Temperature-sensitive mutants of Escherichia coli affecting beta-galactoside transport

Six different temperature-sensitive (ts) mutants have been isolated which have parental beta-galactoside permease levels at low temperatures but have decreased permease levels when grown at high temperatures. These mutants were derived from Escherichia coli ML308 (lacI(-)Y(+)Z(+)A(+)). After N-methyl-N'-nitro-N'-nitro-soguanidine mutagenesis, ampicillin was used to select for cells unable to grow on low lactose concentrations at 42 C. Temperature-sensitive mutants were assayed for galactoside permease activity after growth in casein hydrolysate medium at 25 or 42 C by measuring both radioactive methylthio-beta-d-galactoside uptake and in vivo o-nitrophenyl-beta-d-galactoside hydrolysis. The six conditional isolates have decreased levels of galactoside permease which are correlated with decreased growth rates at elevated temperatures. The low permease levels are not due to a temperature labile lacY gene product but rather to a temperature labile synthesis rate of functional permease. Some of the mutants exhibit a ts increase in permeability as shown by the increased leakage of intracellular beta-galactosidase and by the increased rate of in vivo o-nitrophenyl-beta-d-galactoside hydrolysis via the nonpermease mediated entry mechanism. Preliminary evidence indicates that transport in general is decreased in these mutants, yet there is some specificity in the mutational lesion since glucoside transport is unaffected. All these observations suggest that these mutants have ts alterations in membrane synthesis which results in pleiotropic effects on various membrane functions.     

Polarity effects in the lactose operon of Escherichia coli

An intergenic RNA segment between lacY and lacA of the lactose operon in Escherichia coli is cleaved by RNase P, an endoribonuclease. The cleavage of the intergenic RNA was ten times less efficient than cleavage of a tRNA precursor in vitro. Fragments of the RNase P cleavage product are detectable in vivo in the wild-type strain but not in a mutant strain at the restrictive temperature. The cleavage product that contains lacA in the wild-type strain was quickly degraded. When this intergenic segment was cloned upstream of a reporter gene, the expression of the reporter gene was also inhibited substantially in wild-type E.coli, but not in a temperature sensitive mutant strain in RNase P at the restrictive temperature. These results support data regarding the natural polarity between lacZ versus lacA, the downstream gene.     

F' transfer from Escherichia coli to Proteus mirabilis]

The task of this work was the establishment of an effective transfer system for F'-plasmids from Escherichia coli to Proteus mirabilis. It is shown that cells of PG VI act as recipients in crosses with E. coli F' strains but with a low transfer rate of the plasmid. The presumption that a restriction -- modification system in P. mirabilis was the only reason for the low transfer could not be confirmed. An indirect selection method was developed to isolate P. mirabilis cells which are better recipients. Conjugation experiments showed that the isolated mutants had a better recipient capacity (increase of about 100). This is true not only for the transfer of a F'-plasmid but also for a R-plasmid. The stability of these plasmids in the mutant cells, however, was much lower than in the wild type.     

Expression and stability of Escherichia coli F-prime factors in Proteus mirabilis

Molecular Genetics and Genomics - The expression and stability of Escherichia coli F-primes in Proteus mirabilis is examined. It is possible to consecutively introduce, and stably maintain, the DNA...     

Lactose permease of Escherichia coli catalyzes active beta-galactoside transport in a gram-positive bacterium.

The following several lines of evidence demonstrate that lactose permease (LacY) of Escherichia coli is assembled into the cytoplasmic membrane of gram-positive Corynebacterium glutamicum, expressing the lacY gene, as a functional carrier protein. (i) LacY was detected immunologically in the cytoplasmic membrane fraction of the heterologous host. (ii) Recombinant C. glutamicum cells bearing the lacY gene displayed an increased influx of o-nitrophenyl-beta-D-galactopyranoside, which was inhibited by N-ethylmaleimide. (iii) Washed cells were capable of accumulating methyl-beta-D-thiogalactoside about 60-fold. (iv) The uptake of methyl-beta-D-thiogalactoside was energy dependent and could be inhibited by the addition of 10 microM carbonyl cyanide-m-chlorophenylhydrazone. LacY of E. coli was active in the recombinant C. glutamicum cells despite the different membrane lipid compositions of these organisms.     

Mutational inversion of control of the lactose operon of Escherichia coli

An unusual Lac regulatory mutant of Escherichia coli K12 has been isolated and studied by genetic, physiological and biochemical techniques. In this mutant galactosides which are inducers for the wild-type organism act as corepressors, shutting off Lac enzyme synthesis. Mapping and dominance tests indicate the mutation is in the i-gene. Both in vivo and in vitro studies demonstrate that Lac repressor is made only in the presence of certain galactosides, and that the product so produced has the normal or wild-type affinity for such galactosides, yet is immune to their normal inducing action. The unusual properties of this mutant make it an excellent tool for determining the relationship between the intracellular repressor concentration and the resulting rate of Lac enzyme synthesis.     

Tn951: A new transposon carrying a lactose operon

Summary A new transposon, Tn951, is described, which derives from plasmid pGC1, originally isolated from Yersinia enterocolitica. Tn951 is 16.6 kb long and presumably flanked by small inverted repeats. It carries the lac genes i, z and y. This lac system is homologous to the E. coli lac operon. However, homology is restricted to 5.6 kb. The DNA sequences surrounding the lac operons on Tn951 and E. coli are nonhomologous. This leads to speculations about the origin of the E. coli lac operon itself.     

Sucrose transport by the Escherichia coli lactose carrier.

Several lines of evidence suggest that sucrose is transported by the lactose carrier of Escherichia coli. Entry of sucrose was monitored by an osmotic method which involves exposure of cells to a hyperosmotic solution of disaccharide (250 mM). Such cells shrink (optical density rises), and if the solute enters the cell, there is a return toward initial values (optical density falls). By this technique sucrose was found to enter cells at a rate approximately one third that of lactose. In addition, the entry of [14C]sucrose was followed by direct analysis of cell contents after separation of cells from the medium by centrifugation. Sucrose accumulated within the cell to a concentration 160% of that in the external medium. The addition of sucrose to an anaerobic suspension of cells resulted in a small alkalinization of the external medium. These data are consistent with the view that the lactose carrier can accumulate sucrose by a proton cotransport system. The carrier exhibits a very low affinity for the disaccharide (150 mM) but a moderately rapid Vmax.