Phenotypic Assessment Suggests Multiple Start Codons for HetN, an Inhibitor of Heterocyst Differentiation, in Anabaena sp. Strain PCC 7120.

ABSTRACT: Multicellular organisms must carefully regulate the timing, number, and location of specialized cellular development. In the filamentous cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120, nitrogen-fixing heterocysts are interspersed between vegetative cells in a periodic pattern to achieve an optimal exchange of bioavailable nitrogen and reduced carbon. The spacing between heterocysts is regulated by the activity of two developmental inhibitors, PatS and HetN. PatS functions to create a de novo pattern from a homogenous field of undifferentiated cells, while HetN maintains the pattern throughout subsequent growth. Both PatS and HetN harbor the peptide motif ERGSGR, which is sufficient to inhibit development. While the small size of PatS makes the interpretation of inhibitory domains relatively s

SUBMITTER: Rivers OS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6060353 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature