A rare type of overlapping genes in bacteriophage T4: gene 30.3' is completely embedded within gene 30.3 by one position downstream.
We have previously proposed the existence of one of the rarest types of overlapping genes in bacteriophage T4. We now present the results demonstrating that in a pair of T4 overlapping genes, 30.3 and 30.3', the smaller gene, 30.3', is entirely enclosed within the other by one position downstream. We have constructed plasmids in which different open reading frames from the gene 30.3 region were fused with the 5' end of the lacZ beta-galactosidase (betaGal) gene of Escherichia coli. The gene fusions have been obtained at the position of a HindIII site which was introduced just upstream from the stop codon of gene 30.3'. High betaGal activities have been estimated in the case of plasmids carrying 30.3::lacZ and 30.3'::lacZ fusions. The apparent molecular weights of the fusion proteins, the determined N-terminal sequences, as well as the detected betaGal activities, confirm the structure and arrangement of out-of-phase overlapping genes 30.3 and 30.3'.
Zajanckauskaite
A
A
Laboratory of Gene Engineering, Institute of Biochemistry, Vilnius, Lithuania.
Malys
N
N
Nivinskas
R
R
D017122:Bacteriophage T4 / Q000235:genetics*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005807:Genes, Overlapping; D005814:Genes, Viral; D010957:Plasmids; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D001616:beta-Galactosidase / Q000235:genetics
D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D014764:Viral Proteins; D001616:beta-Galactosidase