Unusual regulation of a leaderless operon involved in the catabolism of dimethylsulfoniopropionate in Rhodobacter sphaeroides.
Rhodobacter sphaeroides strain 2.4.1 is a widely studied bacterium that has recently been shown to cleave the abundant marine anti-stress molecule dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) into acrylate plus gaseous dimethyl sulfide. It does so by using a lyase encoded by dddL, the promoter-distal gene of a three-gene operon, acuR-acuI-dddL. Transcription of the operon was enhanced when cells were pre-grown with the substrate DMSP, but this induction is indirect, and requires the conversion of DMSP to the product acrylate, the bona fide co-inducer. This regulation is mediated by the product of the promoter-proximal gene acuR, a transcriptional regulator in the TetR family. AcuR represses the operon in the absence of acrylate, but this is relieved by the presence of the co-inducer. Another unusual regulatory feature is that the acuR-acuI-dddL mRNA transcript is leaderless, such that acuR lacks a Shine-Dalgarno ribosomal binding site and 5'-UTR, and is translated at a lower level compared to the downstream genes. This regulatory unit may be quite widespread in bacteria, since several other taxonomically diverse lineages have adjacent acuR-like and acuI-like genes; these operons also have no 5' leader sequences or ribosomal binding sites and their predicted cis-acting regulatory sequences resemble those of R. sphaeroides acuR-acuI-dddL.
School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, United Kingdom.
Matthew J
MJ
Sullivan
Andrew R J
AR
Curson
Neil
N
Shearer
Jonathan D
JD
Todd
Robert T
RT
Green
Andrew W B
AW
Johnston
D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D008660:Metabolism; D009876:Operon / Q000235:genetics*; D012242:Rhodobacter sphaeroides / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D013440:Sulfides; D013452:Sulfonium Compounds / Q000378:metabolism*; D014157:Transcription Factors; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D013440:Sulfides; D013452:Sulfonium Compounds; D014157:Transcription Factors; C068078:dimethylpropiothetin; C004784:dimethyl sulfide
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