title: Cloning and characterization of a secY homolog from Chlamydia trachomatis.
abstract: Characterization of the genes involved in the process of protein translocation is important in understanding their structure-function relationships. However, little is known about the signals that govern chlamydial gene expression and translocation. We have cloned a 1.7 kb HindIII-PstI fragment containing the secY gene of Chlamydia trachomatis. The complete nucleotide sequence reveals three open reading frames. The amino acid sequence shows highest homology with Escherichia coli proteins L15, SecY and S13, corresponding to the spc-alpha ribosomal protein operons. The product of the C. trachomatis secY gene is composed of 457 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 50,195 Daltons. Its amino acid sequence shows 27.4% and 35.7% identity to E. coli and Bacillus subtilis SecY proteins, respectively. The distribution of hydrophobic amino acids in the C. trachomatis secY gene product is suggestive of it being an integral membrane protein with ten transmembrane segments, the second, third and seventh membrane segments sharing > 45% identity with E. coli SecY. Our results suggest that despite evolutionary differences, eubacteria share a similar protein export apparatus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Remacha
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Wenman
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kaul
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000235:genetics; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D001692:Biological Transport; D002692:Chlamydia trachomatis / Q000235:genetics*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D005798:Genes, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D005816:Genetic Complementation Test; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011506:Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D000069816:SEC Translocation Channels; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D011506:Proteins; D000069816:SEC Translocation Channels; C057841:SecY protein, E coli