A Novel Prophage-like Insertion Element within yabG Triggers Early Entry into Sporulation in Clostridium botulinum.

ABSTRACT: Sporulation is a finely regulated morphogenetic program important in the ecology and epidemiology of Clostridium botulinum. Exogenous elements disrupting sporulation-associated genes contribute to sporulation regulation and introduce diversity in the generally conserved sporulation programs of endospore formers. We identified a novel prophage-like DNA segment, termed the yin element, inserted within yabG, encoding a sporulation-specific cysteine protease, in an environmental isolate of C. botulinum. Bioinformatic analysis revealed that the genetic structure of the yin element resembles previously reported mobile intervening elements associated with sporulation genes. Within a pure C. botulinum culture, we observed two subpopulations of cells with t

SUBMITTER: Douillard FP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10747680 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature