Molecular and genetic characterization of propionicin F, a bacteriocin from Propionibacterium freudenreichii.
This work describes the purification and characterization of propionicin F, the first bacteriocin isolated from Propionibacterium freudenreichii. The bacteriocin has a bactericidal activity and is only active against strains of P. freudenreichii. Propionicin F appears to be formed through a processing pathway new to bacteriocins. The mass of the purified bacteriocin was determined by mass spectrometry, and the N-terminal amino acid sequence was determined by Edman degradation. Sequencing of pcfA, the bacteriocin structural gene, revealed that propionicin F corresponds to a 43-amino-acid peptide in the central part of a 255-amino-acid open reading frame, suggesting that mature propionicin F is excised from the probacteriocin by N- and C-terminal proteolytic modifications. DNA sequencing and Northern blot hybridizations revealed that pcfA is cotranscribed with genes encoding a putative proline peptidase and a protein from the radical S-adenosylmethionine family. A gene encoding an ABC transporter was also identified in close proximity to the bacteriocin structural gene. The potential role of these genes in propionicin F maturation and secretion is discussed.
Brede
Dag Anders
DA
Department of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science, Agricultural University of Norway, P.O. Box 5003, N-1432 As, Norway. dag.anders.brede@ikbm.nlh.no
Faye
Therese
T
Johnsborg
Ola
O
Odegård
Inger
I
Nes
Ingolf F
IF
Holo
Helge
H
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D001430:Bacteriocins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D001483:Base Sequence; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011424:Propionibacterium / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D001430:Bacteriocins