title: Extragenic suppression of the requirement for diaminopimelate in diaminopimelate auxotrophs of Mycobacterium smegmatis.
abstract: Mycobacteria, like many prokaryotes, have a peptidoglycan with peptides composed of L-alanine (or glycine), D-iso-glutamine, meso-diaminopimelate, and D-alanine. We sought to study mycobacterial peptidoglycan biosynthesis by constructing diaminopimelate (DAP) auxotrophs of Mycobacterium smegmatis and then isolating spontaneous mutants of these auxotrophs that can grow in the absence of DAP. Here we report the isolation and characterization of seven classes of spontaneous M. smegmatis mutants with extragenic mutations that can suppress the DAP requirement of DAP auxotrophs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA.
authors.forename: Sandra A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Consaul
authors.forename: William R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.forename: Martin S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Pavelka
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D003960:Diaminopimelic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D009154:Mutation; D020102:Mycobacterium smegmatis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D010457:Peptidoglycan / Q000096:biosynthesis; D013489:Suppression, Genetic
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D010457:Peptidoglycan; D003960:Diaminopimelic Acid