The nucleotide sequence of a spore germination gene (gerA) of Bacillus subtilis 168.

The nucleotide sequence of a 2.1-kb fragment of Bacillus subtilis DNA that contains part of the spore germination locus, gerA, has been determined. An open reading frame (ORF) of 1440 bp (480 codons) has been identified which corresponds to the previously located complementation unit I of the gerA locus. The orientations of transcription of the gerA and of the adjacent fumarase (citG) gene are divergent. The deduced polypeptide product of the gerA gene, of Mr 53 506, contains both hydrophobic and hydrophilic domains and is likely to be membrane-associated.