title: Adenosine monophosphate affects competence development and plasmid DNA transformation in Escherichia coli.
abstract: Artificial plasmid DNA transformation of Escherichia coli induced by calcium chloride is a routine technique in molecular biology and genetic engineering processes, but its mechanism has remained elusive. Because adenosine monophosphate (AMP) has been found to regulate natural transformation in Haemophilus influenza, we aimed to investigate the effects of AMP and its derivatives on E. coli transformation by treating competence with different concentrations of them. Analysis of the transformation efficiencies revealed that AMP inhibited the artificial plasmid DNA transformation of E. coli in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. Furthermore, we found that AMP had no effect on the expression of the transformed gene but that the intracellular AMP level of the competent cells rose after a 6 h treatment. These results suggested that the intracellular AMP level had an important role in E. coli transformation. And these have useful implications for the further investigation of the mechanism of E. coli transformation.
authors.affiliation: College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430072, People's Republic of China, yykitty_888@whu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Wenhua
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Liming
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Zhixiong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Xie
mesh_terms: D000249:Adenosine Monophosphate / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002122:Calcium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics*; D005110:Extracellular Space / Q000378:metabolism; D015870:Gene Expression; D042541:Intracellular Space / Q000378:metabolism; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics*; D013997:Time Factors; D014169:Transformation, Bacterial / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000249:Adenosine Monophosphate; D002122:Calcium Chloride