Deletion of DNA lying close to the glkA locus induces ectopic sporulation in Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)

Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) J1668 sporulated ectopically in the substrate hyphae (the Esp phenotype) with the same time course as sporulation in the aerial hyphae. Examination of related strains implied that the Esp phenotype was caused by the deletion of DNA that lies close to, but is distinct from, the glucose kinase gene ( glkA ). Co-transduction of the Esp phenotype with the deletion present in J1668 confirmed this hypothesis. The size of the deletion was found to be 7.4 kb. Construction of a strain carrying both the J1668 deletion and a whiG mutation demonstrated that the Esp phenotype depends on at least one of the genes required for the differentiation of aerial hyphae into spores.