title: DNA methylation and mutator genes in Escherichia coli K-12.
abstract: Mutator strains of Escherichia coli have been used to define mechanisms that account for the high fidelity of chromosome duplication and chromosome stability. Mutant strains defective in post-replicative mismatch repair display a strong mutator phenotype consistent with a role for correction of mismatches arising from replication errors. Inactivation of the gene (dam) encoding DNA adenine methyltransferase results in a mutator phenotype consistent with a role for DNA methylation in strand discrimination during mismatch repair. This review gives a personal perspective on the discovery of dam mutants in E. coli and their relationship to mismatch repair and mutator phenotypes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 Lake Avenue North, Worcester, MA 01655, USA. Electronic address: martin.marinus@umassmed.edu.
authors.forename: Martin G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Marinus
mesh_terms: D019175:DNA Methylation; D053843:DNA Mismatch Repair; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000378:metabolism*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics*; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D008769:Methylnitronitrosoguanidine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009154:Mutation; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D015265:Site-Specific DNA-Methyltransferase (Adenine-Specific) / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D008769:Methylnitronitrosoguanidine; D015265:Site-Specific DNA-Methyltransferase (Adenine-Specific)
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