Investigation of a Quadruplex-Forming Repeat Sequence Highly Enriched in Xanthomonas and Nostoc sp.

ABSTRACT: In prokaryotes simple sequence repeats (SSRs) with unit sizes of 1-5 nucleotides (nt) are causative for phase and antigenic variation. Although an increased abundance of heptameric repeats was noticed in bacteria, reports about SSRs of 6-9 nt are rare. In particular G-rich repeat sequences with the propensity to fold into G-quadruplex (G4) structures have received little attention. In silico analysis of prokaryotic genomes show putative G4 forming sequences to be abundant. This report focuses on a surprisingly enriched G-rich repeat of the type GGGNATC in Xanthomonas and cyanobacteria such as Nostoc. We studied in detail the genomes of Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris ATCC 33913 (Xcc), Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri str. 306 (Xac), and Nostoc sp. strain PCC7120 (Ana). In all three o

SUBMITTER: Rehm C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4692102 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature