Evidence of abortive recombination in ruv mutants of Escherichia coli K12

Summary Genetic recombination in Escherichia coli was investigated by measuring the effect of mutations in ruv and rec genes on F-prime transfer and mobilization of nonconjugative plasmids. Mutation of ruv was found to reduce the recovery of F-prime transconjugants in crosses with recB recC sbcA strains by about 30-fold and with recB recC sbcB sbcC strains by more than 300-fold. Conjugative plasmids lacking any significant homology with the chromosome were transferred normally to these ruv mutants. Mobilization of the plasmid cloning vectors pHSG415, pBR322, pACYC184 and pUC18 were reduced by 20- to 100-fold in crosses with ruv rec ⁺ sbc ⁺ strains, depending on the plasmid used. Recombinant plasmids carrying ruv ⁺ were transferred efficiently. With both F-prime transfer and F-prime cointegrate mobilization, the effect of ruv was suppressed by inactivating recA. It is proposed that the failure to recover transconjugants in ruv recA ⁺strains is due to abortive recombination and that the ruv genes define activities which function late in recombination to help convert recombination intermediates into viable products.     

Molecular and functional analysis of the ruv region of Escherichia coli K-12 reveals three genes involved in DNA repair and recombination

Summary Recombinant plasmids carrying ruvA, ruvB, or both were constructed and used to investigate the genetic defects in a collection of UV-sensitive ruv mutants. The results revealed that efficient survival of UV-irradiated cells depends on both ruvA and ruvB, and on a third gene, ruvC, located upstream of the ruvAB operon. Southern blotting analysis was used to locate insertions in ruv and to examine putative deletion mutants. Two Tn10 insertions were located to the region encoding ruvA. Since these insertions caused a deficiency in the activities of both ruvA and ruvB, we concluded that they must exert a polar effect on ruvB. Two putative ruv deletion mutants were shown to be the result of deletion-inversion events mediated during imprecise excision of Tn10. The relevant inversion breakpoints in these mutants were located to ruvA and ruvC.     

Intramolecular homologous recombination of linearized plasmids in Escherichia coli K12

Summary The efficacy of linear DNA as a substrate for general homologous recombination was demonstrated using BamHI-linearized pKLC8.5, a plasmid that carries internal direct repeats flanking the unique BamHI site. An analogous plasmid, pKLC2.31, was used in a parallel and comparative study of intramolecular homologous recombination in circular DNA substrates. When the rec ⁺ wild-type strain, AB1157, and its isogenic rec ^– derivatives were transformed with linear pKLC8.5 DNA, intramolecular homologous recombination was independent of recA, recB, recN, recO and exonuclease III (xth-1) functions. Although the recBCsbcA and recBCsbcBC cells were both very recombination proficient, only linear but not circular DNA was used as substrate for intramolecular homologous recombination in the recBCsbcA cells. In both the recBCsbcA and recBCsbcBC genetic backgrounds, the recombination frequencies for linearized pKLC8.5 DNA were 100%. A notable difference between the two strains was that none of the recBCsbcA transformants obtained with circular pKLC8.5 DNA were Tc^s recombinants, whereas 11% of the corresponding recBCsbcBC transformants were Tc^s recombinants. The sbcB mutation was responsible for the recombination proficiency of the recBCsbcBC cells. Unlike the case in recBCsbcA cells, intramolecular homologous recombination of linear DNA in the recBCsbcBC cells was dependent on recA and recF as well as recN and recO gene functions, but was independent of recJ and reeL gene functions.     

The gdhA1 point mutation in Escherichia coli K12 CLR207 alters a key lysine residue of glutamate dehydrogenase

gdhA1 is a spontaneous mutant of Escherichia coli that causes complete loss of activity of the NADP-specific glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) encoded by the gdhA gene. The gdhA1 mutational site has been identified by recombinational mapping, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and DNA sequencing, as an A to G transition at nucleotide 274 of the gdhA coding sequence, resulting in an amino acid change of lysine 92 to glutamic acid. The mutant enzyme forms hybrid hexamers with a wild-type GDH, providing a useful system for analysis of conformational integrity of mutational variants.     

Temperature dependent survival of UV-irradiated Escherichia coli K12

Summary We have found that several excision deficient derivatives of Escherichia coli K12 survive better after UV irradiation if incubated at 42°C than if incubated at 30°C. The highest survival was observed when incubation at 42°C followed UV irradiation and was maintained for at least 16 h. Our results indicate that this temperature dependent resistance (TDR) requires a functional recA gene, but not uvr A, uvrB, recF, or recB genes, or the recA441 (tif-1) mutation which allows thermoinduction of the recA-lexA regulon. Our data are consistent with the idea that the increase in survival observed at 42°C reflects enhanced daughterstrand gap repair by DNA strand exchange. Although the conditions used to elicit TDR can induce heat shock proteins and thermotolerance in E. coli, the relationship between the two responses remains to be elucidated.     

Nucleotide sequence and analysis of the mgl operon of Escherichia coli K12

Summary The nucleotide sequence of the Escherichia coli K12 -methylgalactoside transport operon, mgl, was determined. Primer extension analysis indicated that the synthesis of mRNA initiates at guanine residue 145 of the determined sequence. The operon contains three open reading frames (ORF). The operator proximal ORF, mglB, encodes the galactose binding protein, a periplasmic protein of 332 amino acids including the 23 residue amino-terminal signal peptide. Following a 62 nucleotide spacer, the second ORF, mglA, is capable of encoding a protein of 506 amino acids. The amino-terminal and carboxyl-terminal halves of this protein are homologous to each other and each half contains a putative nucleotide binding site. The third ORF, mglC, is capable of encoding a hydrophobic protein of 336 amino acids which is thought to generate the transmembrane pore. The overall organization of the mglBAC operon and its potential to encode three proteins is similar to that of the ara FGH high affinity transport operon, located approximately 1 min away on the E. coli K12 chromosome.     

Isolation of a formamidopyrimidine-DNA glycosylase (fpg) mutant of Escherichia coli K12

Summary The fpg ⁺ gene of Escherichia coli coding for formamidopyrimidine-DNA glycosylase was previously cloned on a multicopy plasmid. The plasmid copy of the fpg ⁺ gene was inactivated by cloning a kanamycin resistance gene into the open reading frame, yielding the fpg-1:: Kn^r mutation. This mutation was transferred to the chromosome in the following steps: (i) linearization of the plasmid bearing the fpg-1::Kn^r mutation and transformation of competent bacteria (recB recC sbcB); (ii) selection for chromosomal integration of the fpg-1::Kn^r mutation; (iii) phage P1 mediated transduction of the fpg-1::Kn^r mutation in the AB1157 background. The resulting fpg ^- mutant exhibited no detectable Fapy-DNA glycosylase activity in crude lysates. The insertion mutation was localized by means of genetic crosses between mtl and pyrE, at 81.7 min on the E. coli linkage map. Sequence analysis confirmed this mapping and further showed that fpg is adjacent to rpmBG in the order fpg, rpmGB, pyrE. The formamidopyrimidine-DNA glycosylase defective strain does not show unusual sensitivity to the following DNA damaging treatments: (i) methylmethanesulfonate, (ii) N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine, (iii) ultraviolet light, (iv) -radiation. The fpg gene is neither part of the SOS regulon nor the adaptive response to alkylating agents.     

Studies on the mechanism of reduction of W-inducible sulAp expression by recF overexpression in Escherichia coli K-12

UV-inducible sulAp expression, an indicator of the SOS response, is reduced by recF ⁺ overexpression in vivo. Different DNA-damaging agents and amounts of RecO and RecR were tested for their effects on this phenotype. It was found that recF ⁺ overexpression reduced sulAp expression after DNA damage by mitomycin C or nalidixic acid. recO ⁺ and recR ⁺ overexpression partially suppressed the reduction of UV-induced sulAp expression caused by recF ⁺ overexpression. The requirement for ATP binding to RecF to produce the phenotype was tested by genetically altering the putative phosphate binding cleft of recF in a way that should prevent the mutant recF protein from binding ATP that should prevent the mutant recF protein from binding ATP. It was found that a change of lysine to glutamine at codon 36 results in a mutant recF protein (RecF4115) that is unable to reduce UV-inducible sulAp expression when overproduced. It is inferred from these results that recF overexpression may reduce UV-inducible sulAp expression by a mechanism that is sensitive to the ability of RecF to bind ATP and to the levels of RecO and RecR (RecOR) in the cell, but not to the type of DNA damage per se. Models are explored that can explain how recF ⁺ overexpression reduces UV induction of sulAp and how RecOR overproduction might suppress this phenotype.     

Effects of vanillin and o-vanillin on induction of DNA-repair networks: modulation of mutagenesis in Escherichia coli

Vanillin and its isomer o-vanillin have an effect on the adaptive and SOS responses, as well as mutagenesis, induced in Escherichia coli by N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU) and UV irradiation, potentiating in some cases and suppressing in others. o-Vanillin markedly inhibited the MNU-induced adaptive response, while both vanillins potentiated the UV-induced SOS response. These phenomena appear to be responsible for the comutagenic or antimutagenic role of these chemicals in MNU and UV mutagenesis.     

cysB and cysE mutants of Escherichia coli K12 show increased resistance to novobiocin

Summary Mutations in the cysB and cysE genes of Escherichia coli K12 cause an increase in resistance to the gyrase inhibitor novobiocin but not to coumermycin, acriflavine and rifampicin. This unusual relationship was also observed among spontaneous novobiocin resistant (Nov^r) mutants: 10% of Nov^r mutants isolated on rich (LA) plates with novobiocin could not grow on minimal plates, and among those approximately half were cysB or cysE mutants. Further analyses demonstrated that cysB and cysE negative alleles neither interfere with transport of novobiocin nor affect DNA supercoiling.     

Genetic and physical characterization of putP, the proline carrier gene of Escherichia coli K12

Summary Two new mutants of E. coli K12, strains PT9 and PT32 were isolated, that were defective in proline transport. They had no high affinity proline transport activity, but their cytoplasmic membranes retained proline binding activity with altered sensitivity to inhibition by p-chloromercuribenzoate(pCMB). The lesion was mapped at the putP gene, which is located at min 23 on the revised E. coli genetic map (Bachmann 1983) as a composite gene in the proline utilization gene cluster, putP, putC, and putA, arranged in this order. The putC gene was shown to regulate the synthesis of proline dehydrogenase (putA gene product).Hybrid plasmids carrying the put region (Motojima et al. 1979; Wood et al. 1979) were used to construct the physical map of the put region. The possible location of the putP gene in the DNA segment was determined by subcloning the putP gene, genetic complementation, and recombination analyses using several proline transport mutants.Abbreviations pCMB p-chloromercuribenzoate - DM Davis and Mingioli - Ap ampicillin - NTG N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine - EMS ethylmethane sulfonate - Str streptomycin - Tet tetracycline - Ac l-azetidine-2-carboxylic acid - DHP 3, 4-dehydro-d,l-proline - MTT 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2)2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide - Tris tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane - EDTA ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid - Kan kanamycin - Spc spectinomycin     

The cloning of the rorB gene of Escherichia coli

Summary A segment of the Escherichia coli genome which complements the ionising radiation sensitivity of the rorB mutation was cloned into pBR322. This DNA segment also complements the mitomycin C sensitivity of the rorB mutation. The gene was subcloned until defined in a fragment of 1.05 kb. Only one gene product, a protein of approximately 16.5 kDa, was found on maxicell analysis of the various subclones. Iso-electric focusing of this gene product suggests it may function in a complex.     

Functional expression of Aquaspirillum magnetotacticum genes in Escherichia coli K12

Summary Gene libraries from the magnetotactic bacterium, Aquaspirillum magnetotacticum were constructed in Escherichia coli with cosmids pLAFR3 and c2RB as vectors. Recombinant cosmids able to complement the thr-1, leuB, and proA mutations of the host were identified. The Pro⁺ recombinant cosmid restored wild-type phenotype in proA and proB but not in the proC mutants of E. coli. The results of restriction endonuclease digestion and Southern hybridization analysis indicate that the relevent leu and pro biosynthetic genes of A. magnetotacticum are not closely linked on the chromosome.     

Effect of ogt expression on mutation induction by methyl-, ethyl- and propylmethanesulphonate in Escherichia coli K12 strains

We have previously reported the isolation of an Escherichia coli K12 mutant that is extremely sensitive to mutagenesis by low doses of ethylating agents. We now show by Southern analysis that the mutation involves a gross deletion covering at least the ogt and fnr genes and that no O⁶-alkylguanine-DNA-alkyltransferase activity is present in cell-free extracts of an ada::Tn10 derivative of these bacteria. Confirmation that sensitisation to ethylation-induced mutagenesis was attributable to ogt and not to any other loci covered by the deletion was obtained by constructing derivatives. Thus an ogt::kan^r disruption mutation was introduced into the parental ogt ⁺ bacteria, and the ogt::kan^r mutation was then eliminated by cotransduction of ogt ⁺ with the closely linked Tet ^r marker (zcj::Tn10). The (ogt-fnr) deletion or ogt::kan^r disruption mutants were highly sensitive to ethyl methanesulphonate-induced mutagenesis, as measured by the induction of forward mutations to l-arabinose resistance (Ara¹). Furthermore, the number of Ara^r mutants increased linearly with dose, unlike the case in ogt ⁺ bacteria, which had a threshold dose below which no mutants accumulated. Differences in mutability were even greater with propyl methanesulphonate. Overproduction of the ogt alkyltransferase from a multicopy plasmid reduced ethylmethanesulphonate-induced mutagenesis in the ogt mutant strains and also methylmethanesulphonate mutagenesis in ada ^– bacteria. A sample of AB 1157 obtained from the E. coli K12 genetic stock centre also had a deletion covering the ogt and fnr genes. Since such deletions greatly influence the mutagenic responses to alkylating agents, a survey of the presence of the ogt gene in the E. coli K12 strain being used is advisable.     

OriC plasmids do not affect timing of chromosome replication in Escherichia coli K12

Summary The variability of the time interval between successive rounds of chromosome replication was estimated by density-shift experiments, by measuring the conversion of heavy DNA to hybrid density and light DNAs upon transfer of a steady-state culture growing in medium with [¹³C]glucose and ¹⁵NH₄Cl to medium with light isotopes. The coefficient of variation (CV%) for the interreplication time of the Escherichia coli K12 chromosome was found to be 17%, i.e. similar to that for interdivision time. The presence of additional copies of oriC in the cell on a high copy number plasmid did not increase the CV of interreplication time. It is concluded that a single rate-limiting event is unlikely to time the initiation of chromosome replication. The regulation of initiation at oriC and the coordination with cell division is discussed.