title: Interactions among mutations that cause altered timing of gene expression during sporulation in Bacillus subtilis.
abstract: The ski4::Tn917lac insertion mutation in Bacillus subtilis was isolated in a screen for mutations that cause a defect in sporulation but that are suppressed by the presence or overexpression of the histidine protein kinase encoded by kinA (spoIIJ). ski4::Tn917lac caused a small defect in sporulation, but in combination with a null mutation in kinA, it caused a much more severe defect. The insertion mutation was in an 87-amino-acid open reading frame (orf87 bofA) that controls the activation of a sigma factor, sigma K, at intermediate times during sporulation. The ski4 mutation caused the premature expression of cotA, a gene controlled by sigma K. An independent mutation that causes the premature activation of sigma K also caused a synthetic (synergistic) sporulation phenotype in combination with a null mutation in kinA, indicating that the defect was due to altered timing of gene expression directed by sigma K. Expression of ski4 was shown to be controlled by the sporulation-specific sigma factor sigma E.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02139.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ireton
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Grossman
mesh_terms: D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000235:genetics*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D005798:Genes, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016254:Mutagenesis, Insertional; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics*; D010641:Phenotype; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D012808:Sigma Factor / Q000096:biosynthesis; D013171:Spores, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D013997:Time Factors; D014161:Transduction, Genetic; D014169:Transformation, Bacterial
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D012808:Sigma Factor; C074423:bofA protein, Bacillus subtilis