title: FurA influences heterocyst differentiation in Anabaena sp. PCC 7120.
abstract: In Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, FurA is a global transcriptional regulator whose expression is strongly induced by NtcA in proheterocysts and remains stably expressed in mature heterocysts. In the present study, overexpression of furA partially suppressed heterocyst differentiation by impairing morphogenesis at an early stage. Recombinant purified FurA specifically bound in vitro to the promoter regions of ntcA, while quantitative RT-PCR analyses indicated that furA overexpression strongly affected the transient increase of ntcA expression that occurs shortly after nitrogen step-down. Overall, the results suggest a connection between iron homeostasis and heterocyst differentiation via FurA, by modulating the expression of ntcA.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular y Celular, Universidad de Zaragoza, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Andrés
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: González
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Valladares
authors.forename: M Luisa
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Peleato
authors.forename: María F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Fillat
mesh_terms: D017033:Anabaena / Q000166:cytology*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D003850:Deoxyribonuclease I / Q000378:metabolism; D003851:Deoxyribonucleases / Q000737:chemistry; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D006706:Homeostasis; D007501:Iron / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C067403:HetR protein, Bacteria; D007501:Iron; D003851:Deoxyribonucleases; D003850:Deoxyribonuclease I
keywords: 2-OG; 2-oxoglutarate; Anabaena; CAP; Chl; DTT; EMSA; Ferric uptake regulator; Fur; Heterocyst differentiation; catabolite activator protein; chlorophyll a; dithiothreitol; electrophoretic mobility shift assays; ferric uptake regulator; hep; heterocyst envelope polysaccharide; microEinstein; nif; nitrogen fixation; nt; nucleotides; qRT-PCR; quantitative reverse transcription PCR; transcriptional start point; tsp; μE