Nucleotide sequence and transcriptional organization of the Escherichia coli enterobactin biosynthesis cistrons entB and entA

The nucleotide sequence of a 2,137-base-pair DNA fragment expressing enterobactin biosynthesis functions defined the molecular boundaries and translational products of the entB and entA genes and identified a closely linked downstream open reading frame encoding an uncharacterized protein of approximately 15,000 daltons (P15). The sequence revealed that an independent protein-coding sequence corresponding to an EntG polypeptide was not situated in the genetic region between the entB and entA cistrons, to which the EntG- phonotype had been genetically localized. As a result, the biochemical nature of the EntG function in the biosynthetic pathway requires reevaluation. The EntA polypeptide displayed significant similarities at the amino acid level to the pyridine nucleotide-binding domains of several members of a family of alcohol-polyol-sugar dehydrogenase enzymes, consistent with its function as the enzyme catalyzing the final step of dihydroxybenzoate biosynthesis. An additional role for EntA in the isochorismate synthetase activity of EntC was strongly implicated by genetic evidence. Evidence from the nucleotide sequence of this region and newly constructed ent-lacZ fusion plasmids argues strongly that these genes are linked in an iron-regulated entCEBA (P15) polycistronic operon.