The L-arabinose-resistance test with Salmonella typhimurium strain SV3 selects forward mutations at several ara genes.

A new assay has been described for mutagenicity testing using an L-arabinose-sensitive strain of Salmonella typhimurium. The test strain SV3 and several L-arabinose-resistant mutants selected therefrom are characterized in the present study by 3 different criteria: inhibition of growth by L-arabinose, accumulation of keto-sugars, and activities of the enzymes involved in L-arabinose catabolism. Strain SV3 (ara-531) shows high levels of inducible L-arabinose isomerase (EC 5.3.1.4) and L-ribulokinase (EC 2.7.1.16) activities, but is deficient in L-ribulose-5-phosphate 4-epimerase (EC 5.1.3.4), the enzyme encoded in Escherichia coli by gene D in the araBAD operon. Addition of L-arabinose to SV3 growing in glycerol or casamino acids stops growth. D-Glucose only partially reverses this inhibition. Reversion of the ara-531 mutation restores different levels of epimerase activity and resistance to L-arabinose. However, the great majority of the L-arabinose-resistant mutants do not utilize L-arabinose. The physiological and enzymatic properties of these L-arabinose non-utilizing mutants suggest that L-arabinose resistance is due to forward mutations in at least 3 other genes, araA, araB and araC, blocking steps prior to L-ribulose 5-phosphate accumulation.     

Subcellular localization of DNA-binding protein BA by immunofluorescence and immunoelectron microscopy

Nonhistone protein BA has been shown to decrease in amount in the chromatin of growth- stimulated normal rat liver (Yeoman et al. 1975. Cancer Res. 35:1249-1255) and in mitogen-stimulated normal human lymphocytes (Yeoman et al. 1976. Exp. Cell Res. 100:47- 55.). Subsequently, protein BA was purified and was shown to prefer to bind to double- stranded A-T-rich DNAs (Catino et al. 1978. Biochemistry. 17:983-987.). Immunization of rabbits with highly purified protein BA has resulted in the production of a specific antibody. A specific immunoreactivity for chromosomal protein BA has been demonstrated by immunoelectrophoresis and double antibody immunoprecipitation analysis with rabbit anti-BA immunoglobulin and IgG fractions. Light microscope examination of normal rat liver crysections by the indirect immunofluorescence procedure has demonstrated a cytoplasmic as well as a nuclear localization for protein BA with a pronounced perinucleolar fluorescence. Immunoelectron microscopy employing the peroxidase antiperoxidase method of antigen localization has confirmed the immunofluorescence data and has show a heterochromatin localization for protein BA. The relationship of the localization of protein BA to gene control in quiescent cells or to configurations of heterochromatin as well as the marked reduction in the amounts of protein BA which occur in stimulated growth states remains to be defined.     

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 Δ(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.