title: Is the IS1 transposase, InsAB', the only IS1-encoded protein required for efficient transposition?
abstract: The transposase of the bacterial insertion sequence IS1 is normally expressed by inefficient translational frameshifting between an upstream reading frame which itself specifies a transposition inhibitor, InsA, and a second consecutive reading frame located immediately downstream. A fused-frame mutant which carries an additional base pair inserted at the point of frameshifting was constructed. This mutant exhibits high transposition activity and should express the transposase, InsAB', constitutively without frameshifting. Unexpectedly, a second protein species was observed to be expressed from this mutant. We demonstrate here that this protein, InsA*, results from continued frameshifting on the modified frameshift motif. The protein retains the activities of the repressor InsA. Its elimination, by further modification of the frameshift motif, results in a further increase in various transposition activities of IS1. These results support the hypothesis that a single IS1-encoded protein, InsAB', is necessary for transposition.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, UPR9007 du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Toulouse, France.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Escoubas
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lane
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chandler
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D001483:Base Sequence; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements / Q000235:genetics*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000378:metabolism; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D016368:Frameshift Mutation; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D009713:Nucleotidyltransferases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D012097:Repressor Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D013014:SOS Response, Genetics; D019895:Transposases
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D012097:Repressor Proteins; C064548:insA1 protein, E coli; D009713:Nucleotidyltransferases; D019895:Transposases