Home LiteratureArticle Details
PMID: 8606151 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

Characterization of the genes coding for the putative sigma factor AlgU and its regulators MucA, MucB, MucC, and MucD in Azotobacter vinelandii and evaluation of their roles in alginate biosynthesis.

Journal of bacteriology ·Vol. 178 ·No. 7 ·1996-04-00 ·Pages 1800-8

Martínez-Salazar JM, Moreno S, Nájera R, Boucher JC, Espín G, Soberón-Chávez G, Deretic V

Abstract

The study of the biosynthesis of alginate, the exopolysaccharide produced by Azotobacter vinelandii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, has biotechnological and medical significance. We report here the identification of the A. vinelandii genes coding for the putative sigma factor AlgU and its negative regulators MucA and MucB through the suppression of the highly mucoid phenotype of an A. vinelandii strain by a plasmid encoding MucA and MucB. The sequences of the A. vinelandii algU, mucA, and mucB genes are highly homologous to those of the corresponding P. aeruginosa genes, AlgU shows 93% identity, and MucA and MucB are 64.4 and 63.9% identical, respectively. Forming part of the same operon as algU, mucA, and mucB, two additional genes (mucC and mucD) were identified and sequenced; the product of the former gene is homologous to ORF4 of Photobacterium sp. strain SS9, and that of the latter gene belongs to the HtrA serine protease family. Interestingly, the nonmucoid A. vinelandii UW136 had a 0.9-kb insertion within the algU gene. A strong correlation between AlgU activity and alginate production by A. vinelandii was also found, as reflected in the level of algD transcription.

MeSH Terms
Alginates/metabolism Amino Acid Sequence Azotobacter vinelandii/genetics Bacterial Proteins/genetics,metabolism Base Sequence Carbohydrate Dehydrogenases/genetics DNA, Bacterial/genetics Genes, Bacterial Genes, Regulator Molecular Sequence Data Mutation Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism Serine Endopeptidases Sigma Factor/genetics Transcription, Genetic
Chemicals
AlgU protein, Pseudomonas aeruginosa Alginates Bacterial Proteins DNA, Bacterial MucA protein, Bacteria MucB protein, Bacteria MucC protein, Pseudomonas aeruginosa Reactive Oxygen Species Sigma Factor Carbohydrate Dehydrogenases GDPmannose dehydrogenase MucD protein, Pseudomonas aeruginosa Serine Endopeptidases
Authors & Affiliations
7 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Martínez-Salazar J M
Departamento de Microbiología Molecular, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, Morelos, México.
Moreno S
Nájera R
Boucher J C
Espín G
Soberón-Chávez G
Deretic V
References (33)
33 references, click to expand
  1. Differentiation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa into the alginate-producing form: inactivation of mucB causes conversion to mucoidy.
    Mol Microbiol. 1993 Aug;9(3):497-506 PMID: 8412698
  2. Conversion to mucoidy in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
    Biotechnology (N Y). 1993 Oct;11(10):1133-6 PMID: 7764093
  3. Conversion of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to mucoidy in cystic fibrosis: environmental stress and regulation of bacterial virulence by alternative sigma factors.
    J Bacteriol. 1994 May;176(10):2773-80 PMID: 8188579
  4. Pseudomonas aeruginosa: genes and enzymes of alginate synthesis.
    Trends Microbiol. 1994 May;2(5):151-7 PMID: 8055178
  5. Transcriptional analysis of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa genes algR, algB, and algD reveals a hierarchy of alginate gene expression which is modulated by algT.
    J Bacteriol. 1994 Oct;176(19):6007-14 PMID: 7928961
  6. Mucoid-to-nonmucoid conversion in alginate-producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa often results from spontaneous mutations in algT, encoding a putative alternate sigma factor, and shows evidence for autoregulation.
    J Bacteriol. 1994 Nov;176(21):6677-87 PMID: 7961421
  7. Analysis of promoters controlled by the putative sigma factor AlgU regulating conversion to mucoidy in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: relationship to sigma E and stress response.
    J Bacteriol. 1994 Nov;176(21):6688-96 PMID: 7961422
  8. Functional equivalence of Escherichia coli sigma E and Pseudomonas aeruginosa AlgU: E. coli rpoE restores mucoidy and reduces sensitivity to reactive oxygen intermediates in algU mutants of P. aeruginosa.
    J Bacteriol. 1995 Jun;177(11):3259-68 PMID: 7768826
  9. The algT (algU) gene of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a key regulator involved in alginate biosynthesis, encodes an alternative sigma factor (sigma E).
    Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1995 Aug 15;92(17):7941-5 PMID: 7644517
  10. Multiple promoters and induction by heat shock of the gene encoding the alternative sigma factor AlgU (sigma E) which controls mucoidy in cystic fibrosis isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
    J Bacteriol. 1995 Oct;177(19):5670-9 PMID: 7559357
  11. An rpoE-like locus controls outer membrane protein synthesis and growth at cold temperatures and high pressures in the deep-sea bacterium Photobacterium sp. strain SS9.
    Mol Microbiol. 1995 Aug;17(4):713-26 PMID: 8801425
  12. Two distinct loci affecting conversion to mucoidy in Pseudomonas aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis encode homologs of the serine protease HtrA.
    J Bacteriol. 1996 Jan;178(2):511-23 PMID: 8550474
  13. Characterization of the gene coding for GDP-mannose dehydrogenase (algD) from Azotobacter vinelandii.
    J Bacteriol. 1996 Apr;178(7):1793-9 PMID: 8606150
  14. A new modification of the carbazole analysis: application to heteropolysaccharides.
    Anal Biochem. 1968 Sep;24(3):470-81 PMID: 5723302
  15. The biosynthesis of alginic acid by Azotobacter vinelandii.
    Biochem J. 1975 Dec;152(3):617-22 PMID: 179528
  16. Alginate synthesis in mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa: a chromosomal locus involved in control.
    J Gen Microbiol. 1980 Aug;119(2):443-50 PMID: 6785378
  17. Cloning of genes controlling alginate biosynthesis from a mucoid cystic fibrosis isolate of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
    J Bacteriol. 1984 Jul;159(1):9-18 PMID: 6330052
  18. Biosynthesis and composition of gram-negative bacterial extracellular and wall polysaccharides.
    Annu Rev Microbiol. 1985;39:243-70 PMID: 3904602
  19. Construction and characterization of Pseudomonas aeruginosa algB mutants: role of algB in high-level production of alginate.
    J Bacteriol. 1987 Apr;169(4):1593-602 PMID: 3031015
  20. Genetics of azotobacters: applications to nitrogen fixation and related aspects of metabolism.
    Annu Rev Microbiol. 1987;41:227-58 PMID: 3318669
  21. A set of cassettes and improved vectors for genetic and biochemical characterization of Pseudomonas genes.
    Gene. 1987;57(1):61-72 PMID: 3123327
  22. Sequence analysis and regulation of the htrA gene of Escherichia coli: a sigma 32-independent mechanism of heat-inducible transcription.
    Nucleic Acids Res. 1988 Nov 11;16(21):10053-67 PMID: 3057437
  23. The algR gene, which regulates mucoidy in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, belongs to a class of environmentally responsive genes.
    J Bacteriol. 1989 Mar;171(3):1278-83 PMID: 2493441
  24. Identification of the sigma E subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase: a second alternate sigma factor involved in high-temperature gene expression.
    Genes Dev. 1989 Sep;3(9):1462-71 PMID: 2691330
  25. Mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis: mutations in the muc loci affect transcription of the algR and algD genes in response to environmental stimuli.
    Mol Microbiol. 1990 Feb;4(2):189-96 PMID: 2140147
  26. The role of a stress-response protein in Salmonella typhimurium virulence.
    Mol Microbiol. 1991 Feb;5(2):401-7 PMID: 1645840
  27. Oxidative stress responses in Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium.
    Microbiol Rev. 1991 Dec;55(4):561-85 PMID: 1779927
  28. Pseudomonas aeruginosa AlgB, which modulates the expression of alginate, is a member of the NtrC subclass of prokaryotic regulators.
    Mol Microbiol. 1992 Jan;6(1):59-66 PMID: 1738315
  29. Excretion of ammonium by a nifL mutant of Azotobacter vinelandii fixing nitrogen.
    Appl Environ Microbiol. 1992 May;58(5):1711-8 PMID: 1622243
  30. Characterization of a locus determining the mucoid status of Pseudomonas aeruginosa: AlgU shows sequence similarities with a Bacillus sigma factor.
    J Bacteriol. 1993 Feb;175(4):1153-64 PMID: 8432708
  31. Genetic analysis of the alginate biosynthetic gene cluster of Pseudomonas aeruginosa shows evidence of an operonic structure.
    Mol Microbiol. 1993 May;8(3):583-93 PMID: 7686997
  32. Mechanism of conversion to mucoidy in Pseudomonas aeruginosa infecting cystic fibrosis patients.
    Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1993 Sep 15;90(18):8377-81 PMID: 8378309
  33. The algD promoter: regulation of alginate production by Pseudomonas aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis.
    Cell Mol Biol Res. 1993;39(4):371-6 PMID: 8312973
Article Info
Journal
Journal of bacteriology
Abbr.
J Bacteriol
ISSN
0021-9193
DOI
10.1128/jb.178.7.1800-1808.1996
Published
1996-04-00
Pages
1800-8
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
2985120R
PMCID
PMC177872
Subset
IM
Grants
NIAID NIH HHS · AI31139 · United States
Databases
GENBANK
U30799
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1128/jb.178.7.1800-1808.1996 PMC Full Text View journal details
Analysis Services
Analysis Services

Contact

No. 2 Wenbo Road, Zhangqiu District, Jinan, Shandong

Qilu Normal University · Genelibs Bioinformatics Lab

750 Shunhua Rd, Jinan

2F, Bldg F, University Science Park

Tel: 0531-88819269

WeChat Official Account

Follow our WeChat subscription account for real-time updates and the latest in medical and biological research.


Business Email

E-mail: [email protected]

Copyright © 2026.Genelibs Jinan Honghui Biotechnology Co., Ltd. 鲁ICP备20007159号-2