Functional analysis of the stability determinant AlfB of pBET131, a miniplasmid derivative of bacillus subtilis (natto) plasmid pLS32.

ABSTRACT: Bacillus subtilis plasmid pBET131 is a derivative of pLS32, which was isolated from a natto strain of Bacillus subtilis. The DNA region in pBET131 that confers segregational stability contains an operon consisting of three genes, of which alfA, encoding an actin-like ATPase, and alfB are essential for plasmid stability. In this work, the alfB gene product and its target DNA region were studied in detail. Transcription of the alf operon initiated from a sigma(A)-type promoter was repressed by the alfB gene product. Overproduction of AlfA was inhibitory to cell growth, suggesting that the repression of the alf operon by AlfB is important for maintaining appropriate levels of AlfA. An electrophoretic mobility shift assay and footprinting analysis with purified His-tagged AlfB showed that it b

SUBMITTER: Tanaka T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2820838 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature