title: Phosphorylation of DegU is essential for activation of amyE expression in Bacillus subtilis.
abstract: Alpha-amylase (amyE) is one of the major exo-enzymes secreted by Bacillus subtilis during the post-exponential phase. The DegS-DegU two-component system regulates expression of majority of post-exponentially expressed genes in B. subtilis. It has been demonstrated that varying levels of the phosphorylated form of DegU (DegU-P) control different cellular processes. Exo-protease production is observed when effective concentration of DegU-P rises in the cell, whereas swarming motility is favoured at very low amounts of DegU-P. In this study we show that like other exo-proteases, expression of amyE is positively regulated by increase in DegU-P levels in the cell. We also demonstrate that residues at the DNA-binding helix-turn-helix (HTH) motif of DegU are necessary for the amyE expression. This observation is further reinforced by demonstrating the direct interaction of DegU on amyE promoter.
authors.affiliation: Gene Regulation Lab, Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay,Powai, Mumbai 400 076, India, monica.gupta@health.ny.gov.
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.forename: K Krishnamurthy
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Rao
mesh_terms: D020816:Amino Acid Motifs; D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D001483:Base Sequence; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D000516:alpha-Amylases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; C066497:DegU protein, Bacteria; D000516:alpha-Amylases