title: Involvement of DivIVA in the morphology of the rod-shaped actinomycete Brevibacterium lactofermentum.
abstract: In Brevibacterium lactofermentum, as in many Gram-positive bacteria, a divIVA gene is located downstream from the dcw cluster of cell-division- and cell-wall-related genes. This gene (divIVA(BL)) is mostly expressed during exponential growth, and the protein encoded, DivIVA(BL,) bears some sequence similarity to antigen 84 (Ag84) from mycobacteria and was detected with monoclonal antibodies against Ag84. Disruption experiments using an internal fragment of the divIVA(BL) gene or a disrupted divIVA(BL) cloned in a suicide conjugative plasmid were unsuccessful, suggesting that the divIVA(BL) gene is needed for cell viability in BREV: lactofermentum. Transformation of BREV: lactofermentum with a multicopy plasmid containing divIVA(BL) drastically altered the morphology of the corynebacterial cells, which became larger and bulkier, and a GFP fusion to DivIVA(BL) mainly localized to the ends of corynebacterial cells. This localization pattern, together with the overproduction phenotype, suggests that DivIVA may be important in regulating the apical growth of daughter cells.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Microbiología, Área de Microbiología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain.
authors.forename: Angelina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ramos
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Microbiología, Área de Microbiología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain.
authors.forename: María Pilar
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Honrubia
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Microbiología, Área de Microbiología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain.
authors.forename: Noelia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Valbuena
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Biología Celular, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vaquera
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Microbiología, Área de Microbiología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain.
authors.forename: Luis M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Mateos
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Microbiología, Área de Microbiología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de León, 24071 León, Spain.
authors.forename: José A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Gil
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D001951:Brevibacterium / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015870:Gene Expression; D018390:Gene Targeting; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D005810:Multigene Family; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014170:Transformation, Genetic
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; C104636:DivIVA protein, bacteria; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C092234:antigen 84, Mycobacterium