses of restriction sites in chromosomal DNA from multisite deletion strains. The results give a gene order of cysA-cysM-crr-ptsl-ptsH-cysK over a distance of approximately 12 kilobases. cysM and cysA have been cloned and expressed in pBR322; attempts to obtain stable pBR322 derivatives carrying cysK were unsuccessful.     

Restriction endonuclease BamHI cleaves bacteriophage Mu DNA within cistrons E and F

We have cleaved phage Mu DNA with restriction endonucleases EcoRI and BamHI and have cloned three specific DNA fragments from the middle of the Mu genome into vector plasmid pBR322. By marker rescue experiments, we have determined that the two BamHI cleavage sites in Mu DNA occur within cistrons E and F.     

Ethidium binding sites on plasmid DNA determined by photoaffinity labeling

Photoaffinity labeling of pBR322 with ethidium monoazide (8-azido-3-amino-5-ethyl-6-phenylphenanthridinium chloride) was used to provide evidence for the sequence specificity of ethidium binding to native DNA. DNA-drug interactions were examined at concentrations of eight covalently bound ethidium drugs per molecule of pBR322 (4363 base pairs). Restriction enzyme cutting was blocked by the covalent binding of a drug molecule at (or near) the enzyme recognition sequence. This phenomenon was observed with all restriction enzymes tested and was not limited to specific regions of the pBR322 molecule. Double-digestion experiments indicated that a drug molecule may bind 2 to 3 base pairs outside the recognition sequence and still block restriction enzyme digestion. Intact plasmid was treated with [3H]ethidium monoazide and digested with restriction enzymes. The amount of covalently-linked ethidium analog was quantitated for different restriction fragments and the G-C content of each fragment was determined from the DNA sequence. In approximately half of the fragments the drug appeared to preferentially bind at a G-C base pair. However, no preference for specific sequences such as 5'-C-G-3' was detected, as had been suggested by previous modeling studies with ethidium bromide. The other fragments were located in specific map regions of the plasmid and did not bind drug with a strict dependence on GC content suggesting that binding specificity may depend on more than one structural feature of the DNA.     

pBR322DNA与8-甲氧补骨脂素光化学反应部位的碱基顺序特异性

用限制性核酸内切酶酶切试验研究了质粒pBR322 DNA经8-MOP及近紫外线作用后损伤部位的碱基顺序特异性。实验研究发现PUVA损伤的DNA在HindⅢ及RsaⅠ识别位置上酶切反应受到严重抑制,而在SphⅠ,EcoRⅠ,PvuⅡ,BamHI,PstⅠ识到位置上抑制轻微。通过对不同识别位置上碱基顺序及其光化学反应敏感性的分析,推断出DNA的TpA顺序可能是最易接受8-MOP光化学反应的部位。     

Cloning of human mitochondrial DNA in Escherichia coli

In order to determine its nucleotide sequence, human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) purified from term placentae was cloned in Escherichia coli using the plasmid vector pBR322. The products of an mtDNA MboI digestion (23 fragments ranging in size from 2800 to 25 base-pairs (bp)) were ligated with BamHI-cut pBR322. The ampicillin-resistant tetracycline-sensitive colonies obtained upon transformation of E. coli χ1776 were screened by agarose gel electrophoresis of colony lysates, colony hybridization and restriction analysis. All but MboI fragment 2 were obtained in this way. MboI fragments 5 and 8 were each found only once among the 705 clones screened. All other MboI fragments were approximately equally represented in the population of clones except for a slight bias towards smaller fragments. MboI fragment 2 overlaps with the mtDNA BamHI/EcoRI (1.7 kb³) and the 0.9 kb HinIII fragments. These were cloned in similarly restricted pBR322 to provide a set of clones covering most of the mtDNA molecule. Clones representative of each MboI fragment were shown to be complementary to mtDNA by hybridization to Southern blots of mtDNA digests and were thereby partially mapped. Further mapping was obtained by restriction analysis of mtDNA sequentially degraded by exonuclease III. A collection of recombinant clones has thus been obtained using the mtDNA isolated from a single placenta and is now being used to obtain a complete nucleotide sequence of human mtDNA.     

EcoRII can be activated to cleave refractory DNA recognition sites.

EcoRII restriction sites [5'-CC(A/T)GG] in phage T3 and T7 DNA are refractory to cleavage by EcoRII, but become sensitive to cleavage in the presence of DNAs which contain an abundance of EcoRII sensitive sites (e.g. pBR322 or lambda DNA). Studies using fragments of pBR322 containing different numbers of EcoRII sites show that the susceptibility to EcoRII cleavage is proportional to the number of sites in the individual fragment. We postulate that EcoRII is the prototype of restriction endonucleases which require at least 2 simultaneously bound substrate sites for their activation. EcoRII sites are refractory when they occur at relatively low frequency in the DNA. The restriction enzyme can be activated by DNA with a higher frequency of sites.     

Cloning of bacteriophage T5 DNA fragments in the plasmid pBR322. Analysis of recombinant plasmids by the method of bonding with RNA-polymerase from Escherichia coli on nitrocellulose filters

DNA of bacteriophage T5 was hydrolyzed with restriction endonucleases HindIII and BamHI, and subjected to the combined hydrolysis with BamHI+EcoRI and BamHI+ +HindIII. Fragments obtained were cloned in the plasmid pBR322. About 17% of T5 genome were recovered in recombinant plasmids. Cloned fragments were localized on the physical map of the phage by restriction analysis and Southern hybridization. With the aim of direct cloning of T5 promoters, PstI/HindIII fragments were inserted into pBR322 followed by selection of recombinants on ApsTCr phenotype. Binding of BsuRI and AluI fragments of hybrid plasmids with E. coli RNA polymerase was studied by nitrocellulose filter assay. The fragments, which were capable to form heparin resistant complexes were identified.     

A computer program for determining the size of DNA restriction fragments

A computer program has been developed for determining the sizes of DNA restriction fragments from their electrophoretic mobilities. A parabola is fitted to the mobilities of a set of standard fragments of known sizes and the sizes of the unknown fragments are then calculated from the fitted curve. This procedure is shown to yield estimated sizes which are accurate to within a few percentage, as judged by experiments with fragments obtained by digestion of pBR322 with the restriction endonuclease HaeIII. The program, which is written in BASIC, is simple to use and is very much faster than the graphical method that it replaces.     

Cloning and cleavage site mapping of DNA from bovine herpesvirus 1 (Cooper strain).

Sequences representative of most of the bovine herpesvirus 1 (Cooper strain) DNa were cloned in the plasmid vector pBR322 at the HindIII site. EcoRI, HpaI, and BamHI restriction endonuclease sites were mapped in each of the cloned fragments, and this information was used to construct a restriction endonuclease cleavage site map of the entire viral genome for the four enzymes.     

Molecular cloning of part of the mitochondrial DNA of Drosophila melanogaster

We report the construction of recombinant plasmids containing part of the mitochondrial DNA of $\text{Drosophila}\text{melanogaster}$. Of the four fragments of this DNA generated by the restriction endonuclease HindIII, two were successfully cloned into the HindIII site of the plasmid pCM2. Unexpectedly the other two fragments could not be isolated by cloning into the HindIII site of either pCM2 or pBR322. Part of a third fragment, containing the gene for the large ribosomal RNA, was incorporated into the PstI site of pBR322. We show that this recombinant plasmid contains sequences complementary to an abundant RNA species which is present in $\text{Drosophila}$ embryos and which binds to oligo-dT-cellulose.     

Cloning and delimiting one chloroplast DNA replicative origin of Chlamydomonas.

The EcoR1 restriction fragments containing D-loops which marked the replication origin of chloroplast DNA were identified in two different species of Chlamydomonas. Each fragment was cloned in the E. coli plasmid pBR325. The cloned fragments were compared by restriction endonuclease analyses and by heteroduplex analyses in the electron microscope. The relative position of the D-loop regions and the homologous regions between the 2 fragments was determined. The D-loops were located within one short homologous region of 0. 42kb in length between the 2 cloned restriction fragments. The homologous region was subcloned in pBR322. Closed circular plasmid DNAs containing the short homologous region showed preferred denaturation in the D-loop region under physiological salt concentration which suggested that D-loop region was AT rich. Sequence divergence was detected at both ends of the D-loop region. Southern blot analyses indicated the presence of species-specific repetitive sequences within the divergent regions.     

Structure of cloned ribosomal DNA cistrons from Bacillus thuringiensis.

A library of B. thuringiensis DNA has been prepared by using the plasmid pBR322 as a cloning vehicle and E. coli as a host cell. By screening this collection with specific probes, 17 clones were identified whose hybrid plasmids contain rRNA genes of B. thuringiensis. Several of these plasmids have been mapped with restriction endonucleases and by DNA-RNA hybridization. By using maps of overlapping fragments, we have been able to establish an overall map of the ribosomal gene cluster.     

Clone banks of the mung bean, pea and spinach chloroplast genomes

All but one of the PstI restriction fragments from mung bean, pea, and spinach chloroplast DNAs have been stably cloned into pBR322. Large fragments (15-54 kb) were cloned at low efficiencies which decreased with increasing fragment length. However, plasmids containing fragments above 25-30 kb were too unstable to be useful. In particular, pBR322 derivatives containing the largest mung bean and spinach fragments (34 kb and 54 kb, respectively) are extremely unstable and rapidly delete parts of the plasmid sequence. The PstI fragments of mung bean chloroplast DNA which cover the 34-kb PstI fragment have been cloned into pACYC177. After a search of several thousand recombinants we were unable to recover a clone containing a 12.2-kb pea chloroplast PstI fragment and suggest that some property of its sequence may be inimical to the cloning process. The identity of the cloned fragments to native chloroplast DNA restriction fragments is demonstrated by restriction analysis and the ability to construct detailed restriction maps of the mung bean and pea chloroplast genomes.     

Mapping of DNA gyrase cleavage sites in vivo oxolinic acid induced cleavages in plasmid pBR322

We have developed a procedure which permits the mapping of DNA gyrase cleavage sites in vivo. Addition of oxolinic acid, an inhibitor of DNA gyrase, to growing cells of Escherichia coli containing the plasmid pBR322 resulted in double-strand cleavage of DNA, and allowed the isolation of significant quantities of linearized plasmid DNA after lysis of treated cells with sodium dodecyl sulfate. Initially the linear product was purified from agarose gels, cleaved by restriction endonucleases, and then subjected to Southern hybridization analysis using defined DNA probes. A number of distinct cleavage sites, used with varying degrees of efficiency, were identified within pBR322 using this simple procedure. To achieve greater resolution and to improve sensitivity, we then employed an electroblotting procedure to transfer DNA fragments from acrylamide gels onto nylon membranes. This alternative method does not require the isolation of the linearized product before performing the mapping procedure. The improved resolution obtained from acrylamide gels and the superior binding properties of the nylon membranes have allowed us to accurately map 74 distinct oxolinic acid-induced cleavage sites within pBR322. The significance of these findings in light of previously reported studies in vitro, as well as the possible role of such sites during illegitimate recombination, are discussed.     

The cleavage of DNA at phosphorothioate internucleotidic linkages by DNA gyrase.

We have constructed a plasmid which contains 22 copies of a 147 bp DNA fragment which contains the major DNA gyrase cleavage site from plasmid pBR322 (located at base-pair 990). We have found that this fragment is efficiently bound and cleaved by gyrase. The selectivity for the sequence corresponding to position 990 in pBR322 is maintained even when this site is located only 15 bp from one end of the 147 bp fragment. A strategy for the specific incorporation of a single thiophosphoryl linkage into the 147 bp fragment has been developed, and gyrase has been shown to catalyse efficient cleavage of fragments bearing phosphorothioate linkages at the gyrase cleavage site in one or both strands.     

Bsu2413I and Bfi2411I,two new thermophilic type II restriction endonucleases from Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus firmus: isolation and partial purification – Thermophilic endonucleases from two Bacillus species

Two new thermophilic type II restriction endonucleases, which we designated as Bsu2413I and Bfi2411I, have been isolated from gram-positive thermophilic bacteria Bacillus subtilis strain 2413 and Bacillus firmus strain 2411 respectively and partially purified. The restriction endonucleases were extracted from cell extracts and purified using single step purification through phosphocellulose column chromatography. SDS-PAGE profile showed denatured molecular weights of 33 and 67 kDa for the Bsu2413I and 39 and 67 kDa for the Bfi2411I. The partially purified Bsu2413I enzyme restricted pBR322 DNA into two fragments of 3250 and 1100 bp whereas Bfi2411I enzyme restricted pBR322 DNA into two fragments of 3500 and 800 bp. The activity of both endonucleases was assayed at 55 degrees C and they required Mg+2 as cofactor like other type II restriction endonucleases.     

Cloning of the Streptococcus thermophilus beta-galactosidase gene and its expression in Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis cells

The beta-galactosidase gene from the chromosome of Streptococcus thermophilus, strain 6 kb, has been cloned on a vector plasmid pBR322. The corresponding gene has been found to be located on the Pst1 DNA fragment. The restriction map of this 6 kb fragment has been constructed. The shortening of the DNA fragment carrying the beta-galactosidase gene has been achieved by digestion of the recombinant derivative of pBR322 by the restriction endonuclease Sau3A under the conditions of incomplete hydrolysis. The obtained fragments have been cloned into the BamHI site in the berepliconed shuttle vector pCB20 for grampositive and gramnegative bacteria. The obtained recombinant plasmids contained the beta-galactosidase gene in the inserted fragments of different length. Expression of the cloned beta-galactosidase gene in Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis cells has been studied.     

Cloning of Herpes simplex virus 2 DNA fragments in a plasmid vector

DNA isolated from virions of Herpes simplex type 2 (HSV-2) strain 333 was digested with various restriction enzymes and joined to the EK2 plasmid vector pBR322. The viral DNA sequences present in the hybrids were analyzed by restriction enzyme mapping and hybridization to fragments of HSV-2 DNA. The collection of recombinant molecules represents approx. 75% of the HSV-2-genome. In most cases, the structure of the recombinants seemed identical to the organization of authentic fragments of HSV-2 DNA, however, a few hybrids contained rearrangements of viral and plasmid sequences.