Molecular genetic characterisation of whiB3, a mycobacterial homologue of a Streptomyces sporulation factor.
WhiB is an essential sporulation factor in Streptomyces coelicolor. We report here the molecular genetic characterisation of whiB3, a whiB-like gene in the nonspore-forming Mycobacterium smegmatis mc(2)155. M. smegmatis whiB3 encodes a 96-amino-acid protein with 81% similarity to its M. tuberculosis counterpart identified in the genome project, and 35% similarity to S. coelicolor WhiB. In both mycobacteria, whiB3 is flanked by the same upstream gene, Rv3415c, and appears to be monocistronic. Promoter probe analyses suggest that the whiB3 gene is expressed constitutively. Disruption of whiB3 did not affect growth or the dormancy response of M. smegmatis.
Hutter
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Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Singapore, Republic of Singapore.
Dick
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T
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D017353:Gene Deletion; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D020102:Mycobacterium smegmatis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013171:Spores, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D013302:Streptomyces / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D014157:Transcription Factors; C121354:WhiB3 protein, Mycobacterium smegmatis; C081543:whiB protein, Streptomyces