Bases of biocontrol: sequence predicts synthesis and mode of action of agrocin 84, the Trojan horse antibiotic that controls crown gall.

ABSTRACT: Agrobacterium radiobacter K84, used worldwide to biocontrol crown gall disease caused by Agrobacterium tumefaciens, produces an antiagrobacterial compound called agrocin 84. We report the nucleotide sequence of pAgK84, a 44.42-kb plasmid coding for production of this disubstituted adenine nucleotide antibiotic. pAgK84 encodes 36 ORFs, 17 of which (agn) code for synthesis of or immunity to agrocin 84. Two genes, agnB2 and agnA, encode aminoacyl tRNA synthetase homologues. We have shown that the toxic moiety of agrocin 84 inhibits cellular leucyl-tRNA synthetases and AgnB2, which confers immunity to the antibiotic, is a resistant form of this enzyme. AgnA, a truncated homologue of asparaginyl tRNA synthetase could catalyze the phosphoramidate bond between a precursor of the methyl pentanamid

SUBMITTER: Kim JG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1482666 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature